I look forward to spa days like kids look forward to Christmas. 🙂 A few weeks ago I spent an afternoon at SF’s Bliss spa, and I’m already aching to go back.
It’s too bad spa visits cost as much as they do, right? But if they were something I could do every day, then I guess they wouldn’t feel special.
It may be a while before I make it back to Bliss… Until then, I’ll just get my fix at home with Bliss Blood Orange and White Pepper Sugar Scrub ($36).
Invigorating scent and gentle exfoliation
It’s a wonder how much this stuff smells like freshly peeled oranges. It’s uncanny!
The exfoliating sugar granules create just enough friction to remove dirt and rough patches on my skin without hurting or scratching at all, and unlike salt scrub exfoliators, which can sting any abrasions or scratches I might have (ala shaving nicks or cat scratches; Tabs calls them lovies), the sugar granules in Bliss Blood Orange feel divine.
A cleanser, too
After about a minute of rubbing, the paste builds into a rich, foamy lather (like a body wash) that’s easy to rinse off and leaves behind touchably soft, clean skin.
More affordable than a day at the spa
I won’t pretend that scrubbing myself down in my tiny shower at home rises to the level of a professional exfoliating sesh at Bliss, but considering the cost differential … it runs a close second. 🙂
At $36, a 12-oz jar of Bliss Blood Orange is kinda expensive, but I’m guessing it’s big enough to last a couple months if used twice a week.
Bliss Blood Orange and White Pepper Sugar Scrub
Price: $36 for a 12-oz jar
Use: An orange-scented exfoliating sugar scrub and cleanser
Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A
You might like Bliss Blood Orange and White Pepper Sugar Scrub if…
- you like citrusy body products,
- you’re looking for a scrub/cleanser combo,
- you’re dying for a trip to a spa but don’t want to pay too much.
Drugstore alternative
Looking for a less expensive option? Consider St. Ives Moisturizing In-Shower Exfoliating Body Polish ($8).
Home decor doofus
Since it looks like we may be moving next month, I’ve started to think about colors to paint the new walls.
I know I want something soothing, but it doesn’t help that I have absolutely no home decorating skills, LOL! I can look at a catalogue and figure out what I think is pretty, but I get lost translating the pictures to home decor in real life.
I’m thinking paint because I know it’s relatively easy to change…
Have you ever painted a wall at home before? How’d it go?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Oooo you guys got the place! Congrats!
We painted our house (well, had it painted) after a few years of living in it, and it is amazing how much warmer and cleaner it looks. Keep us posted on the move!!
Hi Shiny,
Sure thing! 🙂 I am hoping that it goes smoothly. We have a lot of time to organize and plan, so that helps.
Happy hump day!
Hi Karen! I love your blog and I love home decorating. I’m kind of bummed because I’ve run out of rooms to paint in my own house. Painting is super easy and it’s a great way to instantly change a space. I think the best thing to do is look at some magazines and see what you like, what colors you gravitate towards and then get paint samples. You can even buy paint samples at Home Depot, come home and put it on the wall and then decide if you like it. Figure out if it goes with your existing or new furniture and go from there. Have fun with it and keep us posted on how it goes!
Hi Katrina,
Thank you! I’m gonna start a magazine idea file today. After work I’m heading to the mall to pick up some catalogues from a few home decorating stores… this should be fun!
OH OH ORANGES!
this is more of my kind of product. painting a wall is not that hard… just rememer to wear old clothes, use lots of masking tape and cover anything of value.
if i ever get to sephora i will try this out…
.-= ines + cha cha’s last blog post… Dance Photo Roundup – Winter 2008/Spring & Summer 2009 =-.
Hi Ines,
This is an amazing scrub! I hope you try it. 🙂
Oh, and thank you for the painting tips!
I love blood oranges – they’re delicious! And this sounds like a good scrub. I painted my own walls. Its not hard and paint is relatively easy/inexpensive to change from time to time. Only thing is, try doing it when the house is empty – its way easier than having to cover up furniture and paint around awkward corners. Otherwise, its a piece of cake 😀
.-= Paris B’s last blog post… L’oreal Color Riche Glam Rose Lipstick Collection =-.
Hi Paris B.,
Thank you for the paint tip! I’m really hoping to get it done before we move in. 🙂
Bliss’ Blood Orange and White Pepper scent is one of my faves! Yum! I love the body butter too!
Hubby and I painted our house before we moved it, it made it feel really special! There are some websites where you can look at a virtual room and change around the colors to get an idea of what combos you like, I highly recommend playing around a bit! The painting itself is pretty darn easy, it just takes longer than you think and gets boring sooner than you hope! 😛
Hi Glosslizard,
Is it just me, or do you ever want to just eat that scrub right up?
Oooh… and I totally have the Body Butter on my too try list.
Oh, interior decorating!!! My niche.
You’re looking for soothing colors, right? Green and blue are universally known as “calming colors,” particularly when they’re light and cool toned.
Here are a few pointers when it comes to picking out what color to paint your walls:
1. Consider your wardrobe personality. If you don’t normally go for girly colors, putting pink on your walls won’t be a harmonious match. Interior design is like fashion for your room.
2. When you go to pick colors, take multiple chip samples of colors you like for a certain room. Tape samples in various places (mainly near light sources) around the room and observe how the colors change in different lighting. You may like one color on the chip but hate it when over the course of the day (light source changes over the day so the color changes slightly) or near lamp sources. You’ll probably narrow the ten or twenty colors you want for a room down to 3 or 4.
3. When you narrow down the colors to three of four per room, most paint supply stores now have sample cans so you can test it on your walls before committing to 2 or 3 cans of the color that you may hate. Paint a sample square on the wall and test drive it for a week or two. You’ll probably pick your favorite for that room over the week.
4. Measure your rooms. Nobody hates running out of paint half way through the paint job. Paint stores like Sherwin Williams have knowledgeable staff that will help you get what you need for painting and answer all your painting questions (Do I need primer? What kind of brushes do I need? How much paint do I need?). Knowing the dimensions of your room is essential to getting the right amount of product.
5. Remember to have fun! Decorating is a lot like shopping for make-up, shoes or clothes, it’s all about experimenting! You’ll have a few slip-ups but sometimes you’ll find gold! I love having fun with accent pillows like pillows, throws and curtains, lamp shades, art pieces, et cetera as they can change a whole room for not a long of money and without painting (renting=no paint Poo). You’d be surprised at the amount of treasures you may find for your home at thrift stores! I’m not saying you’re going to find a Picasso or Tiffany china there, but you’re sure to find a few things. Don’t stress over decorating. It should be fun and it may bring out the artsy side you didn’t know you had. I love it because it is fun and artsy like me. It doesn’t have to be an expensive piece to be special!
If you send me pictures of the rooms and a tiny bit of El Hub’s personality, I’ll be happy to brainstorm up some wall colors for you! I see you as a girly, bubbly, laid-back, colorful kind of girl. I’m sure if you had your way, you’d paint at least one of your walls “Purple Rain” purple and at least one room with have a chandelier with rainbow-reflecting prisms!
Hi Kate & Zena,
Wow, these are great tips! Thank you!
Ha, I’m totally into colorful rooms like the one you described. The thing is … I am also very fickle. I could easily see myself painting a wall a crazy color, loving it for about two weeks, and then getting the urge to change it into something completely different.
I love brights, but I don’t know if there’s a way to do both bright and and soothing.
Do you have any home design sites/magazines that you like?
Oops, sorry about the long comment. I got a tad too excited.
I’ll have to check thus product out for the scent. It sounds like something that I would enjoy. Right now I am using Buffy by Lush & i really like it. Have u tried lush products?
You should check out Apartment Therapy for home decor ideas. They have an SF section which would give u info on local vendors.
.-= Marisol’s last blog post… Kindle me this… =-.
one time I tried Trader Joe’s exfoliator in Grapefruit and Chamomile. Sooo yummy and the ingredients makes you want to eat it. I just recently finished it and now made it as a case to hold all my lip stuff :-P.
.-= Julie Marie’s last blog post… Micro post =-.
Hi Julie Marie,
Yum! Sounds like it smells delicious!
I painted my bedroom a light, very natural green – almost pistachio-like. It matches my wood furniture and the wood floor, and it’s a very soothing colour to me. I think more natural colours (whether blue, purple, green, yellow, etc) are going to be the most soothing, rather than those that look slightly artificial. It’s hard to explain, but if you look at the colour swatches available at the paint store, maybe it will be clearer. I love home decor (though I may not be great at it).
Still in Europe, but no, I haven’t had a chance to do any shopping (except for groceries), much less makeup shopping/browsing. 🙁
Hi Kypris,
That sounds like a pretty color. I bet your room feels like a lush garden…
Are you enjoying your time over there? I hope so!
Painting your walls is pretty easy. Just remember to do the proper prep work like making sure the wall surfaces are clean and taping the edges if you’re not good at freehand edging. The extra prep work will pay off in the long run.
As far as colors, I’ve always favored warm tones (think Tuscany or Provence). Your readers all have some great suggestions. If you want to have a little fun and you have an iPhone, download the free app from Benjamin Moore. You can snap a photo of something that is in the color that you love. The app will then find the paint chip that matches. Then, give the phone a little shake, and it will also give you coordinating color choices! I’m a color wheel geek–probably why I also drool over makeup palettes!
Have fun! Did you end up buying your new home?
Hi Karen4,
What a fun app! I will have to find it today. I’m gonna take a picture of Tabs’ fur, LOL!
We are in escrow right now so *fingers crossed* that it all goes smoothly.
Blood orange is my favorite scent for body products. Juicy and sweet without being little girlish. I use scrubs almost every day. They make me (and my skin) so happy!
.-= meg’s last blog post… You’ve read Pride and Prejudice, but have you read it on Facebook? =-.
Hi Meg,
I’m lovin’ the scrubbin’. What are your favorite scrubs?
I need a trip to the spa 🙂
We’ve painted about half of our house so far… let’s just say we’re hiring a painter for the rest. My hubby and I’ve learned we don’t paint well together and it just leads to arguments, so it’s easier to hire someone and not have to deal with the conflict. For us at least.
Picking out paint colors is so much fun! Enjoy 😉
Hi Tuprnut,
If only we could go on one massive spa field trip! Le sigh!
I hope that I’ll be able to pick a color and not freak out about it. There’s just so many choices, and I get so overwhelmed.
Yay for you Karen! Kate & Zena have some really great tips up there. The only thing I’d add is not be scared, it’s only paint! You don’t like? You paint again! We converted a 3 car garage into a guest house and I got to paint 4 rooms a couple of years ago, it was so much fun. And I went pretty wild, even the paint store said “are you sure you want THESE colors?” But it turned out great; Tiffany box blue for the bedroom (highly recommend this!), tennis ball green for the bath, sunny yellow for the laundry and matte red for my hubby’s studio.
You’ve obviously have a thing for color, trust yourself.
Oh yeah, and Bliss Blood Orange and White Pepper is the yummiest! I agree.
.-= Stef’s last blog post… Zelens Advanced Luminescence Serum – review =-.
Hi Stef,
A Tiffany blue room (it was one of my wedding colors!) sounds awesome. I’d feel like I was in a pool… wonderful!
I love color but I’m afraid of it on walls. I want to walk into a place and feel soothed. Is that possible with brights on the walls?
Definitely try to do it before you move because otherwise it may not get done or can drag out.
Ask friends to help, and it will be so much fun and so much faster! Have a plan to order something great for takeout or delivery and let everyone know when the food will arrive. This speeds up the work, and it creates great memories to sit on the floor eating together and looking at how much the rooms have been transformed.
I used a wacky system for choosing paint that worked for us (you’re a writer too, so this may be fun for you). I love shades of gray/muted modern colors, and I was moving into a home in the inner city for church planting. We went to the store, and I started picking swatches I liked and kept anything city related we happened to pull. My living room is “Urban Sunrise,” the bedroom is “City Storm,” the dining room is “Metropolitan…” something, etc. Somehow, though the paints were different brands, etc., it all works beautifully!
Have fun, and congrats on your new place!
Hi TerriB,
Thank you for the tips. LOL, I would totally pick paint colors based on names…
I’ll have to check this out! I love a good body scrub…especially salt scrubs!!! My fave used to be the salt scrubs at Bath and Body Works but they discontinued them.
There’s already lots of great advice on this post about painting your home yourself and I say do it! The hardest part is prepping, and you’re halfway there because you are moving into a new place so it will be empty! It’s super easy to do yourself and you will feel accomplished! Invite a few friends over to help (preferable ones who have painted before) and it will be fun and you will get done faster!
.-= Kajal Couture’s last blog post… Shave Minimizing Lotions – Do They Really Work? =-.
Hi Kajal Couture,
I think I’ll be able to do a few rooms myself… there are some vaulted ceilings that might make it challenging. I have some time to work it out… I’m not looking forward to moving all my stuff, though. I’ve been in the same place for about 7 years. There’s lots of crap up in here, LOL!
Well (hopefully) congrats on the move!
Every room in my house is a different color actually. The hardest to paint was our living room, we did three walls (with vaulted ceilings) in a deep red and it took…wait for it…FIVE COATS! Yes five, red is HARD especially when you have textured walls. Our family room is chocolate brown but it’s really only 1 wall plus two 1/4 walls and it was just two coats (over a taupe color that we had previously done). Have fun!
.-= Vampy Varnish’s last blog post… LA Girl Rock Star Nail Polish – Part I =-.
Be sure to use eco-friendly paint because It cuts down on the fumes that last for days I have used the Fresh Air choice and there not expensive and have great colors.
Karen,
One of my favorite sites to local is Better Homes & Gardens website. It’s huge and it covers everything from interior design to DIY to recipes (one-stop shop). I love their regular magazine and their DIY magazine. They’re colorful, easy-to-read and understand and so inspiring. Their books are great too. Town & Country is kinda the “it” interior design magazine but it seems a bit too rich for my tastes. Elle Decor is too overwhelming and boring for me (it seems more of a fashion magazine compared to an interior design magazine).
CasaSugar is great for ideas and advice too.
I love color too but I tend to keep the bold in accents (particularly pillows and throws). I’m pretty darn fickle too. For example, I had no qualms throwing my red throw pillow down the stairs to be reincarnated and sewing an Oriental-inspired pillow to replace the throw pillow on the bed because I wanted a print pillow and not a solid color pillow. If you tire of them quickly, you don’t have to feel bad about buying another pillow or two. It’s better than buying another can of paint or inquiring how much it’s going to cost to reupholster an expensive piece of furniture.
That scrubs sounds delicious, seriously, I could even eat it. My sister has this orange & pepper home spray and it’s amazing, it really reminds me of this. St. Ives has some nice body stuff right? I like their scrub.
There’s this website that shows colour combos and it’s a great source of inspiration – I just can’t seem to remember its name (or where I read it, it could’ve been here)! I’ll have a look around and update you. Does painting a door count? LOL
.-= Marcela’s last blog post… Focus: Way To Love =-.
Karen,
I think it possible to still feel soothed with bright colors. You create a nice space, and you’re soothed! Plus, I kept the decor a bit more subtle in the brightest rooms; whites and woods. Soemone said something similar already, but If you’re feeling unsure def. get a small sample can and paint a big piece of something (paper, a board, anything) and hang it on the wall for a few days and see what you think.
How exciting for you!
.-= Stef’s last blog post… Zelens Cellular DNA Protection Day Cream (regular strength and extra rich) review =-.
Hi Karen!
Good luck with the move, I hope it goes well!
This scrub sounds great, as it’s not oil based and rinses clean. I love the Fresh Brown Sugar body scrub but all the oil makes my shower into a slip and slide.
.-= Meghan’s last blog post… Nail Polish, blues and greens =-.