Cancel Your Salon Appointment!

Like a true product junkie, I am always on the hunt for the holy grail of hair goo, that one potion that will change my locks for life, that spritz, spray, or slop that will bring the salon-feel home with me.

Call off the search! I've found her!

Allow me to introduce you to L'Occitane's Hair Repair Mask. This conditioning treatment is a little tub of miracle goop that magically transforms your dry, over treated, or dull 'do into a luscious look. Your hair will feel, fall, and smell like you just dropped a Benjamin at the beauty shop!

I've used this stuff once a week for a month now, and every time I do, I'm asked by someone if I've had my hair done. It has not failed once.

Looking for a boost in moisture and ego? Check this stuff out!

L'Occitane Immortelle Brightening

Immortelle Brightening Essence

Immortelle Brightening Moisture Cream

So, could L'Occitane have done something wrong?

I love the Immortelle Precious Cream & Eye Balm, was very skeptical that any reformulation could be good.

I tried the Brightening Essence (read: serum) and Moisture Cream, not expecting much.

I have rarely been so happy to be proved wrong!

This combo seriously worked on my parenthesis, those dark spots from my temples around the side & up onto my forehead.

My skin glowed, and not in that oily-sheen way.

Again, well done L'Occitane.

I <3 again="again" amp="amp" brilliance.="brilliance." div="div" doubt="doubt" efficiency="efficiency" in="in" never="never" will="will" you="you" your="your">

P.S. The milky glass containers? Love almost as much as the cobalt glass.

FNO 2012

Hello all!
I haven't posted in WAY too long-- it has been an insane summer.
August was so bad, I actually was looking forward to September & work!
Despite the downer of back-to-work/school, I always start getting excited when the September issues start rolling in!
I've made it through InStyle, working on Elle, & looking forward to Vogue.
What's even better than the September issues?
If you live in NYC or are able to visit, FASHION'S NIGHT OUT! This year, it's on September 6.
I've never been so tempted to hop on a plane as I was on opening the email invite from Alexander McQueen.

For those of you lucky-ducks who are able to make it, here are some of the don't-miss events:

-SCOOP NYC & AG Adriano Goldschmied are having a BLOCK PARTY
875 Washington St at 14th Street, 6-9pm

-L’Occitane is whisking away fashionistas to the south of France this Fashion’s Night Out with decadent cocktails and delicious ice cream flavors inspired by the finest Provençal ingredients. On the evening of Thursday, September 6th, guests who shop the L’Occitane flagship boutique in New York’s Flatiron District will be treated to custom cocktails created by trendy Chelsea speakeasy Bathtub Gin
Outside of the L’Occitane flagship boutique, the legendary Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream Truck will further enhance shoppers’ sensorial experience, offering complimentary ice cream scoops of flavors that evoke the iconic lavender fields and fruit trees of the south of France.
Throughout the night, consumers will be pampered with hand massages and receive exclusive special offers on L’Occitane’s lush products. Customers will also receive a complimentary L’Occitane Maptote filled with L’Occitane favorites like Bonne Mere Soaps, Almond Shower Gel and Verbena Cooling Hand Cream Gel with any $65 purchase.
What:  L’Occitane Celebrates Fashion’s Night Out
When: Thursday, September 6th, 2012 | 6 pm – 11 pm
Where: L’Occitane Flagship Store |   170 5th Avenue | New York, NY 10011 | 212-206-8860

-Redken is hosting their Fashion’s Night Out event on Sept. 6th at the Redken Gallerie and Exchange (565 5th Avenue).
Visit Redken.com/FNO or Redken's FB page for more information.

-WHO:    TIGI, the leader in fashion hair care, along with Fashion’s Night Out and local designers:
SAINTCHiC – With their eco-chic and luxe women’s wear and accessories lines, SAINTCHiC gives back to the Earth by creating sustainable looks
Stone Savant Jewelry – This budding brand plays host to the combination of delicate yet bold stones with a perfectly crafted cadence of hues, weight and luxury
Cousin & Co. Inc. – This line of contemporary handbags complement the lives of today's well-rounder stylish woman, who insists on having both fashion and functionality at a great price
WHAT:    As a lifestyle brand that bridges fashion, music, culture and individualism, TIGI presents a night to remember.  Guests who visit TIGI Fashion’s Night Out: Beauty Meets Fashion will enjoy:
- Discounted TIGI hair care products and tools
- Local designer showcases with exclusive offers and pricing
- Live music by DJ Gordon Voidwell
- Complimentary cocktails and hors d’oeuvres
- Meet and greet with TIGI Talent, including TIGI Global Creative director Nick Irwin.
WHEN:    Thursday, September 6th from 6pm to 11pm  
WHERE:    TIGI Advanced Hair Academy, SoHo, 466 Broome St, 2nd Floor (between Greene and Mercer)

Can't make it? Check out these invites:


WHAT: BLINGGUARD will host an evening of fun facts, fashion tips and more onTwitter. Look out for when BLINGGUARD tweets a question about jewelry, fashion or celebrity trends and re-tweet the right answer towin a complimentary BLINGGUARD product!
WHEN: Thursday, September 6th; 6:00PM-11:00PM
WHERE: www.twitter.com/blingguard

Beginning September 6th, stop by www.mallybeauty.com to receive 20% off a different product each day, for five days

Check back tomorrow for more!

L'Occitane + You: Helping Women in Burkina Faso

L’OCCITANE is proud to announce their inaugural Fundraising Walk for the L’OCCITANE Foundation. With the goal of raising funds for the economic emancipation of women in Burkina Faso, L’OCCITANE’s team will join together for a 3.5 mile journey through Manhattan on April 27th, 2012, and they need you to help raise awareness and funds for this great cause.

Energized by L’OCCITANE’s philanthropic tradition and longstanding commitment to social responsibility, over 150 L’OCCITANE employees will fundraise throughout April with the goal of building a grain mill in Burkina Faso. The addition of this mill will alleviate the daily 10-mile walk made by women in Burkina Faso to feed themselves and their families. To raise awareness for this cause, the walk will kickoff at the 86th Street Heritage L’OCCITANE Boutique where participants will don bright yellow t-shirts and give out hand creams as they stride down 5th Avenue, ending with a celebration at the Flatiron Flagship. L’OCCITANE’s continued support of the Foundation has totaled 5 million dollars over the last 5 years!

Help L’Occitane is taking to raise funds for the women in Burkina Faso: Snag some of your favorite L’Occitane products online with the code FOUNDATION from April 20th - April 30th and 15% of your purchase will help build the grain mill in Burkina Faso.

Join L’OCCITANE to discover the best way to shape up this summer

On Thursday, April 5th, from 5:00pm to 8:00pm, L’Occitane and Shape magazine invite you to attend an exclusive party in honor of L’Occitane’s latest Almond products.

L’Occitane boutiques across the country will be offering beauty treatments and a special gift-with-purchase to all guests.

New York residents: There will be light refreshments and a special presentation by Shape’s Lifestyle Editor, Bahar Takhtehchian, at L’Occitane’s Flatiron Boutique (170 Fifth Ave) at 7:00pm.

L'Occitane Immortelle Precious Cream and Eye Balm

L'Occitane Immortelle Precious Face Cream & Eye Balm are amazing.
Thick enough to stand up to Michigan winters, but not at all greasy, even with my oily skin.
It has refined my skin, my face is happy!
The eye balm really reduced my dark circles, makes me look like I have slept.
It's a little pricey, but the you only need a little--the jars last.
Totally worth it.
And the jars themselves! Lovely cobalt glass and silver lids, so lovely.
Well done again, L'Occitane!

The Cutest Soaps help save sight!

Discover the new fund-raising soaps from L’OCCITANE!
Launched October 12th, 100% of the proceeds from sales of the Get on Board for Sight Limited Edition Soaps ($6 each) will support ORBIS,an NGO committed to ending preventable blindness.

Inspired by the ORBIS plane, also known as the Flying Hospital, these limited-edition charitable soaps from L’OCCITANE are crafted in the shape of a plane wearing glasses. Enriched with nourishing shea butter, they leave hands soft and delicately perfumed. Available in Pink (floral and fruity) and Blue (verbena), 100% of the proceeds from sales will allow ORBIS to launch a large-scale project in Burkina Faso, Africa. This country is very special to L’OCCITANE as the company has been working with women’s cooperatives to source Shea Butter since the 1980s

L'Occitane makes Shea Butter beautiful

Great products, incredible packaging... I'm thinking THE BEST GIFTS...

Launching October 12th is L’OCCITANE’s newest limited-edition collection, and it’s one that the brand holds close to heart:
The Limited-Edition Shea Butter Collection features packaging designed by L’OCCITANE Founder Olivier Baussan who was inspired by the traditional bogolan fabrics of Africa and the country’s indigenous flowers. Available in the below scents, the limited-edition body cream, hand cream and lip balm speak to L’Occitane’s ongoing work with the women of Burkina Faso, Africa who produce all of the Fair Trade Shea Butter used in L’Occitane products.
-       Desert Rose from Morocco is known for its generous blooms and fruity, zesty aroma, which perfumes the desolate landscape.
-       Hibiscus from Egypt delights the eyes with its brilliant colors -- from the purest white to the most passionate red. Its sensual, sunny perfume awakens the senses.
-       Cocoa Flower from the Ivory Coast has a warm, comforting scent with a delicious hint of cacao.

 Ultra Rich Body Cream: Exceptionally rich in shea butter (25%), this body cream envelops dry skin in supreme comfort and softness, leaving it deeply nourished, protected and perfectly moisturized.

Hand Cream: Shea Hand Cream, the #1 best-seller at L’OCCITANE, is rich in shea butter (20%), to protect, nourish and soften the skin.

Lip Balm: This new organic balm, made with 10% shea butter, soothes dry and chapped lips and provides gentle nourishing and protective care.

Fashion’s Night Out 2011 gets some Provencal

WHO: L'OCCITANE en Provence

WHEN: Thursday, September 8, 2011

WHAT: Celebrate Fashion’s Night Out in Provençal style at L'OCCITANE's new Meatpacking District and Soho boutiques. Both locations promise to transport New York fashionistas to the south of France, offering a “Passport to French Style.” Vive la France with these Provençal perks:

• French fare and chilled rosé
• Complimentary hand massages to relieve overburdened arms carrying shopping bags
• An exclusive Riviera-inspired tote bag filled with L’OCCITANE’s beauty essentials

Ending the evening in true French Style, L'OCCITANE will raffle off the crème de la crème of all prizes: a complimentary stay for two at the luxe Provençal hotel and spa, Le Couvent des Minimes, where the winner and a friend will be pampered from head to toe amidst the region’s iconic lavender fields.

WHERE:

• L’OCCITANE Meatpacking District:48 9^th Avenue (betweenWest 14^th St. andWest 15^th St.)
• L’OCCITANE SoHo: 146 Spring St. (betweenWooster and West Broadway)

L'Occitane Sun Verbena Protective Body Lotion SPF 15 (Verveine Soleil)

A great body lotion plus sun protection?!? Yes, please!

Lightly scented--herbally lemon.

Moisturizes well, absorbs quickly, not greasy.
I now put this on everyday after my morning shower.

The only drawback I have: the bottle can be weak around the corners, so try to shake instead of squeeze. I am, apparently, a vigorous squeezer--had to put tape to cover split on corner of bottle.

Added incentive: L'Occitane, as a brand, ROCKS! They have braille on their products &/or packaging; so if you happen to be blind, you still know what you are using. The L'Occitane Foundation works to Support the Visually Impaired, Advance the Economic Emancipation of Women, and Preserve the Knowledge of Nature. How cool is that?!?!

Help L'Occitane help kids to see

As if the superior ingredients, amazing colors, and outstanding scents weren't enough to reason to shop L'Occitane, now this:

The L’OCCITANE Foundation and Helen Keller International strongly believe that impaired vision should not prevent children from taking full advantage of their educational environment. Children with undetected or uncorrected vision problems – such as near-sightedness, far-sightedness and astigmatism – are at a major disadvantage both in and out of school. Unable to fully focus on classroom lessons and schoolwork, they are often unfairly perceived as being learning disabled, low achieving or anti-social. ChildSight® has demonstrated that the provision of eyeglasses helps to level the classroom playing field and provides children with an essential learning tool to help them fully focus and excel in the classroom and beyond.

Working in seven states across the country, ChildSight® provides free, in-school vision screenings to low-income students and, if needed, prescription eyeglasses and referrals to

partnering ophthalmologists for full eye examinations. With funding from the L’OCCITANE Foundation, HKI will be able to support ChildSight® program services for approximately 1,700 children in all seven sites in 2011.

100% of the profits from sales of the limited-

edition “Grow Your Own Lavender” Gift Set, which is currently being sold on usa.loccitane.com, benefit Helen Keller International and their ChildSight® program.

P.S.: I noticed something that felt like braile on the box from my Pivoine Flora Lip Shine (Peche, which gives an awesome coral shimmer without the stickiness). I asked my Aunt, who happens to be blind to translate--it was the product info, in braile! For reals. Bravo!

InStyle Best Beauty Buy Winners

Congratulations to some of BBs favorites for winning the coveted Best Beauty Buy title from InStyle magazine!

Tarte- Lipsurgence Natural LipStain

Clarisonic-Classic & Mia Sonic Skin Cleansing Systems

Sally Hansen- Double Duty Base

& Top Coat

Rene Furterer- Okara & Volumea Hair products

L'Occitane- Shea Butter Hand Cream (this is what my dad uses during the winter)

Neocutis- Perle Skin Brightening Cream

Juice Beauty- Green Apple SPF Moisturizer

Avene- Soothing Moisture Mask

Tweezerman- Slant Tweezer

It's Like Buttah....Shea Butter

I have a new love and it's name is L'Occitane Shea Butter Hand Creme. It is totally non-greasy, absorbs quickly and is a very effective moisturizer and skin softener. Lasts through a few handwashings. Speedily transforms my parched and scratchy hands into baby's bottom soft and smooth. HIGHLY recommend. (And don't let the price tag deter you - it lasts a good long while.)