october beauty

No surprise by now, that one of my favourite pleasures and simple relaxing, everyday luxuary things to do is taking a long hot shower (not a bath person me), dabble with hair paks, foot baths, lotions, potions, scrubs and scents. An especially enjoyable thing this chilly time of the year.

These are my companions pre-, in and post- shower since last ;

:: showergel - chocolate showel & bath gel, bettina barty. german brand, old bottle waiting on the bathroom shelf for a couple of years. still smells divinely chocolatey.

honey spice, honey cookies & roasted pecans, another lovely product from greek aromatherapy brand korres. it's said to have all sorts of beneficial features like collagen stimulating and anti-ageing. as i'm always sceptical about such promises i couldn't say. but what i do know is that it has a gorgeous spirit lifting spicy, autumnal scent and a lovely foamy creaminess.

as korres now is available (yeah!) in sweden too (alas at a whole other price level than the one in athens, still...) i'm pleased to know that the possibility of a refill isn't that far away. hopefully.

:: shampoo - sun kissed raspberry, alberto balsam. i got this (not available in sweden) really cheap herbal shampoo moisture splash with juniper and chamomile at boots last year. i got it on smell alone, it smells divine. as for shampoo features, well it's just pretty basic. for a nice price.

colour save, sachajuan. my first try of this swedish stockholm-brand of haircare products. and this will also most probably also be my last. because the scent that developes when the shampoo gets in contact with water can't be described like anything else than really strong and cheap after shave. it smells horrific. and i can't say i'm impressed my it's overall shampoo features either. major disappointment.

:: body scrub - grapefruit tangerine, sephora. sephora isn't a brand, or shop, available in sweden, but a place i do enjoy browsing when abroad. this bottle of great scented - being a fan of pamplemousse (grapefruit is even more appealing in french somehow) as well as wanting more than a whiff of athens (orange blossoms) - scrub i picked up in athens. reasonably priced, but quite disappointing in quality, it's coarse, drying and anything but long lasting. i would not buy it again.

:: facial scrub - oatmeal face scrub, thann. first product from spa brand thann i've tried. it smells really lovely and scrubs both gently and decisively. since i unfortunately saw too late that it contains palm derived oils - which i for animal wellfare as well as ecological reasons aim to never use products containing. unless they stand in line already on bathroom shelves of course. and if they aren't from a sustainable source. which one could probably find out, if one isn't the lazy type of person who instead just try and shy away from palm derivates alltogether - i will not buy again.

:: facial mask - detoxifying clay mask, thann. the second prdouct from thann i've tried and i love it. it smells heavenly of roses and cucumber, it cleanses, refreshes and doesn't dry the skin. will definitely buy again.

:: facial cleanser - energizing pomegranate, murad. my very first (better late than never) experience of murad. i adore this product (and i'm glad that the overzealous sales person didn't talk me into getting another of their cleansing products instead), apart from it's enthralling fresh pomegranate scent it's a lightweight, very long lasting mousse that cleanses and refreshes well without giving that irritating dry feeling afterwards. i'm hooked. new favourite. pricey but long lasting.

:: soap - lime feeling, himla. when i bought this soap from swedish brand himla it smelled really nice. it has been waiting in line for usage and now it doesn't smell a thing. as it also contains a whole lot of palm derivates it will certainly not be bought again.

:: face cream - ultra rich shea butter face cream, l'occitane. like most things l'occitane it smells lovely and it feels very creamy and moisurising for dry, dull winterskin. hopefully it will work wonders with my not so happy this time of the year facial skin.

:: moisturizing spray - rice extract body moisturizing spray, thann. third product from thann for me. this milky fluid smells really fresh and lovely from cucumber, aloe vera and other natural and herbal ingredients. it's soothing and great to use after spending time in the sun. unfortunately, like the above facial scrub it contains palm derived oils so i will not but again.

:: body lotion - mandarin and mint moisturising body lotion, arran aromatics. m brought this home from the western isles of scotland last year. (i'm pleased to say that he has more than whisky on his mind when on whisky trips). arran aromatics certainly seems like an interesting company, but i can't say i was that impressed by this lotion. bit to lightweight for me and the scent is more musty than mandarin fresh. wouldn't buy again, if i could.

rich body lotion with extra dark chocolate, by italian brand angelspa. a spur of the chocolate sniffing moment find from the åland ferry boat. it's just delightful, lightweight but creamy and moisturizing.

:: deodorant - double effect 24 h avocado extract, nivea. i really like this one, it smells very nice, it feels kind to skin (even though i seriously doubt its promise of supporting close shaves) and it works well deodorant wise.:

: sun screen - face & body sunscreen lotion, kiehl's. unless on holiday or in toy car on a sunny day i'm not big on using sunscreen in general. since 2007 i've only used this kiehl's lotion during summers/holidays and i think it's a great one, i like it that it's for both face and body. non greasy, water-resistant, lightweight it lets skin breath, prevents sunburn and feels kind to skin. with a pleasant light scent (even if it says fragrance-free).

:: self tanning - self tanning milk, clarins. i admit, i'm vain when it comes to tanned legs in early stockings-leggings-socks off season. i tan easily, but these days i'm not much for tanning so to get legs looking reasonably fresh i take to the bottle. the self tanning bottle. i probably began using clarins after some test in a magazine years ago, and i'vebeen faithful ever since. unlike so many self tanning products it actually smells rather nice and it gives a fine, natural looking 'tan'. as i only use the product on legs i alwasy get a lot of lotion left in bottle end of bare legged season. hence i wish it was avaiable in smaller sized bottles.

:: hair spray - climate control styling spray, tommyguns. this, my first try of tommyguns hair care range, is a rather nice experience. it smells lovely of jojoba oil and witch hazel. i don't know about the climate control bit, but it is a reasonably good styling product, as well as long lasting.

:: scents - i'm not faithful to any particular scent or brand, fragrance families yes, but just one or two scents no way, i like to change scent with my mood du jour. i used to be *kind of* addicted to perfumes, everyday always. i'm not that person now, but still i do enjoy a sweet whiff to start off the day, most days. so these are my fragrant companions right now;

awakening mist, biotherm. still unbeknownst of athens' scent being that of orange blossoms i picked this spray at the airport taxfree shop for my holiday scent. i like a few of biotherm's scents and lotions, they feel lightweight, fresh with moodlifting fragrances. this one smells of mandarine and sweetness and is quite lovely.

grapefruit essence oil, kiehl's. what i think of this one, has already been said here.

light clouds, cheapandchic moschino. i do adore scents that come in pretty bottles and i've always concidered the cheapandchic range to be one of the cutest around (popeye's olive shaped). this light summery version is just fresh, sweet from top to bottom note.