Key West Aloe Shower Gel

I picked up a bottle of Key West Aloe Shower Gel at a tourist shop while on vacation. What a better way to bring tropical beaches to your daily life than to shower with the scent of coconutty goodness?!?
I also liked that this shower gel contains 20% Aloe Vera.

The scent from the bottle is intoxicating. Although some might argue that it smells just like tanning oil. I loved it.
However, in the shower, this gel only faintly smells of coconut and then it develops into a sweet almond fragrance.

Honestly, I was kind of disappointed. I do love almond scents, though. But I really wanted coconut.
Fortunately for the new "frugal consumer" that I'm trying to become, I only bought the travel size. So I am only out $3.50 instead of $12.

Other scents available from the same line are:

	Aloe
	Banana
	Cocoa Butter
	Fragrance Free
	Frangipani
	Fresh Green
	Grape
	Grapefruit - Lavender

hmmmm Aromatherapy

I went into Bath & Body Works recently because I got and e-mail that the regular anti-bacterial hand soaps were on sale 5 for $15. What a great deal :)

When I got there I was kind of meh about all the scents except for Tranquil Waters (which I adore) Then I walked over to the Aromatherapy section and I found hand soaps in the line.

I don't know if these are a new addition, or if I just never noticed them before. But I decided to go for these instead.

Also on sale at 3 for $12 (12 oz)

I am and always have been partial to the Eucalyptus Spearmint fragrance. I love it. It's soapy, clean and fresh.

I actually use it as a "home" fragrance in my office too. I have the spray and diffuser oil. It just makes me feel calm and refreshed.

I also got a hand soap in "Mandarin Lime". This scent remind me sooo much of the now discontinued Aromatherapy fragrance "Grapefruit Peppermint" This is also very invigorating and clean.

These are a bit more expensive than the regular hand soaps, but are SUCH a nice change to ho-hum scents.

Anti-Bacterial Goodness

Victoria's Secret came out with a line of delightfully scented anti-bacterial gels. $8 for 4.2 oz.
That's expensive in my book! But they smell oh, so lovely...
I got mine on sale for $5 and I think that's just about as much as I am willing to spend for this product.
Don't get me wrong, I am quite a germ-phobe freak that has been known to get very excited about anti-bacterial hand gel. But still, $8 is a bit much for something that has about $.25 worth of ingredients going into it.
Going back to the gel, the packaging is adorable and is nicely scented with their best selling fragrances.
The fragrance lingers, but not overwhelmingly so. These also lack the little bead things that the B&BW anti-bacterials have, but that's OK.
About time someone came up with a glamorous version of this necessity!

Figgy Pudding

Remember a couple weeks ago when I reported in the fancy new lineup at Bath and Body Works "The Moroccan Collection"? Remember how I said the only product worth while was the Honey & Date Body Yoghurt, but at $17.50 it was waaaay too expensive?

Well, today was my lucky day because I found the whole line 50% at my local B&BW!!!

Of course I revisited all the items to make sure I gave them a fair review and I wasn't too harsh a judgemental on first sniff.

It turns out I was more than fair: the peppermint tea body wash still reeked like pepper and everything else pretty much reeked too - I guess that's why it was 50% off.

Even the Sales Assistant was surprised that this lineup was on clearance just a few weeks after launch.

Is it a sign of the economy or a sign that the scents sucked. hmmmmmmmm....

On the other hand, I am happy with my acquisition of the Honey & Date moisturizer at 50% off. It smells like Baklava and "perfume": A few months ago I made the Lebanese version of baklava: it's often made with pistachios, and instead of honey, a simple sugar reduction with a touch of rose water and lime. (And a touch of Origin's Ginger Essence)

I like it. Specially at 50% off ;)

BBW is not so vanilla anymore

Bath & Body works has added an exotic touch to their True Blue line with the addition of the "Morocco" line of products. These blends are more complex and way more exotic than anything they've ever attempted. The packaging is bright and colorful. Something you might expect at boutique or even Anthropology rather than at your trusted BBW. I "cold sniffed" these and here are my quick reviews:

• Saffron & Fig (Shower Gel): Unfortunately for this product, I can't for the life of me stand saffron notes in any fragrance or body product. I use saffron to cook and sadly, I associate this note with chicken and not with say, a refreshing or sensual shower. I'll pass.
• Honey & Date (Body Yoghurt): *love* to me this smells like a rich, sophisticated gourmand vanilla. Complex and great for wearing alone or to layer. This is definitely a winner. The consistency is nice: moisturizing, but not too heavy.
• Cedarwood & Spice (Body Scrub): Cedarwood is yet another tricky note for me. It has too be done well or it reminds me of a hamster cage ~ I'll pass on this one ~ 'nuff said.
• Moroccan Tea and Cucumber (Shower Gel): Upon reading the name I was immediately excited to try this. I love tea fragrances (all of them) and I love that they paired this with cooling cucumber because I prefer my shower gels to be uplifting (I need all the help I can get in the morning) I also happen to love Moroccan peppermint tea. Its one of my favorite drinks. I was expecting love at first sniff, but I was attacked by ...pepper?!? WTF? Not sure if it was black or white pepper. But pepper, nevertheless. I don't want to get out of the shower smelling rather savory, so unfortunately I'll pass on this too.

The other products: Sweet Fig and Argan body lotion, Rose Petal and Orange Flower shower cream were so forgettable that I can't even review. Honestly I smelled them, went "Meh!" and put them back were I found them...
Overall I was kind of disappointed at this collection. I had high hopes: visually enticing packaging, and names that alone conjured memories of a far away land. Sadly, with the exception of the Honey & Date body moisturizer ($17.50), these were a nay for me.

Yes, just Ivory Soap

I was reading an article recently in a schmanzy magazine where world renouned disgners were asked their favorites. Everything from favorite comfort food, favorite wall color to favorite soap.

The soap answers surprised me the most. There was no middle ground. Designers either favored the most absurdly priced bars to the simplest of all: Ivory Soap.

So many designers favored Ivory Soap! I asked myself why? and came to the conclusion that most of us associate Ivory soap and the like with the simple memories of childhood. While it may not be the most superb product in the market, nostalgia is what brings us back to basics.
The longing for simpler times, uncomplicated pleasures and confidence of a trusted, well made product.

Fresh Lip Balm: Worth $22.50?

Fresh Sugar Lip Balm costs $22.50. But, Is it worth it???

I know loving Fresh is trendy, all the "cool people" love Fresh. It's "natural", "green" whatever.
It is still not worth $22.50 for 0.15 oz of product. That equals out to $150/Oz. of lip balm. You're kidding. Right?
I'll give them this: the ingredients are natural:

Beeswax, Castor Seed Oil, Jojoba Seed Oil, Hydrogenated Decyl Olver Esters, Grape Seed Oil, Fragrance Carnauba Wax, Wheat Germ Oil, Meadowfoam Seed Oil, Avocado Oil, Sucrose Tetrastearate Triacetate, Safflower Seed OiI, Apricot Kernel Oil, Black Currant Seed Oil, Sunflower Seed Oil, Macadamia Seed Oil, Retinyl Palmitate, Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate, Tocopherol, BHT

So why the extra expense?

The product acts similarly to my Burt Bee's Lip Balm. It does an OK job at protecting lips from chapping. That's it.

But, as the matter of fact, I actually prefer my Burt Bee's. It may not be as glamorous coming out of my purse as Fresh: dressed in it's sleek brown casing, ready to tell the world "look at me! I AM sooooo fabulous" But at $3 a pop, my Burt Bee's never disappoints. Nor does it melt all over the place as soon as it's exposed to Tropical Summers.

Why does this product have such a cult following?