ProductWhores

Unconditional Love

 

Anytime I hear that Philosophy has released a new product, I get instantly happy.  It's kind of a neat trick.  I wish I could harness that power and use it for other things, like say when my credit card bill shows up.  ("It's the Visa bill!  Yay!  I thought it was never going to get here!")  Philosophy's new scent, Unconditional Love, is so pretty - it's light and fresh and perfect for summer.  It's a mixture of fruity and sweet (for those of you Trish McEvoy fans, it reminds me a lot of her Blackberry & Vanilla Musk scent, which I adore).  You can definitely detect a hint of vanilla, but the fruity notes stand out as well, which is what makes the scent so interesting to me.  And as a huge fan of layering my scent, I'm loving the fact that there's three new products in the fragrance.  You can use the Shampoo, Bath and Shower Gel when you're in the tub (like all their bath products, it lathers up nicely and leaves your skin so clean), then moisturize with the Firming Body Emulsion (it makes my skin soooo soft), finishing with a few spritzes of the Unconditional Love fragrance.  Layering is so key to me because it makes everything last that much longer.  (And let's be honest, no matter what magazines and beauty editors say, how many people are going to reapply their fragrance during the day?  The last thing I need to drag around in my already overstuffed bag is a bottle of perfume, no matter how small it might be).  You know what else I love about Philosophy?  They're totally not stingy with their products at all - the bottles are a whopping 16 ounces each, so you won't have to re-buy them every two weeks.  Who doesn't love that? 

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...

Comfort On Call

The weather has been playing havoc with my skin lately.  I've been back and forth between the east coast a few times this winter (during a blizzard!), not to mention the fact that it was 86 degrees here in Los Angeles today, so I think the exteme variation in temperature is making my body a little crazy.  There are even little dry, flaky patches on my legs, which never happens.  (I'm definitely not helping things by showering twice a day either because I think that's drying out my skin, but I'm sorry, I hate going to bed sweaty and when it's 86 degrees, sweat happens).  And then I remembered that I had Clinique's new Comfort On Call cream in my closet, so I figured I might as well try that out and see if it could fix the flaky patches.  After only a week of use, it's totally mission accomplished, which kind of amazes me, to be honest.  I figured if it did work, it would take a month or so, but I was wrong.  (Sadly, that happens a lot).  In only 7 days, the dry patches are noticeably better.  The cream is really thick and as far as I can tell, fragrance-free (or VERY lightly scented), so it goes on more like a treatment than a lotion, which I like, since it lets you easily use it in specific areas.  Clinique's website says that it's "Ideal for dry, cracked, easily irritated skins and those bothered by wind and extreme cold [and] appropriate for people with eczema or sensitive skin."  So basically, if your skin is bothering you at all, this is your product!  It's definitely making mine better.  (Just in time for it to get cold and start raining here, but that's a whole different story...)

Comfort On Call retails for $39.50 for 1.7 ounces and can be found at Clinique counters and Clinique.com.

Perfect Your Body

I'm so lazy in the mornings that even though I know I should be using moisturizer on my body when I get out of the shower, most of the time I don't.  It's just a whole extra step and I could be using the time to stop at Starbucks or eat a Pop Tart or what have you.  But I know it's something that I need to be doing, so I'm making a concentrated effort to be better at it.  The one that I'm currently testing out is Wei East's Natural Beauty Perfector Hand & Body Treatment.  This lotion combines micro diffusers and an herbal formula that's been around since the Ming Dynasty (I know that somewhere, my AP History teacher is crying because I can't for the life of me remember what century that was.  I know I could just Google it, but like I said, I'm lazy).  As a lotion, it's great - it sinks in quickly and isn't greasy at all, and it has a fresh scent - it's sort of floral, but it reminds me a little of something you would smell in a spa as well.  What I really like is the way the formula is meant for your hands and body.  I always over squeeze lotion bottles and end up with extra on my hands and this way, I can just rub it in and know that I'm getting the best use out of the product.  You can even use it on your feet as well.  Most importantly, it makes my skin really soft.  I put some on my left hand a couple of hours ago and it's still much softer than my right hand (in fact, it was so noticeable that I just put some on my right hand to even it all out - I got weirded out thinking of having two hands with totally different textures!)  I also like that it comes in a nice big tube (13.5 ounces) because it's thick, so you don't need a lot to make it work, which means that one tube will last you a long time.  (How annoying is it when products that are supposed to go all over your body come in those practically travel-sized bottles?  I mean, who wants to pay $25 to moisturize an arm and a thigh?  Not me, that's for sure).

For more information, check out WeiEast.com.

Photo courtesy of Wei East

I Have Achieved Vitalization

When I first put my hands on the giant tub of Bioelements Rich Intensity Body Creme, I knew I had to try it.  I am a huge fan of their skin care line, so why would I not have the same love affair with their body care line?  Well, I am happy to report I am still actively dating Bioelements (although we're not exclusive so all you other brands don't need to start crying).  The Rich Intensity Body Creme while expensive (retails for $49.50) is deliciously scented with botanical oils and is fantastically moisturizing.  I am so impressed with how quickly such a rich creme sinks into my skin.  Let's put it this way, I can drown my hands in the stuff and can type on the blog in a matter of minutes.  Amazing.  The scent reminds me of a day at an exclusive spa (you know, the burning oils, clean linens) but quickly dies down, leaving a slightly spicy fragrance that encourages me to continually smell myself.  The creme contains powerful moisturizers (sunflower seed oil, shea butter, olive oil) and other amazing things like red tea (fights sagging skin) and beta carotene (antixoidant).  Also, even though the price tag is hefty, the tub is huge so it will last a decent amount of time.  Of course, I say that, but at the rate I'm slathering on the stuff I'm not sure how long it'll last me.  Well, I'm a moisture-a-holic.  Maybe I should seek help.

Photo courtesy of Dermstore

Go Naked

I'm all about the layering of scents. In fact, I would say that I'm slightly obsessed with it. (But in a good way, not in a boiling bunnies kind of way). And I tend to feel the same way about layering my scents that I do about my underwear - if two things are going to be paired together, they better match or my whole day is going to be thrown off. (What? Me? OCD?) So I would never pair, say, Angel perfume with a Coco Mademoiselle lotion unless someone was forcing me at gunpoint. (Which would be the weirdest crime ever, by the way...) This creates a problem for me though on the days when the perfume I want to wear doesn't have a matching lotion in my closet. It's at these times that I reach for Bliss' Naked Body Butter. It's a great moisturizer that leaves your skin silky without the greasy after effect that so many lotions produce. Even better - it's completely unscented. And unlike some products that claim this (while actually smelling like chemicals or burnt plastic), Naked really is scent free, allowing you to apply it before any of your fragrances without changing the way they react with your body chemistry. It isn't cheap - $35 for only 8.5 ounces makes me wince every time I hit the checkout line - but it is worth it when you consider how much more it would cost to buy matching lotions for every other perfume you own. Hhhhm. A thousand dollars vs. $35? If you want to stay moisturized without clashing, I think the choice is clear.

Photo courtesy of Bliss

Spray Yourself Silky

You know you're lazy when one of the main reasons you want to try a new lotion out is because it comes in a spray bottle, thus eliminating the entire tedious application process.  Putting on lotion might sound simple, but half the time I end up twisting and turning my body in positions better suited for the circus, all because I'm trying to apply lotion to the middle of my back or some other hard to reach place.  I think that's why, out of all the beauty regime steps, I skip putting on lotion the most.  It's sheer laziness.  So I have to give Origins props for putting out this spray bottle of Silkening Body Spritz.  It's a genius invention.  The spray covers your entire body in a quick few pumps, and it sinks in easily, not leaving behind any greasy film on your skin (greasy lotion is a pet peeve of mine - how gross is it to feel like you have to take another shower after putting some of those products on?  Nasty).  It moisturizes well too - it's definitely keeping my skin soft in NJ, although it's not exactly an Artic winter here.  (Seriously, where were all these mild winters when I lived here?)  It does have a very specific scent that some people might not like - it smells like something they would use in a spa, with a slightly medicine-like odor to it (but in a good way).  It definitely doesn't mesh with any perfumes I own, but luckily, the scent fades away pretty quickly, so don't let that stop you from buying it.  And as a bonus, I can now moisturize the middle of my back all on my own, without giving myself neck spasms.  Whoo hoo!  (What can I say?  It's the little things that make me happy...)

Cranberry Queen

I love cranberries. Enough even to eat them over chocolate sometimes, which is just crazy talk, because normally people who say they'd rather eat fruit than a Snickers bar freak me out. I mean, fruit is good and all, but it's no peanuts, caramel and chocolate. But for some reason, I just love everything about cranberries - the smell, the taste, the way they look... I think NJ is known for its cranberry bogs, so maybe it's just in my blood. Although I've never seen these bogs, so maybe that's just a urban legend, like the Jersey Devil. Or the fact that we all have high hair (Seriously, we're very stylish people. Well, most of us...). Either way, I pretty much love everything cranberry. (On a related side note, if anyone else likes cranberries, you have to try Trader Joe's Sparkling Cranberry Juice. It's amazing. The best drink ever, not containing alcohol). So imagine my delight when I walked into Sephora and saw Philosophy's new Memory Cranberry gift set. (Do you think I should be worried that so far, all of the Christmas gift sets I've bought have been presents to, uhm, myself?) It's a duo of their popular 3-in-1 Shampoo, Body Wash and Bubble Bath and a matching lotion, both in Cranberry. Awesome. They smell just like I imagine the alleged cranberry bogs would - sweet and tart. And I like that it's a matching set because it allows for the layering that I enjoy so much. Still, as much as I love it, I think this sentence in the Sephora description might be just a tad bit of overkill: "The sweet, tangy scent of cranberry will help you unwind and remember times of love, laughter and joy." Really? It does get me clean and make my shower smell pretty, but sadly, that's the extent of its power. But I have to say, cranberry is a nice change from the other fruity shower gels and lotions that I have and I like that Philosophy is thinking outside the box a little. (Or outside the gift set, as it were). Now, who wants to start placing bets on how long it'll be before I own the Memory Cranberry Candle too? I'll start the bidding at an even two days...

Another Reason To Love Cracker Barrel

Well, I've done it again.  I have purchased another hand cream.  I have absolutely no willpower and it just makes me sad to see the bins of unused and lonely hand creams I already own.  Well, since I bought it, I may as well talk about it.  I purchased the Extra Rich Hand Cream by Dionis in Vanilla Bean and it's wonderful.  Not only are my hands left incredibly soft, but they have a deliciously light cake smell to them.  The cream sinks in immediately (no greasy fingers staining your Coach bag) and it's very reasonably priced.  I notice on their website it's a little more expensive than if you buy it from Amazon.com.  I actually bought mine at the Cracker Barrel (I'll leave my obsession for the "Barrel" for another post) and they actually were cheapest at $5.99.  This stuff contains goat milk and while I don't like to drink it, I do love it for my skin (extra moisturizing) and comes in a variety of scents.  I say use it as an excuse to make a trip to the Barrel to eat their biscuits and dumplins and then pick up some Dionis and penny candy on the way out.  Sounds like a great Saturday night to me.