An Interesting Find

Just yesterday my Mom and I were in Kohl's, as she was looking for a new soap dispenser. I rarely go into that store, so I asked if we could look at their bath/shower products before we left. In the same area, I stumbled upon a display of perfumes, which is something I've also taken an interest in over the past few months. None of their picks were very exciting though, mostly things I could get (for cheaper) at the store where I work.

However. . .

On the very end of the bottom shelf. . .

In a light pink bottle. . .

. . .I found Hello Kitty Eau de Toilette.

Call me 5 years old if you want, but I love Hello Kitty! I immediately hoisted up my sleeve and sprayed some on; despite the fact that it was probably made for girls under the age of 10, I rather enjoyed the scent. My initial impression was simply grapefruit, but after a minute a marshmallow-y sweetness entered the picture-- without being overly cloy.

Unfortunately, they didn't have any bottles other than the tester, so my boyfriend and I made an emergency trip to a different Kohl's that night, and that time we were in luck. Turns out that the "sweetness" is actually "a lush bouquet of jasmine, violet and rose," according to the package. I wish I had a scanner at the moment, cuz the box is really quite adorable. I had no luck trying to find a picture of the bottle either, but that's what digital cameras are for, right?

If you're looking for a light scent that is suitable for every day wear, I'd say give the Hello Kitty Eau de Toilette a shot. If the salesperson gives you a questioning look, just say it's for a younger cousin, haha.

Random Observations

Took a trip to the mall today and these are just some thoughts I had about products I stumbled across. Some may not be directly related to my usual Skin Show products, but we'll let it slide.

-If I had to pick a perfume right now, I think I'd go with Betsey Johnson's semi-new fragrance. It's fruity, but there's more to it; it's not as straight forwardly sweet as, say, Britney Spears' Midnight Fantasy (let's get this out of the way right now. . .can't stand HER, but I really like her second perfume).

-Before today's trip, I would have also named DKNY's Be Delicious as a favorite, but I sprayed it on today and the longer I wore it, the less I liked it.

-Speaking of delicious, Philosophy's shower gels and body lotions always look tempting-- especially in scents like Margarita, Sugar Cookie, and Blackberry. But as soon as I open the cap to get a whiff. . .yikes. Nevertheless, I won't rule them out entirely until I actually try one. There have been several Lush products that I didn't like the scent of initially, but they smell much better once on the skin/in the shower. Maybe these are similar.

-Not sure why everyone goes nuts over I'm Not Really a Waitress and Lincoln Park After Dark by OPI. I like dark nailpolishes too, but these do not "wow" me. The first is a dark red, the second a dark purple. I'm gonna be lazy here and not provide links. :p

-I *do* miss the All Shook Up line OPI did a few years ago, when the musical of the same name was on Broadway. I still have my bottle of the title color, a bright, opalescent pink/orange. It's gummy and practically empty, but I I'd rather not get rid of it!

-NARS, Urban Decay, and Smashbox make some great shades of eyeshadow. I also found some intriguing (and cheap!) ones at. . .ready for it? Hot Topic. Seeing as the other brands are, at the lowest end, $17 each, $3.99 isn't a bad deal.

-Oh, and who got a tokidoki handbag with the inferno print that I've been wanting? Who isn't going to have any money left after next month's credit card bills? Um, yeah.

Hugo Geranium & Indonesian Patchouli Soap

I stumbled across Hugo Natural's soaps while browsing in Whole Foods yesterday and decided to try one out. Picking just one was difficult, with many alluring scents to choose from, but eventually the Geranium & Indonesian Patchouli bar won me over.

My first impression upon sniffing this soap was Wow, smells like a hippy! The patchouli is notable, but nicely balanced with the geranium oil to keep it from being overpowering. The bar itself is a shade of maroon encasing what I gather are "whole flower petals and herbs," as listed in the ingredients.

In the shower, the soap produced a good amount of lather and-- yay!-- a strong enough scent. Although I still needed to use lotion on my hands afterwards, the rest of my skin feels nice and smooth, thanks to the plethora of oils and shea butter that make up this product.

Hugo Naturals make a bunch of products other than bar soaps, so check out the selection on their website. Or, if you're lucky enough to have a store near you that carries Hugo items, definitely try them ASAP.

Burt's Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Creme

My fingernails take quite a beating. At my day job, I'm personally in charge of changing all of the price stickers-- and let me tell you, those things are practically cemented to the shelf. Scraping them off with a screwdriver or other implement is way too time consuming, so I have no choice but to use my fingers. As a result, my nails are brittle and constantly flaking off or breaking. And nailpolish? I wear it, but it never lasts long. My cuticles aren't in the best shape either.

I figured that my fingers would always be this way as long as I'm at my current job. . .until I tried this. Burt's Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Creme is one of those products that I can't help gushing about because the results are miraculous. After rubbing the buttery yellow balm on my finger nails once a day, I noticed changes in just a few days. My nails stopped peeling, my cuticles were no longer ominously dry and even my nailpolish lasted more than a few hours! I was still pulling hundreds of price stickers each day, so this was truly unexpected.

I love the scent of this product; it doesn't have lime oil in it, but sure smells like it. No, instead we have lemon and rosemary for scent, and a host of moisturizing ingredients including Vitamin E and cocoa butter. Even though this product only comes in little tins, there's no need to use a ton at one time. There's only one noticeable dent in the one I've been using, and it's been several weeks now, so I'd say it's worth your money.

Did I mention that I love this? So very recommended.

I'm Still Here!

And I still have plenty of items to review! Life has just been getting in the way of my doing so, however.

I'm also in the process of obtaining some more interesting products, as well as learning how to make some of my own. As I'm still missing THE main ingredient I need before I can make anything, don't hold your breath-- but I'm working on it, I promise.

I'll do my best to post something tomorrow and to post at least a couple of times a week from here on out.

-E

Attention Glitter Fiends! 2 Products. . .

I *know* I'm not the only person out there with a penchant for glitter, so here are two products that I highly recommend to put some sparkle on your face and body!

Urban Decay Heavy Metal Glitter Eye Gel


This is the best eye glitter I have come across yet. It looks great by itself or over your favorite eyeshadow, and you can easily spread on as much or as little as you're comfortable with. I went with Backstage, a straight up silver glitter, but it comes in a variety of colors. The glitter lasts for awhile, though be aware that some *will* stray to the rest of your face.
If all over eye glitter is too dramatic for your taste, Urban Decay also makes Glitter Eyeliner, so you can be sure the glitter only goes where you want it. I haven't personally used the eyeliner yet, but you be sure it's on my list of products to try.

Glitterbug by Lush

For us real glitter fanatics, there's Glitterbug. If you are on the fence about wearing glitter, this is NOT the product for you!

This neroli, rose and vanilla scented massage bar is made with cocoa and shea butters so it's moisturizing *and* smells good. It is also chock full of iridescent glitter that goes on thick and lasts forever. Just wear this once and you'll be finding sparkles everywhere you go. . .sometimes even places you *haven't* gone yet. Other people and animals you come into contact with are also bound to wind up with glitter on them, which can be highly amusing, even if it's not appreciated by everyone. As I'm fond of saying, my boyfriend bought me this bar because I looked so sad at the prospect of *not* getting it-- and this is a decision he now regrets. I think he's just gotten used to it by now. ;)

I'm always on the lookout for good glitter products, so if you have any recommendations, send them my way!

Jergens Ultra Healing Lotion

Because you don't have to be fancy all the time.

This lotion has been a staple of mine for a billion years and I dare say it's my favorite moisturizer of all time. Nothing crazy here, just plain white lotion with a pleasant scent that will keep your skin soft and smooth all day long. Unlike other products, with Jergens you don't have to worry about using too much or too little; it doesn't take much to get great results, but if you do go overboard, it rubs in extremely well, without the lingering greasiness.

If you have even slightly dry skin, try this now. Sometimes the best products are the ones you can find cheaply at almost any store-- Jergens Ultra Healing Lotion is a prime example.

Dessert Treats Lip Candy

The only reason I bought this item was because the entire line was marked way down at my workplace. What was originally $11.99 I got for a little over $2. And believe me, that's about all it's worth.

I like the butterscotch toffee scented body spray, so I decided to go with that flavor for the lip gloss. Hmm. I'm not sure when butterscotch started tasting similar to mayonnaise, but that's all I can think of when I put this on and accidentally lick it. Although the gloss feels slightly gritty when first put on, it doesn't have a bad texture afterwards. The gloss itself is a sparkly tan color, but doesn't seem to tint my lips at all-- this could be different for brighter colors. As for any plumping effect (its tagline, if you will, is "deliciously kissable plumping lip candy"), I'm gonna have to say no. It feels slightly cooling, but even after using this as my primary lip gloss over several days, I don't see an appreciable difference (for a lip gloss that actually plumps, try Lip Squeak by Lush).

I wouldn't recommend this product at all, since there are so many other lip glosses that look better on, taste better, are more effective and aren't as expensive (unless you find it as cheap as I did. . .but still).

Avobath Bath Bomb, Lush

For a billion different reasons, it had not been a good day. Nevertheless, my boyfriend and I had to make the 1 hour trek to my parents' condo to make sure everything was cool while they're away. Since they have a tub there, I decided to bring along my Avobath; on such an awful day, I figured a bath couldn't hurt.

Once I got in the tub, I didn't want to get out. The water was a lovely, shimmery shade of green. The scent is amazing- lime with some zing! to it- and although I was afraid at first that it would be overpowering, it mellowed out nicely. It was kind of like soaking in a large vat of margaritas, which might not sound appealing, but believe me, it was. I stayed in the bath for a ridiculously long time, but when I finally got out, the first thing I said to my boyfriend was "I need to order more Avobath!"

You should too-- highly recommended.

Got2B Chocoholic Body Butter

If it looks like chocolate frosting and it smells like chocolate frosting, it must be. . . . . Got2B Chocoholic Body Butter!

Okay, so it's a little too tan to *look* exactly like frosting, but since it's a body butter, it just about has that consistency. The delicious scent is thanks to the cocoa extract and cocoa seed butter. Seriously, if you blindfolded someone and put this under their nose, they probably would think it was edible!

Unfortunately for this product, smell isn't everything. As a hand lotion, it's not satisfactory. Within several minutes of slathering this product on, my hands felt oddly dry again. Putting too much on leads to greasiness though, which doesn't help. This body butter is best used as a foot cream or on one's elbows, where a little slickness might not matter. The product comes in fairly big tubs, so no matter what you use it for, it'll last awhile.

Recommended, but with reservations.

Potager Rosemary Lemongrass Soap

This soap caught my eye for awhile before I actually tried it. First of all, the packaging is unique, and secondly (and what really drew me to it), it smells delicious. Literally. The combination of lemon and rosemary reminds me of a marinade my parents used to cook with and as a total foodie, that is fine by me.

Out of the wrapper, the bar is a creamy light yellow. It lathers really well-- something that a lot of soaps fail at. And yes, the scent is delightful and makes one feel really clean thanks to the lemongrass oil. My skin was slightly dry after showering, but it was nothing that a little body lotion couldn't take care of. Sadly, the scent did not last on my skin, but that's always the least of my concerns (although it's always a nice touch!).

I'm not sure how widely this soap is distributed, so finding it in a store near you could be a challenge. The package says it's crafted in New England, so if you live in that part of the country, just check your local pharmacy. If not, click on the link to the Potager website off to the right.

Recommended! :)

Burt's Bees Carrot Nutritive Body Lotion

The store I work for recently started carrying Burt's Bees products, much to my delight. The very first item I tried was this, the Healthy Healing Carrot Nutritive Body Lotion.

Although the lotion does smell carroty (thanks to the carrot seed oil), it's sweet and far from unpleasant. Its consistency is a little thinner than other body lotions, so take care not to squeeze too much into your hand, cuz a little goes a long way.

This product is very effective as a general hand/body lotion. It sinks into the skin nicely and doesn't leave any greasy residue, but keeps skin moisturized for awhile. And it lives up to the "Healing" part of its name. Thanks to some particularly harsh winter temperatures/weather, I had developed some extremely dry patches on skin on my back and sides that wouldn't go away. After applying the Carrot Nutritive Body Lotion once a day for several days, they completely cleared up and haven't been a problem since.

Interesting scent and very effective. I highly recommend this product. ^__^

Welcome to The Skin Show!

Coming soon: reviews of soaps, creams, perfumes and other skin products!

This is definitely a work in progress, so be sure to check back from time to time. ^__^