Philosophy The Winter Escape

Philosophy released a bunch of cute little sets as gift ideas this Holiday season. Many of them, including the Recipe Box, look like ones that have been released in previous years. The one that we are touhcing on today is called The Winter Escape and I feel like somethin similar has been released before but since fireplaces and log cabins tend to be a staple of the Holidays, it makes sense to me that Philosophy continues to release new versions of this theme each year.

This set is based around the ever-popular hot cocoa and marshmellows. Here is the write up from the Sephora website, "A trio of fire inspired luxuries. Treat yourself to a warm shower or bath with new Peppermint Hot Cocoa Shampoo, Shower Gel, and Bubble Bath! Of course you can't have hot cocoa without marshmellows, which is why Marshmellow Body Souffle and Marshmellow Flavored Lip Shine make this deliciously cozy ensemble complete! This world-class shower gel is decadent, creamy, and perfect for daily use. The light, silky souffle - textured moisturizer melts into skin, providing anti-oxidant, hydrating, age-fighting benefits".

I was really excited about this product when I first saw it in a Sephora ad in some magazine earlier this month. However, this product and I are not meant to be. The Peppermint Hot Cocoa 3 in 1 is fantastic and I will be getting it in the full sized product that Sephora is selling alone.

I was so excited for the Marshmellow Souffle and this is where the major let down occured. First the background on my excitement for this product. Several years ago, Bath and Body Works released a Marshmellow scented cream just for the Holidays. This was when Tutti Dolci was in its glory and gourmand products were the rage. The cream sold out within days and so did the Hot Cocoa 3 in 1 that the company released to go along with the cream. I was able to get my hands on one of each of the products but was never able to get the back up of the cream that I really wanted to. I had high hopes that this cream was going to be close enough to my original (now long gone) Marshmellow cream but alas, this is nothing like the original. This product smelled fake and chemically and was rather oily as I tried the tester out on my hands. I have never been able to find a successful replacement for that product and this one can be added to the pile of failures. Another reason that I was so excited for this cream is that Philosophy has finally gotten the hint and released products other than the 3 in 1s in full sizes and I could really stock up on this product.

Will I buy this set? No. I see no point in buying the set when I will only use the 3 in 1 and the cream will sit and collect dust. The lip gloss was pretty average, not bad but not amazing and didn't really rock my world. I love the Peppermint Hot Cocoa but that's all I love from this set.

photo courtesy of Sephora