Product: Avea Naturals Lotion

One time, when I ran out of lotion, I decided to try a different brand, one that is particularly cheaper than my regular brand. Yes, I was scrimping on a lotion. After scanning two whole shelves of lotions, body oils and other moisturizing products, both local and foreign brands, and being a stickler for natural products, I chose Avea Naturals Lotion.

It didn't strike me as a natural natural product but seeing no parabens in the ingredients list, I thought it passed my requirements. Right off the label, it claimed to be formulated for deep moisturizing. The scent wasn't bad either. But the thing that really got me in was the price -- only P99 for 600ml lotion (33% more). A good buy it seemed.

And then, there's my weird predilection for products that have expiration dates. My theory is that if it's really natural, it make sense for it not to last for a long time. Hence, the need and the advantage of having expiration dates.

 But as it is with books, you mustn't judge a product by its label.

The first thing that I noticed when I applied the lotion was the scent. It smelled okay when you sniff it right from the bottle. But once applied on the skin, it didn't smell as nice anymore. Or maybe it's the chemical composition of my skin that altered the scent of the lotion. Either way, I don't like the smell and neither does my husband.

Other not so good points: it's sticky, it feels heavy on the skin and it leaves a shine (not a healthy glow) on the surface, like an oily residue or something.

It does very little in making my skin soft and smooth to touch. I don't have to scratch myself to check that it's moisturized as I could tell by just looking at my skin. But if I do, scratch myself that is, I see white traces -- an indication of a dry skin.

So it wasn't long before I realized that this isn't a good product after all. But not wanting to throw or give it away (and waste the P99 that I bought it with), I decided to use it on my feet instead, thinking that maybe it'll be more suitable there, relieving cracked skin and all. But again, I was wrong. Feet need more moisture than any part of the body, and Avea Naturals Lotion just couldn't deliver what it promised on the label.

I just stopped it using all together and bought myself a trusted brand. A little more expensive, but I get what I paid for.