The cutest thing ever!

I was recently wandering through the beauty aisles of Target (or Target Boutique, as I like to call it. Target being pronounced with a French accent, of course:/tɑrˈʒeɪ/!), when I stumbled upon the cutest little thing in the whole wide world! You'll never guess what it is either. Go on, go ahead and try!

Huh-uh, that's not it, and I'm so excited I can't wait, so let me just tell you: Vaseline's Lip Therapy. And no, I'm not talking about the regular lip therapy that has a lipstick shape, but the little, mini-me Vaseline bottle. Check it out:

Can you even see it in there?? Is that not the cutest thing?! I just had to buy it, and luckily it was a new variant in the range, too. Double bonus!

Aside from its cuteness, Vaseline Lip Therapy Cocoa Butter has a great subtle fragrance. Its aroma expresses a creamy-vanilla-with-tiny-hints-of-chocolate bouquet, and there's no sugary sweetness to its cocoa butter balm! 

Vaseline's Cocoa Butter variant definitely gets the thumbs up from me - I'm a sucker for its packaging and the scent is fab!

Have you tried this scent? Do you love it, do you hate it? Make sure to leave a comment below!

The Body Shop Chocomania Beurre Corporel [Body Butter]

When I was out shopping this week for Chocomania Body Scrub, what do you think I came across?  Why Chocomania Body Butter, of course!  Professed to have 48hours of "feel good hydration" and containing 12 Community Fair Trade Ingredients from around the world - I just had to try it out for myself.


So, how does its scent compare to Chocomania Body Scrub?  When I opened up the packaging it was definitely different.  In fact, in contrast to the scrub, when you open Chocomania Body Butter you are greeted not with a deep brown souffle, but a light peachy-beige cream.  I was surprised that it wasn't richer in color since it is a chocolate variant, but I definitely wasn't put off by its beige-i-ness.  Excited to see if this scent experience was anything like the scrub, I dove in.

When you first smell the body butter its scent is nearly as good as the scrub's.  You definitely get a delicious chocolate cake with indulgent chocolate frosting sensation, but you're not enveloped by it like with the scrub.  Saying that, it is a gorgeously gourmand aroma!


In use the fragrance has dry and slight shea butter aspects, like with the scrub, which keeps you from smelling like a chocolate factory.  In fact, a friend walked in the room and said that the aromas were creamy and perfumistic.  I asked if she smelled any chocolate, she said no.  When I gave her my arm to smell sure enough she confirmed that she could smell the chocolate on my skin, but only when her nose was less than a centimeter from it!


So, there you have it.  Like with the scrub, Chocomania Body Butter has an exquisitely formulated scent which pampers your senses and wraps you in chocolate.  Also, fantastically, it doesn't leave you smelling sickly sweet, but of a sophisticated, warm, dry scent.


In fact, if you're still looking for your Mother's Day gift (you better hurry because there is not much time left!), a Chocomania treat would be the perfect one!

Chateau Lorraine - would you like some wine with your skin care?

This past weekend while swanning around L.A. and admiring all the ridiculously expensive cars cruising the PCH (Pacific Coast Highway for all those not in the know), I dropped by the Rosenthal Malibu Tasting Room to delight in some local wine with friends.

I could go on about all the wonderful aromas and the dynamic flavors of wine we sampled, but I'm not going to.  While pausing to let my palette rest between tastings I found a free sample of body lotion.  Not one to pass up introductions to new products, I snagged one, stuck it in my bag and promptly forgot about it until I arrived back home.

At the time I picked up the lotion, I thought it was odd that a wine tasting room would have personal care samples, but once I read a little bit about the product it all made sense.

Chateau Lorraine Skin Care was created by father and son team, Ron and Chris Lewis, owners of a private label manufacturing company.  They were inspired to create their own line of products based on - you guessed it - the wine grape.  They found that wine grape extracts have a potent amount of antioxidant and anti-aging properties, which make it the perfect ingredient for a luxurious skin care range.  You can learn more about the product range, ingredients and technology of Chateau Lorraine Skin Care here.

As for me, I'm just interested in the scent of my free sample - Chateau Lorraine: Private Reserve, Antioxidant Body Lotion.  The description states that there are grape seed and blackcurrant oils in the formula: from this I infer that the scent will be fruity and sweet, but the deep purple packaging leads me to believe that this could be a heavy, possibly oriental scent.  What will it be?

Neither!  Intriguingly the scent opens with delicate gourmand hints of cream overlaid with cinnamon.  In use it develops into a light scent of green grape skin, but unfortunately as the lotion absorbs into my hands and arms the subtle scent nearly disappears and becomes mingled with hints of base, as in the formula's chemical base, not rich, fragrant dry down notes.  Although a bit base-y in scent, due to the subtlety of the fragrance my skin wasn't left smelling strong or horrible.  There is no doubt that this lotion's scent would easily sit silently under whatever perfume you wear.

My assessment?  I won't be purchasing this product, but the use of the wine grape and other grape related ingredients to create an antioxidant and anti-aging product is notable and unique, as is their distinctive way of reaching their target market through leaving samples in wine tasting rooms!

Paris ... with sugar on top

Ten years ago I experienced a truly 'romantic stroll through the streets of Paris' with a Mr. Tall, Dark and Handsome.  Talk about Paris Amour!

Although, I don't remember the Eiffel Tower being pink and I don't think our romantic strolls along the Seine smelled quite like Bath & Body Works (BBW) newest edition to their Signature Collection - Paris Amour.

Paris Amour is currently available in travel size for $1, but will officially launch on Saturday, Aug 13 and be available in a multitude of formats.

BBW describes this fragrance as 'a dreamy blend of French tulips, apple blossoms and sparkling pink champagne, inspired by a romantic stroll through the streets of Paris'.

Marketing aside, here's what it smells like:

First introduction:  There is a definite sweetness that pervades through everything, but the richness of the creamy shea butter notes balance out the sweet notes.  Unfortunately both top and bottom notes cancel out any floral aspect of the fragrance.

In use:  The shea butter notes all but disappear.  They are replaced with subtle top notes of a soft, light floral scent and a huge slug of sickly, overpowering sweetness.

Even after ten minutes the cotton candy/smarties scent is all but drowning out the light floral notes that are struggling to break through.

After twenty minutes the creamy shea butter notes make an appearance once more, but they are still overwhelmed by the gourmand bottom sugary notes that dominate this fragrance.

In honor of my real Paris Amour I'll have to pass on this BBW one...

But if you're between the ages of 13 and 18, this fragrance is right up your rue!!  Grab a bottle - perhaps it'll even bring you some back-to-school amour!