Monday, January 27, 2014

Janurary's Used

......A.K.A To Love or Not to Love L'Occitane?



 {Starting from far back upper left corner: L'Occitane Citrus Verbena Daily Use Shampoo, L'Occitane Precious Cleansing foam, L'Occitane Bonne Mère Creamy Honey Hand Wash, L'Occitane Anti-Dandruff Shampoo for Sensitive Scalp, L'Occitane Divine Cream, L'Occitane Repairing Mask; image source: me}

This bizarre hodge podge assortment of stuff from L'Occitane has come from my crazy obsessive compulsive behaviour. It all started with a bit of dry skin from this crazy winter weather we've been having. I hunted down some of the top recommended moisturisers out there and this is where I started.

If you can get over the heart attack inducing sticker shock, the cream's quite nice. It's light, seems to be saving my winter ravished skin, and doesn't seem to be breaking me out despite it's near velvety texture. On a plus note, I predict this cream will last me many months. Is it worth the hefty price? I'm going to go with "Maybe". Helpful, right? Here's my reasoning. The price is heavy but I have more confidence that what I'm putting on my skin, isn't as toxic as some other products. Plus, it's so nourishing. I can get away with using very little and my skin feels nicely hydrated. I figure that defuses the cost a fair bit. If I'm honest though, I can see this lasting me so long that the novelty will wear off and I will want to try some other new luxury item to pamper myself with. I don't do a lot to pamper myself so I figure I can get away with having a nice moisturiser.

I really like this shampoo. This is probably a keeper for me. Well, unless I find something else to tempt me away. My hair truly feels soft and shiny after using this. 

My skin feels really clean after using this product. That's a bonus but I have to say this one is kind of a miss for me. While my skin feels really clean, it gets a bit dry and tight as well. Not really what I'm looking for in winter. Perhaps this is something I'd go back to in a really hot summer and I found myself getting on the oily side of things. As far as a year round cleanser, I'd have to say I'd pass.

This is another product that falls into the "Maybe" pile for me. I don't hate it or love it. The price is off-putting unless it's on sale. I don't notice that it does anything particularly spectacular for my hands but it doesn't seem to trash them either. I have fairly sensitive skin and a poor quality soap will make my cuticles completely dry up and fall apart. So I guess I have to give this one kudo's for that.

We're back to that embarrassing dry skin thing again. Every now and then in this wicked winter wonderland, I'm finding my scalp gets a bit dry. This shampoo is NOT the solution. If anything, I find this shampoo makes it worse. Big bummer.
This is another "No" for me. It's just not worth the money. I have to work very hard not to put too much of this in my hair. The slightest miscalculation and I can't get it out. Then my hair won't dry. It just ends up looking like a stringy gross mess. And I have slightly curly coarse hair that needs an extra bit of moisture so that's an impressive feat for a mask to swing. If I manage to estimate just the right amount so that my hair doesn't look stringy, I don't notice any improvement in it's texture or appearance. If you have a hair repair mask you love, give me a shout! I'm going to force my way through this one and keep looking for a better answer.