S'well Bottle and Tumbler - worth the hype?

Am I a child? Yes, yes I am

Nothing makes me more skeptical than an absolutely ridiculous amount of hype surrounding what is a basic ass product. I'm more likely to wonder if it's just groupthink or meticulous branding (see: Glossier, Away) versus the item actually being extraordinary. For this reason, I've never really put the S'well bottle I've owned for four years to much use, thinking it was just a pretty but kind of heavy reusable bottle and grumbling about not being able to toss it (it was a farewell gift from a previous boss). Until recently, when I put some cold water in it before going out to swelter, then left it in my bag till the next day, and lo and behold, the water was as chilly as it was the day before! And then I started bringing hot tea around and it stayed hot! And it has never leaked! And it really does look quite good!

So I'll eat my words. I can't imagine a scenario where it will break, but I will absolutely plonk down another $35 to replace it if it happens.

(I'm aware that all the things I described are just basic functions of a thermos, but most thermoses I've owned don't look that nice, or features a detachable lid that leaks even if they say it won't, or keeps drinks colder/warmer for less time than advertised, which is why my threshold for wonder is so low at this point.)

Buoyed by the promise of the S'well Bottle, I purchased the 18oz Tumbler for at-home use. Reviewers claimed that it still manages to keep beverages hot/cold longer even without the lid, and I'm like what kind of magic is going on?! The Tumbler is essentially a tall cup made with the same materials — Therma-S'well technology, triple-walled yada yada — but I imagined the exposed water would still be subject to the law of thermodynamics. So I left a cup of icy cold water out overnight and drank it the next day. It was still cold.

Granted, it wasn't as cold as it would have been in the Bottle, but beverages in an open cup are usually consumed in a few hours anyway. For that particular use case, mind is blown. Water has frankly never been as delicious.

I own two Bottles and two Tumblers. The Tumblers and one of the Bottles are from the Shimmer collection and the other Bottle is from the Stone (not pictured because it's holding cold brew in my boyfriend's bag). The products in the Stone collection have a rough, sandpapery texture, and we do worry that it might be prone to scratching — either the bottle itself or the stuff that comes in contact with the bottle. If you do decide to get one, that might be something you want to take into consideration.

S'well bottles can be procured from:
S'well — $35 for a standard 17oz Bottle, $30 for 18oz Tumbler
Amazon — you can get them here for less but make sure they're genuine
Nordstrom — there's an anniversary sale version going for $23 right now!

It's The Little Things

After procuring this candle, it took me one week before I tore the plastic wrapping off the box, and another before I took the candle out of its cardboard house and placed it by my bedside. Part of it was because I didn't want to mar the smooth pink surface and dirty the pristine white wick, but another part of me was like, Seriously? You spent $65 on scented wax?

I have finally lit the candle, and perhaps due to overblown expectations, I was not impressed by Diptyque Rosa Mundi. Once during a sample sale, I managed to snag a mini trio that consisted of Opopanax, Feu de Bois, and Oliban. When I burned those, the fragrance filled my entire room, while Rosamundi barely hits my nostrils a few feet away. When I do smell her, it's a pleasantly sweet, powdery rose.

But on days like today, after a loooong day at work, I look at the candles by my bedside – and this may be a little silly, because they are just candles, but each one holds a different meaning to me – and I'm glad I'm able to light this pretty little candle after all. Sometimes we do things that don't make sense because they make us happy, right?

How to have a crackling fireplace in an NYC apartment

via Instagram

When I was young, I eagerly awaited the arrival of Mid-Autumn Festival every year – not because I wanted to hang up pretty paper lanterns, but because my mother would allow me to gather the dried twigs and leaves in my backyard and create mini campfires out of them. Even though Malaysia is a tropical country (average temperature is 32C/90F), I fantasized about bonfires and fireplaces and making s'mores. Now, as an adult in an actual cold country, I still become giddy when I hear the crackling of burning logs.

So how could it be that I only recently found out that wooden candle wicks are a thing? I was fortunate to be gifted an Alex and Ani Four Leaf Clover Large Candle, but I barely noticed the pleasant scent (notes of juniper, fig, and moss) when it was lit because I was too busy cooing at the soothing crackle.

This revelation has changed my whole approach to candles. I can have a mini fireplace in my bedroom! Why have it any other way? (Alright, who am I kidding? I will forever still want those Diptyques.)

via Gilt

A chance tweet alerted me to DayNa Decker (apparently a purveyor of candles with wooden wicks) candles on Gilt. And then I realized that Gilt actually has tons of candles on sale. I went a little crazy on the "Add to Cart" after that...