Amber’s Holiday Notes of Light
Candle of the Season — Upland
This year, I return to Upland — where smoke rises like a prayer to the mountains and the strength of family becomes architecture. Juniper berries, piñon pine, wet earth, and cool glacial waters gather in the air like a winter hymn. It’s the candle I light when I want the room to feel protected, intimate, and alive with lineage.
A Glimpse Forward — Reverie
As the year closes, a new flame begins to stir. From the Texas plains — where land softens toward Mexico — comes a scent shaped by guitar strings and dusted boots. Ostrich leather, herbaceous bitters, sumac heat, and the quiet spark of unexpected love. Reverie arrives as a promise in the new year.
3. Winter Wellness Rituals
Discovered at Bellini Spa in Portland: Phytomer’s hydrating serum — mineral-rich and reparative — and Retrouvé’s lip serum, a quiet essential for cold nights when the air thins.
A Holiday Bite
Filet mignon with warm artichoke spread atop crostini — grounding, indulgent, ceremonial.
A Cute Hot Sauce
A playful addition for the table — bold, bright, and a little unexpected.
Ojai Olive Oil
A California staple — sun-soaked, ritual-worthy, and deeply grounding.
Serving Plates — Ginori 1735
Timeless and painterly, setting the tone for ceremonial gatherings.
Books on the Table
The NEZ fragrance volumes — for scent literacy and reverence — paired with Foraged Flora to guide chaparral-inspired winter gatherings.
Libation of the Season
Champagne crowned with pomegranate seeds — celebrating what carried us forward and what quietly awaits.
Music for Gathering
Joe Cocker’s Feeling Alright — that loosened, human warmth that fills a room without trying.
Nightfall Care
Kristina Kitsos’ lace face mask — waking the skin supple and luminous.
Closing
This is the season where scent becomes memory, flame becomes intention, and gathering becomes ritual. Thank you for stepping into this world — the stories, the light, the becoming.
More is coming.
And it glows.
