Michaels Ashland Wax Melts Reviews - Spring 2019
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Apple & Hibiscus
Notes: Apple, Pear, Seneca Grass, Lavender, Plum, Spearmint, Amber, Oakmoss, Balsam, Tonka Bean, and Sandalwood
This scent returned from last year. It smells like caramel apples with a fresh slightly floral note. It smells almost exactly like last year's scent, but last year's scent was fresher and smelled more like apple scented shampoo. This year's scent has a little bit more of a foodie quality. But the differences are barely noticeable, and both scents are fantastic. Throw was the same for this year's scent and last year's.
Throw: Strong, 3.75 out of 5
Camellia & Sweetpea
Notes (from last year): Pear, Bergamot, Melon, Rose, Geranium, Violet, Vanilla, Amber, Patchouli, Benzion, and Cedarwood
This is the same scent as last year's Camellia & Sweet Pea, which I adore. It's a sweet perfumey cherry blossom type scent with baby powder, rose, and maybe vanilla, as well as a little bit of warmth from amber or cashmere, and possibly a smidgen of patchouli. Looking at last year's note, I think I do detect a smidgen of melon. A fantastic, complex scent! The throw from last year's scent was bold, 5 out of 5, and the scent lasted all day.
Throw: Medium, 3.25 out of 5
Coastal Driftwood
I barely smell anything on cold sniff. It's a fresh perfumey scent with maybe a hint of vanilla, but it's too mild to tell.
Throw: Very faint, 1.5 out of 5
Farmhouse Flower
This smells like a combination of floral with pineapple and apricot, and possibly a smidgen of coconut. It's more of a tropical scent than a floral scent, but even though I'm not a fan of pineapple scents, I like this one because the pineapple is very subtle, it's quite sweet, and the perfumey note has a tiny bit of an amber like warmth.
Throw: Faint, 2 out of 5
Fresh Gardenia
A lovely gardenia scent that smells more like gardenia perfume, although it's not overly sweet because of a smidgen of bitterness that makes it smell slightly authentic. This scent lasted all day, and I still smelled it the next day even after it was no longer in the warmer. This scent is the clear winner out of the Spring 2019 scents.
Throw: Bold, 5 out of 5
Fresh Bamboo
This smells almost exactly like Sonoma Bamboo from Kohl's, and might in fact be the same scent. Which makes me wonder if the new manufacturer of these melts is Empire Brands (the company that makes Sonoma and Tuscany melts). It's a fantastic rich honeysuckle jasmine scent with a slightly fresh grassy herbal hothouse/greenhouse type note that makes it smell authentic. Although it's sweet, it's not really perfumey. Fantastic scent. Scent started dissipating a bit within 3 hours.
Throw: Strong, 3.75 out of 5
Fresh Water Pearl
This scent has returned from last year, but it's a different scent. It seems like they tried to re-create the scent, but missed a couple of notes.
My description of last year's scent was, "A nice fresh air sweet watery scent with a salty note and a smidgen of a peppery note. It smells like a fresh body wash. Nice scent, smells like a lot of similar fresh ocean water type scents I have, but I really like it. Looking at the notes (Fresh Waters, Citron, Palm Leaves, Grapefruit, Geranium Petals, Rosewater, and Cool Eucalyptus), the peppery note is probably the slight bitterness of the grapefruit and geranium. And I do smell a smidgen of eucalyptus, even though this is a sweet-ish scent."
This year's scent is kind of a fresh air scent with a hint of a peppery note, and also a soapy note and slight bitterness that I didn't detect in last year's scent. It's still a nice scent, but it lacks the depth and character that last year's scent had.
The throw from last year's version was Bold, 5 out of 5. The throw for this year's version is poor, but someone else said they tried this year's version and throw was very strong!
Throw: Poor, 1 out of 5
Lavender
This smells like real lavender, and it's a little sweet although not perfumey. But the sweetness has a fake slightly sour note way in the background, although not enough to be annoying. It's a very nice scent, but I've smelled better lavender scents.
Throw: Mild, 2.5 out of 5
Lilac
Lilac is usually a strong scent, but this one is very weak on cold sniff. It does have a lilac note, but it's not a true lilac scent. There's something else in there that I can't figure out, maybe melon? It's just too weak to tell.
Throw: Very faint, 1.5 out of 5
Sunwashed Teakwood
Notes: Vanilla and Teakwood notes from last year - Sweet Tobacco Leaf, Golden Honey, Madagascar Vanilla, Tonka Bean, Leather, and Cedarwood
This is almost exactly the same scent as last year's Vanilla and Teakwood, and I don't think most people would be able to tell them apart. It's a cedar scent with a hint of a tobacco note, but it's also quite sweet, perfumey or a little cologney, but not floral. The Vanilla and Teakwood scent had a smidgen of something else way in the background that's missing in this scent and that gave it more "character". It's still a very nice scent. The throw for Vanilla and Teakwood was strong, around 3.75 out of 5.
Throw: Mild, 2.5 out of 5
Tulip & Neroli
This is an unusual scent that I've never smelled before. It smells a bit like poinsettia or some other very natural, earthy type flower. I also detect a hint of soft cinnamon, and possibly a smidgen of a fruity note. It's not a sweet perfumey scent. Very difficult to describe, but I kind of like it. Tulips don't actually have a floral scent, and I don't really smell neroli (a rich honeysuckle type orange blossom scent).
Throw: Medium, 3 out of 5
White Tea Rose
This is the same scent as Mandarin Teak from January 2017. My review for that scent was: "Creamy orange with a woodsy note, and some other notes that I can't identify that help to temper the orange and wood notes so that they're not too strong. This might be my favorite scent of the new Spring Collection, and throw is excellent, around a 3.5 or 4 out of 5."
I think the woodsy note is cedar. And it has a hint of a cologne note too. It's a wonderful scent. But it's definitely not rose or even a floral scent! Throw for both this year's and last year's scent was the same.
Throw: Strong, 3.5 out of 5
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