Saturday, March 12, 2011

Land of the Free (Sample)



One of the truly great things about America is the free samples.

Companies are quick to shell out the free stuff in the hopes that you'll pony up cash for the real deal. Witness Costco on a Saturday afternoon. You could enjoy an actual buffet during a shopping run. Sephora is the same way — go to the store, and you can walk out with free samples of all kinds of goodies.

I'm a big believer in try-before-you-buy, especially with big-ticket beauty products. During my last visit, I picked up a sample of Josie Maran Bronzing Argan Oil ($52). It's received tons of glowing (ha!) reviews, and rightly so.

Argan oil is supposed to be one of the eight wonders for skin, so that's a plus. Maran kicks the beauty product into must-have territory by turning it into a bronzer. It's pretty — dark, shimmery and flecked with gold when you stare at it in the sample container. Smooth on a teensy bit, and you're skin looks genuinely sun-kissed, without the threat of melanoma. It's a pricey product, but it'd last forever. I'm fairly sure I can stretch my sample out for months.

2 comments:

SunnyDay said...

I need this.

Mikaela said...

this is something i've been wanting to try!