Scent of a Woman
I just placed my first Arbonne order. Okay, so the product is not completely natural, but the FC5 line is paraben-free and I liked what I tried. I LOVED the smell of everything! Think strawberries and kiwi. Not sickly sweet, just fresh. I know this is taboo in holistic skin care since fragrance is evil (though it's not synthetic fragrance), but I like to smell good! I'm just not an unscented kind of girl.
That brings me to the Real Purity samples I received. Although I've read great reviews, I wasn't crazy about the consistency or the smell. The cleanser was okay, maybe a little too creamy for my taste, but the moisturizers were a bit greasy for me. The hand cream worked nicely, but smelled funny and the hair conditioner made me gag. To top it off, my samples didn't come with a single piece of information (other than a packing slip) about how to use the products. How long do I leave the masque on? Two minutes? Ten minutes? Even a generic single sheet with storage directions or product usage tips would have been great. The website doesn't explain anything either, so I emailed the company to let them know I was a little disappointed (but I also let them know I liked some of the samples I bought) and haven't heard back. Maybe I'm expecting too much from a skin care company, but they say they value customers over products. So far I don't see that.
And I don't know how I missed reading about this line, but I came across some rave reviews for Intelligent Nutrients. You may have heard that it was created by Aveda founder, Horst Rechelbacher. With 100% food-based and organic certified ingredients, a cleanser is a steep $45. I couldn't find any samples online, so I called the company. I was impressed from the minute the customer service person picked up the phone. She was pleasant AND helpful! At first she said she wasn't sure she could get me samples due to the specific care of the products (they require proper temperature and careful packaging), but she said she'd check and call me back the next day. I didn't expect to hear back, but she called today and is sending me samples. This does pose a bit of a problem with the Arbonne products on the way, but I'll figure it out. I have to know what's in that cleanser!
On top of everything, yesterday I received an email from Mary Kay (did I mention I was a sales consultant until recently?) asking various questions about why I didn't want to continue using or selling the products. I replied with the same things I've said before - that although I love the way the products perform, I don't want to take a chance with the potential toxins that are in nearly everything Mary Kay makes. If they take it out the nasty ingredients, maybe I'll come back. I was pleased they sent the survey, though it makes me wonder how many women are in a similar situation with the company.
And all of this just goes to show that I spend way too much time thinking about skin care. I'll check with my husband to see what he thinks.
