Kiehl's Patchouli and Fresh Rose: Perfect for Winter!
I realized that the Patchouli and Fresh Rose range covers two product classes, skincare, and perfume, so I'm just going to dive into both the Body Cleanser and the Body Lotion for my typical skincare ingredient analysis (which you guys like, right?), and then I'm going to totally switch modes and put on my perfume-loving hat to review the Eau de Toilette! So if it sounds like I'm switching gears halfway through the post, you guys know why! But I figured it's the best way for me to proceed with this post, because I certainly don't want to either skimp on the skincare analysis, or write less about my thoughts on the perfume, just because I'm dealing with multiple product types in one review. So buckle up, and let's get on with the review!
I'll start off with the skincare, and with the first skincare step, the Body Cleanser. As always, I've taken a photo of the ingredient labels. But first, can I just say how much I am really feeling the Kiehl's-style packaging? Classic-looking, informative labels, sturdy packaging with nary a gimmick in sight - yup, I could definitely use more of this!
Kiehl's Patchouli and Fresh Rose Body Cleanser: A clean, light rose and patchouli scent in a fuss-free bottle.
The Patchouli and Fresh Rose Body Cleanser is basically a body wash, formulated with a list of gentle surfactant, the main ones being Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate (a surfactant you'll find in baby shampoos), and Decyl glucoside, probably mixed and matched to get the right skin feel and foaming effect. There's glycerine, and also emollients like PPG-5 Ceteth-20, and Caprylic/Capric Glycerides. These form the bulk of the formula. Rounding off the ingredients list is a bunch of plant oils and extracts, including olive fruit oil, rose flower extract, sesame seed oil, apricot kernel oil, and others...there are quite a few and the list goes on. The net effect is a mild body wash that still foams well when used. So yes, this product delivers on multiple counts: it cleans gently, yet still foams nicely, and the attention to formulation details means that after you step out of the shower, there is a nice skin feel. I imagine people with moderately sensitive skin (but perhaps not extremely sensitive skin) will be able to use this in the shower with no issues, too.
Kiehl's Patchouli and Fresh Rose Body Cleanser: Careful formulation has yielded a product that cleans gently, yet still foams decently and leaves behind a nice skin feel.
And indeed, this is in line with my experience with the Kiehl's Patchouli and Fresh Rose Body Cleanser - it washes off leaving my skin feeling clean but not stripped, and the scent really adds to the shower experience, too. I have a feeling the scent is responsible for making me linger a bit longer in the bathroom, because I just want to breathe in the scent the entire time!
Kiehl's Patchouli and Fresh Rose Body Lotion: A lotion that really moisturizes without feeling heavy.
The Patchouli and Fresh Rose Body Lotion is a light but still moisturizing lotion. You have water, of course, and also a bunch of humectants such as Glycerine (a humectant), skin conditioning agents such as Hydrogenated Polyisobutene (a skin conditioning agent), emollients such as Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Squalane and PEG-100 Stearate (the last of which does double duty as an emulsifier too). Glyceryl Stearate is also an emulsifier. There are also plant-derived ingredients such as shea butter, sweet almond oil, olive fruit oil, rose flower extract, sesame seed oil, and so on (again, as with Kiehl's, the list goes on). I also liked the inclusion of Allantoin, which helps as a skin conditioning agent, and helps a lot with mild skin irritation. If the ingredient looks familiar, it's because you can also find it in OTC products for chafed and chapped skin, or for topical sores, fever blisters and diaper rash. Of course, all the oils and emollients can be pretty heavy-feeling (think more of a cream or balm rather than a lotion), so Propylene Glycol and Alcohol Denat are added to thin out the mixture and make it much easier to apply.
Kiehl's Patchouli and Fresh Rose Body Lotion: A lightweight but still moisturizing lotion.
My experience with the two skincare products are just like I expected from Kiehl's in general, that is to say, products of great quality that are pleasant to use, do what they say they do, and, in the case of the Patchouli and Fresh Rose range, smell heavenly! The scent to me is more rose than patchouli, so even if you're not planning to scent yourself today, you can relax - using these products isn't going to leave you scented all day. While the products do impart a nice scent, I'd say the scent is wearable, and you can still use these products for everyday.
The Patchouli and Fresh Rose Eau de Toilette was, for me, another hotly anticipated item - after all, the Aromatic Blends creations are reflective of Kiehl's past as an apothecary, and I'm always keen to see what the brand has to put out. The bottle is very simple in design, just a glass bottle with a simple silver spray top. I like the simplicity - it certainly beats some of the manicial bottle designs I've been seeing around lately.
Kiehl's Patchouli and Fresh Rose Eau De Toilette: A clean, light, and wearable take on traditionally heavy notes.
The scent is also, like the body products, more rose than patchouli, and even the rose is not the heady, thick concoction of 80's perfume, but a lighter take on the rose scent - which to me, is a good thing. When I wear this scent I get a whiff of citrus initially (must be the bergamot and mandarin orange), and then the perfume quickly gives way to the main body of the scent, which is primarily rose - but a fresh, clean, slightly watery take on rose, more the light scent of rain and roses, than an opulent bouquet stuffed into your nose. The patchouli drydown is actually also rather light and clean, which in my opinion, is again a good thing, considering my lifestyle. I work in an office and live in a crowded urban environment, so I'm wary of perfumes that have mile-long sillages, yet I don't always want perfumes that are of the department-store-standard citrus/generic floral/vanilla combination all the time, so the Kiehl's Patchouli and Fresh Rose seems to be a nice answer to my dilemma: it offers something different by way of perfume notes, and yet keeps all the potentially unruly elements in the fragrance nicely in check to keep them wearable. While this might be a disappointment for those who really want their patchouli to be all earthy and dirt-smelling, or their roses to be swelling with sillage and volume, for me, this is probably the most office-friendly rose/patchouli combination I've come across to-date. Kiehl's Patchouli and Fresh Rose has updated the traditionally heavy notes with a cleaner, fresher feel, to give a scent that I'm comforable wearing anywhere and all day. And while I was a bit surprised by how light the scent was at first (because seeing the words "patchouli" and "rose" on the same box made me anticipate that I would be dealing with a literal cloud of scent!), but it has grown on me, and I really like it. I imagine this would be wearable by most women, even by those who would typically dislike such earthy notes - it's certainly the easiest possible way to wear patchouli and rose!
Kiehl's Patchouli and Fresh Rose Aromatic Blends: A lovely trio of products that are well formulated and deliver on their promises.
So in short, which is my favourite item out of the three Patchouli and Fresh Rose offerings? That's tough to decide - I guess it would depend on whether you're a bath and body person, or a fragrance person. I'm a perfume lover myself, so I suppose my pick would be the EDT, but I can imagine someone else preferring, say, the Body Lotion instead. The Body Cleanser cleans skin gently without stripping skin, the Body Lotion is light yet moisturizes well, and the EDT is a lovely, light fragrance that you can wear anywhere.
(Product was sent for review. Review is my complete and honest opinion. I am not affiliated with/compensated by the company.)
Great review and not too long either considering you were covering 3 products! I love the packaging of that perfume bottle; it reminds me of an expensive linen water bottle and the scent you describe sounds perfect! I'm not a huge fan of in your face florals either.
ReplyDeleteWow!! All 3 of them sound awesome!
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love Kiehls and after reading this post, I'm definitely going to purchase the EDT at least.
ReplyDeleteGreat review! This seems like a great product to try out. I like the formula and how it works on the skin. I will def check on this....
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