{le french pharmacie finds}

One of the biggest shopping excursions I have been looking forward to during our time in Paris, is a trip to one of the many French pharmacies to stock up on all the amazing (and affordable!) European beauty products!  There are little pharmacies on practically every corner you pass here in Paris, but I opted to go to this one in Saint Germain as it's huge so I knew I could find everything I had researched or been told about.  This trip did not disappoint- I maybe went a little nuts on my buying spree there, but in my defense I packed little to no toiletries to save space in my suitcase -for more clothes of course!  Here are the 15 items I picked up, all of which I have used and immediately fallen in love with.  The best part is most are available in the US online (although sadly some of the US prices are a bit more expensive than they are here, but still worth it!):

 {When we first arrived in Paris, I picked up some simple L'Oreal Shampoo and Conditioner, but for whatever reason it is waaaay too heavy and doesn't seem to completely wash out. This Caudalie shampoo and this Delarom conditioner were recommended to me by one of the pharmacists (who aren't like the random 17 year olds that work at CVS in the US, but highly trained and very helpful individuals).  Another thing that is amazing about French pharmacies are the amount of products that are inexpensive yet incredibly luxurious like all of the Roger & Gallet products.  I picked up this Cedrat scented body wash that smells similar to a $40 Molton Brown one that I love, this Rose scented hand soap and a travel size of the Rose hand lotion.}

 {Embryolisse Lait Creme Concentrate was on every single French Pharmacy must-have list I read and turns out that is because it's an impossibly lightweight moisturizer that can also double as a gentle make up remover!  I also picked up this Delarom cream as a day time moisturizer and this Nuxe Creme Prodigieuse for night time (another industry fave)}

 {I have never been very brand loyal to cleansers.  I have been using this Mario Badescu one for the past 6 or 7 months and used to love it right up until I came to Paris and cheated on it with this insanely amazing gel cleanser from Delarom.}

{Eau Thermale Avene is similar to the Evian spritz popular in the US but this one smells amazing is perfect for a mid-day skin refresher or can even be used to set your make up! If you only buy one French beauty product then it should be Bioderma Crealine h2o make up remover- this thing is literally everywhere.  They even had huge buckets of the travel size one at the pharmacy I visited because its that popular.  It leaves your skin feels incredibly soft while it removes every single trace of make up.  Nothing crazy here with this Biotherm BB Cream as there are tons of varieties in the US, but this one does have a really pretty luminosity to it that I have never seen in previous brands I have tried.  Caudalie's beauty elixir is used for the same purposes as the Avene spray, but it smells even more amazing and has the added benefit of myrrh, balm mint, and oil of rosemary to sooth skin.}

 {another french pharmacy cult favorite: the lip balm to end all lip balms this Nuxe Reve de Miel lip balm}

 {although Marvis is available in specialty stores in the US, you can find almost every single flavor as well as travel sizes in France like the ones I picked up in Whitening Mint & Artic Mint}

Happy Shopping!