About 6 years ago, I had a facial done and I fell in love with the lotion the woman used on my face. Of course, I had to take a bottle of it home with me. It cost me a pretty penny. And I almost refused until she talked me into it, reassuring me that it would last for months if I followed the instructions. She was right, it did last for a long time. And it would have lasted even longer had I not dropped the glass bottle onto the basin of our bathtub causing the precious liquid to splatter all over the place. I was so heartbroken, I actually tried to scrape the splatter up using a butter knife. Toby Joe finally intervened suggesting that I buy a new bottle. Well, I never did. And to this day neither one of us remember who made it.
But a year or two after that, we were at an Origins in SoHo. The woman behind the counter was really trying to sell me stuff. She came at me strong. (This is pretty typical of shops in SoHo. Usually I avoid all eye-contact.) But she was persistent. She suggested I try this amazing face serum. “It’s fantastic!” She told me. I gave in. Much to my pleasant surprise, it was a lot like the bottle I had smashed years earlier.
Dr. Andrew Weil created this Mega-Mushroom Face Serum for Origins and I am in love with it. I don’t buy it all that often. (It’s a pretty penny!) But it’s well worth the splurge. And it does last a really long time.
Also, for those who care about such things (as I do), Origins does not test on animals.
(This is a new series I’m starting about the stuff we buy and love. I am not getting paid to do this, nor is it being sent to me for free. This is just something I thought might be useful to folks.)
Was it when we went to the spa at the Grand FL? If so, they used all Jurlique products then and pretty much everything was in glass bottles. My greatest fear was dropping one! Here is the link: http://www.jurlique.com/page/home.
Oh, something similar happened to me once. I found a perfume I loved when the husband and I were visiting NYC years ago. Then, on a family trip to visit the relatives in Wyoming, my dad accidentally knocked said perfume out of my bag, making the hotel lobby smell lovely, but ruining my day. I was so upset, I didn’t remember to make note of the brand, so I have been searching for a replacement.
Anyway, love this new feature! Maybe it is because I am getting more frugal now that I am nearly 30, but I prefer to get recommendations for products rather than just running out and spending money (as I used to)….
Melhow! That’s it! Thanks! We couldn’t remember it and that’s a pretty huge brand, right? Ah well.
Wendy: I have a similar story. In college I wore an oil called “Sunflower” it came in one of those little vials. (Kind of like a handmade type thing but not I don’t think.) A company out of California made it. Well, I loved this oil. I really really loved it. I’m getting a little weepy thinking about it!
Anyway, one day a while later after I ran out, I went back to get more and the shop college gal had no idea what I was talking about. They had gotten a new brand to sell entirely. (This was before the Internet too, so I couldn’t even find it on my own if I tried.)
I never found it again. I tried searching online recently to see what I could dig up and it sucks because while some folks say it’s sunflower, I have no way of trying it first this way.
I have looked for that smell for years. Nearly every time I am at a shop that sells those little vials of oil, I will patiently smell them all.
So sad!
So, yeah, if anyone reading this ever stumbles upon a small vial of oil called “Sunflower” and it smells like something I would wear (hehe) pick it up for me? I’ll pay you back!
cbihateperfume.com is in Brooklyn. it’s the guy who started/ran demeter. he might have something similar to sunflower.
not exactly the answer you want, but its in our city!
and I thought you only wore patchouli in college…
I wore that too! And vanilla from The Body Shop, who, incidentally totally changed the chemistry of. Now it smells terrible (imo). When I told the 20-year-old clerk in Boston that it had been a while and I was wondering if they still made their amazing vanilla oil and jojoba shampoo, she said, “Wow, how old are you?! It really has been a while.
Ummmm Thanks, lady.
BTW, I still wear patchouli.
Just wanted to commiserate on your last post: Ellie’s last day of school is next Friday and I have been so broken up about it! We just can’t afford it anymore and she’ll be starting preschool in the fall (somewhere else) anyway, but she’s done so well there and everybody has been so kind to her (don’t you just loving watching the little guys say hello and hug each other? so cute!) that I hate to pull her out. We’re trying to find out if they’ll let her come just a couple of days a week but no word yet…
Her teachers did invite her on the field trip in July, though, which I thought was nice.
Kate: I feel your pain. We can’t afford his school anymore either. ALthough, I am thinking we should at least do a 2-day with them which is an option. We’ll see.
That school rocks. Well worth the money, imo. It’s pricey, but amazing.
I also love this. Money well spent.
I use this also! I have very high maintenance skin and ended up with severe adult acne a couple of years ago, and this line helped calm my skin down enough that I could use a topical treatment. Everything I use from that line lasts so long that I’m always surprised when it runs out.
By the way, have you tried the Origins facial sunblock? I think it’s called Out Smart. It’s fantastic; I doubt I’ll ever buy any other unless it someday no longer exists. It blew my old favorite (Neutrogena Dry Touch) away, and I actually end up spending less on it than on other brands because one tube goes so much farther; I can do my whole face and neck with just a pea-sized amount.
Now I’m curious, what does this serum actually do? Will it reduce fine lines? Or is it like a brightener?
Christa: I like it because it makes my skin feel really, really smooth and soft. Also, I may be making this next part up, but it takes down some of the red on my face as well. (Lately, I’ve had some hormonal shifts and this has helped with that greatly.)
I also love origins products…try the “Night a Mins” nighttime cream and the “Have a Nice day” daytime lotion with SPF 15. They are very nice