What e.l.f and Dove Got Right At The Super Bowl & 9 Scents We're Gifting & Keeping This Valentine's
Happy Monday!
Who watched Super Bowl 60? Between the halftime show and the beauty ads from Byoma, e.l.f. and Dove, there was so much to talk about. Plus, we’re sharing our ultimate Valentine’s Day fragrance guide..
Living in a house with football players, I of course had to watch the Super Bowl last night! But, I’ll be honest - I totally didn’t care which team won (who was playing anyway? lol). I was more bothered about the halftime show, and of, course, the ads. And this year, the beauty ones exceeded all my expectations.
THE MVP: e.l.f
Melissa McCarthy absolutely owned the night for e.l.f - promoting their Glow Reviver Lip Oil.
What started as a sarcastic nod to anyone worried that the halftime show with Bad Bunny might be hard to understand for non-Spanish speakers, quickly spiraled into a full-blown melodramatic Soap Opera style parody.
Watching “Melísa” (one “s,” please) learn Spanish with the help of her Glow Reviver Lip Oil was pure genius. From the aggressive rrrrrrrr-olling of her r’s to the perfect pucker used to smudge her lip oil, it was a masterclass in cultural timing.
I was lucky to meet the amazing e.l.f CMO, Kory Marchisotto on a press trip to Malaga a couple of years back and I’m not surprised that her team pulled off such creative genius.
The Inspiring One: Dove
Dove always creates the gold standard for feel-good messaging and their Body Confident Sport theme was a powerful reminder why we love this brand.
As the ad opened, we were reminded that 1 in 2 girls who quit sports are criticized for their body type, but then were quickly reminded that ‘joy’ can be ‘louder’ by a diverse group of young female athletes who were infectious clapping and stamping to the beat. Goosebumps! The perfect message that the night needed.
Ps. If you didn’t catch my Instagram yesterday, I also shared my personal “Beauty Super Bowl” highlights.
The Gen Z Standout: BYOMA
I also have to give a shout-out to BYOMA, who made their Super Bowl debut with “The BYOMA Shorttime Show.”
The Super Bowl provided the perfect stage to launch their first ever ad for the new Bio-Collagen Radiance Facial Mask. The innovative “liquid sheet” formulation is meant to deliver glass-skin results in just 20 minutes. Review incoming…
Our Favourite Valentine’s Day Fragrances
It’s Valentine’s Day this Sunday and while I love a bit of romance, I’ve always believed the best gift we can give ourselves, at any time of the year, is the gift of self-love. And this year, I’m leaning fully into fragrance. The fragrance category is growing exponentially and judging from The Beauty Ed® teams’ picks, there are so many new brands to try:
♡ Gia
I have always believed the best Valentine’s gifts are the ones you would happily keep for yourself. This year I’m leaning fully into fragrance: candles that change the mood of a room, small luxuries that feel indulgent.
Among friends and family, I’ve become the default fragrance obsessive; the one sniffing wrists, constantly lighting candles, and insisting scent changes everything.
So, in the spirit of self-love (and strategic gifting), these are the three I’d genuinely want this February.
1. A Dior Candle🌟
The Dior Private Collection candles have long been a family favourite, the kind that immediately lend a room a quieter, more luxurious atmosphere.
Ambre Nuit remains the most universally appealing: warm amber, soft rose, and a hint of spice.
For something deeper, Oud Supreme is richer and more enveloping, best suited to those who prefer stronger scents.
(They are expensive, yes. But few candles make a space feel as instantly luxurious).
2. Gisou Honey Candle 🍯
Anything Gisou tends to win me over, but I didn’t realise they made candles until I walked into my godmother’s house recently and immediately asked what smelled so good. It was the Mirsalehi Honey candle, and within seconds, I was beside it, fully converted.
It carries the brand’s signature honeyed warmth, sweet but not sickly. It’s currently only available via Gisou’s website, which makes it feel slightly more niche, and thus a very good gift for someone who already owns everything else!
3. Bath & Body Works Classics💗
Bath & Body Works will always have a place in my life. No matter how old I get, walking into one of their stores still makes me giddy. I remember visiting the USA annually as a child and spending an unreasonable amount of time smelling everything in sight, leaving the mall with bags full of products I absolutely didn’t need.
For Valentine’s, I tend to return to the warmer, vanilla-leaning scents.
Vanilla Bean is dependable and comforting.
And A Thousand Wishes remains a favourite for a reason: champagne, peony, and something faintly sparkling. It’s feminine, nostalgic, and impossible not to like.
Packaging has always been part of the appeal with Bath & Body Works. They understand that a candle is as much about how it looks on your bedside table as how it smells once lit.
-Gia xo
🤍 Hayley
Valentine’s Day has become so focused on finding the “perfect” gift; chocolate, jewelry, dinner, a trip… the list goes on. But sometimes, the best gifts are the ones that come from the heart, the ones that linger long after the day is over.
At The Beauty Ed®, we love sharing some of our favorite scent memories, with the hope that they’ll continue to bring joy, and a little magic, into your homes for years to come. Here are 3 of mine:
1. HOTEL COSTES Purple Scented Candle
I’m unapologetically a candle junkie. Years ago, a work trip brought me to Paris, and a stay at the iconic Hotel Costes. To me, Paris is pure heaven: cuisine, beauty, culture, and, of course, fashion. How do you bottle that? The answer is scent. For me, giving a candle to a dear friend isn’t just a beautiful gesture, it’s a daily reminder of your friendship and love every time they light it. This candle wraps you in fig tree, mango, and teakwood. The moment it’s lit, it instantly transports anyone to the Parisian streets, where nothing matters except the hunt for the best croissant and a cheeky vintage shop.
2. LAURA MERCIER Almond Coconut Cream
I discovered Laura Mercier’s body collection in college, around 2011, after already loving the brand for years. The Almond Coconut Cream quickly became my favorite; warm, comforting, and familiar in the best way. Luxurious body or hand creams aren’t something most of us buy for ourselves, they’re a little treat, not a necessity. That’s why I love gifting them to people I care about (and sometimes sneaking a few for myself)!! These not-so-little indulgences make you pause, enjoy the moment, and embrace a bit of self-love.
3. JUICY COUTURE Viva La Juicy
For anyone who grew up in the ’90s and early 2000s, Juicy Couture had a chokehold on life. I’ll never forget finally saving up my babysitting money to buy my first Juicy sweatsuit, the one with “Juicy” across the booty, and my parents almost fainting when they saw it. But it was a thing, IYKYK. Beyond their iconic velour sets was their perfume. There’s something about the sweet-yet-sensual scent that instantly takes me back to days of Henri Bendel, Barneys, and retail in its prime. I find this scent universally flattering with a hint of nostalgia, one spritz and it seems to lift everyone’s mood. It’s the ultimate feel-good gift for anyone on your Valentine’s Day list (really, any age!). Ulta finally carries it again, which is beyond, and though I rotate my scents, I’ll always be a Juicy girl for life. ILY, P&G (for the OGs who remember).
🎀 Paloma
Over the past year or so, I’ve really been becoming a fragrance girl. I’m obsessed with everything and anything that smells lovely and makes me feel good. There are so many scent categories - perfumes, shower gels, candles etc so I will do my very best to give you a succinct list! These are 3 fab gift ideas, or even more fabulous, ones to treat yourself with.
1. Cyklar (everything!)
I fear I’ve been chewing everyone’s ear off about Cyklar, but I have no shame, and I will continue to do so. I’m usually sceptical about celebrity brands (Cyklar is founded by Billie Eilish’s sister-in-law, influencer Claudia Sulewski), but the products are truly phenomenal. I have the Bergamot Bond shower gel and body lotion, and using them together is a 10/10 shower experience. Imagine an expensive hotel lobby collaborated with a luxury spa - that’s the vibes that Cyklar products give off. US friends, they're launching soon at Sephora!
2. Phlur Vanilla Skin perfume
Over on my Instagram, I shared that I save my beauty advent calendar to open in January. One of the (many) wonderful products I received was the Vanilla Skin perfume from Phlur. While I love sweet things, I don’t like overly sweet or heavy perfumes at all, so I was apprehensive about this one. I can best describe this as a clean vanilla scent; it doesn’t feel heavy or sickly, rather, comforting and warm. I think it’s the top notes of red apple and pink pepper that keep it fresh. It also dries down and lightly lingers around all day - I wore it yesterday and had three people stop me to ask what perfume I was wearing because they loved it so much!
3. Aromatherapy Associates Deep Relax Roller
When I’m not running around doing a million things, I sometimes go to a relaxing yoga class, and the teacher is maybe the sweetest man in the world - before the class starts, he’ll swipe everyone’s wrists with one of these essential oil rollers to really set the tone. I now have one myself and I keep it tucked in my nightstand as the last step of my (extensive) night time routine. It’s the simplest way to add luxury into your life!
Happy Valentine’s!! xx P