If you’re not already familiar with Pacifica, here’s a brief primer. Pacifica initially sold mainly fragranced products, but has since branched out into some skincare, a rapidly growing lineup of color cosmetics, as well as nail polishes. They are not only 100% cruelty free, but they are also completely Vegan!!! Quite unusual for a company with fragrance at its core. They are apparently the only entirely recyclable brand on the market too! How amazing is that? In addition to all that amazingness, Pacifica also donates a portion of the proceeds from each item to support clean water. I absolutely love the ethics behind this brand and want to love everything just for that.
So, here’s what I ordered and the scent descriptions from Pacifica’s site: Island Vanilla Reed Diffuser “Inspired by the unique magic of Tahitian Vanilla, this sensual blend sets sweet and sultry Vanilla Absolute, with Honey-Jasmine notes and a touch of Fruitiness, against a deep and beautiful base of Tea.” Hawaiian Ruby Guava Reed Diffuser “Inspired by a surfing trip to Hawaii, this sexy and sultry tropical blend combines sweet, berry-like notes of Guava with a bright, citrusy top note of Pomelo and a warm and subtle Coconut base.” California Star Jasmine Perfume Roll-On “Dreamy, beautiful Star Jasmine is woven into subtle, lush Driftwood notes. Bright Orange shines at the top. Carefree and sun-kissed.” Tibetan Mountain Temple Solid Perfume “Vetiver and Indonesian Patchouli are the base of this tranquil, incense-like blend, while Ginger sits lightly in the middle and Orange provides expansive lift for these distinctive essential oils.” Custom Spray Perfume Gift Set with the following scents: Tuscan Blood Orange Perfume “In this delectable blend, juicy and spicy Blood Orange is offset with subtle Strawberry and Raspberry notes and grounded in fleshy Mandarin and Italian Sweet Orange. An orange connoisseur’s dream.” French Lilac Perfume “Perfumed in a traditional French style, this fresh scent conjures spring with a blend of Lilac, Magnolia Leaves, Heliotrope, Ylang Ylang, Hyacinth, and subtle notes of Nectarine. This is truly the best Lilac ever.” Persian Rose Perfume “Our blend of Bulgarian Rose, subtle Violet, Myrrh and delicate Fruit is a nod to the floral empire of the Persians, the kings of perfume in the 9th century. Spiritual, elegant and classic.” 7 Free Nail Polish in Crystal Orchid 7 Free Nail Polish in Afterglow
Firstly let me say that I’m not really a fragrance person (looks that way from my order, huh?). It’s one of those things that I always forget about and never really want to spend money on. However, I absolutely love things that smell good, so perfumes appeal to me in a strange way. A lot of more easily accessible perfumes are either so strong or so artificial that I end up either feeling suffocated or with a migraine. Pacifica’s scents are quite the opposite. They are quite light and pretty true to nature. Knowing this and because of the beautiful scent descriptions, I obviously ordered a few!
So on to the “mini” reviews. Firstly, the Reed Diffusers. I ordered these because I love having a nice smelling living space, but am a bit terrified by candles. Reed diffusers seem the perfect option. If you don’t know what a reed diffuser is, they are basically bottles of a scented oil that you place reeds into to carry the scent and disperse it throughout a room. I’ve never really used one before, but I’m intrigued. J I am definitely a vanilla kind of girl, so I immediately opened the Island Vanilla (I have the perfume version of each scent and I love them both). My first observation was that it smelled a bit different from the perfume and I didn’t like it quite as much. I set it up, but had to dismantle it shortly after because it was a lot more powerful than I expected! It was really strong. Not in a bad, way, I just needed to move it to a more central location. It definitely works and will easily scent a large area. Now that it's more centrally located, it has a consistent scent that doesn't seem to overpowering any one part of the space. I'm not sure I would recommend this for a smaller area like a bathroom or small apartment. If any of you have ideas about how to maybe tone it down a notch – fewer reeds maybe? – please let us know!
Moving on to the actual fragrances. So many of Pacifica’s perfume descriptions sound incredible to me, but I really have no idea how they will actually smell. I’m not a scent expert, but I know what I like when I smell it! I’m typically not a floral person either, but they’ve grown on me lately. Pacficia’s descriptions make most of their florals sound like beautiful blends with fruits, greenery and sweets. I felt like I would enjoy them, plus I really liked the Custom Spray Perfume Gift Set idea. With the set, you can choose three scents for a smidge more than the price of two separately. Sold! J
I already knew that I loved the Tuscan Blood Orange because I have a sample of the lotion. It is a really complex and delicious orange. Not at all bathroom cleaner-esque. It’s rich and warm with a smidge of spice, while keeping that bright uplifting citrus vibe. It’s quite beautiful, complex, cheery and still somehow simple. I knew that was going into my box!
The French Lilac Perfume smells exactly like fresh lilacs. If I could have remembered what lilacs smelled like when ordering, that would have been helpful. One spray and the smell of fresh lilacs suddenly flooded back to me. It is literally that spot-on! J Though it is a beautiful, light spring-y fresh true lilac fragrance, I’m not sure I will wear it terribly often. I smells really nice, I’m just not sure that it’s me.
The Persian Rose is definitely not your grandmother’s rose. I have grown to like the scent of roses over the years, but it’s not my absolute favorite scent. I definitely prefer them on the light side. This one definitely fits into that category. It is a rather complex scent that is not just rose, though I wouldn’t be able to tell the other notes if I hadn’t read the description. I think I do smell a touch of fruit and something a bit more grounded (probably the Myrrh). It’s pretty, subtle and a modern version of rose. It’s not my all-time favorite scent, but it’s pretty and I do like it.
The California Star Jasmine sounded lovely. Since I had absolutely no idea what to expect, I went for the roll-on. To me, it just smells clean. It actually smells a bit like soap. You know that clean, just washed scent? It reminds me of that. Not what I expected, but I think I like it.
The Tibetan Mountain Temple was the biggest surprise to me. Again, I wasn’t sure I would like it because I’m not a fan of Patchouli and I don’t really love incense. There isn’t a roll-on, so I went with the solid. This is by far my favorite of all the scents and I think I will definitely be ordering a full-size spray! J I’m not sure I smell the description at all. I kind of get the incense reference, but it doesn’t smell like the incense I’m accustomed to. I smell something warm and comforting with a subtle sweetness and a touch of spicy. I think of cardamom and vanilla with maybe a touch of cloves. It is so delicious! Not really a spring/summer kind of scent, but I love it! J
Overall, though I’m not 100% in love with all of the perfume scents, I do like them. They are all very nice scents that smell pretty much similar to what I would have guessed, and they're perfect for spring. I need a change and am way too enthusiastic about spring (hurry up already!), thus all the a-typical florals. J
The two odd-ball 7 Free Nail Polishes are better seen than described. J They’re both gorgeous spring shades…anyone sensing a theme? I received a Pacifica polish in an Ipsy bag (Red Red Wine, which is stunning!) and I was really impressed by the formula, so I felt the need to try out some more shades. The formula didn’t disappoint, at least for Crystal Orchid. It’s quite a thick polish in that it has fantastic coverage with the first coat. It’s wonderful to apply and the handle of the brush is not only pretty, but the nice pattern gives the handle an interesting rubberized-like grip. Definitely great polishes.
Afterglow & Crystal Orchid
That's it for my Haul. Hope You've enjoyed this minor tangent today! If you missed my earlier review of the Perfume in Hawaiian Ruby Guava, check it out here. If you have a favorite Pacifica product, or any suggestions for products I should try (I already have the Roll-On Indian Coconut Nectar, which is also amazing, and the Mexican Cocoa Perfume which is a nice and unusual spicy, sexy scent), please let me know.
