THE pandemic has definitely changed us in so many ways. For one, most of us now carry lighter bags because we bring less when we go out of the house. Most of my friends no longer carry big wallets. They just bring small card cases. No one carries cash anymore. Almost every store accepts GCash or Maya and, of course, credit cards.
Another thing that has changed is the way we shop. Even when things are slowly getting back to some new normal, we still shop online. It really is more convenient. I have a confession: I don’t have any shopping apps on my phone except for one. Only one person in our family has Lazada and Shopee, and we ask her to order stuff for us.
The only shopping app I have on my phone is ShopSM (a free download on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store) and I have been obsessed with it for about a year now. I started shopping there for The Body Shop products.
If you know me, you’ll know my obsession with the brand’s iconic Body Butters. I have been using them for over a decade now. My favorites are the Shea, Satsuma, and Strawberry variants. I always check out ShopSM for sales on these Body Butters. I also buy the Ginger Shampoo. So why do I like buying these products online? It’s because of convenience. If I shop from physical stores, I’d have to carry these bottles and jars around and they are quite heavy. Another thing I like about the web site is the sales they have on the Body Butters and other beauty products.
This mobile app today also has limited-time offers and, as far as my experience is concerned, offers excellent service. Most of the stuff I order arrive in two days.
Also, never forget that The SM Store is a good place to source fragrances. They have good prices and you can be sure that the fragrances are authentic. Truth be told, I am still scared to go around sampling fragrances in real life. I have always been obsessed with fragrances and smelling good and during the pandemic, that obsession intensified.
Here’s a tip: when I shop for fragrances, I always find out what notes they have and compare them to other scents I already have. For instance, vanilla always smells good on me and so does tuberose. Sage barely shows up on me and so does strawberry.
Anyway, here are my top fragrance picks from ShopSM:
Guess Woman Eau de Parfum. Years ago, this fragrance distributor gave me a bottle of this fruity floral and I loved it so much that when they gave me a bottle of Jimmy Choo perfume, I asked if I could exchange it for this. The smell of this is fresh and more floral than fruity. The top notes are green apple, strawberry, bergamot and tangerine. The middle notes are magnolia, peony, freesia, lily of the valley, red berries, jasmine, peach, and ylang-ylang. The base notes are musk, cedar, amber, and oakmoss.
Giorgio Armani Ocean Di Gioia Eau De Parfum. A friend and I once made a trade. I gave her lipsticks and she gave me some perfumes and one of them was Acqua di Gioia by Giorgio Armani. It was a scent that I loved so much so I bought another bottle. Ocean di Gioia by Giorgio Armani is a floral fruity that’s a variation on the original one. This didn’t get too much attention because it was released in 2020 but it also smells so good. The top notes are pear, citruses and green notes, while the middle notes are water jasmine, salt, lily of the valley and rose. The base notes are musk and sandalwood.
Bulgari Omnia Amethyste. I used to always say “You smell so good” to my friend Dinah Ventura until she told me to buy a bottle of Bulgari Omnia Amethyste since I like it so much. The top notes are green notes and pink grapefruit. The middle notes are iris and Bulgarian rose, while the base notes are heliotrope and woodsy notes.
Calvin Klein Eternity For Women Eau De Parfum. Eternity by Calvin Klein is a Floral fragrance for women. Eternity was launched in 1988. The nose behind this fragrance is Sophia Grojsman. Top notes are green notes, freesia, sage, citruses and Mandarin orange; middle notes are carnation, lily, lily-of-the-valley, narcissus, marigold, violet, rose and jasmine; base notes are musk, heliotrope, sandalwood, amber and patchouli.
Prada Infusion de Fleur D’ Oranger EDP. This fragrance is created of orange blossom, tuberose and jasmine, with impressions which evoke memories of the original ingredient “like footprints in sand.” It introduced aquarelle of notes from previous editions by the house of Prada—Prada’s Exclusive Scent No. 4 Fleur de Oranger from the selective line introduced in 2003 and Infusion d`Iris in 2007.