3 Best-Smelling Body Lotions To Try This Year
I never used to apply body lotion. It wasn’t something I used when I came out of the shower, and as I type this, I still can’t believe I never used any?! What’s wrong with me.
I totally underestimated how luxurious it feels to apply body lotion to freshly shaved legs (and arms. Yup, I shave my arms!)
In this blog post, I’m going over my top three picks for best-smelling body lotions of 2021. I feel like I should present a trophy or something after saying that, haha.
And the winner goes to…
Well, I’ll let you decide. Here are my top 3 body lotions I own that smell absolutely delishhh.
Brazilian Bum Bum Cream by Sol De Janeiro
Sol de Janeiro’s Brazilian Bum Bum (pronounced “boom-boom”) Cream is a bestseller for good reason. Like yes, I get the hype and now I am hyping it up too. Let’s go over three things I love about this product!
The heavenly warm scent
The first thing you’ll experience as you dive into this product is the delicious, warm smell that will hypnotize and cast a spell on you. Okay, I’m being dramatic, but it is seriouslyyy drool-worthy. It’s a yummy blend of salted caramel, vanilla, and pistachio. And it is strong! So for my gals who are sensitive to smell, this isn’t subtle.
You know how some scents that have vanilla and salted caramel can be insanely sweet and artificial smelling? I’m thinking about some candles I’ve smelt at HomeGoods as I type this, lol. Well, this ain’t that. This smells like you opened up a portal to a luscious tropical summer island with warm, sweet and spicy aromas all around you.
Lastly, it is strong! So like I said, if you are sensitive to smell, this is my warning that this isn’t a subtle scent. I’m a sensitive person though and personally don’t think it’s overwhelming ( mainly because I’m just head over heels in love with the scent. The marriage is next week, btw.)
How it made my skin feel
So this is more of a body butter than a body lotion and that’s because of how rich and thick the texture of this is. It’s also so creamy, smooth, and velvety when applied, which leaves my skin feeling so moisturized and soft.
I love sharing my opinions but I also want these reviews to be educational so I’m going to share the key ingredients and their benefits to help you understand why this product is so successful. The following is taken from Sephora’s product page, btw! They’re really great at being concise with their ingredients education to make skincare easy to learn.
-Guaraná: Supports natural circulation, boosts energy, and smooths skin; contains five times the caffeine of coffee.
-Cupuaçu Butter: Full of fatty-acids, phytosterols, and polyphenols to lock in moisture and help restore skin’s elasticity.
-Açaí: The antioxidant powerhouse packed into one superfruit helps keep skin looking and feeling young.
-Coconut Oil: Melts easily into skin to soften, condition, and moisturize.
Many people love the Brazilian Bum Bum Cream because of its firming qualities of the guaraná, though I feel like I can’t speak to this as skin firming on my body isn’t a concern I face right now! However, I’ve read so many reviews about how this has helped with cellulite so if you have any experience with this, leave it in the comments below!
I adore this body butter for the intense moisture it gives my skin and the delicious smell. This also isn’t greasy, oily, nor does it leave a film on my skin after I apply!
Watermelon Glow Pink Dream Body Cream by Glow Recipe (HALEY15 for 15% off!)
If I were talking in video format right now instead of typing, my jaw would be dropped and I’d be speechless, struggling to start my sentence. That’s how incredible this body lotion is!
If you don’t know, Glow Recipe is a Korean-founded, fruit-powered skincare brand that’s clean and cruelty-free. Their packaging is adorable, vibrant, and fruit-inspired which totally represents their core ingredients and how their brand was founded. Talk about the ultimate #shelfie moment.
Before I get into this review, I wanted to address something a couple of my Instagram followers told me. They told me they didn’t initially purchase from Glow Recipe because they thought the packaging was gimmicky.
I have three things to say to that:
First off, if you care more about how the packaging looks in your bathroom than the actual skincare ingredients inside, then stop buying skincare because you’ll waste your money! Haha. Hit up Target if you want cute affordable decor, lol.
Secondly, skincare is solely about the ingredients, PERIOD. So, if you’re getting distracted by the packaging, I encourage you to start your skincare education journey or learn more about the brand on their “About Us” tab on their website! You can always DM me for skincare help too, or do a quick Google search like “skincare ingredients for _______ (ex: fighting acne)” or “what skincare actives to use for ______ (enter your skincare concern)”.
Lastly, Glow Recipe’s packaging is the epitome of their brand! It’s what makes them Glow Recipe and stand out amongst all the other skincare brands that exist out there. Let’s show them lots of love for their originality and for being so on-brand! :)
Okay, so now for the review! Here are three things that stood out the absolute most to me with the Watermelon Glow Pink Dream Body Cream.
The Watermelon Scent
The scent is their classic cult-fave watermelon scent. It’s made by using all parts of a watermelon and it’s to die for!
When you immediately pump out the lotion and start applying it to the skin, you can really smell and enjoy the scent. After you rub it in, the smell lingers but isn’t as strong which I enjoy because it doesn’t overwhelm my senses. Because of this, I also feel like I get to enjoy the smell all over again when I use it the next day.
How soft it immediately made my skin
I’m not exaggerating here, okay? Their formula of using Hibiscus AHA (a natural alternative to a chemical exfoliant) with Watermelon Seed Butter (an intensely moisturizing butter that’s rich in nutrients) and multi-layered Hyaluronic Acid (key ingredient for ultimate hydration) works wonderfully together.
Just after I day, I noticed how soft my skin was. I’ve been using it once or twice a day now for a couple of weeks and I’ve never experienced my skin feel so silky and hydrated. You know that feeling when you just shave your legs and you can’t stop rubbing your legs together because of how soft they feel? Take that feeling and multiple it by 10. That’s how your skin will feel.
How it feels when applied
I’m a very sensitive person to how things feel, especially if they’re on my skin. This body lotion feels creamy, slightly whipped, and super moisturizing when you first apply it. I wouldn’t consider this fast-absorbing (like how quick Drunk Elephant’s Sili Body Lotion absorbs if you’ve ever tried that.) Rather, you feel the moisture on your body and it slowly goes away around 30 min after application.
It isn’t greasy or oily. It also isn’t tacky, sticky, or feels like there’s a film of product left on your skin.
While it may be hard not to use a ton of this product, be sure to use what you need and not go overboard. Otherwise, you might experience some pilling if you apply too much product without letting it properly absorb.
Use code HALEY15 for 15% off Glow Recipe!
Summer Skin Nourishing Body Lotion by Summer Fridays
This is Summer Friday’s recent body lotion release and I had to get my hands on it! It targets dryness and dullness and it’s best for normal, combination, dry, and oily skin. What I was most attracted to was that it has hyaluronic acid and ceramides in the formula!
Hyaluronic Acid: A humectant, which means it attracts and retains moisture in your skin. Fun fact: hyaluronic acid also holds 1,000x its weight in water which is why it’s an incredible ingredient for hydration!
Ceramides: Ceramides help with skin barrier function, water retention, and also from environmental damage like free radicals.
The Scent
The smell of this is like almond, coconut, and vanilla but I find that the almond smell takes the lead in this yummy scent concoction.
It’s super mild though, so if you’re super sensitive to strong scents, this is like a tease of a scent as you apply it and then it slightly lingers. This is perfect though if you’re a perfume lover because it’s a nice little way to layer scents without it being too overpowering!
The Consistency
Okay, so I’d say this is a medium creamy consistency as you squeeze it out but as you rub it in, it becomes a lighter consistency! It spreads really easily across the skin and I didn’t notice any piling of the product which is amazing.
How it made my skin feel
Off the bat, I noticed how quickly this body lotion dried! I counted - it took about 40 seconds to dry when I applied it on my arms. So this is really nice if you need lotion and you’re in a rush out the door or quickly need to put on clothing!
This is not greasy, oily, or tacky when applied (thank goodness.)
Lastly, the Summer Skin Nourishing Body Lotion definitely made my skin feel super soft! It does a really nice job of hydrating, as well!