Late last month I entered my own personal nirvana: the new freestanding Philosophy store at Casa Paloma shopping center, 7131 W. Ray Road, Chandler. The Valley skin care and cosmetics company is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, and what better way than to set up shop so customers can peruse and test? A sampling of what I walked away with is after the jump.It was funny having the employees try to find something new for me to try: I’ve either got or tried pretty much everything the line has created. But they hit pay dirt with The Present clear powder ($14), a mattifying lotion that sops up any extra oil. You know that shine that pops up after a day of work and driving? This product prevents it from ever appearing.

Through sales of specially created three-in-one shower gel/shampoo/bubble baths, Philosophy champions several charities that do everything from saving the rain forest to fighting sexual abuse or paralysis. Especially topical this month is Shower for the Cure ($20), a creamy tangerine-scented product that has raised $1.4 million for breast cancer research over five years.

I love the idea of an at-home peel that sloughs off dead skin and reveals the radiance beneath. And after a single use of the Oxygen Peel kit ($45) — enzyme gel first, then oxygen foam, for a total of about 3 minutes — pores appear much smaller and skin looks better. Imagine the results after 10 treatments, which is how many the kit holds!

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