Summer scrubbin'

I've written before about my love for Villainess products. I really like all the Smooches I've tried, with the scrubby, earthy smelling Grundy being my favourite. I recently ran out of Grundy so I investigated my stash for something else to use in the shower. I decided to give the Paradise Misplaced Smooch a go which, unlike Grundy, is described as a body conditioner rather than a scrub.

The scent description is 'sweetly creamed coconut and touches of mango offset by crisp green tea'. As a lover of green tea anything I was hoping this product would be delicately scented, fresh and perfect for spring/summer. Turns out it is just that.

As this is a body conditioner rather than scrub, it has a very smooth texture. It does exfoliate gently thanks to coconut flakes and green tea flecks. It is quite thick and reminds me of the texture and consistency of goose fat at room temperature (sorry if that's a bit gross). Fortunately that's where the similarity ends.

You are supposed to apply this over your body in the shower, it then reacts a bit like a facial cleansing oil and emulsifies on contact with water, turning into a silky body treatment. Once I'd rinsed it away, my skin felt very smooth and soft and had a delicate, fresh  fragrance which lingers all day. It is so moisturising that there is no need to apply body moisturiser.

I am planning to stock up on this for the summer. I love that I still smell of green tea and a bit of mango seven or eight hours after showering and the moisturising properties are brilliant thanks to all the coconut oil. I will use this on my legs and feet when I'm in full on bare legs and sandals mode and I think it will help pedicures last a bit longer.

I really recommend the Villainess line. All the products I've tried so far have been brilliant and the fragrances are really unusual. Even the 'foodie' fragrances have a slight edge and are not just sickly sweet. I've bought all mine from Posh Brats which is an excellent site. I recently received a fairly large order which included some Posh Brats own brand products and I'll be reviewing those soon.

L'Occitane hand creams

I panic if I realise I've left the house without hand cream. A bit like my lip balm obsession, I am always finding half finished tubes of hand cream in handbags or random drawers around the house. I hate to have dry hands and I always find the soap available in public loos, the office and restaurants seems to strip so much moisture from my hands. I also like to wash my hands a lot as I use public transport every day and I've seen what people put on seats, handrails and the like. Urgh.

After years of trial and error, I've found my favourite hand creams are those from L'Occitane. I find them to be rich, non greasy, nourishing and they smell gorgeous. My absolute favourite handbag standby is the travel size of the Shea Butter Hand Cream.

This cream is incredibly thick yet a small amount is enouch to cover the front and back of my hands and immediately soften the skin. It absorbs well and feels as though it protects my hands from cold weather and general dehydration and it smells a bit like baby powder to me - very delicate and a bit sweet. I've bought individual tubes but they also come as part of gift sets occasionally and I even acquired one tube as a free gift with a magazine last year.

I also always keep a tube of hand cream on my bedside table and (at least) one on my desk at work. I do try other brands from time to time - Burt's Bees is good but comes in a jar, which I hate, Liz Earle's is also good, but I find the fragrance a bit strong - but I always return to L'Occitane.

Also rich in shea butter, but not as heavy duty and thick as the one above, the Honey & Lemon Hand Cream is a real pampering treat. The cream can be squeezed from the tube in a thin ribbon from the lovely gold twist cap and it feels silky upon application. Again it is absorbed quickly and moisturises well but one of the real pleasures of using it is the scent. The sweeteness of the honey is curbed by a tart citrus hit and it will easily fragrance the room in which you apply it, though it is not headache-inducing.

Once I'd used a full tube of the Honey & Lemon - and it lasted for at least four months of daily applications at work - I decided to check out the other fragrances to see if they were all as delicious.

I toyed with Lavender, Cherry Blossom and Rose 4 Reines (which I succumbed to in the travel size as a handbag back up) but once I smelled the Green Tea Hand Cream, the hunt was over. This cream has the same silky moisturising qualities as the Honey & Lemon but the fragrance is even better, in my opinion. It is light, refreshing and sweet with a bitter undertone of  leaf tea. As with the Lemon & Honey it wafts around the room and every time I apply it at work, someone will comment on the delicious smell. The fragrance then lingers on your hands which means you get wafts of it every now and then.

Pricing info and the creams themselves (along with others) are all available from the L'Occitane website though I've always bought from freestanding shops or concessions in Department stores. The travel size shea butter tubes are really worth a try, though I can't vouch for how well they'd work on sensitive skin or those with eczema. What works well for me might not for someone else. L'Occitane are pretty generous with sample sachets though.

Strange and beautiful

I am one of those people for whom olfactory memories are hugely sentimental. The smell of nutmeg takes me back to the comfort of Saturdays at my nan's house, watching the football results and eating an egg custard tart. Creosote is the buzzing whine of distant lawnmowers and the drowzy heat of our back garden as my brother and I splashed in our paddling pool.

When I first read Perfume by Patrick Suskind, I was overwhelmed by it. I wanted to read and re-read it, to sink myself into its pages. I was drawn to the hideous, murderous Jean-Baptiste Grenouille because his search for the perfect fragrance was so pure, the descriptions so evocative. I loved the idea of having his amazing sense of smell and the skill to create such riot-causingly delicious scents.

Some people will say their favourite smell is cut grass or baking bread, fresh coffee or the top of a baby's head. I like all of those but my favourite smells are rich, loamy earth, rain on hot rocks, wet plaster and the damp sediment of a cave. I cannot get enough of them, they have such a depth and freshness to me.