What's In My Shower: Winter Edition

With the winter feeling the coldest it's ever been in NJ (...hello 9 degree evenings...except for the past few days, of course...), I have mostly gravitated towards comforting and sweeter scents in the shower.After all, if I have to be in my freezing bathroom I want to be using something that will make me feel nice and cozy.

Unlike with my Fall Edition, I decided to group the shower gels, lotions, and scrubs that I've been using this season into categories, as opposed to brand...so here we go...

Please Note: I am well aware of my shower gel addiction and have taken the proper steps to overcome (you can read more about that Here)...please don't judge me.

~Fruity Scents~
*Philosophy's Have A Cherry Christmas=white cherries

*Philosophy's Partridge In A Pear Tree=white pear

*Philosophy's I'm Dreaming of...White Peach=white peach

*Philosophy's I'm Dreaming of...White Cranberry=white cranberry

(note: You can also read more about my review of the I'm Dreaming of...set Here)

~Minty Scents~

*Philosophy's Candy Cane=total mint experience and a staple in my shower; perfect to use when you''re sick or need a pick-me-up

*Philosophy's Peppermint Bark=mint chocolate

*Bath and Body Works' Twisted Peppermint=candy canes and vanilla

~Comfort Scents~

*Philosophy's Fresh Cream=homemade whipped cream

*Bath and Body Works' Vanilla Bean Noel=warm vanilla and caramel

~Foody Scents~

*Philosophy's Gingerbread Girl=fresh baked gingerbread

*Philosophy's Gingerbread Man=sparkling gingerale

*Philosophy's Christmas Cookies=buttery sugar cookie

*Philosophy's Cherry Berry Crisp==a mix of cherries, berries, coconut & vanilla

~Body Scrubs~

*Philosophy's Candy Cane=smells exactly like the 3in1; gives off a cooling sensation

*Philosophy's Gingerbread Man=smells exactly like the 3in1; gives off a warming sensation

I apologize but given the fact that most of these are sold for a limited time, unless you search amazon, I don't think these products are available.As far as I'm aware, though, I believe these are all returning customer favorites.

As always, I truly appreciate you taking the time to visit my blog.

Note: I purchased these products with my own money. The opinions expressed in this post are those of my own. I have never accepted any kind of compensation in exchange for a positive review. For more information, please check out my Disclaimer.

My Last Purchase of 2012...and A No Buy

I don't know about you but we didn't exactly have a "Rockin' New Year's Eve" considering everyone in my house was sick. Just before I went to bed that night I happened to flip through the channels when I caught a Philosophy presentation on QVC. Without hesitation, I ordered it, which was actually pretty fitting.....

My very last purchase for 2012 was a Fresh Cream duo consisting of a 16oz 3in1 and 7oz body cream (as of right now, it's listed as "unavailable"). Both products smell exactly like fresh whipped cream. In fact, it's actually possible to pull out different ingredients like the vanilla and sugar...it smells really clean, perfect for a Pure Grace lover, while offering a warm and cozy scent. Since it's very light, I feel like these could remain in my bathroom all year long as opposed to being reserved for the cooler months.

I also made the decision to put myself on a shower gel no buy. Right now my bathroom is full along with about three containers of Spring, Summer, and Fall scents in my bedroom. There's so much that I was way too embarrassed to post a picture of my collection.
For now, at least until I can get more of a handle on my little "problem", I'm not going to allow myself to buy anymore shower gels...there's just no more room for all of it!!!

As of right now it doesn't look like any of my bottles are close to being emptied, although, there are several that are at the half-way mark. Much like with my perfume no buy, I want to post empty bottle reports on this as well.

Stay tuned and thanks again for visiting :)

Note: I purchased these products with my own money. The opinions expressed in this post are those of my own. I have never accepted any kind of compensation in exchange for a positive review. For more information, please check out my Disclaimer.

Macy's Philosophy Mini-Haul



Upon making room for this season's shower products, I decided to pick up a new shower gel from Philosophy. Ulta was out of everything and all Sephora had were testers (according to sales associate, the products were not available yet.
I was about to completely lose hope when on a whim I walked up to the Impulse Beauty section in Macy's and was greeted by a very friendly sales associate. When asked about their stock of seasonal products, he replied with "hold on" and came back ten minutes later carrying a big bag of the entire Philosophy holiday line...not even on the shelves yet. I couldn't help but jump with joy. It was like Christmas had come early.



While a little voice inside told me to buy it all, I resisted temptation and only bought a couple products...ok, I almost resisted-as he was about to finish ringing me up I quickly added one last item. In my defence I love it!!!!!! Just before I left he also tossed in a small bottle of their newest fragrance, Living Grace.

I walked out thrilled to have had such an amazing experience and have never met a manager like that who was genuinely friendly and helpful. In a crowded store, he treated me like the only customer in the place. We even talked for a while after I was initially rung up. That's definitely the kind of service that will keep me coming back.

I came home with:

-Homemade Pumpkin Pie 3in1 

-Have A Cherry Christmas 3in1

-Candy Cane Salt Body Scrub

-Living Grace Sampler

So far I've used the Pumpkin Pie 3in1 and it smells oh so good (exactly like pie!) along with the body scrub which feels quite invigorating.I keep that scent in the bathroom all year long because it's perfect to use when I feel under the weather.
I'm holding off on using the Cherry Christmas gel until it gets closer to the holidays but it smells like a mix of cherries and snow (I don't know how!). I'm also waiting to use the Living Grace perfume but I like it a lot...it's light like Pure Grace.

I'm not sure when everything will be available but you can probably find these items at the following:
~Macy's Beauty Impulse
~macys.com
~philosophy.com
~qvc.com
~Sephora
~sephora.com
~Ulta
~ulta.com

I don't know about you but I'm looking forward to the rest of the holiday fragrances to come out!

As always, thank you for supporting my blog and me :)

I'm Dreaming Of...

As mentioned in an earlier post, I ordered Philosophy's I'm Dreaming Of set during their TSV day and had actually looked into this the day prior but it wasn't until I heard "We now only have about 200 sets left" when I finally made my move. Shortly after, it had completely sold out...not much of a surprise as it was a really great deal, only $20 with free shipping and handling. Just like last year, it only lasted one presentation.

The set includes:

-8oz White Cranberry 3in1                         

-8oz White Peach 3in1

Seeing as I absolutely love the Fresh Peaches and Cream scent, I didn't doubt that I would enjoy this as well. Both smell like light perfumes with "clean" notes, perfect for Pure Grace lovers. The White Peach has more of a sweet scent while the White Cranberry has more of a tartness to it. At first I wasn't sure how well these would be for the fall and winter seasons, but in actuality, they're quite fitting.

The bottles themselves are really pretty with the peach and pink shimmery gels. If this isn't the perfect girly-girl gift, I don't know what is.

Right now it's listed as "Waitlist Only" but if you're interested and want to check it out, you can find it HERE.




Thank you for reading my blog and have a great week :)

Note: I purchased these products with my own money. The opinions expressed in this post are those of my own. I have never accepted any kind of compensation in exchage for a review. For mor information, please check out my Disclaimer.

What's In My Shower? Fall Edition



Over the past few years I have become a total shower gel & body lotion addict. I now have so many (collected over time) that I've started switching out between what stays in the bathroom and what gets stored away...it basically depends on the time of year and change in weather.
Now that it officially feels like fall, all the fruity scents (or flavors as some people call them) are now stored under my bed as I'm gravitating more towards warmer food-type fragrances.

To make this easier, I've decided to separate this post by brand.

~Bath and Body Works~
-Charmed Life=This was around for a little under a year before becoming discontinued. The scents that are listed on the label are guava, pear, and vanilla musk. In my opinion, it starts very sweet, followed by a warm musky scent. My favorite part is after it dries it smells like marshmallows :)

-Be Enchanted=Notes in this line include iced pomegranate, Asian pear, whipped vanilla, sandalwood, and creamy musk. I have loved this ever since it first came out...it's perfect for cool nights with it's mixture of sweetness and warmth. (I used this one last night!)

-Winter Candy Apple=This is part of the holiday line and even though it contains the word "winter", I only reach for it during the fall. After all, it contains fragrances of apples, candied orange, and cinnamon...when I smell this I immediately think of Halloween or Thanksgiving. (My son used this last night and loved it!)

~Philosophy~
-Homemade Pumpkin Pie
-Pink Frosted Cut-Out=This came in a trio that I received as a Christmas present last year so I'm not sure if it's available anymore.
-Goody Graham Cracker=This came in the same trio as PFC-O.
-Cinnamon Buns
-Partridge In A Pear Tree=This has a lightly sweetened pear scent.
-Strawberry Shortcake
-Sweet Creamy Frosting

Please Note:I didn't go into much detail with the Philosophy products because they smell exactly like what they're called. However, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me and I'll be happy to help.

If you're interested in any of these products you can find them at the following:
-Bath and Body Works
-Bath&BodyWorks.com
-Macy's Beauty Impulse
-Macys.com
-Nordstrom
-Nordstrom.com
-Philosophy.com
-QVC.com
-Sephora
-Sephora.com
-Ulta
-Ulta.com

As always, I thank you for you continued support :)

Comfort Shower: Favorite Gels & Lotions for A Stressful Day

Yesterday was one of those days...yep...just one of those days...
There are moments when I need comfort food, others I need a glass of wine, but then there are the times when I just need some good aroma therapy and that is when I head to the shower.

I have a fairly decent sized shower collection with all different brands but my personal favorite, the one that usually hits me on a personal level, is Philosophy. There is something about the scents in their products that are just so amazing and can do anything from make my mouth water to even make me cry (yes, it's that good).

The following are the three sets that I turn to when I need a  good stress reliever:

Pure Grace

The only way I can describe this is to use the word "clean". In my opinion, it's a very simple scent but it just smells so good. I use this one a lot when I don't feel well or, like yesterday, when all I want to do is wash the day off like wiping the slate clean.

Baby Grace

This has more floral notes to it but it's very soft and is a lot like being cuddled. This gets a lot of use when I'm really tired or feel like I need a hug.

Inner Grace

This is the one that made me cry the first time I smelled it. It has a more mature scent with stronger floral notes and reminds me so much of my grandma. I got this as a Christmas present a few months after she passed and between the smell and the beautiful writing on the bottle I just broke down. I reach for this when I feel I need support or when I'm missing her.

These fragrances all mix quite nicely together and more often than none I end up doing just that. For me, using these is almost like therapy, they create such a nice experience for something so basic as showering.

Favorite "Sick" Product

Well, it took a few months but all the germs in my office have caught up to me and now I'm sick :(
The only good thing to come out of this horrendous cold is the inspiration for this post.

Towards the holiday season I picked up a bottle of Philosophy's Candy Cane shower gel and with the first sniff I knew this would be perfect to use whenever I got sick. That day has come and I've been using it like it's going out of style.

It smells just like a package of Altoids and there's a little Menthol so it gives a nice cooling sensation. I find myself using it more that I'm sick than when I'm not.
Between the scent and steam from the shower, it gives off a wonderful boost.

I think next year, I'll be picking up a couple more bottles of this stuff.

Note: I purchased these products with my own money. The opinions expressed in this post are those of my own. I have never accepted any kind of compensation in exchage for a review. For mor information, please check out my Disclaimer.

Gift Spotlight: Philosophy

I was pleasantly surprised when I opened these gifts....

~Christmas Cookies Trio~

Amazingly enough, this is a set that I had never seen before, a set of three 16oz 3in1s of Christmas Cookie, Pink Frosted Cut-Out, and Goody Graham Cracker. Apparently this was exclusive to QVC and was only on the air a couple times (both in which they quickly sold out). Upon taking a further look for this post, I found that it is no longer available. I am beyond thrilled to have this because last year I missed out on the Cookies for Santa set and was really disappointed when I couldn't find it this season.

The scents are exactly like their names:

*Christmas Cookie smells exactly like a buttery sugar cookie

*Pink Frosted Cut-Out (to me)almost has a strawberry like scent to it

*Goody Graham Cracker smells just like a graham cracker

In all three you can pull out the ingredients (butter, sugar, cinnamon, etc) and smells so yummy! As with the other Philosophy food scents, these do not disappoint. For an added bonus, the recipe for Christmas Cookies and Pink Frosted Cut-out are on the labels. 

~You Are Divine~

I literally screamed when I opened this one. This perfume is exclusive to QVC until Dec. 2012. The few times I had watched it I mentioned to my MIL (another Philosophy addict) how difficult that was because I was tempted to order but at the same time wanted to be able to smell it first. 

The scent itself is amazingly beautiful. It's nothing like the Grace or Love perfumes (as wonderful as they are)  -this certainly stands apart.  It's so sophisticated and classy not to mention it lasted all day. This is one I'll probably end up using for special events as opposed to everyday. Click HERE for a more in depth product description.

Note: These products were gifted by a family member. The opinions expressed in this post are those of my own. I have never accepted any kind of compensation in exchage for a review. For mor information, please check out my Disclaimer.