Summer Refreshment.

Picture this.  You and your beau have taken a trip to the beach. After an afternoon of lounging and frolicking by the water, he spots a seaside restaurant that boasts of the freshest seafood in town.  You've developed a hunger and are ready to eat, but feel slightly uncomfortable because you haven't showered in hours.  If only you had a quick kit that you can use to refresh yourself on days like this.

It's unseasonably warm in my part of town.  I could take a shower in the morning, and be sweaty/sticky hours later.  So I decided to take a proactive approach and build a Summer Refreshment kit for those moments when I need a little mid-day refreshing in between showers.

The first area I'm most concerned about is my face.  If sweat beads start to form, I can almost guarantee that dirt, oil and bacteria are invading my skin.  I would be doing myself a disservice by allowing my skin to remain in that state until evening.    The solution?  For now, I'm turning to Aveda's Botanical Kinetics.  This stuff is amazing. Simply put.  It has a pH of 3 which will help calm and bring balance back to the skin.  It's technically an exfoliant which means that Botanical Kinetics effectively removes surface dirt and oil with ease.  Best of all, it's super refreshing.  The scent reminds me a trip to the spa and it leaves my skin with a clean (but not over-stripped) feeling with each use.  I have a full + travel size bottle of this stuff, that's how much I adore it.

Next in my tool kit are facial mists which are an absolute must.  After your face has been cleansed with the gentle exfoliating toner, a few pumps of cooling mist can help prevent further sweating.   This summer I will never be without a facial mist. Whether it's my DIY version, Aveda Toning Mist or Evian Facial spray.  They're all perfect in their own way.

Summer is made for light fruity scents.  Especially for those times when you're not sure if smelling as fresh as you did hours ago.  I've amassed a small collection of Dove's Go Fresh Mist which are small enough to fit in any bag. These high potency scents are exceptionally sweet and slightly overpowering.  I guess the intent is to make them long lasting. So as time passes, some of the fragrance subsides.  I think the line is being (or has been) discontinued. I've been on the hunt for the cucumber + green tea scented version but they're selling for $20.00 or more.  It might still be worth it, though, because all you need is just a couple of pumps are you're good to go.  One small bottle lasts quite a while.

Then there's the most important type of refreshment...the underarms.  Years ago, I gave up traditional deodorants for fear that the aluminum content would one day cause the onset of Alzheimer's.  So I turned to more natural alternatives which make me feel better about my choices, but they perform poorly in keeping sweating at bay.  The solution, for me comes in the form Neutrogena's hydrating makeup wipes.  I don't wear enough makeup during the day to use these regularly but they are AMAZING at cleansing the underarms. Not only do they remove the sweat, but they actually cleanse, removing dirt, leaving you a little fresher in the process.

That's what I got so far.  If anyone has suggestions on a decent all natural deodorant or an amazing body mist, leave a comment below.