Sensible Mode Living

 I shifted to body washes/shower gels almost a decade ago because of my dehydrated/dry skin which tends to get worse during winters. Mild and moisturizing soaps like the Dove soap didn't do it for me anymore, especially during harsh winters in colder weather countries like the US or Netherlands. This is mostly because soaps in general tend to be more stripping while body washes/shower gels tend to have milder surfactants along with oils, butters, etc. that keep the skin moisturized while cleaning it. So this was an obvious choice for me. That said, not all body washes/shower gels are as moisturizing. There are many gentle ones that I still find to be stripping. On the other hand, there are ones that are way too moisturizing and not cleansing enough. In the last 10 years or so I have tried a lot of body washes/shower gels that didn't quite have what I was looking for but I also found many good ones. Some of them were so good that I have repurchased them many times. My checklist ...

 Baccarat Rouge 540 was launched in 2016 by the famous perfumer Maison Francis Kurkdjian. Since then it has reached a whole new level of popularity when it comes to perfumes, especially on social media. But since it is a very expensive perfume there are a lot of people like me, who cannot justify spending so much on a perfume, and who are looking for something similar that costs less. On the other hand brands that grasp the popularity also come up with perfumes that are inspired by the OG. People refer to these as dupes or smell-a-likes. It's basically a win win situation for everyone. I am personally not crazy about the scent profile that BR540 belongs to but since it is so hyped I wanted to try it out for myself. So I went to the store several times and tested it on the paper strips, on my clothes, and on my skin. And after several tries I decided that it is not really for me. It's a little too spicy and woody for my tastes. And since it is so expensive it's also not some...