Aesop, for those of you who don’t know it, is a luxury skincare brand, born in Australia in the late 80s. And although it’s now been bought out by L’Oréal it’s still got that Aussie feeling to me.
I remember coming across it in my 20s… sure it smelt great, but it wasn’t cheap. And as someone who slaps on a bit of moisturiser (maybe) in the morning, definitely not for me.
But every now and again I’d come across a sample and think, well that is nice.
When I went travelling in 2013, as part of my leaving gift my work gifted me some travel bottles of Aesop… shampoo and moisturiser and hand sanitiser. And damn did it feel good having a little bit of luxury on hand when backpacking round cheap hotels.
Many years later, a month after I had my child, it was my birthday. Other mums know how I was feeling at the time – completely ruined. So, since I couldn’t get what I really wanted – my old body back and sleep – I splurged on an Aesop facial moisturising cream.
And it helped. Every morning from then on, I took the time to wash my face and put on a bit of luxury. Even on only a few hours sleep it made me feel more human.
By this time, I’d introduced a close friend to Aesop, and we were exchanging gifts at birthdays and Christmas. When she got a job in Vienna she visited the mortar and bricks store on a regular basis and brought me samples… leading to more purchases.
I’ve since decided that even though it is expensive… I deserve a little bit of luxury now and then. So, my Aesop shelf in the bathroom cabinet is steadily growing, and I obsessively prepared a spreadsheet to take with me to the Aesop store at Melbourne airport. Because maybe one day I’ll be able to sample it all!
an aussie in austria 