perfectly posh giveaway

About a month ago I was visiting a friend's facebook page and I learned she was going to be trying and reviewing some products for a friend. I'm always down for trying new things so I volunteered too.

Naturally I'm about a month behind because I was wrapping up "Wonderettes" and then I just wanted to be lazy. Monday night I finally decided there's no day like today and made it happen.

First things first. Who is Perfectly Posh? They are a local company that started in 2011. They specialize in body products that do not contain parabens, paraffin, lanolin, soy, gluten, or SLS. Everything is 100% made in the USA, and their products are spa grade without the spa price tag-no one item in their catalog is over $22. All of their employees are independent consultants who own their own businesses.

My rep Melissa was great to work with and fast with the shipping. She sent me a bottle of  Hottie Patottie (gelee body wash in vanilla brown sugar-it reminds me a lot of the Brown Sugar and Fig line from Bath and Body Works), and a facial in a bag-sample sizes of Gender Bender charcoal D-Tox soap, Stripper detox mask, Sugar Fix sugar scrub, and Lemon Rice body slather.

First impressions

When I got the box I tore it open-I was so excited to see the products. When I opened the box I was a little concerned because the scent was REALLY strong-very perfume-y. I pinpointed the source (I think) to the Gender Bender soap, and I was worried. Two reasons: A: because I know a few of you deal with allergies and/or asthma, and this would send you into over drive, and B: with a name like 'Gender Bender' I thought it would have a more generic scent to entice the male populace. Most guys I know want to smell like men-not like their ladies. I'm hoping the fact it was cut off the main bar into a sample size is what made it more potent than what it is normally. It was closing weekend for 'Wonderettes' and I wasn't able to use it immediately, so I set the box aside for later.

Before I get to my second impression I think I should give you a little background about my skin so you understand my expectations going in. I have always had oily skin that is very acne-prone. I have tried pretty much every over the counter, prescription cream, department store, mail-order product there is. None of them worked.

 I was always told I would 'grow out of it', and I hoped this was true, but instead of getting better as I aged, it got worse. A lot worse. In 2005 I started to develop severe cystic (or nodular) acne. (It's gross, so I'll let you search it if you want to.) Not only was it painful, but it severely scarred my face and self-esteem. In 2007 after trying every 'remedy' I was given I went to the dermatologist and he promptly put me on Accutane. I don't care about the naysayers or what anyone says about this drug or how dangerous it is. Yes it can be dangerous, but under a doctor's care it's the best treatment available and it was a godsend for me. For those of you lucky enough to have good skin this confession may seem a bit melodramatic. The best comparison I can make in regards to the damage acne causes is being overweight. You're treated differently, judged, stared at, forced to endure 'helpful' remarks from loved ones (and complete strangers), and feel like less than a human being. The only difference is weight can be lost. There is no 'cure' for acne. Even Accutane is only a treatment and there is always a chance I can develop it again in the future.

I haven't taken a dose of Accutane since September 2007, but there is one side-effect I will probably always deal with. My skin is now terribly sensitive (how's that for a contradiction? Oily skin that's also sensitive?). Although I'm open to trying new products I have to be careful so I don't irritate my skin. Also because of my experience I tend to be skeptical when skin products claim amazing benefits. Aside from Accutane I have never experienced the results a lot of skin products promise, and because of that I go into trying new products as a skeptic because I know there is no such thing as a "miracle cure". However, I do believe there are a few products out there that really do help and give you results when you use them regularly, and I am always looking for more products to add to this list. I also know that one use isn't going to show just what a product can do, but I do believe it will give you a pretty good idea of what you're in for if you choose to commit.

That's all I have to say about that. Now on to why we're here. Flash forward two-ish weeks:

The first step in any facial is to clean your face. The scent on the Gender Bender soap wasn't quite as strong as it had been initially-I'm almost positive now it was so strong before because it had been cut. Once I worked it into a lather it had no scent, and even without SLS it had a nice, rich lather that cleaned my oily OILY skin well. Even my mascara didn't stand a chance (don't get it in your eyes though-it hurt like a mother effer. Ooops). My skin did feel a little tight afterwards, but it wasn't bad at all. *NOTE:* I smelled it again last night after I got home from work-the scent had died significantly after that initial use. I also used it again to wash my face for bed and my skin didn't feel nearly as tight afterwards as it had the night before-maybe my initial tightness was just my skin being weird because I was using a new product.

Next up was the Stripper detox mask. I LOVE this product and will be purchasing some with my next paycheck. The scent is wonderful, light, and just all-around awesome. I can't pinpoint it to a specific scent, but it has vanilla in it, and it's light and perfect. It's thick but not cakey, goes on smoothly and evenly (if you've ever used a clay mask you know the pain in the butt cakey-ness I'm referring to), and you don't need a ton to cover your face. I still have enough left in my little .3 oz sample for one more application. The tingling sensation is a little intense, but being the weirdo I am I enjoyed it. But that's not the best part about this mask. When I put it on I was fully prepared to make no facial expressions for the next 15 minutes. Then the coolest thing happened when I decided to try a little experiment. It was COMPLETELY dry, yet I could still move my face and there was NO flaking or pieces of the mask coming off. It cracked a little, and I looked like the tanorexic Jersey mom, but I would have been a little worried if it hadn't. There's definitely no eating cheetos like Jennifer Garner in 13 Going on 30 with this product.

I'm also in love with this product is because it came off SO easily. In fact I started to doubt if there was clay in it because there was no drama getting it off. There was no scrubbing. No chipping away, no jumping in the shower to use the water pressure to get it off. I just used a washcloth and some warm water. I did have to rinse the wash cloth a few times, but it was definitely the quickest, easiest removal of ANY mask I've ever used. I love it, and I hope I only love it more with continued usage.

Next up was the Sugar Fix sugar scrub. Like the Gender Bender soap it was REALLY perfumy, but unlike the Gender Bender soap it stayed that way, and I didn't like the scent (or the fact it gave me a headache) at all. On the plus side like everything else a little went a long way and it spread really easily. Because the scrub is sugar it dissolved with the water (I don't like ANY sugar scrub for this reason, but they are more gentle than traditional exfoliants so I get why some people love them). It made washing it off a breeze, but I didn't get to exfoliate as long as I wanted because the sugar was dissolved. The scrub also added moisture without feeling oily or greasy which I also really liked. It had a tingle element that I LOVED-only you won't feel it until after you dry your face. It was really cool, and aside from the super strong scent I really liked this product, but I have to be honest-I like my clarisonic brush and Mary Kay Microdermabrasion better for exfoliation.

Lastly was the Lemon Rice body butter. It has lemongrass in it so I liked it right away. It wasn't overly scented, very light, and again a little went a long way. I REALLY like this product. Given my oily skin I was worried about putting a 'body butter' on my face, but it claims to be non-comedogenic, and it wasn't greasy at all-unlike like other body butters I've used. It absorbed quickly into my skin, and didn't feel sticky or oily. The true test for a moisturizer for me is how oily my face is the following morning. Surprisingly it wasn't nearly as bad as I had expected. I'm very particular about the facial moisturizers I use so I won't use it on my face again, but I did love it as an all-over body lotion and will be purchasing this with the Stripper mask.

I've used the body wash  for two mornings and I really like it. A nice lather, didn't need a lot, and just enough scent to keep me smelling pretty all day-it's 3:00 and it's still lingering on my skin, but in no way overpowering.

Over all I was really impressed with the products from Perfectly Posh, and my face looked and felt great. The only major downfall for me was how heavily scented some of their products are. I would much rather use something that isn't fragrant enough versus something that's TOO fragrant.

Ok, now for the fun part. The giveaway. The contest will go until next Wednesday August 22. I'll let my computer randomly draw a winner and I'll announce the winner here on Friday August 24. Here's how you enter-and you have to complete ALL steps for an entry, and one entry per person please.

-Go to Melissa's Perfectly Posh Facebook page and 'like' it. (I liked her almost a month ago and I've had maybe three updates-your friends will spam you more than she does.)
-Visit her website and familiarize yourself with all the products Perfectly Posh has to offer, and pick your favorite.
-Come back here and tell me in the comments what product you would like to try if you win! If you don't have a blogger account go to MY Facebook page and comment on the post that links you here.

Good luck!