Scent Stories | RICA Comfort Food For The Home
Kristina Ivy
Here at RICA bath + body, we often draw on time honored family traditions to inspire new products and new directions for growth. When it came time to design our Home Collection it only felt right for us to go digging through some favorite memories, people, and places that have helped shaped RICA into what it is today. Like sorting through an old box of photos, we would like to bring you on a scent journey and share some cherished moments of RICA's Comfort Food For The Home.
HONEYSUCKLE + QUINCE
BATCH No. 1
notes of:
-BOURBON ROSE
-IRIS
-WILDFLOWER
This scent was inspired by seeing my mom in her favorite yellow blouse, buzzing around her garden like a bumblebee at days end; watering can in one hand, cocktail in the other. Light this when its time to celebrate the balance between work and play.
TARRAGON + BITTERS
BATCH No. 2
notes of
-CLEMENTINE
-LIME ZEST
-VERBENA
This scent was inspired by the smells at the many Thanksgiving dinners spent in my grandparents log cabin; my favorite place to laugh, love, listen, and be grateful for all the wonderful people in my life. Light this when you've been too busy to remember that what really matters is often right under your nose.
WHITE PEPPER + SUGAR CANE
BATCH No. 3
notes of:
-AMBER
-FIG
-FENNEL
-YAM
This scent was inspired by the first time I went to the Caribbean with the man who later became my husband; the smell of grilled seafood seasoning, dark rum over cracked ice, and a beach bonfire drying the salt water drops on our skin. Light this for someone who loves you the way you deserve to be loved.
PEONY + WEEPING WILLOW
BATCH No. 4
notes of:
-SWEET TEA
-APRICOT
-YELLOW TOMATO
This scent was inspired by those hot Virginia summers, my grandmother holding court beneath the shade of her weeping willow, family and friends ducking in under its leaves, bringing gifts from their gardens and later, leaving, laughing, full of sweet tea and tall tales. She taught me the importance of “between time”, the time where instead of hurriedly walking over this earth without giving it a thought, remembering to stop long enough to feel the grass between your toes.
WOODS + WHISKEY
BATCH No. 5
notes of:
-CHARCOAL
-CEDAR
-CAYENNE
-CAVENDISH
This scent is inspired by my outdoorsman grandfather’s favorite things; his English briar pipe, his soft, flannel hunting shirt, his aftershave, the perfectly worn leather which covered his sipping flask, and the dog-eared notebooks where he carefully recorded his thoughts. To me, this scent is a reminder that the big answers are often found by putting on your most comfortable shoes, and taking a long walk in the woods.
BASIL + MINT
BATCH No. 6
notes of:
-MOSS
-ROSEMARY
-WATERCRESS
This scent is inspired by what was the most important room in our house; the kitchen. It was a place of tastings and talk, where words could as soothing as soup, or be as spicy as the bushels of hot peppers hanging above the butcher block. The kitchen was where we all gathered to participate, celebrate and marinate in the flavor of life’s stew, refining it’s different ingredients each day, to create our own unique recipe.
AGAVE + CACTUS FLOWER
BATCH No. 7
notes of:
-WILD COTTON
-SANDALWOOD
-VANILLA GRASS
This scent is inspired by a memorable night where my husband and I took a spontaneous turn down an unbeaten path and got lost in a Mexican desert. Upon realizing our predicament, we did the only civilized thing to do; we parked the Jeep, lit a fire. built some cocktails, and dozed off using the stars as our blanket. The smells and sounds of the desert permeated my dreams, as did the tequila I think, and to this day, I cherish that mix of the dry cotton and sweet sandalwood, floating through the air like the distant howl of a lonely coyote. Sometimes taking a wrong turn can be the only way to finally getting it right.
SALT + SHORE
BATCH No. 8
notes of:
-DAYLILY
-BRINE
-WHITE WOOD
This scent is inspired by the times I stumble across a favorite t-shirt gone missing. It’s perfectly broken in, maybe a little tattered, maybe a little bleached or faded, nothing but a rag to anyone else, but it’s secret is that it still carries the smell of a too-long-ago seaside vacation. The scent reminds me that even if it’s snowing outside, in my heart, I’ll always be skinny-dipping in the ocean. Light this candle for the feeling of finding that wonderful thing you forgot you lost.
COCONUT HUSK + TURBINADO
BATCH No. 9
notes of:
-KEY LIME
-MILK
-BOURBON VANILLA
This scent is inspired by something my grandmother once said: “Be sweet, but not too sweet, because cavities aren’t cute”. Nothing cute here; maybe a lil’ smattering of sexy ugly. This scent is musky not musty, crisp not cloying, buttery but not rich, crisp but not starched, a whisper not a holler…this is the smell of understated elegance unencumbered by proclamations of bling. Light this on a night where good taste is mandatory, the company is savory, and clothing is optional.
BOURBON + CAVENDISH
BATCH No. 10
notes of:
-LAVANDIN
-LEATHER
-PATCHOULI
This scent is inspired by the first cowboy I ever met; “Big Jim” Moss, who owned the Virginia stable where, as a little girl, I learned to ride. When I’d fall off, “Big Jim” would say: “It’s ok, Krissy, we all fall. You jus’ gotta git back on up”. I’d smell whiskey-tinged sweat through old denim as he dusted me off and wiped away the tears with his tobacco-stained hands before I was back in the saddle. Light this candle after a day of taking life at a gallop, knowing those who believe in what you do are always right behind you.
FENNEL + RYE
BATCH No. 11
notes of:
-DESERT LIME
-CORIANDER
-DILL LEAF
-TEAK
This scent is a combination of slightly more masculine notes; teak, coriander, desert lime, and dill leaf, all blended into a subtle reminder of what we love about men. That brush of stubble, the strong hands that hold you, that hint of clean sweat, a stiff drink, a warm kiss, that sameness which makes us feel safe, and that otherness that makes us tingle. Fennel and Rye reminds us of girding up for our next adventure, feeling unafraid to go there, wherever "there" may be, and never, ever, looking back.
VANILLA + CHARCOAL
BATCH No. 12
notes of:
-BLACK PEPPER
-CARDAMOM
-SMOKED CEDAR
This scent was inspired by that potent mixture of surprise, satisfaction, and bewilderment you derive from a whiff of a previous intimacy, an event which made you realize everything you knew, was just an idea, overshadowed by the fact that opposites attract. Wear this to celebrate conquering a fear, embarking on a search, or simply trying something deliciously different.
AIR + ASH
BATCH No. 13
notes of:
-CYPRESS
-FRASIER FIR
-BURNING PAPER
This scent was inspired by Indian summer’s fading warmth giving way to the deliciously cool evenings my family often spent by a fire. Air and Ash is the southern Yin and Yang; different elements united, memories of the inner hearth in my grandfather’s outdoor fireplace, built with old stones, strong hands, and a forever love. Swaddle yourself in the contrast of crisp night air with a whiff of split kindling; cypress, cedar, Frasier fir, all ignited by scrunched up wads of burning newspaper. Our Rica recommendation is as follows; use this scent when you feel inspired to stoke the naked embers of your own unstoppable blaze.
BARNACLE + BRINE
BATCH No. 14
notes of:
-SEAGRASS
-KELP
-SALT WATER
This scent is inspired by my father's love of the sea; the only place where you can both lose yourself and find yourself. If you met Dad on land, he came across as a well-groomed, quiet man, preoccupied with fixing what was broken. To see him on his boat, however, was to see him as he truly was made to be. I will always remember the crash of the waves, and the clean sting of saltwater against my cheek, as my father calmly stood at the helm, smiling. To me, it was as if he'd shed a former self, like an empty winter coat in June, and in that smile, I saw a man with all the answers. Barnacle and Brine is the scent of confidence, weathering storms, and trusting that even though you may not understand how, with the right person steering, you'll get where you need to go.
PEYOTE + GUNPOWDER
BATCH No. 15
notes of:
-CANNABIS
-CEDARWOOD
-CLAY
This scent is inspired by the fire inside of us all, propelling us to do what we never thought possible. When I was little, my Grandmother took me behind her hot house amongst the silent cactus plants. She put an old pistol in my hand, helped me aim it at broken clay pots, and told me of my great-great-grandmother, Big Momma. Born a slave, Big Momma later became one of the first women land-owners in Virginia. The pistol I was holding she'd kept on her nightstand to shoot back at the armed men trying to scare her off of her property. I will never forget smelling gunpowder, peyote plants, and Virginia clay on my grandmother's gardening gloves, as we stood firmly on land a lone woman refused to be forced off of. This scent reminds us that even if you are by yourself, you are not alone on your path, because those who blazed trails before, are always with us. I feel invincible.
WET EARTH + SMOKE
BATCH No. 17
notes of:
-MOSS
-CARDAMOM
-PURPLE LAVANDIN
This scent is inspired by that little voice that whispers: "Baby, it's time for something different." The last time I heard that voice was at the end of a long day, after a bad week, during a very rough year. My husband must have been hearing it as well because when I lay down that night, inside my pillowcase were two tickets to Costa Rica. One big plane, then another, the size of a washing machine, followed by a boat ride with two donkeys later, we were enjoying extracurricular activities inside an ipe wood casita, as an afternoon downpour tapped it's Sandman Sims on our roof. Our days were spent exploring the rainforest in the shadow of a volcano, nights, grilling fish smothered in a local herb masala on smoldering embers atop moist earth, while howler monkeys chattered their staccato soundtrack to our escape. Light this candle when life is getting on your last nerve, and let the scent of self-repair replenish your air.
NAVEL ORANGE + LEMONWOOD
BATCH No. 18
notes of:
-BERGAMOT
-VETIVER
-CLEMENTINE
This scent is inspired by my favorite season; the summer. The first crisp immersion into cool pool water, languid breezes blowing through lightweight linen and caressing the skin beneath, the emotional palette cleansed of winter's gray aftertaste by the sun's swelter, a time when everything feels like tastebud-tickling courses lined up at a bountiful feast after subsisting on nothing else but cold oatmeal. Light this candle the way you would bite into a juicy piece of fruit after feeling parched; with gusto, optimism, and a celebration that "then" is over and now is at long last, here.
