French Week 2010 Day 7 - L'Occitane Shea Body Products

Today is the last day of French Week. So far, we have looked at fine French fragrances and skincare, now today we are finishing by checking out the L'Occitane Shea body products especially their famous hand cream. L'Occitane has long been a Provencal staple and uses many ingredients and formulas that are native to that region. The climate of this region is warm and sunny but also has strong winds (called mistral winds) that blow for a decent amount of the day. This region is based very heavily on agriculture and farming so products needed to be invented that could be used when working outside. The ingredient that proved the most successful against this is shea butter, a fantastic hydrator and skin protector.

The L'Occitane website talks about the fruit's origins in Africa and how it is used all over the world. "The landscape of Burkina Faso is interspersed with majestic karite trees - the source of shea butter. In this region, the hot winds carry dust and fine sand, and can be very drying for your skin. The women of Burkina Faso traditionally protect their skin - and that of their children - against harsh environmental by applying shea butter daily. Organized into cooperatives, they use traditional methods to harvest the fruit of the sacred tree. They extract and dry the nuts, grind them to make a fine paste, and transform the paste into shea butter - a universal and irreplaceable beauty product. This explains why their skin remains so beautiful, supple, and elastic..."

The best selling product in this collection is the Shea Butter Hand Cream. Hands are one of the most affected body products by harsh conditions so it would make sense that if there is one area that needs to be treated the most, this is it. "A super-smoothing - and best selling - synergy of 20% Shea Butter, honey, and sweet almond extract, blended with the light and alluring aromas of jasmine and ylang-ylang essences. Texturally pleasing balm glides on and absorbs to help heal and protect dry or dehydrated skin. Anti-oxidizing Vitamin E helps nourish. Invites the even the most hard-working hands to a fresh beginning."

In addition to the high concentration of Shea Butter in this product, it also contains Marshmellow and Rosemary to aid in the healing and protecting properties of the cream. Marshmellow in used in skin care products to help heal internal and external inflammations. It helps to hydrate and draw the moisture from the air and bring it into the skin. The ingredient also protect the skin from the external elements. Rosemary adds a slightly herbal scent to this product, making it ideal for either gender.

I have tried this product out at Sephora. The texture is thick and creamy. It initially takes a bit of time to work it into the hands but it is well worth the effort. It hydrates very quickly and helped my hands to stay moisturized for the rest of the day. Even after I washed my hands to take off some of the makeup that I was playing with, my hands retained the hydration for the next few hours.

The Shea Butter body product are available in several different forms. I personally want to get the hand cream and the shower cream. I would also get the body lotion and cream for when my skin dries out in the wintertime. The bar soaps are another most wanted items, both for myself and as little gifts around the holidays.

I hope that you all enjoyed this little foray into French beauty and culture. It is now time to get moving on all the new fall collections that are being released as I type this!

photo courtesy of L'Occitance