October’s Fave Freebie – L’Occitane Hand Cream

It’s the second month running that magazine freebies have been a bit thin on the ground. I popped in to two newsagents (including a rather big WH Smith) at the end of last week, when the November issues were just in and I could see only a handful of cover-mounted beauty products.  I do hope this is not the start of a new trend?

It was a choice for me this month between a L’Occitane rose scented hand cream with Marie Claire and an Elemis day or night cream with InStyle. I plumped for the hand cream, for two key reasons. First, I absolutely adore rose. Second, I have a plentiful supply of day creams in my skincare stash, and quite a few night. Though, now I come to think of it I’ve actually got quite a collection of hand creams too!

My selection also marks the second month in a row that I have gone for a L’Occitane freebie, following last month’s Hair Repair shampoo and conditioner duo, which came bundled with InStyle’s October issue - review here. 

There are four different L’Occitane hand creams to choose from with Marie Claire: the multi-award winning shea butter classic and three limited edition-scented ones; Vanilla Bouquet, Zesty Lime, and the Delightful Rose that I picked. The travel size creams are worth £8 each, double the Marie Claire cover price. No wonder these beauty freebies are so popular!

L’Occitane Delightful Rose Hand Cream – Review

Swatch: L'Occitane Delightful Rose Hand Cream

I have more hand creams from L’Occitane than any other brand. There’s a reason for that – they make rather good hand creams, though this rose scented one is new to me.

You can smell the scent as soon as you unscrew the tube’s cap. Ah! How exquisite and romantic rose is!  It’s a robust rose fragrance that lingers on the skin after application, but it’s not in the least bit overbearing. It’s simply beautiful.

If you’re after a rich and creamy texture, this has that too, thanks to a good amount of shea butter (it’s the second ingredient listed).  Interesting fact: L’Occitane is celebrating 25 years using fair trade shea butter from women’s co-operatives in Burkina Faso, a milestone it is marking with the launch of a limited edition ‘whipped’ shea butter bodycare range, story here.

Have you picked up a magazine beauty freebie this month? You can find out more on L‘Occitane’s shea butter products here.