Philosophy Amazing Grace Shower Gel
It seems a very long time ago when I discovered beauty products. This was before the likes of Boots stocked its extensive ranges that it does now, and probably the one store we all knew, used and loved probably was The Body Shop. But thanks to an obsession watching the television shopping channel QVC kicked in by a close friend of mine at the time, and a few trips to New York where I camped out a beauty store called Sephora, I became familiar with many different brands. One of which is the American brand named Philosophy. I bought this item in a kit with other items from the brand, which cost just short of £50.00 including p&p and was at a special price. This product can be bought individually from various departments, QVC, Boots etc. The 480ml in Boots costs £19.00.
Why did I buy this?
I love the brand Philosophy. I’ve bought and used many products from their range in the past. What I haven’t done in a long time is order, buy and use any of these products as my last stash of my beloved beauty and bath products was used up many moons ago. But when I saw this item, along with others from the range, in a kit on QVC I couldn’t resist. The price was amazing, the products included I knew I would love along with the scents, and if I’m honest I felt like I needed a nice treat for myself as I haven’t had the opportunity to indulge properly in a beauty purchase for some time.
What is this?
A 3 in 1 body product which is a shower gel, bubble bath and shampoo. It comes from the Grace range, where there are a few different fragrances that are based on the same clean scent but the added notes to them are varied, providing a different sensory experience.
This product is supposed to clean and condition hair and/or body and leave skin delicately fragranced while leaving it soft and supple.
Packaging?
This product is available in various sizes, but the size I have is 240ml. This comes in a traditional style clear plastic bottle with a white screw tip lid, which one side needs to be pushed down to allow the product to be dispensed.
On the front of the bottle is the fragrance name at the top and right at the bottom the size of the bottle/amount of product and what the product is, which a bath, shower product and shampoo. In the middle is a beautiful paragraph, a ‘ philosophy ‘, which as far as I’m aware all the products have some form of message on the packaging to suit the product and the fragrance.
On the back it tells you what the product is, what affect it has on the body, the usual cautions when it comes to body products, and ingredients list. It also mentions the product has a 30 month shelf life once opened, and gas some contact details for the company Philosophy.
Directions of use?
There isn’t any on the packaging, but personally I use this either in the shower if I need to have a quick wash, but I tend to use this more often as a shower gel. Like most bathing products, I squeeze a decent amount of the product under warm running water and then enjoy! I have never used this as a shampoo so can’t comment on how it performs in that area.
Ingredients
Aqua/water, sodium laureth sulfate, lauryl betaine, ppg-2 Hydroxyethyl cocamide, Parfum/fragrance, peg-18 glyceryl oleate/cocoate, phenoxyethanol, sodium benzoate, benzyl salicylate, cocamidopropyl pg-dimonium chloride phosphate, steareth-4, citric acid, panthenyl ethyl ether, sodium sulfate, sodium chloride, laureth-2, hexyl cinnamal, disodium EDTA, Limonene, Butylphenyl methylpropional, Linalool, hydrolysed silk, Benzoic Acid, but, sodium sulfite, avena sativa(oat) kernel oil, caprylic/capric triglyceride, lithospermum erythrorhizon root extract, alcohol, FD&c red no4(CI 14700), d&c red no 33(ci17200), FD&c yellow no5(ci19140).
What do I think?
Price wise this is comparable to bath and shower products that are quite high end in regards to quality and branding. Various sizes mean there is a chance to either try it out at a less cost but small size, or save money by buying supersizes. Either way this isn’t the same price as cheap and cheery supermarket brands, but if sourced sensible and bought in a kit form( highly recommend QVC or keeping an eye on kits when on sale in general) you can get it at a more affordable price. But personally I find buying it on its own a touch expensive.
The fact this is a 3 in 1 product means a product that for some could replace other items in the bathroom. This makes it very easy to use and quick also, if you are grabbing the one bottle to complete three different jobs or at least two.
The packaging is very simple and more importantly functional. It serves its intended purpose, but at the same time looks clean and basic and will sit nicely in any bathroom. I love the almost poem like paragraph on the front. It shows that there really is some thought behind each product and scent in the range, and if you get a chance to read it, will make you smile or at least give you something to think about. The drink or bakery scented 3 in 1 products in the range normally have a recipe on the front of their bottles, which shows even though the company takes their products seriously, they do have some fun with them too.
I love packaging that allows me to see what delights are waiting for me, and this product doesn’t fail to disappoint. I’m not a massive fan of the colour pink, but this pale pink almost peach silky looking liquid grabs me almost instantly! It has an almost pearl like sheen to it which makes you want to dive in straight away!
Smelling a product is one of the first things I do. All Philosophy products have their opening sealed before use, so you would need to peel back the small circular silver film before you can dive in. I’ve smelt this product before years ago and although I never disliked it I much preferred the Pure Grace version in the product range. But whether it’s because my tastes have changed, or possibly my nose, I actually love this now! The first thing that you can smell is something very clean and simple, almost like the perfect fresh bar of soap. Then you get an equal match of floral. I hate floral usually, but mixed with something else and if cleverly done, I can be persuaded. The floral isn’t clawing or old fashioned, its quite uplifting, almost perfume like with a touch of sweetness nestled within it. Not too sure whether I’m correct here, but its almost as if somewhere deep within the scent is something citrus like, like a ripe sweet orange. Very faint, but I’m sure there’s something like that in there. Either way this is beautiful. Delicate, fresh and clean without being boring with a hint of femininity and luxury. I’m sure guys out there would like this scent, but it definitely has a more female edge to it. The fragrance isn’t strong, quite subtle but enough to smell it, whether that’s in the bottle, on a hand, sponge, in the bath etc. I find while using it in the bath the water is beautifully and lightly fragranced. In the shower very similar experience but because its less time indulging, and the shower normally is hotter than the water in the bath, the scent is slightly stronger and sharper due to the quick hurry use, enjoy an go situation.
The consistency of this product is what you would expect from a bathing product, and no doubt not much different to a shower product or shampoo. Has a great thickness to it so easy to work into the body or hair or run under the bath and doesn’t run all over the place so you wont lose any product.
In the shower I use a flannel most of the time, so it doesn’t foam up amazingly well, but in the bath it produces a good amount of bubbles that are small and compact and not filled with huge pockets of air. They last a good duration of my bath time and don’t feel as if I need to add anymore product to replace those bubbles lost.
The water in the bath feels soft and smooth. The mix of the bubbles and the scent and the fact my