Favorite Things of 2006
Here are a few of my favorite product discoveries of 2006. Some have been around for quite a while, and most are (shockingly! gasp!) not even perfumes. (I’ll get a seperate best of list up for this year’s releases later on, but I wanted to play with all the other cool kids for the “favorite things” posts.)
Rubis Tweezers have to be my top product find of the year. I was formerly a true-blue Tweezerman gal, but find these just a smidge better. They grasp those fine stray eyebrow hairs well, and… they also yank out this cluster of three dark hairs, which grow on my chin with alarming regularity. I call them my Three Billy Goat Hairs Gruff. I. hate. them. so. much. I know this sort of surprise facial hair attack happens to all ladies as they get older, but I refuse to go down without a fight. The Rubis gets them right as they’re “sprouting,” so that the only other person who realizes I have chin hairs is the doppelganger who lives in my mirror. Is this all too much information? Yes, it probably is. But that’s why it’s getting my thumbs up.
Armani Code body lotion smells fanatastic. I fell in love with the Le Couvant des Minimes Orange Blosssom Body Cream earlier this year, but that’s already disappeared from the Bath and Body Works shelves, so this is a great alternative. The Code body lotion fragrance also emphasizes a predominate orange blossom note, and has a nice medium weight texture that should be suitable for all but the very driest of skin types. The aroma of the lotion is more delicate than that of the Code eau de parfum, and should be tried seperately as its own product, rather than being lumped in as an ancillary to it.
This is not one of my finds, but rather one of my husband’s product discoveries this year: Korres body wash in Cedar. The Korres body washes aren’t oriented to either men or women as a line, but Cedar has a nice deep woody and musky scent that appeals to masculine noses. It is only $11 a bottle, which also appeals to my husbands desire to be a cheapskate without actually being a cheapskate. (His beloved Pi body wash is $20, so this seems like a compartive bargain. He’s not really good at being a cheapskate, obviously, or he’d be buying the two for a dollar bars at the Dollar Tree. But don’t tell him, he thinks he’s a total bargain hunter.)
Viktor & Rolf’s Antidote: Of all the new releases this year, Hermes’ Terre d’Hermes is the single most superior fragrance. But it’s Antidote that I seem to crave the most lately. Quite simply, it is delish.
Olivia Giacobetti’s IUNX Splash Forte is something I tried as part of a blind sample swap with March. What a wretched pity the IUNX line is no more. Gone! The way the Spash Forte uses spice is ballsy, reminding of the fearlessness of vintage fragrances like Coty’s old L’Aiment. Splash Forte wears on my skin like a shower storm covering me with spiced droplets. Beautiful, and oddly refreshing. Look for it on eBay, because there is nowhere else to find it.
Acca Kappa hair brushes are vegetarian friendly, and I’m quite pleased with mine. I’m glad to recommend them to other vegs, since it can be tricky to find good products that even non-vegs approve of. (I say this as someone who’s found more boners than winners, and thus as someone who instantly suspects a crap product now anytime I see a “vegetarian” label on beauty products. It’s not to say they’re all inferior quality, but there’s a ton of them that are.)
Fresh Pomegranate Conditioning Hair Rinse is the best smelling conditioner I’ve ever used. Its fragrance is a deep, woody pomegranate, but it’s not a heavy or cloying aroma. The conditioner is best suited for hair types that only have light conditioning or detangling needs, or for folks who use a seperate silicone serum styling product. I am ashamed to admit I’m addicted, because it’s awful spendy for something I wash down the drain. Frankly, I think Fresh loads it up with crack. So there it is: it smells too good to not use every day. And it gives my hair that lovely crack sheen.
Jimmy Belasco candles are quite possibly the cleanest burning candles I’ve ever used. I am sure of that because my dog freaks out that the house is burning down if I use candles that throw off even a smidge of soot. He has yet to try to evacuate us from our home in the event of a lit Belasco candle. Seriously, even the smell from the brief flicker of birthday cake candles is enough to set him into a panicked “save the people!” mode, so I’m impressed.
Inner beauty is nice, too. So another favorite beauty find of the year is Library Thing. It’s got “thing” right in its name! So it’s a thing, yeah? Library Thing is a site where you compile entries for the books sitting on your shelves to create reading lists, which you can then compare to other memebers who also have similar lists. It is a KICK-ASS way to find new reading ideas, and it’s really fun to see how many people share your hodgepodge library of reading material. I hope I have more time to fill in my list soon, because even at only 123 books, I’ve already found some books that look promising enough to stick onto my birthday wishlist.
Here are someother blogs and sites writing about their own favorite things they discovered during 2006:
December 29th, 2006 at 4:04 pm
Great list, LOVE the graphic. The desire to be a cheapskate without actually being a cheapskate is present in my DH too :-)
December 29th, 2006 at 4:29 pm
Thanks M, the source image for the lady comes from an old 40s print ad for dentures! I think your husband and mine both are slowly turning into fragrance snobs unwittingly because of the undue influence of their wives, hehe.
December 29th, 2006 at 4:32 pm
I think I might need those tweezers. Mine are starting to not cut it anymore.
I was stunned by how good the Armani bath products were. They were better than the actual fragrance.
I also use that specific Korres body wash. Let your hubby that he can find that at his local TJ Maxx or Marshalls for around $6-$7. Grab them while you can. For that price they are worth stockpiling.
As always this was a great list.
Have a great New Year K!
Huge hugs!!!!
Annie
December 29th, 2006 at 4:45 pm
Annie, my Tweezerman’s always seem to need sharpening after about the year mark, but then I always end up just buying a new pair anyhow because I live in fear that my Billy Goat Hairs Gruff will make an appearance before I get them back from Tweezerman. I’ve had the Rubis for a year now, and it doesn’t seem to need any sharpening at all. So I guess Rubis had the edge (hyuk-hyuk.) I prefer the Code body products to the edp, too - they seem more nuanced and pretty, I guess. I have not seen the Korres line AT ALL in the TJMaxx nearest me…. haven’t checked Marshall’s in a long while (ours kind of sucks, usually) but will let him know to look there since it’s just a skip and hop away from his gym. Thanks, A :)
December 29th, 2006 at 4:52 pm
You always have some great little fun thigs in your lists. :)
That Library Thing is getting visited now. Happy New Year, Katie!
December 29th, 2006 at 5:02 pm
Library Thing is so fun! Hope it gives you some great ideas, P :) Happy New Year to you, as well.
December 29th, 2006 at 6:46 pm
Ooh, the Fresh Pomegranate Conditioner almost made it on my list! it’s sooo yummy smelling without being overbearing. :)
December 29th, 2006 at 7:06 pm
I actually picked up the conditioner while buying their Soda Shampoo, which folks were raving about the smell of on MUA. The Soda shampoo smells okay, but smell-wise it’s the Pomegranate cond. everyone should be going ga-ga for! Glad to see it has another fan besides myself :)
December 29th, 2006 at 7:16 pm
I love your list! I just have to say that my older westie, Roquefort, does the exact same thing as your dog when anything is burning!!! I find it gratifying that your dog does this too. I am going to go try that Fresh Pomegranate Rinse and Library Thing sounds like the find of the year.
Thanks.
December 29th, 2006 at 7:25 pm
Get Tweezerman sharpened…or “lose” it and buy Rubis tweezers… You know, my whole life I’ve had this single eerie fine colorless hair, completely stiff, that grows out of the middle of my left cheek. Once, when my sister was a kid and had some friends over for a slumber party, one of her brat friends pointed at the hair on my cheek and shrieked, “She’s a witch!” I was taken by surprise, so I somehow let her live. What is *with* these errant hairs? Do they not know they’re not wanted?
And I love soy wax candles and there goes my money to Jimmy Belasco.
Great list, lady.
Happy New Year!
December 29th, 2006 at 7:45 pm
Cait, I really hope I get a chance to go in and continue filling out my list at Library Thing. It’s so funny some of the books you think that everyone would have, but doesn’t, and vice versa. Like the Massie “Nicholas and Alexandra,” which is a classic (I thought!) biographic tome - only a handful of folks own it! It’s great fun seeing the lists of folks who match up well with your own. I think it’ll be my internet timehole for ‘07!
Tania, my brother gets one of those!! And his grows super long! And since it’s transparent, sometimes he doesn’t even notice it (he’s a blonde blonde, so at best he only gets a wee amount of chin stubble on his face otherwise) until someone catches sight of it and tries to “brush” the hair off his face. I’m putting weird, errant hairs on notice this year, Colbert-style.
December 29th, 2006 at 7:49 pm
Oh, very excited about library thing! I am shocked at how well those algorithms work with music & movies, so why not for books? Sounds like the perfect way to waste time in 2007, thanks!
December 29th, 2006 at 8:02 pm
I can relate to your fight with hairs on chin. If mine were still black (most of them have gone white over the years) I could have had them zapped with laser. Too late.
The IUNX line disappeared before I could try it. LOL!
Happy New Year, dear K!
December 29th, 2006 at 8:28 pm
s’prazdnikom my dear Scentzilla! Wishing you and yours a fun and fragrant New Year!
December 29th, 2006 at 8:46 pm
Robin, I haven’t had the best of luck with the videos thing (on Netflix, anyhow) but I’m hoping the book one will be better since it calculates out of a whole personal catalogue… eh, we’ll see, even if it doesn’t it should be a good time figuring out that it doesn’t work so well!
Bela, the laser and electrolysis thing scares me a bit - some folks can scar, and since it’s right smack on my face…. eee! A little scary. Hopefully I will not slowly morph into a werewoman and the tweezing method will do ;P
Happy New Year to you as well Lisa! (I meant to email you earlier that stupidhead Blogger ate my comments. Anyhow, thank you for posting the Spongebob clip! I love that video to bits!)
December 29th, 2006 at 11:41 pm
Those Jimmy Belasco candles are wonderful! Spotted and smelled them at a gift trade show a few months ago, but I haven’t seen them at any store since! You just reminded me now to look for them again. Thanks!
December 30th, 2006 at 3:08 am
Hello K!!!
OK… I think I need to try the Rubis tweezers. I hear about them all the time, but after your review, I am taking the plunge!!!
OMG. I cannot believe I forgot to tell you! After you told me about the Fresh Pomegranite Conditioner last month, I dug into my arsenal of samples and found it. OMG. It smells so good. I was so sad that I used up the sample in one wash! This is defn. a wonderful item. If this is crack, I’m happily enabled! ;-)
December 30th, 2006 at 6:59 am
Katie — you and I share a love for the budget. Have you been in the BBW lately? I’m worried… hoping it’s just a holiday glitch due to extra product. It seems to me they’re squeezing all the stuff I actually LIKE (Bigelow, Couvent, etc.) over onto a couple of shelves in the corner so they can devote increasing space to their nasty ginverbread-latte body barf or whatever… it’s verging on being a place I don’t want to go into any more.
December 30th, 2006 at 3:28 pm
hah! i should have thought to list Librarything as well! i mentioned in a previous post how i’m not sure if i should wait until more people get on or if i should plow through and subvert the system with my crackheaded (no pomegranate intended - i’m allergic to it, which makes me so sad) reading lists?
also love the gfx - well done! and the list is wonderful!
December 31st, 2006 at 9:02 am
Dear Katie
I wish you a Happy New Year, with lots of fragrant discoveries and funny posts. I look forward to another year of your blog and send you and your beloved ones my best wishes for 2007.
December 31st, 2006 at 9:32 am
Wow, I must check out the Library Thking asap. I now have a longer train commute and need good books to keep me company. Thanks for a great list!
December 31st, 2006 at 10:24 am
I am so tired of Tweezerman needing sharpening that I am ready to switch. Your recommendation sounds great, and I will be checking it out.
Moreover, I cannot agree more on Armani Cody Body Cream. It is luscious, just luscious!
Happy New Year, Katie! I hope that everything you wish to happen in 2007 will indeed take place.
A big hug!
December 31st, 2006 at 8:22 pm
Ooooh, new tweezers! I don’t have the facial hair thing since I shave daily, but I keep on top of the dreaded ear and nose hair with tweezers. That and the few stray eyebrow hairs
I’m going to check these out!
January 1st, 2007 at 7:05 pm
This is a great list, I have to try these tweezers now. I think I made be the only one who is not obsessing over Armani Code. Maybe I have to try it out to see if I was wrong. :) Happy New Year!
January 2nd, 2007 at 6:57 am
I lovejust about every product Korres make, and the scents are, indeed, something my husband doesn’t mind sharing with me. Except for the vanilla. That’s too much for him.
Happy New Year!
January 20th, 2007 at 8:57 am
I’ve been thinking about getting Rubis tweezers and your post pushed me over the edge :D I tried to sniff the Fresh Pomegranate rinse, but couldn’t get a good idea from the tester at Sephora. I did stiff Antidote at the airport; it smells really nice…
January 20th, 2007 at 3:14 pm
Heh, glad to be service ;P