My 2nd Birchbox Review & Randomness.

Overview of the Birchbox I got: 

• Nail lacquer in Fox Hunt by Ruffian.
• Bon Genre Eau de Parfum by BCBGMAXAZRIA.
• Ultimate Youth Power Eye Serum by Racinne.
• Intense Repair Complex by Airelle BERRIMATRIX.
• This is a Sea Salt Spray by Davines.
• Savings coupons for Birchbox purchases.

I'm going to start off by just saying that I really dislike the ruffian manicure.  I think no matter which way you do it it's weird looking & there's no way you can make it look good.  Perfect example?  Look at the first picture here.  It looks like her cuticles are bleeding orange.  It looks like you screwed up painting your nails, the coat of polish shrunk, you have some weird complex & color showing underneath around your cuticles, or your nails are growing out diseased or with some off color after you painted them (depending which colors you are using).  I am hoping this trend doesn't last long.  I'm also not too keen on the half moon manicures but they don't look as weird to me. *end rant*
 

• Nail lacquer in Fox Hunt by Ruffian.  Orange is the new black this season or so they say (whoever they are).  It's not my favorite color, especially on me, but this shimmery, bright, orange-ish red has me changing my mind.  ONE coat of this is all you really need & is pictured below.  The picture I took makes it a little bit brighter than it actually is but the links to the product show the actual color much better.  After about a week I had some normal chipping (being the crafty lady I am) around the tips of the nails and it was very minimal.  This was without using a topcoat also because I was just lazy the last time I painted my nails.  I have to say I am very impressed with this polish.  I'm open to buying it in the future.

• Bon Genre Eau de Parfum by BCBGMAXAZRIA.  My boyfriend liked the way this smelled on me but there are days I like this and days I dislike it.  Birchbox described it to have top notes of lychee and red berries, middle notes of tiger lily and jasmine noir, and also notes of sandalwood with golden amber.  Other sites I have found also describe the fragrance as having bergamot, tuberose, cardamom, black pepper, patchouli, and black vanilla.  It reminds me of a much more floral version of Yves Saint Laurent's Baby Doll though the notes are completely different.  I feel like I am picking up more on the amber and tuberose though I do get a bit of the berries when I wear it.  It's very strong so a tiny spritz will last you the entire day.  Don't go heavy on it!  This just reminds me of too many other perfumes on the market & it's not my style.  I'll keep the sample & use it, but I wouldn't buy it in the future.
•  Ultimate Youth Power Eye Serum by Racinne.  I have awful dark circles under my eyes & I've had them for years so I was a bit excited to get this.  Just a bit because I've tried almost everything to get rid of them & nothing has ever worked.  It claims to have plant stem cells, amino acids and all sorts of things to cure your dark circles, enhance production of collagen, moisturize, brighten, firm skin, and stimulate blood flow around the eye.  There isn't really any scent to it & it goes on wet but within a few minutes it seeps in and is unnoticeable on the skin.  I've been using it for a few weeks now and the skin around my eyes feels fresh and moisturized.  I think the collagen production worked a bit too well as my eyes seem more puffy than normal especially around the eyelid.  Nothing too drastic though.  I really don't see any difference at all with my dark circles.  I can't find the insert that came with the bottle to see if they listed a time frame for maximum results, considering I've seen some products say 2+ months.  There might be a slight difference but I really can't tell & I'm not going to fork out $32 for minimal, unnoticeable difference in my dark circles, puffiness I don't really want, and a good moisturizer for the eyes that I can find for less in other products.  I wouldn't buy this. 

• Intense Repair Complex by Airelle BERRIMATRIX.  I got a teeny tiny sample of this that lasted me about 2 weeks & boy was I upset when this was gone!  I used this as a moisturizer after washing my face in the morning & night every day & it was FANTASTIC!  So this is said to be packed with antioxidants, be based on a phytonutrient found in blueberries, improve circulation, and help reduce lines & restore rough or dry skin.  It was very watery for its consistency and absorbed extremely quickly.  After just a few days of use my skin felt fantastic & very balanced!  My combination skin felt normal and even for once, and I had NO breakouts!  It also had a nice, light scent that didn't linger long after application.  The instructions advised to use a dime sized amount, so I did, & a little does goes a long way.  The only real downside to this product was the price.  $116 for 1.7 fl oz.  I would definitely buy this (if I could afford it)! 

• This is a Sea Salt Spray by Davines.  Sea salt sprays were the new "in" thing this summer for hair giving nice, beachy waves.  I was a bit surprised to receive this considering I put in my profile that I had hair that was dry/damaged and too short for a ponytail.  I even had to question Birchbox on Facebook their decision to send it to people who listed what I did in their profile, & also questioned if anyone else with short hair liked it & how they used it.  I got mixed responses & Birchbox's response was that it was moisturizing so it should help.  My hair is still extremely short but there's enough length where I felt I might be able to enhance my natural waves that I do have & get a good use out of the product.  And I REALLY tried to get it to work with my hair but it just wasn't happening.  I tried using it with hair oils, with hair cream moisturizers, with no additional hair products, on dry hair, on damp hair.  My hair always frizzed up & felt terribly dry & even more damaged when using this product.  Even with the moisturizers that I tried applying at different times before and after applying this product.  Every time after use, I couldn't wait to wash it out of my hair.  I doubt it was the length of my hair but I'm almost positive it was the fact that my hair is bleached blond.  It's smelled great, but that was about it for me.  I'll be giving the rest of the sample away to a friend.  This product may work well for others, but I wouldn't buy it.

Now for some random chatter.

Today is my last day on the prednisone!  I'm still not feeling any better, though I'm not feeling worse which I guess is a good thing.  Within a day or 2 I'll most likely have the awful withdrawal symptoms I usually get with stopping the medication.  Hoping that lasts only a week.  I'm still not getting much sleep at night & I'm insanely exhausted & symptomatic throughout the day.  Can't wait for this to end.

I did get my new prescription glasses though.  I'm supposed to wear them all the time & I was told that it might take a few days to get used to them but I think the script may be a little off.  It's amazing how well I can see with my left eye through them but now the right eye seems blurred a bit through the glasses, which makes the overall vision seem a bit off.  *sigh*  Not really sure if I need this adjusted or if it's something that I'll just get used to.  I have the feeling I need an adjustment.

My birthday is coming up shortly.  I'm not going to say how old I am turning but I can say I am not upset about it.  Though some of my friends were upset turning this old.  Which I found funny.  People keep asking me what I want.  I don't really want, nor need anything.  I jokingly told my friend on the phone yesterday I wanted the $116 bottle of Airelle.  If anything I need either money to pay bills right now, or I need things done around my home like having the doors replaced, having my entire kitchen and bathroom redone, replacing my carpets & window blinds.  Stuff like that.  To me though it's just another day.  Nothing special.  I'm most likely going to spend the day on my couch in pain, writing letters, reading a book, ignoring phone calls, & staying away from the internet.  Just like most days lately.  And that's how I want it to be.

Found out our little mew was peeing outside the litter box again.  It only happened a few times and so we were able to clean it up right away.  It's been over a year since we got her & since we had the initial problem of her doing this so I knew something was up.  I got a vet appointment right away & found out she had a UTI and blood in her urine.  Poor girl.  She got an antibiotic shot & I have to take her back in soon for another checkup.  We had one more incident the night after the vet visit but she's been back to using the box regularly again.  I am still keeping an eye on her though I think she's doing much better now.

'Alohi tuckered out after the vet visit.

I was getting an insane amount of spam comments on this blog for a while.  They were mostly on my post about the Kashi Hummus Crisps so I'm kind of curious as to what was leading them there.  Really weird comments having nothing to do with the post or this blog & then links to God knows what.  I got 7 or more in one day & so I decided to turn off the comments to that post.  Every now & then I get another on some other post of mine & I just delete them.  Am I the only one getting these?  I can't be.

If you haven't noticed yet, The Body Shop is selling their Honeymania online already!  I've been trying to save money until I can get back to work again though I'm kind of kicking myself for not buying some when they had a 50% off promotion going on.  So I've been on a honey kick!  Last night's bath consisted of:

• Flying Saucers bath foam by Lush Cosmetics (no longer available)
• Killer Beez soap by Villainess
• Honey moisturizing shampoo by The Body Shop (no longer available)
• Honey & Orange body wash by The Body Shop (no longer available)
• Honey & Almond lotion by The Body Shop (no longer available)

Target currently has a sample up on their samples page for Simple Skincare.  You have to fill out a short survey & then provide your address & you should have it in a few weeks.  These go quickly so act fact!

Well, I feel like a before noon nap now.  Take care everyone!

“If you don't like the weather in New England now, just wait a few minutes.”

First off this is VERY important to me!  Please take a moment and go to this link & sign the petition for change in the treatment of patients with thyroid disorders WORLDWIDE!  It would be even more amazing if you would SHARE it and its importance to your family, friends and even people you don't know.  I had already suffered under the care of one endocrinologist who did not treat me well, nor understand how I could still be suffering because he was basing it off of old education.  My family and I soon learned how the condition was affecting me more than he did & I found a much better doctor.  It is such a complicated condition & doctors need to be educated & treat patients individually & differently, keeping up with all the new information & medicine that can HELP US!  So, PLEASE, SIGN & SHARE!

This WILL put you on an e-mail list for Change.org but it is VERY EASY to unsubscribe.  After you sign, you should immediately get an e-mail from change.org with links at the bottom where you can choose to either update subscriptions, or unsubscribe.  It's THAT EASY! 

I got my 2nd Birchbox the other day!  Some of the products I love & some I'm still trying out so expect an update w/in the next few weeks with the reviews!

The holidays are coming and most stores have their Autumn lineup of scents out.  If you don't already know, The Body Shop will be releasing a new, limited edition line called Honeymania (If you click the link you can already see a few of the products that will be available) and you should start seeing it in your local stores & sold online by mid October with their holiday lineup.

OH how I LOVE honey!  They way it smells, the way it makes my skin feel in beauty products, the way it tastes!  I was told they will be making a bath melt with this line also.  I think it's kind of a perfect time for them to be releasing the line as it will be autumn so you will not be chased down by bees wearing this scent (at least here in NY you shouldn't).  I had that problem a while back with a honey & almond/orange product of theirs.  I'm so excited for this line to be released!

Redbook is currently having a Honeymania soap giveaway through October 14th, 2013.  There will be 10 winners & you can only enter once during the sweepstakes period.  If you do not want the free trial of the magazine please MAKE SURE you select the "CLICK HERE" in the subscription disclaimer to keep you from getting it.  Good luck if you enter!

I haven't been very motivated, nor feeling well, the past week.  I woke up the other day to the temp outside at 42º and the inside temp 70º which felt freezing to me.  I took my medication, fell asleep for about another hour on the couch curled up under 2 blankets, woke up for breakfast then fell asleep probably for another 2 hours.  I felt tired, achy, & wished it was a dark, rainy day because then I could somehow justify my laziness.  Coffee couldn't even keep me awake.  The next day my wish for rain and gloom came true & the day was wasted though I got some reading & writing done.  Yesterday the temp got up to almost 90º and my body couldn't decide if I wanted to be extremely cold or extremely hot, & today the high is supposed to be 86º.  Then on Friday the high is supposed to be only 55º.  It's THAT time of year in WNY and my hypothyroidism is NOT helping!

I've been writing this over the last few days also to get stuff out of my head.  Still frustrated with my vision & how I am feeling, I had blood taken on Monday and have 2 appointments tomorrow so I'm really hoping to have some answers as to what's going on with my body & condition.  I have a feeling I am going to need more medication adjustments.

The other day I also realized just HOW dry my hair was.  My friend was taking me out & so, while getting ready, I took my flat iron to it & that really didn't work out so well.  Even on the lowest heat setting it just seemed to singe my dry hair even more.  I have been neglecting using oil in my hair lately so I need to bring that back into my daily routine & also do a conditioning masque a few times per week.

I put a tweet out the other day that stated, Had the #muddiest, #dirtiest looking #bath ever tonight. #Tub was a complete #mess after. #Skin feels amazing! More later! :)  Here's the, "More later," part.

The last order I placed with Drugstore.com I was looking for new products to try to help with my dry skin after the thyroidectomy and I came across a line of products from a company called The Seaweed Bath Co.  Since I felt I had enough bar soaps & shower gels & am always looking for new bath additives, I noticed their Wildly Natural Seaweed Powder Bath with Hawaiian Kukui Oil & decided to get it in the Citrus scent.  It was on sale, I like seaweed & all natural products, I got another free product of theirs with it, I checked out the reviews & decided that this was my kind of product!  So I bought it.

When I received it I noticed there was a disclaimer on the product that advised to consult a doctor before use if you had a thyroid condition so I went to their facebook page and questioned it.  They responded, "The warning on the packaging is due to the naturally occurring iodine found in seaweed, which we use in all of our products. Iodine can stimulate the thyroid."  When you have a thyroid, and it is working properly, it takes iodine & processes it into T4.  So, I can understand the warning, but I don't have a thyroid anymore so it was very interesting to learn that about the seaweed!

The ingredient are: Sodium chloride (dead sea salt), Fucus vesiculosus (bladderwrack seaweed), Citrus reticulata (tangerine) essential oil, Zingiber officinalis (ginger) essential oil, Argania spinosa (organic argan) oil, Aleurites moluccana (kukui) oil, Aloe barbadensis (aloe), Tocopherol (natural vitamin E).  

I posted some pictures of my preparation and the aftermath of using this product above.  It is suggested for adults that you use 4-5 scoops (it comes with the scoop), the bath water should be a medium brown, soak for 15-30 minutes, and for best results to use 3-4 baths per week, one per day.  The container says you should get around 16 baths out of it.

The 1st time I used this product I just dumped all 4 scoops into the running water.  Because the "powder" is so dense with all the oils & seaweed, it really didn't dissolve much.  So, the 2nd time I used a trick by putting it in a nylon knee high, tied it at the top, kept it under the running water & also massaged it between my fingers to get it to dissolve.  This worked much better, though, as you can see in the pictures, still left a film on my skin & tub.  Now, imagine how it was without the nylon!

The scent of it is very earthy and considering that seaweed is the 2nd ingredient, that's what you will pick up on the most.  I didn't really pick up on the citrus scent until the 2nd bath where I got more of it to dissolve.

I have an old, ugly, plastic tub where any oily bath additive will stick to the side of it.  Like with the tub, this will stick to your skin.  I should emphasize stick!  When you are done with the bath if you just get up & on out you will have brown dots, splotches, streaks all over you.  Just taking a washcloth & water will not remove it & you will actually need a soap or soap-like product to do so.  I'm going to suggest that if you DO buy this product to also either get one of their skin soaps or body washes to maximize the effect.  I had neither so I used a regular body wash & bar soap with a washcloth & the splotches were easily removed from my skin.  Your tub will also look like a mess once you let the water out but it's extremely easy to clean up with a cleanser & you don't have to scrub hard.

I can't even begin to tell you how awesome my skin felt after using this!  So soft and moisturized.  So if you have eczema, psoriasis or very dry skin this is a product for you!  The best I have used so far!  If you think the brown splotches and clean up would deter you from buying this product, I can assure you the the benefits of what this can do for you with regular use will far outweigh a minor annoyance of a dirty looking tub!

 Until later, happy bathing!

Rewards programs - It's SO worth it.

Points programs.  The 3 best are probably through Sephora, Ulta, & The Body Shop.

I'll start w/The Body Shop's Love Your Body program because this one you do pay for.  It's SO worth it though because the $10 you put into it, you get back on any purchase you make in your birth month!  You also get an additional 10% off any purchase & many times when they are having sales or promotions, they do not absorb the 10% into the discount they are already giving, but add it on additionally.  So say a sale is 20% off, the LYB will make it 30% off.  Many times they will also have special dates where LYB members can get 20%+ if using their card also.  So if something is already 20% off, you end up w/40% off.  I forgot specifically how the "points" & "qualifying purchases" work but I know you get a good chunk of change worth of $ off a product on the 4th, also the 8th point.  Plus on the 8th point they will renew your membership for FREE.  This is SO worth it.

Sephora has the Beauty Insider or V.I.B. (Very Important Beauty Insider) program.  You have to start off as a regular Beauty Insider account, which is absolutely free, but in order to qualify for the V.I.B. you have to spend $350 over the course of a year & get upgraded the next year.  These are SO worth it because for every $1 you spend you get a point, the points do not expire, & so you can hold onto them for different levels of point "perks."  These perks are usually for deluxe sample sized products at the 100 point mark, or full size products if you wait for the 500 point mark.  I just got an e-mail for the 500 point perk they are now giving away a really cute Dior charm bracelet w/Addict to Life.  I'll be honest, I usually get a lot of stuff through Ulta now because their overall prices are cheaper, they have more coupons, & I can find more stuff there in an overall beauty trip, but there are a lot of products where the prices are set the same between the 2 companies.  But I can always find a ton of promo codes for deluxe samples when placing an order w/them, plus you can pick 3 extra samples when ordering online, & a free program to get points to eventually get free products... it's SO worth it.

Ulta also has its own rewards programs.  2 actually.  Ultamate rewards & The Club at Ulta rewards.  I really have no clue what the difference is as it seems one in the same & the fact that the Ultamate rewards doesn't go into detail about what's so different about it.  I know The Club at Ulta will send you a reward certificates when eligible, & special offers through mail & when shopping in their store.  It almost seems better.  This is SO worth it because, again, it's free!  Now I have had some trouble with Ulta though.  My online account keeps getting deleted for some reason, maybe because I shop in their stores instead of online.  I have to keep re-entering my card number & it never shows me what my point balance is when I do.  It really has been a frustration w/them.  But, it has given me some really good deals in store.  Like Sephora, deluxe samples, BOGO items.  It still is SO worth it.

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I took a bath tonight w/a Lush bath ballistic.  Had no idea what it was.  To save on packing when I get my huge UK orders they usually don't individually wrap them so I have to guess what's what.  Usually isn't a difficult game to play.  I took it out of my stash & it looked like a Dragon's Egg but after I put it in the water I was pleasantly surprised by the spicy scent, light glitter, & amazing oils that filled my tub.  I do know it is not in their line of products for this holiday.  So sad because I would have stocked up on this one!

In addition I used Almond Fudge Milkshake as shampoo & body wash from Philosophy, and some Brazil Nut body butter from The Body Shop.

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I really started my holiday shopping months ago.  I kind of do it year round if I see things I like.  I am not a crazy shopper on Black Friday & will, most likely, be disappointed in the deals that I find online on Cyber Monday, just like last year. (It was quite sad.)

Something to maybe check out though, The Body Shop has a bag that will be available in stores on the 25th, but online on the 24th.  Last year it was filled with a TON of products & Jolly Orange items, which I love!  This year they say it's an 8 piece exclusive set, valued at $120.  Last year you had to buy other products & spend so much then pay, if I remember correctly, $25 to get the bag but it was SO worth it.  Those details have not yet been released.  This I am excited for!

LAST DAY for an awesome Body Shop deal.

Still trying Sweeps4Bloggers. Of course I am mostly excited when I see bath & body products & candles. It's helping me find new companies to look at also. Haven't won anything yet but I have been pretty busy. There's a lot of contests & I can only spend so much time on the computer.
So I just entered for:
Catching Fireflies Aromatherapy gift set & Yankee Candle Holiday Collection.

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Now The Body Shop is having an AWESOME deal that ends today.  30% off your entire order & if you are a Love Your Body member you get an extra 20% off on top of that! It does exclude candles, jumbo shower gels, charitable items, gift cards & memberships.  Still a deal!  So 50% off almost everything.  Too bad I pretty much HAVE everything I want from them.  Still think I need a trip to the mall today to check it out.

Also want to visit Yankee Candle because I am on a hunt for this candle called Christmas Wish.  It smells like Jingles cookies to me & is my all time favorite for the holiday season.  They didn't have it at my local flagship store so the mall is next.  I have a feeling I will not get it but I enjoy sniffing the candles anyway.

They are also having a buy 2, get 2 on large jar candles.  Here's the coupon w/the information you need for online or you can print it & take it to a store!

Daily bath October 6, 2011, Sweeps, & why I LOVE The Body Shop.

Yankee Candle actually posted about this or I never would have noticed it.  There's a lot of really neat & different things that are being given away & it's not junk like some other sites.  The YC Perfect Pillar giveaway is what caught my eye & this ends October 12th.  So, if you blog & are reading this, there's a lot of ways to get entries for a lot of different things.  I think I even saw something for some soaps that ends later I will need to check out.  I will most likely be using my twitter account to update more on available sweepstakes because I don't want this blog overloaded w/them.  I'm not all that hot on using twitter yet anyway.  I've been blogging for years but it has been more of a personal blog.

• Red Velvet Cupcake as bubble bath & shampoo from Philosophy.
• Strawberry dream bar soap from Brandon Essentials.
• Coco Latte body wash by Savour.
• Brazil Nut body butter by The Body Shop.

I smell like a cafe. 

Now.  I said how I am bored w/The Body Shop.  How I went in on my birthday, I'm just not excited with their products.  I want to see more bathing items like salts, oils, bubble baths.  How I am bored to death w/pumpkin scents this time of season & that's what they picked to win.  Well, I write.  And I wrote about how I do love their company but I am getting bored with them on their Facebook page.

I've only ever really had a problem with the company once when I had bad customer service over the phone.  It really turned out to be my error but I wasn't made aware of that because the woman on the phone never even brought it to my attention.  It had to do with my Love Your Body points on their website, what I was seeing, wasn't matching what she was seeing.  She was focusing on that & not the actual problem I was having.  So I complained on Facebook about it.

They are always on the ball on their Facebook page.  Always replying to people.  Asking questions, seeing how they can make things better.  Now in the situation I previously had, they sent me an e-mail right away, I sent them my contact info, they called me, explained what the other agent didn't & as soon as I realized I was in the wrong & all apologetic, they were still trying to do whatever they could to make me happy.  In this post I made to them about being bored with their products they asked if I had submitted something for the contest (which I think I didn't) but was curious what I would have submitted & advised of a new scent for the holiday that will be coming out, besides the normal vanilla & cranberry.  They are very interactive & I praised them for that but told them to still work on more bathing type products.  They need to stop focusing on the body butters, lotions & shower gels.

Daily bath October 5, 2011 & disappointment in The Body Shop.

• Cinnamon Buns as a bubble bath from Philosophy.
• Hot Spiced Chocolate (hot chocolate & brandy soaked pudding) shower gel by Korres.
• Honey shampoo from The Body Shop.

Just a F.Y.I. the pictures I use on my sites are either picture of the products I own, taken by myself, or pictures directly from the URL sites of the manufactures.  So that's why I link directly to the product.  All the other photos are mine, like the plants, insects, etc.  So if I find they are being used by anyone else w/out permission, for sale, or w/out credit...  expect trouble because I have an awesome attorney.

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Anyhoo.  Today I received an e-mail from TBS & they were having a contest to have a consumer come up with a new scent for a body wash of theirs & it was about their winner.  Awesome.  Now, leave it up to the general public to decide & be brainwashed into what it's going to be, or what their marketing department think what will sell the most this time of year.  Let us see as it was down to 3 scents, espresso, rhubarb, & pumpkin.  I'll give you ONE guess which one won.  The pumpkin.  Ugh.  Yes, I KNOW it's October but you are a huge company & everyone in the world is doing this scent right now & I'll be honest I think the only reason they did it was for marketing because of the time of year.  I have enough pumpkin stuff going back last year, maybe even the year before so I'm not even going to go back to even see what I think of it.  If it was one of the other 2, I probably would have, especially the rhubarb.

Like I posted the other day, I'm getting bored with them.  I go into their store, it's all body butters, lotions, soaps, body washes, same products but different scents but not by much.  I'd really like to see more bath products, salts, bubble baths, bath oils, oil beads.  I'm really hoping they expand their holiday line this year also & not keep it all the same cranberry, vanilla, orange & plum crap they seem to recycle through year after year.  Ok, I did really love the orange line they released last year but some of the products in it were limited or hard to get.

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So the last few days I have been using the Cinnamon Buns in the bath more for the scent, like I had noted before, Philosophy products really don't bubble well.  They might do better if you have a jet tub.  I have been mixing it up w/these Korres shower gels that I got last year for the Betties.  They came in a pack of 3 & I have a bit left of each.  The 1 I listed above & then also Honey Spice (honey cookies & roasted pecans), & Sugar Glazed Clementine (candied clementine & star aniseed).  I think my favorite is the clementine but they are all amazing, & natural but they do contain sodium laureth sulfate.

Products w/SLS or SLES tend to dry out my skin a little more so I usually use lotions after.  Autumn is kind of hit & miss if I want to or not, winter I usually do all the time because of where I live.  Cold, dry, snow!!

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To end, here is a moth I saw the other day.

Daily bath October 3, 2011 & ramblings

• 2 bath oil beads of unknown scent from The Body Shop.
• Heavenly type soap from Two Oakes Soapworks. (eBay)
• Ibiza Party shampoo from Lush.

The awesome thing about bath oil beads is the have an insanely long shelf life (if they are made by a good company).  I'll be honest that TBS has been kind of boring me with their products lately.  I went in ON my birthday so I could get my free $10 on my Love Your Body card plus some other things.  Chris really likes their exfoliating skin towel (& they are much better than the drug store ones.  There really IS a difference.) so I got him one of those.  I got the berry Natural Lip Roll-On.  Still don't know how I feel about it yet.

The bath oil beads were something TBS came out with years ago & they came in a small plastic box of about 20 with 4 different scents.  These weren't normal scents either like something you would find by the checkout at Ulta.  I can't remember any of them except the grape seed one but they all smell fantastic!  I had purchased about 2 boxes & have them all in a small container now so I can't really decipher which is which so I just pulled out 2 today & threw them in the bath & it was wonderful.

Before that I had a few consistent baths of:

• Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream bubble bath also used as shampoo from Philosophy.
• Lay It On Thick shea foaming bath from Bath & Body Works.
• Mint Cookie Milkshake (in set only) body wash from Philosophy.

I guess there is some underground water leak somewhere in the area & they had to shut the water off this morning very early.  So when I came home I didn't really think about it, used the rest room & when I went to flush I was like, "Oh poo."  Ha!  Not much later the water was working again as I could hear the pipes clanking so I ran the water a bit from the faucets & flushed the toilet..

Unfortunately, the toilet started backing up & it seemed more dark, almost black.  Oh how sometimes I wish I was still renting for free inside maintenance!  Thank goodness my father is such a handyman.  Of course when he came around, whatever was backing up was done & over with & a flush cleared it all up.

This underground leak is not fixed though.  Tomorrow will be more of the same.  Ugh.