ProductWhores

Take A Walk Down Candy Cane Lane

This time of year, I get completely obsessed with peppermint scented products.  Which is kinda weird, because I don't even like candy canes that much, but show me any candy cane related products and I can't buy them fast enough.  It's a sickness, I tell you.  A sickness!  I've already picked up the Candy Cane Lane Shampoo, Shower Gel & Bubble Bath and now I'm coveting the Candy Cane Lane Set, which comes with a small (4 ounce) bottle of the Shower Gel, a 6 ounce Candy Cane Salt Body Scrub and a Candy Cane Lip Shine.  It's like peppermint cubed!  It's seriously the best shower gel to use in the morning when it's dark and dreary and chilly out (even in L.A. right now!) because it wakes you up and just makes you happy.  It makes it slightly easier for me to get out of the shower and not immediately climb back into bed.  The set would also make a super cute gift for that co-worker you're pretty sure you have to buy a gift for, but aren't sure what exactly that gift should be.  It'll look like you gave so much more thought to her than you actually did! 

Sugar Shack - the only shack I'd live in

I have found the most amazing sugar scrub ever created!  Seriously, I am not even exaggerating when I say I will now use this scrub as a measure against which all future scrubs that may attempt to come into my life will be judged.  The Sugar Scrubs from The Abbey James Company are the best I've ever tried (far superior to any expensive department store ones - sorry guys!) and are extremely reasonably priced for what you get.  A little background here:  Becky Smith is the creator behind this amazing line of scrubs.  She actually lives in Aurora, OH with her family and makes all the batches by hand.  So, from start to finish, this is a unique, homemade product that will literally blow your mind.  Her ability to combine such great ingredients into a scrub that actually makes skin look and feel amazing (without that greasy, oily residue) is a gift for sure.  From the moment I checked out this product at a local boutique here in LA, I was floored and had to buy a few of her scents.  Sugar Shack smells of cotton candy mixed with undertones of a perfume like Aquolina (okay, it's not actually mixed with any perfume, but I'm giving you a visual).  I have been using it every single day on my feet and hands and am awestruck by the results.  Plus, the scent is absolutely intoxicating (so much so that I've been sniffing my hands at work the better part of the day).  I'm telling you, you will be stunned at these scrubs.  She also has a bunch of other scents - Lemon Biscotti smells like fresh baked lemon squares - each one as brilliant as the next.  Check out her etsy shop to purchase (although she's on vacation until July 15, so you may want to sign up to be notified when she's back in town).  The Abbey James Company also sells to local boutiques, but you'll have to reach to Becky for more information about where to find near you.  Oh, and she makes matching lotions which are equally amazing, but I have to post separately because I might burst from the excitement of it all.

LaLicious is LaLovely!

 

Okay, I LOVE, LOVE the Sugar Souffle Moisturizing Body Scrubs by LaLicious.  They are super-moisturizing, smell fantastic and last a really long time because you don't have to use much at all.  My top two are Coffee Bean (a definite wake-me-up in the morning) and Sugar Kiss (a deliciously delightly sugary sweet treat).  Sugar Kiss makes me so happy because it smells a lot like cotton candy mixed with vanilla and the scent lasts all day (a light scent so no overpowering sickly sweetness at all).  My skin looks fantastic and I actually scooped some from my big tub into a smaller container which I use every night on my hands before bed.  I am telling you, it's the best manicure and my hands feel so fantastic (even my husband, who's an air-head noticed).  Check out all their awesome scents (Coconut Cream sounds like another one I would adore), and I know I love Lily Mango because I already use their body lotion in this scent.  I guess you could say I've become a LaLicious junkie?  Not such a bad thing to be addicted to, now is it?!

Note:  A sample of this product was sent to me by a PR representative working with LaLicious.

Coffee In The Shower Without Using A Pesky Mug

 

Last weekend I went to Cosmoprof in Las Vegas and was seriously like a kid in a candy store, wandering aisles and aisles of beauty products.  There were plenty of brands I already had experience with, but the newbies were especially spectacular.  As with any big event, there were of course the standouts that you remember when you leave because they had amazing products and great personalities to match.  One of these was definitely Barista Bath and Body (or b3 for short).  It's a wonderful female-owned and operated brand which uses coffee extract in every single one of its products.  Christine Willett and her mom, Nancy Scuderi, started this brand out of a pure love for all things coffee (they both have been in the coffee biz for years).  Their passion for coffee, and for b3 as a brand, definitely shows.  I was warmly greeted by smiling faces and the most beautiful set up in the booth -  all brown and white decor, a cushy couch and even little demitasse cups filled with real coffee beans that gave it the feel of a living room.   I have tried coffee shower gels before and even one coffee scrub, but this brand definitely takes the (coffee) cake.  (Wow, I typed that dumb pun and am actually going to leave it, aren't I?)  Anyway, I had the honor of trying everything in their collection and by the end of my coffee adventure, I was buzzing, not from caffeine, but rather from b3. 

Enjoy The Friction

It's been awhile since I tested out one of Origins' body products and I really have no idea why.  They're one of those brands that I was obsessed with for awhile and then I somehow stopped buying their shower products, which I realized was a mistake after recently trying Modern Friction for the Body.  Finding a good exfoliator for the body is one of my quests in life (seriously, if you could see the amount of scrubs in my shower and closet, you would stage an intervention).  Modern Friction is one of the best I've found recently and it has now earned its permanent place of honor in my bathroom. 

One of the things I love about Modern Friction is that it's really easy to use.  The instructions say to apply the scrub to dry skin outside of the shower, massage it in, and then get into the shower, but trust me, it's less messy to do it all in the shower.  The scrub itself isn't crazy messy, but there are some scrubby pieces that fall on the floor when you do it in your bathroom and since I'm lazy and don't feel the need to add to my cleaning regime, why not do it all in the shower?  I also find that it works better with just a tiny bit of water to add to the friction (a very small amount) so what I do is get in the shower, apply the scrub, and then just wet my hands and massage it all in.  Then I turn on the water and start my actual shower.  It works great and I'm still seeing results without having to clean my floor afterwards, so it's a win-win for me. 

How does it work?  Awesome!  The scrub is a great exfoliator - it really gets the older skin off my body and leaves it so smooth and silky when I get out of the shower.  (Especially on those random areas that tend to get dry and flaky, like your elbows.  I always forget about my elbows until they get a little dry and then I'm like, "Ewww.  I have ugly elbows!  Help!")  It also smells fantastic - citrusy and zesty (I'm pretty sure that's the first time I'm ever used the word zesty unironically, by the way).  It's so fresh and energizing, which are my favorite kind of scents to use in the shower.

The scrub is $34 for 7 ounces, so it's a decent bargain, especially because you don't need to use a ton of product for results.  (And you don't have to use it every day, either).  Definitely a worthy addition to my scrub obsession!   

Note:  A sample of this product was sent to me by a PR representative working with Origins

Sweet Scrub

You know you're being especially lazy when you find yourself in the shower not using any of the many, many scrubs that decorate the ledge because it seems like it would be too much work.  (I know.  I'm deeply ashamed).  Turns out, the product that would help me bust out of my sloth-like behavior was Carol's Daughter's SweetHoneyDipChocolate...BrownSugah Scrub.  My love for sweet, dessert-like products has been well-documented, but this one takes (pardon the pun) the cake.  The scrub has a mix of chocolate, honey, and sweet vanilla bean scents and the combination is deadly in that I just want to scoop a big mixture of it out of the jar and into my mouth.  Aside from the scent, the scrub works fantastic too.  The brown sugar crystals are exfoliating but not harsh, and the mixture of natural oils is exactly how I like it - it's moisturizing and you can feel how smooth it makes your body after your shower, but it's not greasy at all.  (There is nothing I hate more than feeling greasy.  Nothing).  I've been using it almost every day and it's making me very, very happy.  It's almost making up for the fact that it's bone-chillingly cold on the east coast and I can't just stay in the warm shower all day (much as I'd like to).  I also just discovered that there is a SweetHoneyDipChocolate...BrownSugah Body Butter and now I must own that as well.  It will be mine.  Oh yes, it will be mine.  (Insert evil laugh here).  

You can find Carol's Daughter products at Carolsdaughter.com and Sephora.com.    

Note: A sample of this product was sent to me by a PR representative working with Carol's Daughter.

Wash off 2009

 

Okay, now that New Years Eve is over and we all are starting to feel human again after all the drinking, it's time for that warm shower to wash away the mistakes of 2009 and start fresh.  After recovering from the first hangover of 2010, I hopped into the shower and decided to try St. Ives Oatmeal and Shea Body Wash and Body Polish and was uber-impressed.  Both products are incredibly cheap ($2.99 for the wash and $6.99 for the scrub), smell yummy and really were soothing to my extremely dry skin.  They may be drugstore, but they can definitely kick a lot of department store brand ass if they go head to head.  The body polish has wonderful sugar crystals in it that worked wonders on my feet and the tops of my hands which are feeling the stress of winter.  I'll definitely check out more St. Ives products now that I've been reintroduced to the brand (yes, like all other tweens, I loved their apricot scrub when I was in middle school). 

Lemony Goodness

I love a good body scrub and my current favorite is Davies Gate's Lemon Made Warming Body Scrub.  It's a thick scrub that exfoliates nicely, leaving behind smooth, soft skin, but what I really love about it is that when you first put it on, it's warm where it touches your body.  I know it's crazy that I'm so amazed by that fact considering that we've put a man on the moon and all sorts of other major accomplishments, but seriously, how does that work?  It's such a cool trick that I can't get enough of it.  (Although I'll probably appreciate it a lot more in the winter when it's freezing out than when it's 105 degrees and I'm taking a cold shower just to stop sweating).  Lemon Made also smells gorgeous - like walking through a lemon grove - it's sweet and tart and just all around delicious.  I got my tube on some crazy half-price sale at Bath and Body Works, but I think that's because they decided to stop carrying it, so you should probably check out the Davies Gate website to see where you can get a tube of your own.  As for me, I'm off to pour a big glass of lemonade, which I can't stop craving lately.  I blame the scrub. 

Take Me To The Sea

I find it constantly funny that for someone who hates the beach as much a I do, I gravitate toward products that smell like it.  Anything fresh instantly makes me happy, so it goes without saying that I'm all about H20+'s Sea Salt Collection.  Made up of a variety of products that all smell clean and fresh (kind of like the salty air that blows in from the ocean, but with a little bit of a citrusy edge to it) the entire line is great.  When I'm in the shower, I start off using the Sea Salt Body Wash, which contains sea salts that help eliminate toxins and replenish depleted nutrients.  It lathers up nicely and leaves my skin feeling super clean and soft.  I also like that it's really gentle - I have sensitive skin that can get dry and flaky and the Sea Salt Body Wash didn't irritate it at all.  Every other day or two, I follow that up with the Sea Salt Skin Smoother.  This product is recommended for intense exfoliation and it lives up to its claim.  The European sea salts work like magic to help smooth out the dry, rough areas of my skin and it's just oily enough not to sting or scrape away at my skin.  (Is there anything worse than a scrub that actually hurts?  Who wants to pay money for that?)  The oil in it actually helps to keep skin hydrated too - when I wash the Skin Smoother off, my skin feels soft, not dry, which makes it ready for when I get out of the shower and put on the Sea Salt Hydrating Body Butter.  The lotion is packed with natural coconut and vegetable oils as well as vitamins C and E, so it's full of all sorts of moisture building ingredients.  It goes on easily and blends right in - no greasy residue at all.  The entire three step process takes barely any time at all and it makes my skin feel SO great.  It's soft and clean and leaves it smelling light and fresh, which blends perfectly with most of the perfumes I wear on a daily basis.  There's even a cute little Sea Salt Purifying Collection travel-sized kit - totally convenient for when I travel.  See?  With products like this, who even needs the beach? 

Liiv Well

I've actually never used an Avon product before trying these two from the Liiv Botanicals collection, which is totally weird considering the mass amount of products in my closet.  And on a side note, are there still Avon ladies?  And if there are, do they go door to door?  Because my lazy self really loves the idea of being able to buy products that I like just by getting off the couch.  (You know, instead of the 5 minute drive to the mall that it usually takes.  It really is a wonder that I don't weigh 300 pounds).  I tried out the liiv botanicals Revitalizing Body Scrub and liiv botanicals Moisture Boosting Body Butter and found them to be nice, inexpensive shower products.  The scrub exfoliates without being too harsh on my skin, and the body butter is thick and moisturizing, but not greasy at all.  What I really like is the scent though.  I've talked (endlessly) about my love for fresh, clean smelling products and these totally fit in that category.  They both smell sort of like a cross between soap and cucumber, which sounds really weird, but it somehow works.  (I think the cucumber is the most dominant though).  They're a great value too - the scrub is only $8.50 and the body butter is $10, but when you order online at avon.com, if you buy one liiv botanical product, you get the second one for only $1.99.  I love when companies do promos like that.  I'll bet if the auto industry had done similar things, they wouldn't be in such trouble.  I can see the ads now - "Buy a Ford Explorer, get a free Smart Car." I think I'm on to something here...