Crabtree & Evelyn Gets a Makeover
New product lines are anything but stuffy
By Anne Harris, 12:23PM, Mon. Jun. 13, 2011
We all have memories of walking past Crabtree & Evelyn, or flipping through higher-end bed and bath catalogs to gaze at the endless array of bed and bath enhancements that might include scented and striped paper drawer-liners, or linen mist.
This item I did spray on myself thinking it was perfume at about seven years old. We begin training for the bourgeoisie at too early an age in this culture. In any case, I had kind of forgotten about Crabtree over the years, possibly because I came to associate it with Evyan's White Shoulders, a confirmed senior scent, or because the only place I saw it anymore was in abbreviated arrangements in Neiman Marcus' Essentials catalog, another graying (and fraying) retail instrument.
Imagine the surprise in our office on a ho-hum Tuesday when a shipping box exploded into yellow tissue paper revealing a grosgrain-wrapped box full of Crabtree and Evelyn's new Floral Fragrance Collection. The floral paper lining the interior caught our attention until we experienced the product packaging, which seems to be designed for both personal use and gift giving, unlike drawer-liners.
We carried the products home, greedily, and like raccoons with towels around our heads, ran a bath and set out to experiment. We started with The Heritage triple-milled soap collection which takes us back to a time of handmade soaps with soothing herbs and floral notes. We liked that despite the rich, foamy feel, the Crabapple and Mulberry bar rinses clean. The Floral Collection itself comes in four fragrances: Lavender, Rosewater, Lily, and Iris. If we were impressed by the exterior packaging, we were stunned to find heavy glass jars with fat black lids holding a generous seven ounces of Rosewater Body Cream. The cream itself has a wonderful, light fragrance, and leaves us feeling moisturized, not gooped. The next dive into the Floral Collection was Rosewater Body Lotion. Like the cream, it is rich, but lighter, and goes on with a nice, silky texture. An hour after bath time, we didn't need another application, and again, the packaging is beautiful, featuring a vine of flowers encircling the square bottle. Likewise, the Iris Dusting Powder also impresses with a cloud of talc, and comes in crisp cardboard with a big satin puff, just like its supposed to. We also tried Lily Bath and Shower Gel, Lily Eau de Toilette, and in case you thought that bourgeoisie bed and bath tradition of drawer liners and bathroom candles was forgotten, there is indeed a linen mist in this collection. Instructions for the uninitiated include "Mist lightly to infuse the lovely fresh scent of lavender into linens, pillows, towels, and clothing." Won't that clash with my eau de toilette?? In any case, it looks like Crabtree & Evelyn has had some work done, and the result is a rejuvenated line of personal products that can be enjoyed by both grandmother and her favorite young ones. In fact, while you're shopping, don't forget to pick up some scented padded clothes hangers and sachets for your Spanx and panty drawer.
Note: Just as we were posting this, another box from Crabtree & Evelyn arrived, carrying the La Source Foot Spa Collection. The Warming Foot Smoother was pretty amazing. It has plenty of Tahitian sand to scrub away the rough spots, and really does warm up as you scrub.
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