Toula's Home Gift Garden

Anyone who knows me can attest to the fact that I am not a fan of summer and hot weather, especially in the south. With June, however, comes the sweet, fragrant blooms of gardenia in Georgia. I always look forward to this yearly event because of the huge gardenia shrub just outside of my dining-room windows. Every year it becomes almost magically loaded with lovely white blooms seemingly overnight, its branches struggling to not brush the ground due to the sheer volume of flowers. This particular bush reminds me of one my grandmother had in her yard when I was a kid; scents can trigger those kind of childhood memories unlike almost anything else.

The good news is that although the delicate blooms of a gardenia shrub are fleeting (once picked for a vase, they last only a day or so), we here at the store have worked diligently to collect a few products that capture the intoxicating scent.

Mistral, which I have talked about before, makes a luxurious gardenia line of soaps, body lotion, and hand cream. The liquid hand soap is one of my favorites. Seda France has also created a really special gardenia candle that is a favorite among our customers. When burned it allows a sweet yet light aroma to float through your space—really evocative of this early summer flower.

The sad news about gardenias is that come July, the blooms are gone until next year. Luckily we carry these great gardenia-scented items year round! Enjoy your sweet start to summer.

Eric