Watching my pores shrink is just the preamble

An aside before I start.  Although since I haven't started it's not so much an aside as a preamble.

 I planned a general * 2011 stuff I like so far * but I didn't get past Naturopathica and it was already long so everything else will be in 'Son of stuff I like in 2011'.

The first thing I tried from them was the  Sicilian Bergamot Body Lotion  (here).  Best. Lotion. Ever.   From use one I could tell it was different because THE NEXT DAY  my hands STILL felt soft, velvetier is the word that keeps coming to mind.  

I used to be a serial hand lotion buyer.  If it was on sale, smelled good, or had a pretty bottle, I took it home.  My radar still zooms in on pretty, shiny bottles but then I think, Why? 


 Haven't bought a single hand lotion since getting this one.   

Moving on to Face stuff

I  tried some Naturopathica skin care recently.   I wasn't unhappy - exactly - with what I used; it's more that I was running in place with it; my skin wasn't getting worse but no better either.    

 On second thought...One thing about  my old moisturizer was a huge minus - No sunscreen.  My dermatologist was tsk-tsk'ing about that while he cut stuff off  MY FACE to biopsy.   I promised my Doctor (and myself), cross my heart I'll use sunscreen because the whole scalpel on your face thing, pretty awful.  

Since I have sun damage (obviously) this is what I use:

Sweet Cherry Brightening Enzyme Peel

I use this once or twice a week and it's great because it takes 3 minutes and I ♥ the smell.  It does smell like  fresh cherries and  I want to pour it over vanilla ice cream ( I don't, silly).  

It makes my skin wonderfully soft and it's the first cherry anything  that smelled like "Cherry, the fruit" not "Cherry, I've  fallen into a bottle of cough syrup".  

According to the website:  Formulated for sun damaged or mature skin, this refining mask exfoliates with Cherry and Pomegranate to promote a smooth and bright complexion.

Plant Stem Cell Serum

This serum. I love it and have a sneaking suspicion it's responsible for shrinking the pores in my T-Zone.  I can't be sure about that, it could be a combination of all the products but if I had to bet, I'd go with the serum.  It's AMAZING.  

Every once in a while I'd try a serum.  Sometimes it was a high-end gift and other times it was a drugstore brand.  I've never noticed a thing with any of them.  Plus all the ones I tried had a water-like consistency  so who knew where I put it on or where I missed?  

This has a light consistency, but it has a consistency.  The closest thing like it might be a gel makeup primer, but lighter.  I'm describing it badly, I know.   I love the lightly herbal scent.  Fresh.  And after I use it my face feels very soft.  And my pores are smaller since,  like day two.  I don't know how that's possible, but the serum is fabushrinkingtastic.

Apply a pea size amount of serum to fingertips and massage into face and neck daily at night for 30 days. Repeat every 90 days.

Lavender Protective Moisturizer

This smells heavenly (I know I'm redundant).  I use it as a day cream but sometimes I use it at night  because the smell of lavender is  relaxing.    It has an SPF of 17 so no more TSK'ing from the dermatologist. 

 This is great alone and under make-up.  If I'm putting make-up on I don't have to wait for it to sink in, it's not greasy.  I've used some moisturizers that make putting make-up  a challenge because of the finish they leave.  

Besides the lavender it has  Turmeric Root to help reduce redness which is great, I have that too. My skin is just a big ol' mess.

Beech Tree and Ginseng Daily Moisturizer

Yes, well I got this one because  of all the aging related to sun damage and aging related to age.  It works  on fine lines along with firming and tightening.  This is another one I love the smell of, it reminds me a little of the serum, herbal but not sweet.  

I use this night and even though it's a night cream it's not a big old greasy mess.  It doesn't get all over my pillows for example.  Sometimes using night creams - or any creams at night - breaks me out but this doesn't.  

None of the products broke me out but I was really impressed that using this, an anti-aging product, at night didn't.  I did  the anti-aging happy dance.

To wrap it up...

I like a lot about the Naturopathica products I tried and  flat out love the way they smell (All were scented so consider that if you normally use unscented).

There are a lot of ways to 'do' scents.  You can produce something cherry that makes your face smell much like the cheeks of a two year old that's just eaten a cherry Popsicle - Not the worst smell in the world, but it's nothing like a fresh cherry. 

 And as far as the herbal scents go, normally I don't like them because it's like being hit in the face with a bag of potpourri as you fall into a bottle of pine floor cleaner.  Naturopathica  products smell fresh and clean.  They smell natural to me, maybe that's the difference.  There was nothing overwhelming and they had a kind of, I don't know...relaxing effect.  They have changed my mind about herbal scents.

Maybe I never tried the right herbally brand before  I don't know. But these smelled as amazing as it was watching my pores shrink.

Which was really, really (No. Really.) amazing.

*Naturopathica sent me these products to try.  There was no compensation for this review nor did they ask me to do it.  ....Just trying  to do my part to rid the world of enlarged pore*