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Photo via Flamingo Estate
The mornings are brisk, the evenings are chilly… and that can only mean one thing. Candle! Season! Is! Here! In this week’s newsletter, we’ve got everything you need to keep calm and candle on, like The New Savant founder Ingrid Nilsen sharing her 3 Good Things, and short reviews of a few luxury candles we tested. Oh, and did we mention there’s an extra special giveaway of all the candles mentioned? It’s a packed issue, so let’s get to it. —GNI Editors
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This Week's Picks
- A new novel about childhood friendship: Best of Friends by Kamila Shamsie tells the story about two Pakistani women, first when they are 14 and then when they are 40. It makes you think: At what point does the fact that you’ve been friends for so long supersede the fact that you are very different people with very different values?
- Speaking of books: Bad Vibes Only (And Other Things I Bring to the Table) by Nora McInerny, host of the podcast Terrible, Thanks for Asking, is out this week. We love this blurb about the book: “Bad Vibes Only is for the people who have taken that dictum a bit too far—the overthinkers, the analyzers, the recovering Girl Bosses, and the burned-out personal brand—reminding us that a life worth living is about more than just ‘good vibes.’”
- Never had a vibrator? Let us put you on to Dip, the perfect-for-beginners vibe that’s whisper-quiet, has five intensities, and can be used externally or internally. Take 15% off your first order with code GNI. *Sponsor
- A salad dressing that’s basically drinkable: This miso sesame vinaigrette is what all your fall squashes are asking for.
- The superhero-meets-silly-legal-drama TV show we didn’t know we needed: Anyone else watching She-Hulk on Disney+? We love for 3 reasons: The extremely self-aware 4th wall breakages, the deliberately low-stakes drama that is uncharacteristic for a Marvel show, and the amazing tertiary characters like Madisynn aka Wongers’ bestie (just watch it, that’s episode 4 specifically).
- Christmas has come early this year: Lindsay Lohan? In a cheesy Netflix holiday movie? IN.
- Something better than saying “take care of yourself”: Do someone’s laundry. Drop off food. Lots more advice for how to show up for someone in crisis who doesn’t have the time or the energy to ask for what they need. [via The Ann Friedman Weekly]
- If only! Passport books, but for public libraries.
- For all of you going apple picking: A podcast on why apples legit taste better than they used to.
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This week's Sponsor: 
Meet Dip: A just-launched $49 (!) vibrator that does it all..
She’s here! Just launched this week, Dip is Dame’s most intuitive and approachable vibe yet— perfect for a beginner, or for someone rediscovering what feels good. Dip is simple, portable, and will be your new go-to vibe that gets the job done.
There’s no need to overthink your me-time: Dip is SO simple to use: it’s got one button that controls five intensity settings so you can start slow and work your way up. It can also be used internally or externally, so you can figure out what feels best. Plus, it’s got all the markings of a quality Dame product, made with medical-grade silicone, and it’s whisper-quiet, too.
Dip is just $49 and comes in a perky periwinkle and a deep plum that we’ve got our eyes on.
Just for GNI readers: Take 15% off your first order with code GNI.
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3 Good Things with Ingrid Nilsen, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of THE NEW SAVANT
3 Good Things is a series where people we like recommend things they think are worth trying.
Friend-of-the-newsletter Ingrid Nilsen is a creative force. After hanging up her boots as a top YouTube creator in June 2020, she co-founded THE NEW SAVANT, a fragrance-forward candle studio based in Brooklyn, New York. At TNS, Ingrid designs the *best* original fragrances (like mixing sea salt, lavender, and rose petal notes) and brings them to life by hand-pouring the candles herself. Ingrid always knows about the best stuff, whether that’s a beauty pick, fashion find, or a good book – so we tapped her to share what 3 things she’s really loving and recommending right now. Enjoy her picks, below!
- Start believing in your sense of smell
Smell is one of our most powerful senses but it’s usually the one we think about the least. One of my favorite ways to bring myself into the present moment is to consciously tune into what I’m smelling, wherever I happen to be. I might be on a walk and know someone in the neighborhood is enjoying their fireplace because I can smell the smoke. Maybe I’ll stop at a cafe on a whim because I smell baking aromas wafting from the space. We take over 20,000 breaths a day, which means we’re constantly taking in the smell of our environments. Smell is transient and challenges us to be in that moment. So don’t believe the rumor that humans have a terrible sense of smell – we don’t, we’re just not paying attention to it most of the time.
- Take a step (or two) back from the mirror
My friend, Olena Beley is a skincare coach who has a no-BS approach to skin health. Her advice has helped me immensely – I’m spending way less money on skincare, saving time, and clearing up a lot of mental space that used to be occupied by obsessively thinking about my skin and how I looked. My skin is also the BEST it has ever been! One piece of advice from her that has made a huge shift for me: keep a sink’s distance between you and the mirror. Meaning, don’t look at yourself in an unrealistic, super zoomed-in way. Take a step back and see yourself as others see you, which is usually about a sink’s distance or more away. This small, simple idea put into regular practice has helped me be less critical of myself and allows me to direct my focus toward the work I want to be doing in the world.
- Worth the splurge
I love fancy coffee and I want it every day. My wallet, however, does not. Enter my search for the perfect fancy coffee machine. My priorities were: something that made delicious drinks, something that looked nice without taking up too much counter space, and something that I could operate at the press of a button. The Terra Kaffe checked all these boxes and more. The beans are ground fresh for every cup and I can make everything from a shot of espresso to cappuccinos and lattes – it even froths and dispenses the milk of your choice automatically! There’s also a hot plate on top that keeps your mugs warm. Oh, and it’s so aesthetically pleasing, the MoMA Design store is a stockist. The Terra Kaffe is definitely a splurge purchase, but very reasonably priced for its category, and for my household, it has been worth it. We’ve had it for about 9 months now and not only has it drastically reduced the amount of takeaway coffee we buy, but it has also already paid for itself.
You can follow Ingrid on Instagram at @ingridnilsen and/or @thenewsavant.
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Reader, I Tried Them: Some Really Fancy Candles
Some might call me a candle connoisseur. A collector of candles. Over the years, I’ve purchased one too many candles that we’ve run out of space/storage for in our home, so now they’re kinda just strewn about everywhere. As a certified homebody and scent lover, I can’t get enough of candles–they’re the perfect way to instantly transform the vibe to one that’s cozy, and transport you to another mindset.
In my many years of loving candles though, I’ve yet to really dig deep into the world of luxury candles. The ones that cost too much to justify as a regular purchase. The ones that feel almost too precious to burn. Given this, I decided to put on my research hat and ask a simple question: were these luxury candles worth their steep cost? Why shell out nearly a hundred big ones for a scent I can get from some of my favorite, fairly-priced mainstays (shoutout to The New Savant, Maison Louis Marie, KEAP, and Brooklyn Candle Studio)?
In the end, I purchased 4 fancy candles and performed a 3-week burn test to see how they did across factors like scent complexity, scent throw, vessel, and packaging. Below are my non-scientific findings. Burn on, friends! —Alisha Ramos
Hotel Lobby (in scent: Miami). $56 for 9.75oz or $5.74 per oz
Pluses: The scent throw (i.e. how well the scent permeates the room) on this is fantastic and will really envelop the whole room. The scent profile does remind me of a Miami hotel I’ve stayed at, which entices me to try the full collection. It smells expensive. Besides scent, the ribbon-tied packaging makes this a great gifting option.
Room for improvement: While the shipment packaging was fancy (a thick, soft close box), I could see improvements being made to the vessel itself. The texture of the front sticker, for example, felt plain and cheap for the price of the candle.
Overall rating: B+, a good value for the price.
Jenni Kayne (in scent: Topanga). $65 for 10z. or $6.50 per oz
Pluses: The scent I chose felt familiar yet complex in all the right ways - a mix of warmth and freshness, and is the standout for this candle. The scent throw was great but not as permeating as Hotel Lobby. The beautifully minimal vessel pays attention to the details (like the textured cotton of the front sticker).
Room for improvement: The price point is the only thing. Wish it were a few dozen cents less per ounce.
Overall rating: A-, she’s pricey but she knows she’s worth it.
Flamingo Estate (in scent: Roma Heirloom Tomato). $82 for 13oz. or $6.31 per oz
Pluses: SCENT SCENT SCENT. Hands down, this candle’s scent is among the most unique I’ve ever found. It sounds gross until you burn it. The stunning, thick green glass vessel perfectly pairs with the herbaceous and vegetal scent. Another plus: the brand’s sustainable practices and use of recycled products.
Room for improvement: Really, the main issue here is that you’ll want to burn this candle all day, every day. Which is what I did. *money with wings emoji*
Overall rating: A+, unique and fresh scent profiles mixed with sustainably-minded practices and packaging.
Byredo (in scent: Tree House). $45 for 70g (2.5 oz) or $18 per oz
Pluses: Byredo has strong brand awareness and equity, so…you’ll *feel* fancy burning their candles, and they smell good. But…
Room for improvement: The scent throw was not great, and the candle burned unevenly. Most of all, the scent itself was too familiar – I feel I could easily find the same scent from a lesser-priced brand. And that *steep* price tag!
Overall rating: B- |
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Giveaway: Win a Bundle of Fancy Candles!
We’re giving away our favorite candles from the review - the Jenni Kayne and Flamingo Estate - *PLUS* the perfect candle to celebrate the spooky-witchy vibes of October, Witching Hour by The New Savant to one lucky winner. (Total Prize Value: $185.)
Enter the giveaway right here. Refer a friend to the newsletter to gain an extra entry (just copy, paste, and share your unique referral link: https://sparklp.co/2bd325dd. Ends 10/18.)
P.S. Congrats to our winner of last week’s giveaway, Kate S!
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This newsletter contains affiliate links, which means when you buy through the link, we might get a cut. We only recommend products we believe in or are thinking about a lot. Sponsored content is clearly marked as "Sponsor." Thank you so much for your support!
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