Small things

There are times I feel like buying something just because I had a good day. I'd taken my first call at my new job last evening, and I wanted to celebrate it by going shopping. Strangely, something that had never happened to me before happened last evening: there was nothing I really wanted to buy. So I walked around Melbourne Central and went into L'Occitane. I ended up buying a leaf-shaped verbena soap for $6.50, which I thought was quite a bargain.  The sales assistant was really nice and gave me samples of Rice Ultra Matte Face Fluid, Cotton and Shea Ultra Comforting Serum and Ultra Comforting Cream.

People at cosmetic counters are always giving me free samples. A year ago at Harrod's the sales assistant gave me a full-size shower gel when I bought a breath freshener for 5 pounds. And a few weeks later, at Sephora in New York, a very-generous SA gave me about ten samples of Fresh products because I told her I liked the brand. Both of these gestures turned out to be profitable for them because I went back to both the shops the very next day and bought more.

After L'Occitane I went to Mecca at Myer, and the SA gave me a sample of Darphin's Matifying Fluid ($98 for 50 ml), which I am liking very much. It's one of the lightest moisturisers I've ever tried, and it smells amazing. I think I'll get a full-sized bottle very soon.

I used to be a huge fan of Lush and used to go to their shop on Swanston St almost every single day once upon a time. This guy who kind of has a crush on me was there when I went there yesterday, and I let him select his favourite sugar scrub for me. It turned out to be Sugar Babe ($6.50), a solid scub scented with ylang ylang and mimosa oils.
'Don't buy the green scrub. It's horrible,' he told me. I sniffed it. It smelt very green, like pine trees and freshly-cut grass. I like 'green' smells, but I told him he was right and he was happy.