Aromatherapy Associates Rose Bath & Body

[unpaid/sample/affiliate/ad] This is the second part of the new Aromatherapy Associates Rose post, featuring the bath and body products. I can see what they’ve tried to do – bring some innovation and interest to the body category but it’s really only successful in part.

Both the Triple Exfoliator and the Rose Pink Clay Mask (for hair, face and body) feel more body-ish than face. I’m all for a do-it-all product but found the exfoliator just a bit too harsh for me to feel comfortable with it on my face although I was very happy with it as a body product. It’s rather loose and milky but grainy enough with corn cob granules and bamboo that you feel some sloughing has been done. And of course, smells absolutely lovely. Personally, I’d use it on dry skin (it’s liquid enough) and then rinse off rather than wet skin, but either is okay.

This glossy clay mask (no ‘just dug up’ look or feel to this) is confusing. There are only specific instructions for hair – leave for ten minutes on dry hair. It’s a bit woolly on the body aspect – ‘sweep across skin prior to cleansing’. And what? Then what happens? Do you leave it for ten minutes (because if you do, that’s a naked ten minutes in which I hope you are somewhere warm and happy to stand) like the shampoo or just rub it over your body and then rinse straight away, in which case why? The practicalities of most bathrooms make the ritual of exfoliating then masking just a bit too hard to do without it seeming an absolute chore. Exfoliate, rinse, mask, rinse – all the while starkers and standing so you don’t get it everywhere. I can see there are some rasul associations here but compared with sinking into a lovely hot aromatherapy bath, I’m not sure I could be bothered. I didn’t fancy it on my face either or in my hair although to be fair, when I went to a real rasul, I wasn’t bothered where the mud went and put it everywhere.

Happier ground entirely is found with the Shower Oil – it’s suggested that you pour the oil into cupped hands and inhale the rose, geranium and palma rosa before getting busy with the cleansing and that’s a nice idea because it smells so beautiful you should take the time to do it. Even a quick and light blast from the hand cream is spirit lifting although I don’t understand why there isn’t a body lotion or cream to use afterwards in this blend. The shower oil turns into a milk and under the blast of hot water, there’s no real benefit to this. So, in all, if you have time, heat and space, the collection adds up to a lovely spa-like experience, but probably parts of it are better performed in a spa where the clearing up is done by someone else. The exfoliator is £38, the mud £40, the shower gel £26 and the hand cream £20. My top recommend is still the Bath Oil. Everything is HERE, non affiliate HERE.