L'Occitane Ultra Rich Face Scrub - Gommage Ultra Riche Visage

I have already spoken about a few skin care products from L'Occitane back in August. Since then I have continued discovering their line one product at a time,
Today I would like to talk about their face scrub. It is from the Shea Butter line which is great for dry and sensible skin.

The face scrub comes in a plastic container in typical L'Occitane style not over-designed but practical. Also the information on the jar is at a minimum. You get 100ml for 21.50 Euros.

When opening the jar you are welcomed by a light creamy floral scent. You can observe right away the white cream base and the scrub inside. The exfoliating granules are made from finely ground nutshells and the granules are quite big and rough for my taste.

Here is how it looks on my hand. Texture is just creamy and not liquid at all. You can easily massage the product into the skin.

As the exfoliating granules are quite big I highly recommend applying the face scrub very gently on your face.
I massage this carefully into the dry skin and rinse the product off with water. For me this works really well and the skin is very clean and soft after the application. I had absolutely no problems with break outs using this face scrub. I am currently using it once a week and it works great.

Summing up:

Pros:

• Polishes sensitive skin gently
• Lovely Scent

Cons:

• Big exfoliating granules might lead people to over do it

Accessories

Today I would like to take some time and write about accessories.

Accessories are all these little things that can highlight an outfit without much effort. In a dictionary you might find a definition similar to: “An accessory is a thing that can be added to something else in order to make it more attractive.”

Some people hate accessories and other love them and own tons of different things. It really depends who you are and what your style is.

Over time I discovered the following accessory-lovers: People that wear jewelry and watches to highlight outfits, those using scarfs as addition to their styling, the shoe lovers who own a pair of shoes for every dress and of course last but not least the bag lovers!

I realized that most people have a preference towards one or two accessory types. It is rare that a person “collects” everything. Even though it surely exists. 

I personally ware a lot of scarfs and jewelry. I do not own many interesting shoes or bags. Mine are rather functional and not the highlight of my outfit. What I like about jewelry and scarfs is that you can even wear a black shirt and jeans or a simple dress and you will still look nicely dressed without doing much. It really makes a big difference with little effort.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Hermes scarf tied with scarf ring in the middle

Overall I prefer dressing in a more neutral color and then adding a nice silk scarf in order to add some color. For me this is the easiest way to wear most of my cloths in multiple occasion without feeling repetitive.

As for jewelry I prefer delicate fine jewelry over big pieces which often times look a little too heavy on me. The Pandora bracelet is the biggest and also heaviest (literally) piece that I own. The reason I prefer fine jewelry over fashion jewelry is because it is more durable. This is very subjective as the quality of cheaper fashion jewelry can be good as well but I personally did not make good experiences with it. Too often rocks fell out or the color suddenly turned from gold to black that I try to stay away. I prefer investing in timeless pieces that fit the majority of my cloths and accessories so I have many years to enjoy them.

Discovering Tatcha Skin Care

Tatcha is a Japanese brand developing skin care products based on ancient Asian traditions and ingredients known for decades to be good for the skin.

I have heard about Tatcha skin care products over the internet as the company is very popular for their blotting papers (which I do not need for my dry skin). Even though I have no need for blotting papers I was curious about the other products they might sell.

Spontaneously I decided to purchase their “One Step Camellia Cleansing Oil” and their “Rice Enzyme Powder”. In order to get to know also their cream and serum I also bought their “Discovery Kit” containing sample sizes of all their products. The order got processed quickly and three days later I was holding the package in my hand.

The Ritual Discovery Kit from Tatcha    -Cream & Serum will be reviewed later

Today I will speak about the two cleansing products only as I need a little bit of more time to test the cream and serum to provide a better picture of how they perform in the long-run.

First of all it needs to be mentioned that everything was beautifully packaged when it arrived.

The One Step Camellia Cleansing Oil costs $48 for 150ml. It comes in a plastic pump dispenser. The cleansing oil is clear and has no scent which I can detect.

The product is used on dry hands and dry face. I pump once and apply the oil over my face and eyes. The makeup literally melts away with the soft oil. As a next step I am washing the oil off with water. All makeup and waterproof mascara is being removed. It is really easy and no hassle.

Afterwards I am using the Rice Enzyme Powder for sensitive skin. It costs $68 for 40gr. It is coming in a plastic jar and is light pink. Also the powder does not have any scent.

The powder is applied with wet hands on wet face. I am using about half a teaspoon of product and I rub the powder in my hands which then transforms into a foam. The foam is being applied and massaged on the face. Then I wash it off with water and dry may face carefully.

After having removed the makeup with the oil and deep cleansed my face with the Enzyme Powder my skin is ready for the day or night cream.

Overall I really enjoy using the Tatcha cleansing products I feel they leave my skin clean and soft. My skin does not feel dry after the application which I really like.

Summing up:

Pros:

• Cleanses sensitive skin gently
• Removes makeup without traces
• Jar and pump dispenser well designed

Cons:

• Price maybe

Travelling to Jerusalem

Lately I have been travelling quite a bit around Israel as we are in the middle of the holiday season.
Today I would like to share with you a few snap shots I took in Jerusalem this week visiting the Western Wall.
During the Jewish New Year and Jom Kippur many believers come to Jerusalem to pray for forgiveness. This is the reason why you see so many people standing close to the wall. On a normal weekday you might see only a third of the amount. The place is holy as the wall is the last part of the ancient Jewish Temple which was not destroyed (the temple itself was destroyed twice in the history). The wall is the western outer wall of the temple. So behind the wall the temple itself was situated.

What you see here in the above picture is what is known to be the Western Wall. But underneath the ground and especially towards the left (where the wall seems to end) the wall actually continues under the ground.

I have visited the tunnels underneath the Western Wall this week and I will share with you how it looks like.

So once you get down into the tunnels it gets pretty dark which is why the photos are not great. we were walking along the wall with a guide and she really explained very well which part of the wall we are passing and where it relates to in the temple, Can you believe that there are about 800-900 meters of wall left which you can not see when you are standing outside in front of it? The largest stones are more then ten meters long! (In the picture above the Western Wall is the wall on the right hand side,)

As you can see the wall underneath the ground is massive and it is unbelievable that it is man-made. If you know a bit about Jerusalem you might wonder how this is possible as the Western Wall neighbors with the Muslim quaters of the city. Well, for that the answer is surprisingly simple; the wall passes actually underneath the Muslim quarter.

The holiest part of the Western Wall is the place where you are actually standing closest to the altar which is about half-way into the tunnels along the wall. You will find there many people praying which is why I did not photograph it.

I found this trip quite impressive which is why I decided to share it with you. There was a very unique spirit. 

Next week I will be writing about a new skin care line which I am currently testing.

Weekend Trip to Beresheet

We spent the last weekend in the Beresheet Spa Resort which is located in the far south of Israel about one hour from Eilat. My husband and I have been celebrating our wedding anniversary taking a weekend off to relax.

Above you can see the view from our amazing room. We had a direct view on the crater which looks absolutely astonishing! We enjoyed the comfort of a private pool which gave us a maximum amount of privacy. The room itself was offered all comfortability we needed. Everything was in good condition and very clean. The room was being arranged for us twice a day (morning and afternoon).

Every room is eqipped with the body care products of the hotel. Their scent is lovely even though I can not describe what it is. It is smelling kind of "oriental".

Beresheet is constructed like a little village with every building hosting two rooms. At the ground floor is a room with a pool and while the room above enjoys a large patio. We were told that there are 100 rooms available in the resort.

As walking distances between the rooms and the main building differ depending where your room is located the hotel offers a driving service with 24/7 availability to take you around.

Here is how our building looked like:

All buildings including the main house are made from lovely stones which have the same color as the desert environment. It all fits very well into the nature.

Below is the main building and the main pool.

And yes we also spent time around the main pool even though we had a pool of our own. The pool bar offered lovely cocktails...

Here is a picture of the sunrise which we saw every morning. It was worth the early (6:20 am) wake.

We also booked spa treatments. The massage I took was 75 min and definitely worth it. The care giver was very professional and experienced. I suffered some pain after the treatment but it turns out that all my muscles are released.

During our stay we also wanted to see a little bit of the environment and experience the desert. In order to get around we booked a RZR drive with a guide. We had our personal RZR following the instructor through the desert. 

It was a great experience and totally different from what we expected. At the beginning it was a bit scary as we drove with the vehicle through the sand and over the rocks but in the end we really enjoyed it. It was absolutely doable if you follow the instructions of a professional guide as you might otherwise get injured overestimating your driving abilities.

The only thing bothering us during our stay was that other guests when walking around the resort passed by "our" garden and pool area which made us feel uncomfortable. In the end we learned that we could have called for the security as people are not supposed to hang around the private areas of other rooms enjoying their view but we simply did not know about it.

Allover it was a wonderful trip and we both enjoyed our stay. The service was great, all the staff cared about our well-being.
The food needs to be mentioned as well. The breakfast was a large buffet with everything one can think about. The dinners were a la carte and only the starters were a buffet. At any point in time the food was delicious.

J'adore L'absolu from Christian Dior

Describing Fragrances is one of the most difficult tasks I can image.

This fragrance review will be very individual based on how feel using J'adore L'Absolu.

The series "J'adore" from Christian Dior is divided into three different fragrances (in the eau de perfum segment) "J'adore", "J'adore L'Absolu" and "J'adore L'Or". I can not describe the differences of each scent but I can confirm that they are all different from one another. I personally like the Absolu interpretation very much but not the original version. 

As they all come in the exact same glass bottle and you need to look carefully in store to see which version you are trying.

Price:  75ml for 112 Euros.

The packaging is very luxurious consisting of a heavy glass bottle a long golden cap. The perfume is of a golden color.

J'adore L'Absolu smells very floral and it is light and intense at the same time. It makes me think about a bouquet of flowers or a garden. It has a very full scent which is noticeable in a positive way. Over the day the scent softens until only a light floral layer remains in the evening. 

It needs to be underlined that this fragrances holds VERY long. For me it holds an entire working day (8 hours for sure).

I am absolutely in in love with the scent! I would recommend to try all versions of J'adore to determine which version suits you most.

L'Occitane Ultra Gentle Cleansing Milk and Gentle Toner

Over the last 4 months I have been using the Ultra Gentle Cleansing Milk and Gentle Toner from L'Occitane instead of my regular cleanser from Decléor. I wanted to test both products on a daily basis to see how they would perform. This is the first time I bought face care products from L'Occitane and I can happily say that their face care line is as lovely as their body care lines.

I will first talk about the cleansing milk (17 Euros for 200ml) as this is the product the cleansing should start with. The product comes in a plastic bottle with a pump falcon. Yes, you heard right a cleanser for 17 Euros is being sold in a simple but useful plastic packaging. I do not particularity like such packaging at that price point but but it serves the purpose and has low weight when travelling.

This is how the product looks like:

The cleansing milk is a creamy white liquid with a very light floral scent which I personally like. I am applying the milk on a cotton pad and then cleanse my face including the eye area. On my skin it does not burn or anything else not even around the eyes. I remove all my makeup with the cleansing milk and the gentle toner without using any additional cleansing product afterwards. The cleansing milk really takes down all the foundation and eye makeup (non- waterproof). Once I see that the cleansing milk is not removing any more makeup I am moving over to the Gentle Toner.

The Gentle toner (17 Euros for 200ml) comes also in a plastic packaging with spray dispenser. As I sad above the packaging is not very appealing for products at that price.
I like that the toner comes as a spray because it is very refreshing to spray it softly over the cleansed skin. The toner has the same light scent as the cleansing milk. Once the product is sprayed on my face I use a cotton pad to remove all access cleansing milk and usually the toner also removes last make up traces even though you thought you had everything removed.

Overall both products performed great over the last months! I always had a very clean skin after the application. I never had any breakouts or other skin irritations while using the milk and toner. This is a huge thumbs up and definitely worth a try for everybody with sensible skin.

Summing up:

Pros:

• Cleanses sensitive skin gently
• Great cleansing abilities
• Lovely Scent
• Pump and spray bottle are easy to use 

Cons:

• Packaging
• Price

Repurchase - Yes, No, Maybe?

Hi All,
I know that I have not been in touch for quite a while. Summer is going on and I spent a few days off with family and friends. It is also quite hot around here so I have been in 'lazy-mood'.

Today I would like to show you a few products that I recently used up asking the question if I would repurchase or not.

Let's go!

Roses 4 Reines Shower Gel and Body Lotion - L'Occitane

Price: 14.50 Euros and 14.50 Euro (both 250ml)

My Thoughts: Wonderful scent great shower experience and great lotion which dries down quickly!

Repurchase: Yes! Maybe I would even try one of the other scents.

Idylle - Guerlain

Price: 90 Euros (50ml)

My Thoughts: Wonderful light floral scent but unfortunately it does not last on my skin.
Repurchase: No! I am always sad when a fragrance disappears quickly.

Seanik Shampoo Bar - Lush

Price: 8.50 Euros (55gr)
My Thoughts: I love the 100% organic shampoo bar because it is absolutely gentle and treats my hair great. It also smells nice and does not burn in the eyes.
Repurchase: Yes! I repurchase this all the time.

Divine Scrub - Caudalie

Price: 22.40 Euros (150gr)
My Thoughts: Lovely body body scrub which leaves the skin very nice and soft. It is having a light scent (same as the Divine body oil from Caudalie) which is very calming.
Repurchase: Yes!

The Cosmetic Industry and its promises

We all would like to stay young and look young as long as we can. The skin care industry is aware of our hoping and makes all sorts of promises to sell us their products.

If you ever looked closely into the skin care products and their claims you might read a few very interesting statements. You might have come across “Lancôme Génifique” and “L’Oréal Paris Youth Code” products. Both product lines claim to target gens to make your skin look younger again.

Of course this is too good to be true and most of us did not think that the gens will really be altered in any way by using the creams and serums from Lancôme or L’Oréal Paris. Still their aggressive statement made many people curious to see what stands behind it.

In the end of June the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) raised charges against Lancôme and L’Oréal Paris (both belong to L’Oréal Paris) prohibiting to advertise that their product targets or boosts the activity of genes to make skin look or act younger (source FTC) as they can nor scientifically proof those claims.

Just as a little note “Lancôme Génifique” costs $132 per container.

The bottom line is that we should buy only skin care products we feel good with disregarding what advertisers are trying to sell us with their promises.

Jo Malone and the Art of Fragrance combining

Most of us I suppose have already been searching for THE fragrance. A signature fragrance- a sent unique to oneself underling one’s personality and fitting all occasions.

If you are on this mission you might be facing some difficulties such as the fact that popular fragrances are worn by everyone making a scent less unique. I know that the same scent does not smell exactly the same on different people but I still hate recognizing my favorite perfume on somebody else (of course not on friends and family but on strangers).

Another difficulty is that you need to like a fragrance “as is” since it is very difficult to alter the smell with a second perfume. I mainly end up spraying a bit more or a bit less to change the intensity but it does not change the smell.

During 2012 I have come across the British brand Jo Malone promising to help find a signature scent. Jo Malone founded the company in 1994 and sold it to Estée Lauder Companies in 1999.

Jo Malone offers a variety of scents grouped into the following segments: Citrus, Floral, Light Floral, Fruity, Spicy and Woody. Each segment contains three to four fragrances. Each scent by itself can be combined with any other scent according to personal preference. You may combine fragrances within one segment or several different segments. Of course each combination depends on your personal taste and style. The sales assistants at Jo Malone will usually be able to make a first suggestion according to your described likings and from there you can usually navigate around and try out different combinations.

Of course you can also wear the fragrances just as is but you might find that some of them lack a little twist. The reason for this is because they were thought to be used combined with one another. Mainly Jo Malone fragrances are having a clear defined smell which makes them perfect to be layered in combination to create a combined scent.

In terms of price the fragrances cost 47 Euros for 30ml and 92 Euros for 100ml. They are Eau de Cologne which means they are very light in concentration.

I highly recommend trying the fragrances in person as it will be much easier to decide what fits and what does not.

I started my Jo Malone collection with English Pear and Freesia. Until today this is still my favorite fragrance from their line. English Pear and Freesia is a light fruity/floral scent which makes me feel like a warm spring day. It is very difficult to describe a scent with words but this is the feeling it transmits to me.

Last year I added Blackberry and Bay and Peony & Blush Suede. Blackberry and Bay is a lovely warm berry smell which is absolutely adorable and more wearable than I initially thought. Peony & Blush Suede is very floral and sweet and I find it a bit too heavy for myself.

This spring I added Wild Bluebell and Nectarine Blossom to my little collection. Wild Bluebell smells like Lily of the Valley for me which I really like. The scent is very light! Nectarine Blossom & Honey smells exactly how it sounds like. Nectarines! I like it very much. It is a lovely summer scent for a hot day.

Here is my entire collection:

Overall I would like to note that Jo Malone offers fragrances for every taste. Depending on the combination they can be worn by ladies and gentlemen alike.

I do recommend when searching for a signature scent to visit a Jo Malone boutique to get some advice. The staff knows the products very well and can assist. Best would be to know a little bit about what you like and what you do not like and from there you can start discovering.

Pros:

·                     Large selection

·                     Chances to create a signature scent

Cons:

·                     Pricy

·                     Might take time to find the perfect match

·                     Not all fragrances are lasting very long. Testing in advance is highly recommended!

I recommend taking the time to decide what you like and to build up a collection carefully. At some point it will be fun to combine what you already own with something new. At first purchase I generally buy always the smallest bottle and if I use it up I purchase the larger version of a fragrance. It gives me enough time to consider what I like and what I would like to repurchase.

A Weekend in July

Wow time has passed so fast lately. We are already in July! I can remember it was just Easter not too long ago.

Here in Israel it started to be very hot over the last weeks. The only way to get away from this heat is to stay home with the AC on or go to the beach and refresh in the water. What I love about summer is the beach and the light summer cloths. The heat and the sweating is not really my thing.

We have adopted a little homeless dog during May because we felt so lonely without our little sweetheart who died a few month ago.
So its time to welcome Ruby, he is about a year old and was found on the street before he came to us.

People can be so cruel. I can not understand how one can be so heartless. Now Ruby has a new home with us. He is such a quiet and friendly dog that we are happy to have him. The only but is that he needs a lot of training because he is still young and his manners are not always the best. So I spend most of my free time with him teaching and training him. That is a reason why I am writing less.

Last night I tried a new recipe for baking macarons. I love those cookies so much. They are unbelievably tasty. Unfortunately they are more difficult to prepare than I initially thought. It took me around 6 tries to find the right way to get them just right. I tried it 5 time with French meringue and did not succeed so well (well, I succeeded better at the fifth time than in the beginning but it was still far from the pictures.). Yesterday I took a different recipe using Italian meringue and the results surprised me in such a good way that I decided to share the photos with you. If you ever think about preparing macarons go straight away to a recipe using Italian meringue! It is more difficult but the results are far better!  

baking time...

Macaron shells right from the oven

Finally filled with ganache

From another angle

Macarons in box

Have a lovely weekend. During the next days I will write about Jo Malone and the concept of fragrance combining which I am very fond of.

Favorite Bags

Bags, Bags, Bags...
I guess every women has more bags than she actually needs. I also do but I realized over the past year that even though I have quite a nice number of bags that I am mainly returning day in day out to the same ones.

There are two types of women. One group that uses a bag as a key piece of their outfit often in accent colors and with interesting shapes making the bag an eye-catcher. The other type of women has a bag fitting the outfit but is not the main statement piece. Mainly those bags are black, brown or in other neutrals ready to be worn with almost anything.
I am the second type of person. I love bags that can go with anything! I personally find it pity having a lovely bag which fits only with one specific dress. Bags tend to be expensive if you purchase in the higher quality level. So I try to get the most wear out of my bag. Yes, I have to say that - I really hate cheap bags which break after one or two weeks! I think it is such a waste! In my opinion it makes more sense to pay a bit more (if that is possible) and to get a reasonable quality. Anyway, I do not want to discuss here what is right and wrong but rather show you my two favorite bags.

I am all in love with the Longchamp Pilage. The Longchamp Pilage is a very light bag with almost no weight. The straps are made from leather and the bag itself is made from nylon (Note: Easy to clean). I like that it has almost no weight of its own because I have bags which are very heavy thanks to the leather they are made of and when I put my stuff inside they are just unbearably heavy.
Another advantage of the Pilage is that you can fold it easily and put it away when not needed. This is especially handy on a trip if you need a big and a small bag. One of them can be folded up without being damaged.

The Pilage exists in almost all thinkable colors including neutrals and bright colors. The same goes for sizes. Many different sizes are available as well as different strap lengths. There is something for everybody.

I own the shopper version (33x32x19 in cm) with the long straps. I like long straps to carry my bag over my shoulder. The color is of a greyish blue which does not exist any longer.
The smaller Pilage (25x25x14 in cm) is a personalized version (yes, you can also personalize a bag!) with my initials in black and brown. The straps are long here as well.

Both bags are my work horses. If I have only a few things to carry around as wallet, keys, phone, cardigan and book or iPad the small bag is enough (there is even some room left). On days that I carry around a laptop (15inch) with charger plus all the above the larger bag is the one I am going with.
In therms of room the Pilage is wonderful, I always manage to get in everything that I need.

As I mentioned earlier I am using those two bags in alternations almost on a daily basis and they are still in great shape. The quality is really good (Note: I am not the gentlest person with my bags).

Do you have a favorite bag?
Happy Weekend!!