Alkmaar Soap

Much like the Whoosh Temple Balm, this is a product that I had to do a little research on before buying myself a slice online. The reason for this was because when this soap made an appearance in one of the retro rounds in 2013, it was not advertised as being vegan, yet there was nothing obvious in the ingredients list that warranted it not to be. Although I am still unsure about whether or not it is suitable, I have seen it advertised as so on many other websites I have visited so until I find out otherwise, I will just assume that it is. 

Alkmaar Soap is one of those Lush products that gets overlooked a lot - even I wasn't initially enamoured with it when it first appeared online. The reason for this is obvious - much like 17 Cherry Tree Lane, it's as boring as a piece of soap can get. 

However, some of the least attractive cosmetics have become some of my all-time favourite products; just like some of the most beautiful items have given me some of the most disappointing experiences. I wasn't going to judge the soap's merits by it's appearance.

Sharing it's scent with the Silky Underwear family, you'll find this fragrance in Lush's popular but now discontinued Fairy Jasmine Ballistic and Turbo Bubble Bar. If you enjoy this smell, you can still purchase the Silky Underwear Dusting Powder, which is a regular member of the range.

Described by Lush as a 'sensually scented' soap, Alkmaar gives off a subtle but complex combination of jasmine, vetivert and honeysuckle - a wonderful feminine aroma that offers floral fans a beautifully unique fragrance. Fans of jasmine will appreciate the heady aroma that this ingredient gives to the soap - it's definitely the most dominating smell here. 

In the shower, the soap is fairly easy to foam up - producing a thick and creamy lather that spreads easily over the skin. Unlike other Lush soaps, the scent of this one doesn't intensify under running water - yet at the same time, it doesn't disperse at all, so you can enjoy the fragrance throughout the entire experience.                                                                         As it's such a subtle smell, this one may linger on your skin but it's too weak to notice. Despite this, I could still detect a gentle presence of Alkmaar in the bathroom for a few hours after use, which was lovely. 

Unfortunately, I did find that this soap left my skin very slightly dry - nothing that would be a major problem but I definitely had to moisturise after use otherwise I would have developed dry patches across my body. 

Alkmaar is a rather sturdy soap which means that it will last a very long time. A 100g block lasted me a little over two months, which I consider to be great value for money for a piece of that size. I wouldn't use this again in place of a shower gel, but I think this would make a good hand soap and I would be tempted to buy myself a couple of pieces next time it makes an appearance. 

Overall, this is a lovely soap. It has a beautiful classy and rather elegant fragrance that adds a special touch to your shower. However, it didn't work with my skin as well as other Lush soaps have done in the past. I would love to see this made into a shower gel or jelly as these formats are much more appealing to me and would allow me to appreciate the scent.

Quantitative Ingredients: Honeysuckle Infusion (Lonicera caprifolium), Amaranth Infusion (Amaranthus hypochondriacus), Sodium Palm Kernelate, Sodium Stearate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Titanium Dioxide, Perfume, Glycerine, Jasmine Absolute (Jasminum officinale), Vetivert Oil (Vetiveria zizanoides), Styrax Resinoid (Storax), Sodium Chloride, EDTA, Tetrasodium Editronate.

Vegan?: Yes.

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I Should Coco Soap

On paper, I Should Coco sounds like a dream product - a soap made up mostly of creamed coconut infusion and desiccated coconut. It took a lot of will power not to sink my teeth into it and treat it like a block of coconut ice. I cannot deny that I didn't at least give this soap a little lick to test the water, but I did refrain myself from taking a nibble.

As most Lush fans will know and recognise, the company are big on using coconut in their products. Known for it's super softening properties, not to mention it's incredible natural smell, this is an ingredient that is both versatile and highly effective at what it does. Unfortunately, it's also a fragrance that incites a rather strong reaction from most people, and if you're one of those who don't like its smell, I can guarantee that you'll hate this soap.     

I Should Coco, as I touched upon above, visually resembles a piece of coconut ice - with it's white body and pink desiccated coconut shavings on top. Much like the old-fashioned sweet, this soap also has shavings of coconut threaded throughout the entire block, which gives it quite a rough consistency. This texture makes it a rather effective exfoliator - something I'll touch upon later on in the review. 

The soap has a gentle but long-lasting fragrance - a sweet, warming scent that intensifies in the shower and makes for a very comforting experience. The addition of orange oil adds a slightly uplifting, citrus element to the scent, but it definitely doesn't upstage the coconut. There's also a hint of the coriander oil present as well, which I feel almost takes away from the creaminess of the coconut very slightly. 

In the shower, the soap lathers up fairly easily but I was disappointed to find that I Should Coco didn't perform as well as I was expecting. For a soap that is so crammed full of coconut, I was expecting the bar to produce a thick, silky foam that instantly softened my skin - something similar to the consistency of Big Shampoo or Gentle Lentil Shampoo. However, much like Porridge, this soap has so many excess pieces of 'stuff' threaded throughout it's body that it prevents it from lathering up as much as it could do. 

The hundreds of flakes of shredded coconut do make this soap a really effective exfoliator - giving it a rough consistency to scrub and soften without being too harsh on the skin. However, I found that there isn't a good balance between the amount of coconut and the amount of actual soap present. For this reason, I was only able to use this as a body scrub and not for it's intended purpose of cleaning the body. 

While it doesn't perform well as a soap, it does leave you smelling beautiful - showcasing smooth, radiant skin afterwards. It doesn't dry you out and is perfect for those with delicate skin. This is great to use on the face as well as the body as it's quite a gentil scrub so won't irritate or scratch the skin. However, I had to use a shower gel alongside this to clean myself properly with so it's not the most effective soap to use if you're using it by itself.

Overall, I really enjoyed the scent of this and in it's favour, a 100g lasts a lot longer as a scrub than most of Lush's regular body butters. However, I was hoping for a product that could cleanse as well as exfoliate and I didn't feel that this soap did this successfully.     

Quantitative Ingredients: Creamed Coconut Infusion (Cocos nucifera), Sodium Palm Kernelate, Propylene Glycol, Desiccated Coconut (Cocos nucifera), Perfume, Sodium Stearate, Titanium Dioxide, Orange Oil (Citrus dulcis), Coriander Oil (Coriandrum sativum), Vetivert Oil (Vetiveria zizanoides), Glycerine, Sodium Chloride, EDTA, Tetrasodium Editronate,  Limonene,  Linalool, Colour 18050.

Vegan?: Yes.

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Scentenary Soap

It is thanks to Lush that I no longer associate the smell of rose with that over-used and rather pungent aroma; one that seems to accompany a lot of cheap gift sets and cosmetics you find on the high street. The day that I acquired a bottle of Rose Jam for the first time, was a turning point for my tastebuds. 

Scentenary Soap is a rare gem that I managed to pick up last year, and features the same scent as the above shower gel. First released in 2011, this soap was sold in limited amounts as a celebration for Lush opening their 100th UK store. The soap also made a reappearance near the start of 2013, when Lush Canada offered it up as one of their special guests at their Chat Party. 

Despite the fact that the two aforementioned products only make a fleeting visit on Lush's website, if you're a fan of this fragrance, you can pick up the Rose Jam Bubbleroon and Ro Argan's Body Conditioner - both of which possess the same smell. If you're lucky enough, you may even be able to pick up a bottle of their Rose Jam Perfume, which has made many an appearance during their Forum Special releases in November. 

Firstly, Scentenary gives off a strong but equally soft fragrance. Made up mostly of the rose oil and rose absolute that features in the soap, the scent has a naturally sweet element to it that makes it far more accessible and non-overpowering than the more 'powdery' smelling rose cosmetics in their range. Much like the shower gel, this soap also features a note of lemon, which helps to give it it's beautiful, uplifting aroma without taking away from it's floral element.  

Together, these ingredients layer together wonderfully and offer a bright, youthful smell that stays with you long after you leave the shower. As with other Rose Jam scented products, this soap smells a little like freshly made turkish delight, and whether or not you like rose-dominated cosmetics, I would definitely recommend you give this one a try - you may just find you love it!  

Just as Lush claim, this soap products a rich, creamy lather that doesn't need a lot of coaxing to come out. I chose to massage this between my hands and then smother across my body, and I found that I didn't need to use the bar that long before I had a surplus amount of soapy suds to clean myself with. The effectiveness of the soap meant that this bar lasted me a long time - as long as five weeks, and this was with me using a 100g chunk an average of 1-2 times daily.

With the addition of essential oils to moisturise, smoothen and cleanse, I was expecting Scentenary to leave my skin feeling radiant and nourished. Unfortunately, the soap did dry my skin out a little, and where I had massaged it between my palms, I found that my skin felt slightly taut after a single use. It was not as drying as a lot of other soaps I have tried, but neither did it leave my skin as soft as most shower gels do. 

On the positive side, this soap showcases a beautiful aroma and it'll linger on your skin for a long time after application. You can then use the perfume to top up this smell throughout the day. It also made my bathroom smell gorgeous the whole time the soap was in action - making those early mornings just that little bit more bearable. 

Unfortunately, it didn't work well with my skin and I had to rely on the shower gel to hydrate and soften myself. I can imagine, with the right person, this soap would work wonders. However, it's not a product that I would use again. 

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Vanilla In The Mist Soap

It is thanks to Lush that I am so heavily into vanilla-scented bath and shower products. Before I discovered the company, I was bored of the synthetic vanilla smells that encompass the majority of high street brands. So you can imagine how I reacted when sniffing Vanillary for the first time - I was hooked. 

Fast forward a year and it is then that I have my first experience with Gentle Lentil Shampoo - a product that completely changed my opinion on solid haircare and one which has cemented itself as one of my all-time favourite Lush products. So when I heard about Vanilla In The Mist Soap, I thought I was about to stumble on another pot of gold. Unfortunately, it was not to be.

Vanilla In The Mist is in fact a vanilla and coffee scented soap, and although I dislike drinking the popular beverage, I do normally enjoy the inclusion of coffee in other products. This particular soap contains real vanilla pods which have been dried and crushed to coax out as strong an aroma as possible. Unfortunately, I found that my chunk wasn't anywhere near as strong as I was expecting and didn't possess the beautiful natural musk of fresh vanilla. 

Described as a 'quadruple espresso and a top quality Italian ice cream', I was expecting an exquisitely sweet and highly sensual soap, not far off the warm, rich aroma of Honey I Washed The Kids. However, what I discovered was a soap that was rather unremarkable. It smelt a little like cold coffee with the slightest hint of vanilla and orange, although all three of these scents weren't strong enough to make it worth my while.

In the shower, the scent did intensify a little and the coffee aroma came through more clearly. However, there was also an element of 'soap' in the fragrance. What I mean by this is that you could almost detect the plastic, glycerine smell alongside the other scents, which prevented this soap from being as luxurious as I was expecting it to be. 

One of the most misleading attributes of this soap is it's appearance - a rich shade of saffron that makes me envisage the wonderful Caramac Bar I used to eat as a child. It's a beautiful golden colour, etched with the black specks of the vanilla pod. When I first saw this, I thought the fragrance of VITM would be as equally exquisite - I was wrong.

On the positive side, this soap lathers up really well and a 100g bar does tend to last you as long as most of Lush's other soaps (1-2 months, depending on how often you use it). It does make you feel clean after use and to begin with, the little pieces of vanilla pod do act as an interesting exfoliator for your skin. However, the soap also dried my skin out quite a bit and I had to apply shower gel on top to moisturise. Furthermore, I found that next to none of the scent stayed on my body, which was disappointing.

While Vanilla in the Mist does do the basic job that you would expect from a soap, it is definitely not up to the quality that you would normally expect from Lush. The write up of this sounds beautiful so I am a little disappointed that the soap doesn't pertain the smell or productivity that I would expect from a Lush product. This is not a product I would buy again.

Quantitative Ingredients: Vanilla Pod Infusion (Vanilla planifolia), Propylene Glycol, Rapeseed oil; Sunflower oil; Coconut oil (Brassica napus; Helianthus annuus; Cocos nucifera), Water (Aqua), Gardenia Extract (Gardenia jasminoides), Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Sodium Hydroxide, Perfume, Bergamot Oil (Citrus Aurantium bergamia), Vanilla Absolute (Vanilla planifolia), Cocoa Roasted Extract (Theobroma Cacao), Sodium Chloride, Coumarin, Limonene, Linalool, Titanium Dioxide.

Vegan?: Yes. 

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Start Of Summer Competition!

Summer's here and I only have one week to go before my five week vacation starts! To celebrate another school year coming to an end, I am giving one lucky reader a chance to win a whole helpful of Lush Kitchen goodies. 

I am touched by all of the comments and support that Lush fans have given this site over the last few months. So much so that I want to give something back to show my appreciation and make another Lush fan just that little bit happier!

Up for grabs is:

- A 250g bottle of Prince Shower Gel
- A 100g bottle of Vanilla Puff Dusting Powder 
- A 230g Tub of Bada Bing Bada Boom Shower Jelly
- A 100g Tub of Zest Hair Styling Gel
- A Mrs Whippy Bath Ballistic
- A Baby Face Solid Cleanser 
- A Tub of The Kiss Limited Edition Valentine's Day Lip Balm
- A 100g Bar of Red FUN
- A 100g Bar of Green FUN
- A 100g Chunk of Summer Pudding Soap
-2/3rds of a Bar of Solid SUNBLOCK


Most of these items are now no longer available and may not show themselves again for years to come!

To be in with a chance to win the lot, all you have to do is leave a message (and your contact details) underneath this blog post. Although I open it up for fans to enter as many times as they like, I ask that you are sensible about it.

The competition is open worldwide and will run until Thursday 24th July, 9pm (English time). I will pick a winner using a random number selector and will email you within 2 days of the competition closing. Please make sure you include an email for me to contact you with. Good luck!

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Sunny Citrus Soap

Citrus-scented cosmetics are easily the greatest products on the planet. If you were to consider my all-time favourite Lush fragrance families (Calacas, Ponche and Karma), you'll see that I love everything that features some sort of zesty, fruity goodness. So when I read the ingredients list for this soap, I almost hyperventilated at the sheer thought of what it would be like.

Sunny Citrus is one of those soaps that doesn't get mentioned often on the Lush forum or indeed anywhere online where Lush is discussed. Neither does this soap get many opportunities to share itself with new and devoted fans - it's made very few appearances in the retro range over the last few years. 

Yet I believe it's perhaps one of Lush's best-smelling citrus soaps - sitting above the likes of Orange Jelly, Mandarin's Tea Party and Sexy Peel. Sharing it's scent with the Sicilian Bath Bomb, this gorgeous soap is made from a combination of mandarin, tangerine and orange oils with neroli and bergamot oil thrown in there to add an uplifting and refreshingly complex aroma. 

To me, this soap smells a little like the orange Starburst chew or a tropical Solero ice-cream. It's a beautiful, creamy orange smell with a lime twist to top it off. Whereas a few of the soaps mentioned above are equally as zesty, this one just seems that little bit richer and more decadent. 

Lush describe it as the perfect soap to wake up to and I have to agree with this sentiment. When I used this first thing in the morning, it did perk me up and leave me feeling revitalised and ready for the day ahead. The yummy fragrance really helps to improve your disposition and this alone is enough of a reason to invest in a chunk next time it makes an appearance. 

In the shower, this soap lathers up wonderfully and produces a slightly oily foam, which nourishes the skin and leaves it feeling and smelling wonderful. Although I was slightly disappointed that the fragrance didn't seem to strengthen under the water, I was happy to find that I could smell the citrus elements of this for many hours on my skin, albeit fairly faintly. 

As far as Sunny Citrus Soap goes, it's definitely one of my favourites and I will buy a few chunks when it next makes it's appearance. However, as I've mentioned a few times before, I'm not really a soap person and would much rather have a shower gel to sink my teeth into (not literally, of course!). For this reason, I hope that Lush expand upon what products they offer in this scent. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Propylene Glycol, Sodium Palm Kernelate, Water (Aqua), Fresh Lime Juice (Citrus limetta), Sodium Stearate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Titanium Dioxide, Orange Oil (Citrus dulcis), Tangerine Oil (Citrus reticulata), Mandarin Oil (Citrus nobilis), Neroli Oil (Citrus amara), Bergamot Oil (Citrus bergamia), Perfume, Glycerine, Sodium Chloride, Gardenia Extract (Gardenia jasminoides), Colour 42045.

Vegan?: Yes.

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Pineapple Grunt Soap

It's not something I've highly publicised about on my blog, as I don't see it as very relevant to what I'm trying to achieve here, but I've been trying to reduce my Lush stash down to a reasonable amount. With their products not retaining their scent as well as they used to, I've found myself left with many scentless products that just aren't worth the time of day. This point was pressed upon even further, when I was admiring the fresh massage bars, soaps and ballistics in my local shop, and realised that mine just didn't have the same allure, sitting day in, day out on my book shelf. 

Just the other day, I realised that I have used up a rather impressive 350 items from my Lush collection since the beginning of this year; a number that has surpassed my expectation by almost three-fold. However, when I went to find myself a fresh piece of Sandstone Soap the other day, I discovered that, even though every aspect of my collection is being reduced, my soap collection is staying rather stagnant in it's numbers. So expect a lot of upcoming soap reviews over the next few months!  

Pineapple Grunt is a soap that I bought simply because it was vegan and featured in one of Lush's retro ranges last year. When it arrived, I simply added it to my rather large pile of soaps and thought nothing else about it. However, it grabbed my attention recently when I opened my drawer to find a favourite, and picked up a weird and wonderful fruity cocktail that just begged to be used. 

Firstly, this soap is not a straight-down-the-line pineapple-scented soap. In fact, the pineapple element is somewhat thwarted behind a rather strong coconut fragrance. It's a wonderful sensual and warming smell, dominated mostly by the coconut oil, although there is definitely a slight nuttiness to it, which reminds me of almond butter. Furthermore, there is a light sweetness to it's scent which comes from the addition of fresh pineapple juice. However, this note is rather weak in the mix and only tends to showcase itself when being used under hot water.

If you're looking for that fruity, tropical experience, you'd be better off trying Carrot Soap, as you won't find it here.

Secondly, with its chunks of fresh, organic pineapple, this soap is as natural as you can get. Containing vetivert oil, known for it's skin-calming properties, and fresh pineapple juice, with its malic and citric acids that purge the skin of dirt and dead skin cells, this is a soap intent on moisturising and cleansing to a high degree. The latter ingredient also helps to brighten the skin's appearance, making it a perfect accompaniment in the summer months. 

In the shower, this soap produces a rich, creamy lather, which instantly softens your skin; it also happens to be one of the easiest soaps to 'foam up', which means that a small 100g block will last you a lot longer than some of the more expensive Lush alternatives. Pineapple Grunt also has a bumpy (but not gritty) texture, which means that it's great at removing dried skin and dirt, without being too harsh on your skin.

The product made me feel clean and fresh; making my skin look rejuvinated and brighter instantaneously. My hands and body were left feeling really smooth and soft, nothing like what you'd expect from a lump of soap. It gave my whole body a slight sun-kissed glow, which was a real bonus for someone as pale as myself. 

A beautiful, warming yet refreshing soap that awakens those tired senses in the morning, and leaves you feeling revitalised for the day ahead. Initially, I was a little dissappointed that this wasn't as fruity as I was hoping. But with Bohemian and Karma being two of just many sweet-scented soaps, it was actually nice to have one a little bit different. A must have; I hope Lush bring this back soon.

Quantitative Ingredients: Water (Aqua) , Rapeseed Oil , Coconut Oil (Brassica napus; Helianthus annuus; Cocos nucifera) , Propylene Glycol , Glycerine , Fresh Pineapple (Ananas Sativus) , Sodium Stearate , Sodium Hydroxide , Vetivert Oil (Vetiveria zizanoides) , Sodium Chloride , Perfume , Gardenia Extract (Gardenia jasminoides).

Vegan?: Yes.

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Competition Winner Announced!

Thank you to everyone who entered my latest competition - I feel so blessed reading all of the positive messages that you guys leave for me and how much some of you enjoy reading my blog. I love having the opportunity to give back the excitement and happiness that Lush gives me. 

As per usual, I've picked a winner using a random number generator and the winner is number 38.

Well done to the Anonymous entry (email -swimmingbutterfly@hotmail.com). I will be sending you an email on how you can claim your prize in a few minutes.

For everyone else who was unlucky this time around, I have my most generous and Kitchen-packed competition coming next week. Keep your eyes peeled!

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Summer Pudding Soap

Sometimes I get the Lush 'itch', which I can neither predict or control; sometimes I don't even realise I'm doing it until it's too late. By 'itch', I of course mean spending money, something I seem to do exceedingly well, especially when it comes to Lush products. During one of these expensive moments, I nearly always end up with chunk-upon-chunk of soap, which get thrown into my soap drawer and don't see the light of day for months, if not years later. Such is the case with Summer Pudding Soap.

On paper, this soap sounds incredible; a cherry and almond-scented marvel that first made it's appearance during Lush's 2010 summer collection. Containing almonds, coconut, glacie cherries and lemon oil, the ingredients list reads like a recipe, which is exactly what creator, Noriko, was going for. The scent and the ingredients remind me of freshly-made bake well tart, which definitely feels like a treat first thing in the morning.   

Described as a soap with the fragrance of buchu and citrus, Summer Pudding has many qualities about it. Firstly, Lush have added a combination of ground almonds, softening almond oil, and cleansing lemon oil. The latter two help to give this product it's moisturising qualities, whilst the former creates an abrasive-textured surface, allowing the soap to be used as a body scrub as well as a cleanser.  

What you'll notice about each chunk of this soap, is that there are chunks of smooth pink soap, which creates the lather in the shower. Then these are surrounded with the more gritty part of the product, meaning when you lather this up underwater, you are both cleaning and exfoliating at the same time. When I purchased a fresh piece from the kitchen, I found that the soap isn't as gritty as my older slice and was a lot softer and gentle on the skin. 

Secondly, the aroma of the soap is wonderful, warm and fragrant. Even some four years after it was originally made, this product still smells as fresh as it did in the factory. It has a soft, almost mixed berry-dominated smell, which along with the nutty, savoury scent of the almonds, rounds this off nicely. Fresh out of the packet, the soap's aroma may seem a little overpowering and almost 'plasticky' to some. However, in the shower this synthetic element is rectified and you're left with a rich fragrance to bask in. 

In the shower, Summer Pudding is a little stubborn to lather, and I found that it wasn't as effective at releasing suds as with other Lush soaps. Furthermore, the skin texture of the soap becomes rather slippery in the shower and I found myself having to grapple with it under the water, just so I could clean myself. 

However, the cherry fragrance is wonderful and it lingers on your skin for hours. It's quite a heavy smell, and one that is quite 'stodgy', as you would expect from an actual pudding itself. However, it's a wonderfully luxurious smelling soap; one that's very feminine and surprisingly fresh. It would be perfect coupled with Sin Skin Lotion, a product that is unfortunately unavailable from Lush UK at the moment. Furthermore, once the soap has been rinsed off, it does leave your skin looking and feeling soft and smooth, so you might not have to moisturise after every shower. 

I would recommend this soap but more as a scrub than a cleaner. It does leave your skin smooth, but this is due to the crushed almonds that exfoliate your skin, not the various ingredients that go into making this soap. A nice idea though, and one I would buy again if I got the chance.

Quantitative Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Propylene Glycol, Rapeseed Oil; Coconut Oil (Brassica napus; Cocos nucifera), Ground Almonds (Prunus dulcis), Sodium Stearate, Sodium Lauryl Sulphate,Glace Cherries (Prunus cerasus), Perfume, Almond Oil (Prunus dulcis), Buchu Oil (Barosma betulina), Juniper Berry Oil (Juniperus communis), Lemon Oil (Citrus limonum), Glycerine, Sodium Chloride, EDTA, Tetrasodium Etidronate, Sodium Hydroxide, Titanium Dioxide, Gardenia Extract (Gardenia jasminoides), *Limonene, *Linalool, Colour 17200, Colour 14700.

Vegan?: Yes.

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Celebratory Competition!

It's that time again folks and this is an extra special edition - full of amazing and now hard-to-get Lush Kitchen items that you may have missed out on!

I am touched by all of the comments and support that Lush fans have given this site over the last few months. So much so that I want to give something back to show my appreciation and make another Lush fan just that little bit happier!

Up for grabs is:

- A Bottle of Sesame Suntan Lotion
- A Bottle of Happy 4 SAD
- A Tub of the Self-Preserving Sympathy For The Skin Lotion
- A Block of Extra Virgin Olive Oil Soap
- A Block of Dear John Soap
- A Dear John Bubble Bar
- A Up You Gets Emotibomb
- A Error 404 Ballistic
- A Bar of Red FUN
- A Small Chunk of Ice Blue Soap




Most of these items are now no longer available and may not show themselves again for years to come!

To be in with a chance to win the lot, all you have to do is leave a message (and your contact details) underneath this blog post. Although I open it up for fans to enter as many times as they like, I ask that you are sensible about it.

The competition is open worldwide and will run until Friday 4th July, 9pm (English time). I will pick a winner using a random number selector and will email you within 3 days of the competition closing. Please make sure you include an email for me to contact you with. Good luck!

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Dear John Soap

As fast as I'm reducing my stash of soaps, the quicker Lush are bringing out more for me to purchase - somewhat diminishing my attempts at shrinking my collection to a 'normal' amount. However, I was keen to try out this particular soap as it's one of the only fragrances I've not yet experienced from Lush's Gorilla Perfume collection. 

Dear John Soap is described as a complex fragrance made up of coffee, tobacco and citrus. Inspired by fathers all over the globe, Lush created the scent as an ode to men everywhere. However, the aroma that I got from this soap is one that can be enjoyed by both men and women. 

When I first unwrapped my chunk, I detected a fresh and fruity lime scent, which wasn't as zesty as Calacas or the Up You Gets Emotibomb, but it was uplifting and reminded me a little of lime cheesecake. Underneath this was the distinctive smell of coffee but again it's been diluted quite a bit so you don't get the pungent, bitter kick that you'd normally associate with this smell. Instead it adds a gentle richness to the scent, giving it a warm, slightly smoky note.  

As someone who dislikes most coffee-scented products, this one proved to be very different to other cosmetics that I have tried and I found the scent rather pleasant. I appreciated the subtly that Lush created by carefully mixing these fragrances into the soap -there is no one ingredient that dominates or unbalances the delicate scent.  

As well as coffee and citrus, you can also detect pine, clove, tobacco, cedarwood, coriander and vetivert in the fragrance. They're not strong enough to be individually extracted with the nose, but they're definitely present in the overall aroma of the soap. Together, these smells help to give Dear John a very gentle, relaxing and slightly earthy scent.  

In the shower, Dear John lathers up really easily and creates a light, bubbly foam that you can massage into your skin. I felt as if the aroma of the soap did intensify a little in the shower, and I was definitely able to smell this on me for a long time after I had exited the bathroom.

This soap did help to make my skin feel cleansed, without being dry. However, my skin didn't feel as moisturised as it normally does after using a shower gel. I found that I had to moisturise after using this as my skin wasn't as smooth as it would have been, had I used another format. 

What I will say about Dear John is that it has a very unique scent - one that is complex enough to keep things interesting, without it being too dominant on your skin. For someone who doesn't enjoy either coffee and tobacco-scented cosmetics, I was surprised that I really enjoyed the aroma that this soap offers.

The soap's fragrance is light enough to be used during the hotter months, but warm and comforting enough to double up as a winter shower companion as well. While I wouldn't claim that this is my favourite soap, it definitely offers a very interesting unisex scent and I enjoyed this very much. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Propylene Glycol, Rapeseed Oil and Coconut Oil, Sodium Stearate, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Perfume, Vetivert Oil, Coriander Oil, Clove Bud Oil, Cedarwood Oil, Glycerine, Sodium Chloride, EDTA, Sodium Hydroxide, Tetrasodium Etidronate, Benzyl Salicylate, Eugenol, Farnesol, Limonene, Linalool, Hydroxycitronellal.

Vegan?: Yes

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Extra Virgin Soap

When Lush announced that they were bringing this soap back, my heart literally jumped into my throat; I was super excited. Despite it's strange taste, I adore olive oil and can eat it with almost anything (dipped bread, anyone?). So the idea of lathering something so beautiful on my skin, was an opportunity I was not going to pass up.

Extra Virgin soap is a strange, light Persian green colour with pieces of glycerine suspended throughout the entire block. To make it a little extra special, Lush have also added in chunks of fresh black olive, however you'll probably only find a small handful of these in each piece. 

When I initially unwrapped my soap, I wasn't immediately bowled over with the scent that greeted me. This wasn't because I didn't think the smell was pleasant, but more because I was a little underwhelmed with how gentle the smell was. However, it wasn't long before I realised that the soap's subtle aroma was actually one of it's most alluring characteristics. 

Extra Virgin is quite a strange product to describe - it's one of those fragrances where each ingredient has an equal standing, so I found that no one smell stood out more prominently than another. You can definitely pick out a light citrus smell, which owes itself to the addition of grapefruit oil; it also has that savoury and almost smokiness of the olive oil with a lingering aftertaste of fennel - both of which sit nicely with the fruity element. Finally, you can detect a little herbal offering from the bay and coriander - again, these intertwine with the other ingredients and help to create a very interesting, refreshing and rather unique aroma. 

I was really looking forward to using this in the shower, as with the addition of so many different oils, I was hoping for a really moisturising experience. As I expected, this soap offers more of a thick, oily foam and it is a little more stubborn than other soaps at producing a lather to wash with. For this reason, I would suggest applying it directly onto your skin as rubbing it between your palms can prove rather fruitless at times. 

Unfortunately, despite it's claim to be a nourishing soap, I found that it dried out my skin a little and didn't leave it as silky-smooth as I was expecting. I couldn't detect the smell of this once I had left the shower, which is a shame as it's a lovely scent that a lot of people would enjoying wearing throughout the day. It did leave my skin feeling cleansed and refreshed but this is something that most soaps offer me anyway. 

Overall, Extra Virgin is definitely for fans of the more gentle scents and one that would work well as a massage bar, shower gel or perfume - I would definitely purchase a few if these were made available. 

Having looked at the consistency of the bar, I can imagine this being a very long-lasting soap - a 100g bar would easily last you over a month, even if you used it 4-5 times a week. However, it's another soap that has not fared well with my skin and not one I would purchase again to use on myself. This is such a shame as I was expecting this to become one of my favourite all-time soaps.  

Quantitative Ingredients: Glycerine, Water (Aqua), Rapeseed Oil and Coconut Oil, Perfume, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Fresh Olives, Grapefruit Oil, Fennel Oil, Black Pepper Oil, Bay Oil, Olibanum Resinoid, Rose Otto, Coriander Oil, Cassis Absolute, Sodium Chloride.

Vegan?: Yes.

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