A Tale of Two Scrubs

It's a sucky life when work gets in the way of your blogging. Well, that's my excuse. For the last few days, I've been really busy with actual work, and it hasn't been stuff that I could ignore because I was on a "conference call" with "Poopy McAnal Play, younger brother of Jewington McAnal Play." (That, my loyal readers, is what happens when one steps away from their computer, and leaves their normally politically correct and erudite blog in the clutches of their witty, unemployed husband. Ahem.) Anyway, I'll endeavor not to let it happen again, because, bitches, I've got lots to say. This is evidenced by tonight's marathon of posting. Let's just see how much I can pump out there before I retire to my pj's and Margaret Atwood.

So, yeah, folks, that's me, in my bathroom. Yes, I look slightly deranged, and no, my nose is not normally that oddly proportioned. Oh, and yes, I'm wearing a Long John Silver's hat. You will notice that I am holding two scrubs (if you can get past my choice of headwear that is). The smaller tub holds C.O. Bigelow's Lemon Sugar Body Scrub, and the larger tub holds my previously reviewed Boots Mediterranean Orange Chamomile and Honey Body Scrub.

So here's the thing: I went to Target and bought the Boots stuff, totally forgetting that I had earlier in the week used a Bath and Body Works gift card to order the Lemon Sugar Body scrub. Whooops! So now I've got two scrubs. And because I value the journalistic integrity of this blog, I have to compare them. For you to see. Anything less would just be yellow journalism at best.

Here's the details on the Boots scrub, if you remember from last time: somewhat creamy, awesome scent, fat little tub with a strangely hard to remove screw-off lid. About an 8.5 on the scale from 1 to 10. Since reviewing, I have used it many times, and have enjoyed it.

First let me tell you about the ordering situation of the Bath and Body Works scrub. If you've never ordered anything from Bath and Body Works, let me tell you that it is not for the faint of heart. The internet site is fine and dandy I guess, and they give you lots of good deals if you sign up for their updates on the website (I've gotten two free tubes of C.O Bigelow Mentha Lip Shine, which I love, along with some great discounts. In fact, when I ordered this stuff, I got $10 off my order, plus free shipping. Shabang.). The bad thing is, the stuff takes forever to get to you, and arrives in a hot mess. Oh, and unless you get free shipping (which is admittedly not hard to do) the shipping is pretty steep. This time was no different. In fact, when I opened my box, I found that lid for my body scrub was already cracked, and when I opened the stuff, it just fell apart. Nice. I kinda wonder who packs the stuff at B&BW HQ--homeless men with Tourette's? It's a possibility. But whatever. They consistently get my money, so I shouldn't complain too much.

So moving on to the scrub. I was really jazzed about it because a) I love the smell of lemons, and b) I have read good things about this scrub. I got in the tub and opened it up, which was much easier to do than with the Boots scrub, but this could have been because the lid was in two distinct pieces. The first thing I thought of was: lemon Pledge. Now, I've got no problem with lemon Pledge. But I was expecting something a little...fresher. A little less artificial, and perhaps a bit less sacharine. Especially since it says it is a 100% natural fragrance. Flipping it over, I saw that there is a whole bunch of stuff on the label that I can't pronounce. Hmmm...natural. Yeah. Not to be deterred, I slathered it on. I have to say--this is a good scrub. It's a sugar scrub, but it's not packed in that slimey oil. In fact, it's just...scrub particles suspended in some kind of gelly/glue like substance. And truthfully, it works really well. My legs were soft, moisturized, and had no redness, even after using it after shaving. I really like it. But there is that smell...

And the price. C.O. Bigelow scrub is $19.50, which is a little steep, given that my big ole tub of Boots was $9.99. And I have to say, for sheer creativity and naturalness of scent, I like the Boots better. That's not to say that I won't finish off my C.O. Bigelow scrub, and perhaps even yearn for more of the items in the collection--maybe just in a different scent. But, I believe that in a battle to the death, the Boots scrub would probably jackhammer the C.O. Bigelow scrub, and then hold its writhing body to the floor while it screams in vain for mercy.

So rock on Boots. I look forward to new products that I will most surely buy when I tell my husband that I'm going to Target to buy trash bags.