bath time in the tropics

mistral's pamplemousse has to singlehandedly be the most authentic yellow grapefruit scent that is out there on the market.

this soap has always brought us to our knees in a grapefruit swoon and made us ask "is it time for a bath/shower? wait, did i even bath/shower today? perhaps not, so i better go now. and i'll be taking this bar of mistral pamplemousse soap with me!"

weighing in at a whopping 7 ounces/200 grams (not .7 ounces but let us repeat, SEVEN ounces. whew), this giant bar is scent-a-rrific with the likes of the aforementioned yellow grapefruit, red currants, white jasmine and freesia plus it's filled with the ultra skin moisturizing goodness of shea butter. each bar is handcrafted and triple milled in Provence, France. pamplemousse is tart, tangy bathing awesomeness in a bar.

also available as a hand soap, body lotion and body scrub. ahhhh. delicious bath heaven.

pamplemousse AKA grapefruit soap by mistral, $8 for a 7 ounce/200 grams bar. or shall we say chunk? available online, via http://www.mistralsoaps.com/ and specialty bath shops throughout the country - just punch in your zip code in their boutique locator to find a retailer near you.

cover your tracks

"cover your tracks" a dreamy, floaty, synth-y pop-esque song layered with jamaican steel drums and low thumping beats by montreal quartet, young galaxy.

from their hot-off-the-presses new album, shapeshifting, released this past february is full of complex, textured tracks that will make you swoon, but "cover your tracks" is the one that especially gets us here at longweekendstyle and has been repeatedly on repeat all week.

expertly and lithely produced by Dan Lissvik of duo Studio in Sweden, the band only heard the completed album some 9 months after Dan had initially received it and via the computer at that. technology has really changed the face of music production. the result is shapeshifting, young galaxy's music rethought and reshaped by Dan Lissvik and each track is absolutely, totally, completely, amazingingly ethereally beautiful and massively layered.

give your ears a present today and give "cover your tracks" a listen here:

www.youtube.com/watch?=MjoafRIMaRA

or treat yourself (because you know you want to!) and just buy the entire album, shapeshifting by young galaxy, available on iTunes or www.amazon.com. you can also check out their website, www.younggalaxy.com but be aware, it appears that several sections are still under construction but on the upside, you do get to listen to streaming young galaxy!

tokyo milk giftbox

one of the LWS staffers here recently had a birthday and her hubby got her a box full of tokyo milk yumminess in #12 gin and rosewater. and as promised, we snapped a few pics of the gorgeous tokyo milk giftbox for you to check out.

the giftbox was astoundingly beautiful - an undyed cardboard box adorned with international "stamps", waxed red cotton cord and a card with a cute trio of buttons featuring a roller skate, a crown and a sprig of cherries.

inside, nestled amongst wood shavings - a bottle of bon-bon shower gel, a bottle of perfume and a candle. all in that delicious #12 gin and rosewater from tokyo milk.

way to go Hubs and tokyo milk! the amazing and lovely presentation was half the fun of this gift!

jam on it - All Spice Cafe introduces JolokiBerry Jam

jam on it, jam on it, j-j-j-j-jam on it!

the folks over at All Spice Cafe have struck with another fiery hotness lightning bolt AGAIN - this time with a jam filled with the spicy goodness of the . . . "Ghost" Pepper.

the first jam on their roster of already stellar hot sauces, All Spice Cafe proudly and yummily introduces Jolokiberry Jam - a tantalizing just-right marriage of the strawberry with the famed Bhut Jolokia Pepper, AKA the "Ghost" Pepper. with a little balsamic vinegar thrown in to really get things going.

fresh, sweet strawberry jam goodness finishes with the heat of the "Ghost" Pepper and can be modified by adding more or less jam to whatever food item you happen to be loading up that particular moment.

the LWS staff tried english muffins with the All Spice Cafe JolokiBerry Jam and after experiencing the first bite, we could not get the toaster to toast our english muffins fast enough. so so unbelieveably good. with a pat of butter (we go all out here longweekendstylers, no margarine for these palates) and a not-too-heaping spoonful of JolokiBerry Jam spread evenly atop a freshly toasted muffin is sheer heaven. english muffins will never ever be the same in our opinion.

next, we made PB and J sammies substiting the usual Smuckers grape jelly with All Spice Cafe JolokiBerry Jam and made the tried-and-true lunchtime fav a spicy standout that is best paired with a tall, cold glass of milk. not for the faint-of-tastebuds but oh-so amazing! again, the hot factor can be modified to your personal hotness level by piling on more or less jam. or more peanut butter to combat the heat if you want to go that way.

so, we have secured puff pastry, some ricotta cheese and of course more All Spice Cafe JolokiBerry Jam for our next culinary experiment. we'll let you know how that one turns out and try to take pictures of the finished project before all efforts go into the bellies of the longweekendstyle staff.

All Spice Cafe JolokiBerry Jam is available online at the All Spice Cafe website: www.allspicecafe.com/pages/jolokiberry.html and is currently only available at a few, select locations in the los angeles area (1. surfa's chef's paradise and 2. the conservatory for coffee, tea and cocoa - both located in culver city, california). hopefully jam representation will hopefully expand once the hot, spicy populace gets a taste of the deliciousness that's in the jar and starts requesting it be on their local store's shelves.

$8.99 for a 8.5 oz jar of All Spice Cafe JolokiBerry Jam.

get some! your tastebuds will thank you. profusely.

ch-ch-ch-ch-cherry bomb! the lipgloss

athens, greece based beauty powerhouse, korres

boasts this credo: natural formulations. maximum results. and longweekendstyle likey this very very much.

korres, responsibly launched in 1996 has vowed NOT to use the following in any of their products:

- mineral oils

- silicone

- propylene glycol

- ethanolamines

- synthetics

which, as everyone knows the aforementioned ingredients are bad bad bad for not only the user but the planet as well.

korres continues to develop awesome beauty products with an eye towards environment friendly practices while providing a line that will make skin happy happy happy.

we are loving us some korres cherry oil lip gloss which drenches parched lips with all matter of moisture and gives the gloss it's staying power ooomph. jojoba oil further ups the hydration factor and vitamins C and E work their magic as lip repair agents and battle free radical damage. the cherry scent is cheery, cherry too but not overly so. the gloss imparts a very delectable shine to your kisser yet does not feel sticky, icky or heavy. plus it being made of all natural ingredients, it won't do you damage should you ingest it, which inevitably, happens with all lip products out there.

we love the #33 nude which sets the scene, bestowing you with very catherine-deneuve-belle-du-jour lips that beckon the XY of the species to come just a little closer, darling. #11, a light pink is supa dupa wearable for all skin tones and a perf color for everyday. #25 is named light purple but is really a darker shade of another great-for-all-skin-tones pink. for a little more "punch", try #27 plum - deep, dark and rich color abounds with a single swipe.

korres cherry oil lip gloss $17 for a .20 fl oz tube. available at retailers like sephora or check out the korres online shop: www.korresusa.com. 3 free samples with every order and free shipping with any order over $50 through the korres webshop.

pucker up buttercup!

wish you were here . . .

it appears that shower gels have eclipsed old school soaps in popularity among the bathing populace these days and the nectar agave body from thymes wash could very well be one of the reasons

that there has been a downturn in bar soap loyalty.

this delicious, wish-your-nose-could-live-in-here, agave nectar body wash from the thymes people transports you to a tropical paradise far, far away from the everyday humdrum doldrums.

the agave nectar body wash also lathers up quite nicely, providing luxuriously decadent bubbles when combined with those japanese mesh bath sponges or cloths, leaving behind the perfect trace of a scented island oasis on one's epidermis. thymes agave nectar is also non drying - very important when everyone's got the heater on full blast to keep the season's cold weather at bay.

and the thymes people have, in the eternal words of madness - the 80's british ska band, gone one step beyond and have an entire bounty of nectar agave products to fulfill every bathing need or scent emergency that may crop up - candles, room spray, hand lotion, kitchen soap and more.

so bring home the goodness, check out all the agave nectar offerings here: www.thymes.com/Collection.aspx?nodeid=67177

music to make love to you old lady (or old man, your choice) by

first new music mix of the new year and we're targeting valentine's day a little early this year.

and to make sure you and yours are in the appropriate, optimal "gettin' it" mood, may we offer up our latest playlist on 8tracks: "music to make love to your old lady by"

with mood enhancing music by lovage, faithless, catherine wheel, art of noise and lamb will help set those black satin sheets on fire with a hot,lusty passion that's never been witnessed, or repeated, ever again.

www.8tracks.com/longweekendstyle/longweekendstyle-music-to-make-love-to-your-old-lady-by

so dim all the lights, draw the shades, light a few candles and get ready to make love to your favorite person in the world.