This L’Occitane Body Balm Is My New Self-Care Essential

These days, beauty is about so much more than striving to look your best. Now, the right skincare routine, an evening at-home facial, or an indulgent shower is a form of self-care. As beauty continues to straddle the wellness sphere, body care has become an integral part of my own beauty routine. At the centre of my ritual is L’Occitane’s IMMORTELLE Shea Pro-Youth Body Balm, a luxurious cream for the body that utilises the brand’s hero ingredients.

I’m sure you’re already familiar with L’Occitane’s much-loved IMMORTELLE range, which uses Immortelle Essential Oil from Corsica. This oil comes from the Immortelle flower, a potent flower that L’Occitane researchers discovered is everlasting, meaning it survives even after being harvested. (L’Occitane only hand-picks the flower and uses organic and sustainably sourced Immortelle Essential Oil from the South of France which has 100% traceability from seed to skin). Since it never fades, the flower has longevity properties, making it an incredible ingredient for L’Occitane’s IMMORTELLE range which is targeted to visible signs of ageing. One of my favourite skincare products from L’Occitane is the newly relaunched L’Occitane Immortelle Precious Divine Youth Oil, which smooths out fine lines and encourages a firmer complexion. I’ve been finding the same benefits in body care when using the IMMORTELLE Shea Pro-Youth Body Balm.

I have integrated L’Occitane’s IMMORTELLE Shea Pro-Youth Body Balm into my own self-care routine by applying it morning and night, after a warm shower. In my AM routine, I love returning from a beach swim or a long walk, having a rinse and then working it in from my décolletage to my toes. Given that Immortelle Essential Oil is rich in antioxidants, I love knowing that my skin is protected from environmental aggressors throughout the day.

At night, after a longer shower, I take time to really massage this decadent balm into my body, focusing on my tired legs. It is instantly hydrating but dries beautifully thanks to its serum-like texture, so it’s comfortable to use before dressing in my pyjamas. It also uses Botanical Peptides which stimulate your skin to make collagen and since using it regularly, my skin texture feels firmer and yet more supple. At night, I love to finish the ritual with L’Occitane’s Immortelle Shea Youth Hand Cream for total relaxation. 

I also love the scent—like its name suggests, the IMMORTELLE Shea Pro-Youth Body Balm uses organic Shea Butter, meaning it’s naturally scented. Shea Butter is also rich in fatty acids, which are the building blocks of healthy skin. This is what gives the balm its deeply nourishing attributes.

It’s not lost on me that I’m writing about self-care on International Women’s Day. But as women, we often put ourselves last, and so I like to use International Women’s Day as an opportunity to focus on myself and that all-important word: self-care. L’Occitane is the perfect partner this IWD because since the 1980s, the French beauty brand has been promoting sustainable partnerships (fair trade, non-exclusive and long-term contracts) with the local producers of this hero ingredient. And guess what? They’re mostly women! Shea Butter is grown exclusively with female producers in Burkina Faso and Ghana, so L’Occitane’s initiatives have provided economic encouragement to more than 26,000 women to date. Like I said, beauty is about so much more than how we look—which is something L’Occitane understands too.

You can buy L’Occitane’s IMMORTELLE Shea Pro-Youth Body Balm, $95, here.