For Summer 2012, L’Occitane Brings You Fresh Verbena from Corsica… with a Citrus Twist!

My love for L’Occitane has not been a secret. For someone who is into natural scents and ingredients in skincare products, this is a brand you can’t miss out on. What with lavender, almond, and roses however, their Verbena line has consistently stayed off my radar.

Not anymore! Each summer L’Occitane adds some limited edition products to the Verbena line. This year they come with a citrus twist! Inspired by traditional sorbet recipes of Provence, the Sorbet Verbena products contain lemon and mint essential oils on top of verbena extract from Corsica.

(The verbena sorbet I tasted. I’m normally not a fan of sorbet, but it was perfectly summery!)

In this post I will review the original Verbena Shower Gel, the Cooling Hand Cream Gel, and the Sorbet Verbena Cooling Gloss. Only the Cooling Gloss is limited edition, but all of these are perfect for summer as they are very refreshing!

The Verbena Shower Gel is housed in a hard plastic bottle. The 500ml (16.9oz) bottle comes with a pump, which makes it very easy to use. I also love the verbena leaf pattern on the bottle. The packaging is simple, efficient, yet elegant!

The shower gel is supposed to contain verbena, orange, geranium, and lemon tree essential oils, and I certainly get the zesty citrus and refreshing verbena when I use it. It foams up well, rinses off easily, and doesn’t leave my skin tight or try. I used it for the first time on the hottest day so far this summer (30 degrees with major mugginess), and it really perked me up as well as washing all the grime away. It’s perfect for a morning shower when I need some extra zing to wake me up!

The best part? Both the scent and color are unisex. I don’t know about the men in your lives, but mine is skittish about sharing the same pink/red bottle of shower gel with me. He insists on getting his “green” bottles, despite the fact that shower gels usually don’t leave any lingering scent once you rinse it off (provided you don’t follow up with a lotion of the same scent). The Verbena Shower Gel is one of the very few that passed the Dr. D inspection and became something that we both enjoy!

Here is the ingredient list if you need it:

The Cooling Hand Cream Gel. Now here is something totally unexpected. I have tried the Almond Smooth Hands and thought it would be along the same line but it’s entirely something else!

The Cooling Hand Cream Gel has a gel consistency and the same scent as the shower gel. It can be spread out very easily, but it is mostly because it contains alcohol (listed as the second ingredient) and evaporates fast. The cooling sensation also mostly comes from the alcohol. The third ingredient, tapioca starch, leaves this powdery dry feeling on the hands. After using this hand cream, my skin feels very smooth and firm, but that’s probably because the 4th ingredient is cyclomethicone (a kind of silicone).

I have tried this a couple of times, and I will take it with me on holiday. I think the cooling, dry, and smooth feeling is something I would appreciate in a much warmer and humid climate. This hand cream aims at reducing perspiration and swelling, which might be a godsend in a different climate.

If you are looking for a hand cream that will nourish and protect your skin, I would advise you look at other amazing hand creams L’Occitane offers. If you specifically wants something that provides temporary relief from the heat and sticky feeling however, a travel-size tube might be your holiday buddy!

The Sorbet Verbena Cooling Gloss is a limited edition novelty. I didn’t really know what to make of it when I first got it. I think I was expecting something that’s cooling for 5 minutes and is otherwise not noteworthy. How wrong was I! When L’Occitane says cooling they mean it! The cooling sensation lasts a solid hour on my lips. It is not irritating either. I was worried it would be like those lip-plumping products that sting, but this really is just a pleasant cooling sensation (it’s probably the peppermint oil).

The Sorbet Verbena smell is less zesty than the original Verbena one. You definitely get the citrus, but it’s a lot sweeter and softer than the lemony smell of the original Verbena line. It smells almost edible, but at the same time it stays fresh.

The Cooling Gloss contains shea butter, so I find it quite hydrating. I have mainly been using it on its own as a lip balm. The cooling effect wears off after an hour or so, and the glossy effect wears off after about 2 hours, but the gloss doesn’t completely dry up for another half an hour/hour. However, it does leave your lips hydrated and plump!

The applicator is more like that of a lip balm than a lip gloss. It’s easy enough to use on top of bare lips, and I would use my pinky to dab it on top of another lip product I want to wear.

Bottom line: The L’Occitane Verbena line is something you should look into if you’re looking for a zesty, refreshing scent for summer. While I wouldn’t personally use the Cooling Hand Cream Gel all-year-round, I see myself appreciating it for temporary relief when it is insanely hot and humid!

Have you sampled the L’Occitane Verbena line? Is zesty and refreshing scent your thing? Have you tried any cooling lip products?

Sunny, your beauty culture translator xx

Disclosure: The products mentioned in this review are provided by the PR for my consideration. All opinions are honest and my own. I am in no way compensated for this review. I have always been, and will always be committed ONLY to my readers.