Origins

No, I am not referring to the origin of our species in the title of this post.  By now you all know that I'm not that cerebral.  ;)  Girls, I'm talkin' bout the cosmetic/treatment brand of Origins.  This brand has been around for quite a while, so most of you are probably familiar with it - Origins has outposts in Macy's, and is also found in freestanding shops of its own.  Today I'm going to entice you into the world of Origins fragrance.  Well, only a few of their fragrances, but, I think, the BEST ones. :)  Only the best for my Dear Readers!  All three of you.

As some of you may recall from my Jo Malone post back in the summer, I am extremely picky when it comes to fragrance.  Most of them hold no appeal for me at all.  Brands/scents that make others swoon will get a 'meh', an 'eh', or an outright 'EEEEEEWWWW' from me.  But the ones I like, I like forever, and Origins Ginger Essence is one of my Forever Fragrances.  This scent has been a part of my collection for over ten years, and is actually one that has had to be replaced.  (I wish I could say that I had to replace it because I used it all up, but the sad truth is that I am such a Fragrance 'Ho that I generally have to replace my most beloved scents because they've gone 'bad' from sitting around for too long!  This is the problem when you apply only a small spritz of fragrance in the morning, and own so many that you can rotate through them and not use the same one every single day.  And YES, I have a lot of bottles sitting around that I don't really like, but hate to part with because they were, well, kind of expensive....In recent years I have vastly curtailed my scent-purchasing impulses and re-routed them into yarn-purchasing impulses, but that's another blog entirely - see www.blingmamaknits.wordpress.com for my ditherings on all things knit).

There she is, Ginger Essence in all her glory.  The website describes the fragrance as having "the spicy fire of ginger and the refreshing zeal of bergamot, lemon, and lime.  Well, there you go!  That explains why I've loved this fragrance for so long.  I am a sucker for citrus.  If you love citrus, too, then you will probably enjoy Ginger Essence.  It's not exactly cheap, at $45.00 for the above-pictured bottle, but it's not horribly costly, either.  To go along with it, there is also the Body Souffle in Ginger Essence for $29.00  HOWEVER, I have to tell you that I don't find the Origins Body Souffle products to be wonderfully moisturizing.  :(  Yesterday, as a matter of fact, I re-discovered my jar of Origins Gloomaway hiding amongst my myriad body products......this is a grapefruit-scented body souffle, and, while you might know that I adore true grapefruit-scented products, I have to give only a half-hearted recommendation of this product.  It really did nothing to smoothe my rough and scratchy fingertips, as I would hoping it would.  And the yummy grapefruit scent only lasted five minutes and then it was gone.....double :(

I know that you can't really tell from my crummy picture above, but this product is not as thick and creamy as other body lotions/souffles/butters I've used in the past. It's more thin and water-based.  Maybe it would be good on your legs if they weren't at the Scaly Stage.  But woe unto you if you think this would help your cracked and hurting heels!  Not gonna happen.  In that case, I would recommend massaging in some Josie Maran Argan Oil, or perhaps some L'Occitaine Shea Butter (from the tin).  Even some Carol's Daughter Moisturizing Body Cream, if you happen to have some lying around........my favorite fragrance so far in that line is the Lavender and Vanilla I picked up about a year ago from a HSN show featuring that product line. I've recently seen a few Carol's Daughter products in my local Ulta, and I've also seen it when wandering through the Macy's cosmetics department.  Of course, HSN will have the best prices and 'kits', so if you are interested in Carol's Daughter, check out the HSN website.

This morning I used some Tarte Maracuja Oil on my hands after I was finished applying my face, and my fingertips are feeling much better today than they did yesterday.  You know that your fingertips need help when the yarn you are using to knit does not glide smoothly through them, but instead catches and snags!  LOL  Oh, well, that's the state of your skin in January in Chicago!  Tell me again why I am still living here and not in somewhere like San Diego????  

Speaking of makeup, today I had fun with Smashbox brow powder but can't recall the exact shade - probably a taupe or light brown; Mally concealer in Light; Laura Geller's Ethereal blush; Bobbi Brown's cream eyeshadow in Beach Bronze;  Bare Escentuals Flawless Def mascara in the Volumizing formula; a touch of Bare Escentuals Well Rested on the spots I wanted to hide on my face; Urban Decay lipliner in Midnight Cowboy; and a dab of Clinique's Chubby Stick in Mega Melon on the old kisser.  (And I do mean old!)  

Oh, wait!  I lied.  My blush was Josie Maran's Argan Color Stick in Petal Pink...or is it Pink Petal...not only the lips are old...the brain's of the same vintage!  But, hey, do you think that the brain's aged better since it's never been exposed to Old Sol?  It might be, but while I'm NOT willing to open up the skull to make the comparison, I AM willing to go on record as saying that the Clinique Chubby Stick lip color/balms are fast becoming some of my favorite lip products!  Hie thee to a Clinique counter at your local Ulta and check them out!!!!  I promise you won't be disappointed. :) 

And that's the dirt on fragrance and color for today.  Until next time, Fair Reader!

Tarte Lips, Anyone?

Now that the rush of the holidays is nearly over, it's time to Talk Turkey about lips again, ladies!  I guess it's pretty obvious that lip cosmetics are my favorites, and in purchasing stocking stuffers for my four beautiful girls this year, I stumbled across a new favorite:  Maracuja Divine Shine Lipgloss from Tarte.   Yep, I confess, I buy things for other people and then want to keep them for myself.......but I didn't do it this time!  All of my girls received a lovely little tube of this gloss in their stockings.....can I help it if they came in a set of five and one of the shades would not have looked good on any of them?

This product comes in pretty packaging, as usual, but it's what's inside that is the real treat.  In the photo above (apologies for the blurred bottom tube - guess my camera has ADHD and has trouble focusing), the shade Curious is on top, and Ethereal is on the bottom.  Both shades are warm-toned, and lovely for me.  Cool skintones might not be quite as enamoured of the shades I own, but I promise, most of the color choices available are geared towards you, rather than those of us who are warm-toned.  I did not want to gross you out with photos of the product with the lid off, as this is one of those brush-topped glosses that don't look particularly pretty once they are used!  LOL  This is not my favorite type of delivery system, but it works just fine, so we will leave it at that.  However, Maureen Kelly (founder of Tarte), if you are reading this (as if!), could you consider going to a clickless, doe-foot applicator?  :)

These glosses have the trademark minty-fresh scent and taste that the Tarte Lipsurgence sticks have, and, once again, if you don't like mint, you can stop reading now.  However, if you love minty lip products the way I love minty lip products, you will not be disappointed with these.  :)  A word of warning: when you first use this product, you have to click the devil out of the little button on the bottom (which is to the left in my photo above).  Truly, I lost count when I reached 100.  So don't give up and think that the product is broken - just keep clicking and you will be rewarded with a lovely, glossy product that, when applied, actually makes older lips look young and fresh again!  Honest!  And this product contains Tarte's famous maracuja oil (derived from the Amazonian Passion Flower), which makes this a treatment product as well.  Okay, so far I have not noticed that my lips are suddenly the lips of a twentysomething, but, hey, a girl can dream, can't she?

As those of you who've read my previous posts might recall, I have a horrible problem with lip products traveling where they are unauthorized to travel on my face, namely: into the canyons above and below my lips, with which the good Lord has seen fit to gift me in my older age.  Therefore, many glosses really do not work well for me.  However, this particular product is of thicker consistency than others, and stays put very well, especially when used in conjunction with my handy-dandy Urban Decay lipliner pencil.  Thank you, Maureen Kelly!!!!  It's exciting to be able to use a gloss on older lips, because there is just something about gloss that creates a younger look.  Not TOO young, but just-right-young. :)

So if you are in the market for a new lipgloss (and who is NOT in the market for a new lipgloss, ladies?), give the Tarte Maracuja Divine Shine Lipgloss a try.  (But make sure you go to the QVC website and order it in a set, or see if Sephora still has any of the holiday packaging available, because purchased individually, they are a bit on the expensive side at $24.00........)

Maybelline Super Stay 14 Hour Lipstick!

It's been a while, girls, but what can I say?  Life's a bitch sometimes, and beauty has to (horrors) take a back seat.....today I'm back with a review of Maybelline Super Stay 14 Hour lipstick.  I was recently watching a wonderful Lisa Eldridge You Tube video, and she recommended this brand, so I thought if it's good enough for Lisa Eldridge, it's certainly good enough for ME. :)  And it is!  Unfortunately, my camera seems to be set to 'blurry' today, but here are a few shots of the product anyway. Just squint, or take off the reading glasses and pretend that's the problem.  :)

So here is the lovely tube itself - I like the fact that you can actually SEE the color, since, being Maybelline, there are no testers available at WalMart (where I found mine at a great price which I cannot remember now, but, trust me, it was in the seven/eight dollar range, which is not bad for a lipstick these days), or Walgreens, or any of the other spots you will find Maybelline products.  Guess there is a trade-off for getting a bargain.  (Cheaper price = no testers to make sure the color looks good on you!)  I'm not actually sure it's worth it, though, since you are more likely to come home with a product which is not the right color for your skintone, but I guess that's another issue altogether, isn't it?  (And, no, it's not nice to rip the little plastic protectors off the product when no one's looking to be able to slide the cap off and see the actual product, ladies! But I might have done it once.  Or twice.  When no one was looking.  Or not.)

And here is the product with the cap removed:

Dang, you are going to have to REEEAAALLY ignore the blurries on that shot - so sorry.  As you might not be able to see from the picture, the tip of the product is slanted, which I personally like, as that is the shape my lipstick normally takes......(have any of you ever taken that quiz that tells you all about your personality by what shape your application method makes your lipstick?  It's kind of silly, but if you ever have a spare moment, it's entertaining.  I'll trust you all to have the computer skills to find it yourself.)  The lipstick itself has a raspberry/candy type of scent which does translate into a bit of the same flavor on your lips, but it's not overpowering.  If you hate raspberries, though, just skip this product, as you will NOT like the scent/taste.  There is also a little bit of glitter in this lipstick, or perhaps it was just in the color I chose, #055 "Keep Me Coral".  (One thing I hate about the product is that the name is written in extremely small letters on the bottom, reminding me of my Old Broad status....in fact, even with my magnifying glass, I first thought that I was wearing the MUCH more fun "Kiss Me Coral"......Why, oh why can't these companies make the names of these products larger so that when we want to recommend the color to a friend we are not forced to go looking for magnifying glasses????  Don't they know they are losing sales because of this?)  Getting back to my glitter comment, though, don't let that stop you from trying one of these lipsticks...it's very subtle, I promise.  Think of it as shimmer on steriods, and you'll be fine.

Finally, a SWATCH of this lipstick, taken indoors with no flash, as with the flash totally wiped out the picture - guess the flash doesn't work all that well when it's two inches from the object?  I need to consult with my photographer daughter on that one......

One negative about this product is that it doesn't appear to come in all that many shades (or maybe I'm just exceptionally greedy and need more than only one or two shades of a product that I think are right for me?), and most of them are more on the bright side. Of course, I personally feel that most of us Older Beauties are flattered by a brighter color on the lips (NOT a slash of purple-red, ladies, just a brighter pop, please!)  I know that some of you would be frightened by the thought of a brighter shade on your lips, but, honestly, I don't think I've ever seen anything less attractive than a brownish/nude/nothing shade of lipstick on ANYONE's mouth.  I don't care how young you are, some of the lipstick shades out there should NEVER be worn.  They are just not pretty.  Or flattering.  Or worth the price you paid for them.  Phooey!

On to the 'stay' aspect of this lipstick.......I'm not going to flat out call the Maybelline people liars, but I WILL say that on ME, this lipstick is not wearing for 14 hours.  (Heck, when am I even wearing makeup for fourteen hours?  You?)  Maybe 14 MINUS 10.  You do the math.  I tried this lipstick because Lisa Eldridge said that it was not as drying as most long-wear lipsticks, and I do agree with her on that, although the texture is a tad on the dry side.  However, that is a PLUS for us Older Broads.....uhm....Beauties, because guess what, girls?  That means it's not gonna bleed into the lines around our Lovely Kissers.  Yippee!!!!  For that alone, I recommend this product.  It's getting pretty hard these days for me to find a lipstick or gloss that is not going to make a beeline for the hills, so to speak, and that is sad, because a lot of pretty colors are off-limits to me due to Crevasse Lips.  And I am a sucker for color.  If you find the formula a bit dryer than you like, add a dab of gloss to the center of your bottom lip.  It will give a totally different look/feel to the product.

So get out there and see if one of these Maybelline Super Stay 14 Hour Lipstick colors could be right for you!  You might be pleasantly surprised.  Oh, and just FYI, the Lisa Eldridge video I was watching was her suggestions for a red lip for a variety of skintones.  I did not purchase the shade she recommended, as my Feeble Old Brain could not RECALL what shade she had specified in her video. Maybe next time. :)

Sephora Brand - Great Products, Even Better Prices

I'm back today with a quick little blurb highlighting one of the products you can find at your local Sephora - their own brand of color cosmetics.  Yesterday I was out and about and, of course, was drawn into the Sephora in my local JC Penney.  While this shop does not have nearly the selection of a stand-alone Sephora, it's good for a quick makeup fix, and does have the benefit of carrying the Sephora brand products - brushes, eyeshadows, lipsticks, and, thank heavens, LIP LINER!  

As some of you may know, I have been heartbroken since the Aveda line stopped making lipliner, as I had been using their brand for years and years, and found nothing to compare with the color, minty (yep, there's that minty taste again!) flavor, and longevity on the lips of this product.  Some of the brands I'd tried include Bare Minerals (and, alas, THEY, too have stopped featuring lip liners in their line); Lancome (very expensive and no good color selection for me); Makeup Forever (too-bright colors); Hourglass (bleeds!!!!!!); Cargo (sorry, that reverse lipliner doesn't work); MAC (might be good if I could find the right shade); and Clinique (not a bad formula, but that line doesn't have the perfect color for me yet).

Here is a small sampling of my lipliners.  As you can see, the Sephora purchases are in the front.  The texture is wonderful, and the two colors I purchased (for a mere five dollar bill) are good for the colors of lipstick I wear on a daily basis.  However, look at the SIZE of these babies!  What's up with that?  These are brand-new, and are basically half the size of any other lipliner I've ever purchased.  But then again, they're half the price, too, so I guess when you need a new one, just get two at once and you'll be good to go!

There was a very decent color selection - I did not actually count them, but from memory, I'd say that you could choose from about ten or twelve shades.  The colors range from red to pink to brown, so I'm sure that there is a shade that would be just grand for any lipcolor you are wanting to match.  Minus the mintiness.  (A blessing for some, others not so much.)

Next time, I'll tell you about the neat Sephora brand eyeliner I brought home. :)

Josie Maran's Argan Oil Products!

I don't know how many of you have heard of Josie Maran, as she's perhaps not exactly a household name, but she is a lovely young thirty-something model and mother of two little girls who started her own line of Argan Oil products roughly a year and a half ago.  I first became aware of her products (where else?) on QVC about a year ago.  These products are pretty decent, and, while they will NOT suddenly make your fifty/sixty/or seventy+-something face transform into the sweet young thing you were in your twenties (yes, dearie, of course we were ALL once sweet young things), they WILL give you some bang for your buck, and even bring a little smile to your face when you use them.  Maybe.  If color makes you smile the way it makes me smile. :)

A 1.7 oz. size of Argan Oil was Josie's first product in the line, and I confess that my lovely bottle of the stuff is nearly ALL GONE!!!  This, in itself, is pretty impressive, because Makeup Ho that I am, I RARELY finish a product.  (The exceptions being mascara, lipsticks, and the occasional lipgloss.  And my bottle of Lauren, the Ralph Lauren classic fragrance that is my all time favorite scent.  Evah.  Yum.)  Here is the bottle of Argan Oil:

I like to use it on the Crow's Feet (on me they might be more like Buzzard's Feet) at the corners of the eyes, the lovely Crypt-Keeper lines above my less-than-lush lips, my elbows, the tops of my hands, and on my cuticles.  It's very light and absorbs pretty quickly.  If you are very diligent and use it daily (as I do not, because I just am not that good about any beauty routine except for applying makeup....LOL), it really does have a softening effect on the lines and wrinkles.  I believe I have been using my bottle for about a year now, and there's probably half an inch left in the bottom of the container.  It hasn't gone rancid yet, which is quite decent, as I've had other products that don't last nearly as long.  It's not terribly inexpensive, as I believe this bottle was in the vicinity of $48.00, but if you shop on the Q, you can probably get it in combination with another product, such as the Argan Color Stick I am going to talk about next, which makes it a much more palatable price. :)  Josie Maran Argan Oil is 100% Moroccan  argan oil, with no fillers or additives.

Which brings me to the other Josie Maran product that I really like, the Argan Color Stick.  This is a product that reminds me of the Nars Multiple, but in my book, this product beats the Multiple hands down, as the Multiple costs quite a bit more at $39.00 (The Argan Color Stick is a mere $22.00), and does not last nearly as long on the lips as the Argan Color Stick does.  Plus, Josie's product has a fab minty feel on the lips, and is infused with the softening properties of - you guessed it - ARGAN OIL!  :)

My Argan Color Stick is the Petal Pink shade, and it's a beautiful, warm pink, with a touch of shimmer.  I believe that there are several other different shade choices available.  Check them out at www.josiemarancosmetics.com.  You can also stop by your local Sephora (OMG, don't tell me you don't HAVE a local Sephora - I would die a thousand deaths if I couldn't pop by that Cosmetics Mecca weekly to drool over the latest goodies on display, but that's just me) to check out the beautiful Josie Maran offerings there....

You can use this product on your cheeks and lips, and it gives a lovely sheen of color on the cheeks - dewey, ladies - just what we are looking for to make our old, crepey cheeks appear YOUNGER, right?  Just dot a little of the product on the apples of your cheeks and blend outward and upward.  And when you're done with your cheeks, apply some to your lips.  I wore it today, and the lipcolor lasted a good three to four hours for me, and it didn't sink into the vertical lines now permanently making their home above and below my mouth!  For that alone, it deserves applause.  And a big KISS! 

I highly recommend these products.  Josie's "Magic Marker Lip and Cheek Stain", not so much.  I tried it.  And then I ran screaming out of the bathroom.  That product was not even REMOTELY wearable for this old broad, and, believe me I bought SEVERAL in the hope that one of the shades would work.  Total waste of my cash.

However, I recently sampled another of Josie's products at - you guessed it - Sephora - and now I have something that I can put on my Wish List for Christmas.  It's the Whipped Argan Oil Body Butter in Vanilla & Apricot, although there is a Citrus version as well that I have not gotten to sniff personally.  This product make my skin feel nothing short of divine, and the scent was absolutely delicious.  The Argan Balm is also really nice, and I loved the way that made my skin feel as well.

So, what are you waiting for, girls?  Get yourselves over to Sephora, or shop online on the Q or Josie's own website, and get one of these little beauties home.  You'll thank me, I just know it!  

Till next time, my Beauties.  

Let's Talk Nails

Today I'd like to share a fun nail discovery with you all.  About six weeks ago or so, my oldest daughter, Aimee, hosted a Jamberry Nails party, and it was nothing like I had imagined it would be.  Well, let's be honest here, I had not the foggiest clue as to what a "Jamberry" nail WAS, so what sort of preconceived notion of the party could I have had?  In any event, I learned about a great new product, and I am finally getting around to sharing it with you, my Fabulous Readers. :)  (You ARE out there, aren't you?)

Jamberry Nails (www.jamberrynails.com) is a very cool concept that I was not aware of.  I'm not really 'up' on nail stuff, though, so some of you Sophisticated Nail Mavens probably already know about products like these.  Jamberry products are something called nail shields, and they are a very easy way to give your nails (finger OR toe) a hip, happening new look, and we Old Broads can generally use a little help, can't we?

So, Jamberry Nails is a company rather like Mary Kay, where the products are sold at home parties.  To find a consultant in your area, you need to check out the aforementioned website.  I handily was just invited to a party, so there was no searching for a consultant for me. :)  At the party, you are given a short demo on how to apply the nail shield, and then you get to try a few on your own.  I only applied one, since, as usual, I was yakking away with the other attendees, and stuffing my face with the yummy treats Aimee had provided for all of us.  There might have even been a glass or two of sangria involved.........

 

Above is the picure I took approximately three weeks after attending the nail party.  Of course, I should have taken the picture right away, when the Nail Shield was freshly applied, but I didn't, and so you can clearly see where my nail has grown out, BUT this picture also demonstrates just how well these little suckers stay on, doesn't it? :)  They defintely stay on until you decide to take them off, if applied properly in the first place. 

Application is pretty easy.  It consists of choosing a shield that fits your nail bed width, cutting it to the general length of your nail but slightly longer, warming the shield for about ten seconds with a blowdryer (you hold onto the shield with tweezers so that you don't burn yourself), applying the shield to your nail, pressing firmly, and, finally, filing off the bit remaining that extends over the tip of your nail with a downward motion of your nail file. 

Removing the shields is also easy.  I used nail polish, but if the shields are in place for less than ten days, you can simply heat the shields with your blowdryer and break the seal at the edge of the nail by pushing up with a nail file.  They peel off quite nicely.

Below are pictures of some of the various patterns and colors that are available:

The last picture is the 'french manicure' version, which I have not yet tried out, but am looking forward to applying.  The look of a french manicure without all of the hassle.  The pictures are a very, very tiny sample of what is available.  There are shields that represent your favorite sports, shields with flowers, shields in geometric patterns, and shields that will get you noticed when you walk into a room. :)  If you like that sort of thing.

Below is a picture of my daughter Aimee's feet, which I took the other day when she was not looking.  hahahaha  She'd dolled up her toes for the trip she and two of her sisters took to Vegas recently, and I wanted you all to see how cool this product looks on toes as well.  (You can also see that the nail shields stay looking perfect long after nail polish starts to, ahem, wear....Aim, you need a fresh pedi, Dear!)  Often women will apply one shield to a ring finger nail, or a big toe nail, as my daughter has below, and then paint the rest of the nails in a coordinating color.  This stretches the product further than when you would apply shields to ALL of your nails, and is a fun accent look.

Nails are something that usually don't show your age, and we Older Beauties can follow trends for nails with little adaptation, although I confess sometimes I am shocked when I see a woman in my age category sporting Poison Green talons....er, I mean fingernails. :)  Just don't forget your handcream......with sunscreen......because our nails are surrounded by skin, and we all know what that biotch Mother Nature likes to do with our skin when we've been around the block a few times!

Jo Malone Fragrance

Hi All!

Another lag between posting times....oh, dear, the summer has just gotten away from me - I did make a quick trip to Boston to visit my daughter and her family for a week, and I've  managed to fly through a number of books in the last six weeks......hmmmm.....then there was all that knitting....... but still!  Six weeks without beauty chat is five and a half weeks too long, don't you think?

Today I want to talk about fragrance.  Fragrance is not, strictly speaking, 'makeup', but it's certainly part of the whole cosmetic mystique, and it definitely deserves a mention now and then.  I first fell in love with fragrance in sixth grade - guess that would make me eleven years old.  (Let's not do the math here and figure out exactly how many years ago that was, okay?  I'll just admit that it was more than forty years and let it go at that.......)  My mom always had a few bottles of cologne on her dresser, and one of my very favorites of hers was called Christmas in July.  She also owned Shalimar and Je Reviens.  I don't believe that Christmas in July is around anymore, but Shalimar and Je Reviens certainly are.  Some fragrances are timeless, and if the company that produces them stays in business, well, all the better. :)  Actually, come to think of it, most of the famous fragrance houses ARE still in business.....fragrance might just be the one thing in our beauty lives that remains constant....when I think about many of the fragrances that I wore in my youth, I realize that most of them are still available today.  Wow!  So if you want to go back and re-visit a bit of your youth, YOU CAN! :)

I started babysitting around sixth grade, and therefore had some disposable income of my own, which I promptly spent on makeup and fragrance......I started young.......one of my first fragrance experiences was with the 'splash' Jean Nate, which was billed as a refreshing citrus scent.  To this day, some of my favorite scents are strongly citrus, and Grapefruit might just be my very favorite scent of all time.  But don't make that stop you from reading on.  LOL  I could reminisce here for quite a while, talking about all of the wonderful fragrance memories I have, but I won't bore you with my past.  You can talk a walk down your own Memory Lane of Fragrance in the privacy of your own home.....it might make your heart beat a little faster to remember what fragrance you wore when you had your first kiss........I've read that fragrance is a very strong memory trigger, and that if you smell a particularly memorable scent, it takes you back to the moment you were when you smelled it.  So spritz on a little Jontue and let the memories begin!  LOL

But back to the subject at hand.  I recently discovered Jo Malone fragrance.  Well, that's not entirely true.  I first sniffed Jo Malone at Nieman Marcus several years back, and, frankly, I was NOT impressed.  This was supposed to be such an amazing brand of fragrance from London, but the first few times I tried the stuff, I could not (try to) wash it off quickly enough.  I say 'try' because, for me, once a fragrance has been applied to the skin, it's NOT coming off till it WANTS to come off, which is usually inversely proportional to how much you like it - when you love it, it seems to wear off in a matter of minutes, and when you hate it, it lasts for ten hours, and you could scrub your arm till it bleeds and the stuff will not come off!

However, I decided to try it again, and this time, I have fallen in love.  Specifically, I have fallen in love with Nectarine Blossom & Honey; Lime Basil & Mandarin; Verbena of Provence; and White Jasmine & Mint.  (Pictured above, from L to R are:  Bath Oil, Body Creme, and a small spray Cologne.)  Now, Jo Malone products are not inexpensive (Aaah, I admit it, pretty much NOTHING I love is inexpensive...does that make me 'high maintenance'?), but it lasts a good long time.  The Bath Oil on the left in the picture above was purchased about four weeks ago, I daub a small amount on my wrist nearly every day, and, as you can see, the bottle is basically still full....yes, I use Bath Oil as fragrance and not as actual Bath Oil - I don't think I've taken a bath since the 1970's.  I hate being naked to begin with, and naked sitting in the bathtub is just too much to take. 

But, I digress.  Back to Jo Malone.  The helpful sales associate at the Jo Malone counter at my local Nordstrom's (well, not entirely local - it's about a forty five minute drive - for those of you in the greater Chicago area, I'm naming the Woodfield store) was amazing.  She freely gives samples of all of the products, which is why I now can carry my four favorite Jo Malone fragrances in my handbag.  I hope that all of the Jo Malone counters operate on the same principle, but I suppose that you might come across a less-than-helpful salesperson when you shop for these products.  In any event, this wonderful woman suggested a lovely combination of Jo Malone products and fragrances for me when I told her my preferences.  Did you know that you can rub on a bit of Nectarine Blossom & Honey Bath Oil and top it with some Lime Basil & Mandarin Body Creme and have a gorgeous fragrance that will last all day?  Now you do!  And if you want, you can spritz on a little Verbena of Provence on top, and off you go, trailing a cloud of yumminess behind you.

I really recommend stopping by the nearest Jo Malone counter you can find and experimenting a little.  Fragrance speaks to each of us very differently, of course, and what one person loves, another gets a headache from.......so please, make that only ONE spritz of your favorite scent, and not fifteen.  You never want your fragrance to arrive before you do.  People should have to be in your personal space before they can experience your fragrance.  It's not an across-the-room kind of product.  At least, it SHOULDN'T be. :)