Momnesia

Product Review: Nivea Body In-Shower Nourishing Body Lotion

AUGUSTA, GA. - Whenever I get a sample of a skincare, hair care or other beauty product, I am prepared for snake oil in a bottle. I can't count the number of "anti-aging" serums I have received. They're usually of no particular benefit (anything Garnier puts out for skin) or just pale imitations of better products already on the market (Freeman Beauty Vita-K). Generally, I like to stick with a couple of tried-and-true products for my skin: pretty much anything Olay (but in particular, their 7 Effects line) and Neutrogena put out.

Nivea's products are also good quality. However, they're harder to find in this area, so I haven't gotten into them. But I bought a Nivea moisturizing facial gel while I was in Chicago back in 1996 that I loved so much I hoarded it for a year. Alas, they don't sell it anymore.

Even though I have loved some of Nivea's products, I was very skeptical when I received a sample of Nivea Body In-Shower Nourishing Body Lotion for Very Dry Skin. It's moisturizer that you put on while you're in the shower. GET A SAMPLE HERE.

Basically, you do your shower routine. Then, when you're just about done - maybe right after you put your conditioner in your hair, but before you rinse it out - you step out of the running water and apply this stuff all over. Then you finish your shower routine, and rinse it off. Dry as normal and go about your business.

Well... that just sounded like bullcrap to me. I mean, you're in the shower and you wash it off. How can it moisturize? Get out of my bathroom with that nonsense.

But if I don't moisturize daily, my body gets really dry and itchy in winter. It's annoying, and I'll find myself absently scratching my heinie. That's not good. So I'm always looking for a great moisturizer.

Y'all, I love it. It went on easily, rinsed off easily, and actually did what it said it was going to do. It didn't leave a greasy or slippery film on my skin or on my bathtub. It has almost no fragrance, so it won't activate allergies and sensitivities, nor compete with your soap or perfume.

I used it for a week and it didn't gunk up my towel. It also didn't stay on the surface of my skin so that it got all in my hair when I was blow drying it. And my skin felt great all day. In fact, every day I used it, my skin felt better than before.

My skin did feel very slightly tacky when I was drying off. Just a little. But not as much as when I tried Johnson's Baby Oil Gel. And I didn't have to walk around mostly naked until my lotion absorbed (mothers of boys, how do you do it?).

Are there better moisturizers out there? Well, sure, olive oil is a better moisturizer. But who wants to smell like caprese salad all day? (Now I want some caprese salad. Thanks, Internet.)

I can heartily recommend  Nivea Body In-Shower Nourishing Body Lotion. But I probably won't continue to use it. Because although I really, really like it, I just can't justify the $15 price tag for a 13.5 oz. bottle.

Stick with the cost-effective old standards, Eucerin and Cetaphil, both of whom are also recommended by Consumer Reports, and range from $9-$13 for a 16.9 oz. bottle. I lean towards  Vaseline Intensive Care because it has almost no residue, also scores well with Consumer Reports, and currently costs less than $5 for a 10 oz. bottle.

As always, use what works for you.