Avon Skin-So-Soft Dry Oil Body Spray

On a visit to my lovely Nans a few weeks a go, she very sweetly pointed out that the skin on my arms looked rather dry and that my elbows were like (and I quote) 'cheese graters'. Of course I explained to her that with three children I just didn't seem to get the time to pamper myself so much these days, to which she replied that the woman of the house is always the carer and I have to take care of myself, as no one else was likely to! I was then ushered into her spare room, where she opened drawer upon drawer, all overflowing with an amazing variety of toiletries. My Nan has developed very sensitive skin over the years and tends to stick to the same brands she can trust, but every year for Christmas and Birthdays she receives loads of toletries which end up in this spare room. She kindly told me to find something I liked, which was a little difficult, as most were aimed at the more mature lady, but I eventually settled on this Avon Skin So Soft Dry Oil Spray.

My 150 ml bottle is a little different to that pictured above, mine having a more 'hour glass' shape. It's off white plastic and if held to the light is opaque enough to see how much product is left. The back double label can be easily peeled off and in 26, yes, 26, different languages tells us that it has a softness delivery system (? The spray nozzle perhaps?) and that we should spray on after a both or shower to lock in moisture. The ingredients list is also there, but it takes up half a page of the label and looks suitably scary enough to nearly put me off using it. It also advises that the product has a twelve month shelf life.

With the first spray, I was a bit suprised at how strong and perfumed the product was and it had that bitterness you can get with cheap perfumes which thankfully evaporated quickly. Although the fragrance settles into a soft, sweet and slightly floral smell, it's still strong, far too fragranced for me, so I tried to use it very sparingly. Luckily, being an oil, it spreads well and I found I could cover my whole forearm if I sprayed from about five inches away and rubbed really quickly. As my elbows were really dry I only used one squirt for each and had two sprays for each upper arm. Being a dry oil, there was very little residue left on my hands which meant I could handle the bottle without it slipping every where. I used a lot more product for each leg as they were in much worse condition than my arms (thank god Nan didn't see them!), on average about twelve sprays.

So, did it work? On first application my skin looked much better, very little dry skin left and it did look healthier and had a better colour. It also didn't leave my skin greasy to the touch like baby oil does which is a definite plus. However, after about an hour I took my cardy off and most of the dry skin was back, I think the oil sits on the surface of the skin and rubs off onto clothing. When I put the cardy into the wash the next day it smelt strongly of the dry oil. This is the other problem for me, the smell. I find it too strong and a little cloying. Even though my dry skin had come back I could still smell the product. I persevered with the oil for about four days, applying twice a day to my legs and arms, until I had time to go shopping and get something else. After this time, I had only used about a sixth of the bottle, so it would last a while which is a plus point if you do like the smell.

A 150ml bottle of this oil usually costs £5.20 from the Avon website which I think is extortionate, it doesn't work well enough to pay that. At the time of writing though it's on offer for a much more reasonable £2.60. I'm grateful that my Nan gave me this so I got to try it for free, but I definitely wouldn't part with my hard earned cash for it.