I'm Obsessed With Slathering Myself Head to Toe In This Stuff

Or, in which my moisturizing compulsion continues. I am in love with the L’Occitane Shea Butter line. My amazing daughters gave me a ton of it for Christmas & my skin couldn’t be happier. I first experienced this beauty while standing in line at Sephora. You know, next to those little adult candy bins full of tempting trial sized goodies that say "buy me!" like they were a Cadbury Fruit & Nut bar. I saw the mini L'Occitane Shea Butter hand cream and grabbed it because one can never have enough hand cream. It's pursed sized perfection! 

The Ultra Rich Shower Cream turns showering into some serious good clean fun. The almond-y soapy scent smells expensive & quite French, and leaves my skin silky smooth. Even post shower there is no tightness, but I slather the Shea Body Lotion head to toe anyways. Since I have been using this line I see a real improvement in my cold winter/central heating ravaged skin. Softer, smoother & not a flake to be seen. 

I’m hoarding the bar soap- it’s in my lingerie drawer. My mum kept bar soaps in our linen cupboards & I remember that clean scent wafting out every time I opened the door. I actually keep soaps of all types in all my cupboards and drawers...it's one of those little things that is just... comforting.

L’Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream is the Holy Grail of Hand Creams & a cult fave. It sinks right in, smoothing skin & protecting it from the elements- heat or cold. Even my nails have gotten stronger and less brittle since I've been using this gorgeous and luxe hand cream. It’s now a staple. Seriously- this stuff smells so beautiful. I only wish the scent lasted longer on my skin. In the meantime I will just keep applying the hand cream.

Prices range from $10- $35 for this line. Find a L'Occitane boutique near you on their website.

Random Beautiful Thoughts

Music: This time of year makes me a bit melancholy. I need sunshine and daylight and the deep winter doesn't cut it. It is just too cold and there isn't enough light. I can wallow away with Goldfrapp for hours while I drive with my sunroof open to get every bit of UV light I can find. Wonderfully weird.

Book: My daughter Emilie is very good at finding wonderful books. She plucked The Girl With Glass Feet by Ali Shaw out of nowhere and while we were on holiday she rhapsodized over every word. So after her sister read it I grabbed it. I could not put it down, found the writing so beautiful and poetic, and there was a part ( I won't say when) that made me weep copiously. In my Top 10 favourite books of all time for sure. He has another book that we can't wait to get our hot little hands on. The New York Times Book Review says "Fantastically imagined....only a heart of glass would be unmoved". Wonderful.

Food: It's winter so bring on the comfort food. Homemade chicken soup with noodles and of course, bread. And more bread. Crusty delicious bread + soft creamy cheeses and a hot bowl of soup = happiness. Plus, for Christmas presents, Emilie mixed fresh local honey with walnuts, thyme, olive oil and ancho chiles which is pretty much the yummiest thing EVER to meet cheese and bread. 

Mmm...Art Is In Bread from OttawaFoodies.com

I read this to both of my girls....& my dad read it to me!

Emilie's Special Walnut-Thyme-Ancho Chile Honey YUM

Fashion: Here is where I may lose a few of you...Uggs. Haters- to the left please. Let me be clear- I don't wear them outside my house. But when the weather drops below -20 C and the wind and snow are gusting, there is nothing that keeps me cozier. No socks required, feet stay dry and perfectly cozy. Before I had my foot surgery they were one of the only things that didn't bug my foot, now I just love them for their coziness. I put them on upon crawling out of bed in the morning to make my coffee, and when I come home at the end of the day I kick off the winter boots & snuggle into their wooly cozy goodness. Cooking dinner, curled up with my daughters watching movies in leggings, Uggs, a long cashmere sweater and maybe a pashmina too- it is all about The Cozy.

Aritza Eliza Duster Cashmere Cardigan...so cozy

Skincare: L'Occitane Shea Butter EVERYTHING. My daughters gave me a box filled to the brim with all my fave L'Occitane Shea Butter prodz for Christmas. Read my post aka love letter to shea butter on The Kit....

Make Up: Dermaglow Tinted Moisturizer. I wrote about it here, and truly can't imagine being without it now. It is summer glow and even complexion in a tube. The stuff of miracles.

Perfume: Well it's always hard for me to pin down just one perfume...lately I have really been enjoying my bottle of vintage Chanel No22 eau de toilette (thanks Dane!!!). It is a powdery soapy incense bomb but applied sparingly it is feminine and stunning. There is nothing like. My mother wore this in the 70s, and I wore it when my girls were little, so I do have lovely scent memories attached which makes it all the more enjoyable. I feel just like Catherine Deneuve looks in the ad- rawr! Look out. Its so gorgeous I've taken to adding a spritz to my sheets after I spray my wrists. At bedtime there is just a whisper left as I snuggle in, but it's wonderful and comforting, as perfume should be.