Dear John Cologne Body Spray

As far as the Dear John fragrance goes, I'm a little behind with the appreciation. My first experience with it was only a matter of weeks ago when Lush re-released a soap with the same scent. Since then I have come to regret not investing in the perfume a lot sooner and have since bought myself a vial of the stuff to enjoy.

Recently Lush have brought this fragrance out in the form of a body spray, and I'm so glad that they've done so. As far as I'm aware, the company have only released a handful of sprays in total; Dear John being one of three new ones to make an appearance in the Gorilla perfume shop earlier last month. 

Described as a unisex fragrance, this one features vetivert, cedar, clove, coriander, lime, coffee and pine. It's a unique and highly pleasing smell - something I initially thought I wouldn't like but have grown to love more than I thought was possible.

In the bottle you can immediately detect three layers of scent. The first is a layer of citrus - which is not as sour or as dominating as the likes of Avobath or Calacas. It's a subtle scent that reminds me a little of lime cheesecake - a gentle but equally fruity smell. Alongside this is an element of coffee. Again, I dislike most coffee-scented products and I have no interest in drinking the stuff either. Yet in Dear John, this layer of scent adds a warm and slightly spicy aroma. Finally, I can also detect hints of the vetivert which give this perfume an earthy and smoky note.

When sprayed on the skin, I love how much the body spray expands and offers up each and every layer of this smell to the wearer. Once on the skin, the perfume almost fragments and allows you to experience each and every beautiful note. The citrus elements tend to rest on the skin whilst the pine, vetivert, coffee, tobacco, cedar and clove linger slightly above this and offer the wearer an all-rounded experience. 

Despite being comprised of some quite dominating smells, this fragrance manages to be light, uplifting and very sensual. It's a comforting and very soothing smell - something that fits in well with what the creators at Lush wanted to make. They wanted a fragrance that reminded you of your dad, your grandfather or your oldest brother - something that represents the security you feel around male acquaintances. While I cannot express how it does such a thing, I can vouch that it does create this beautiful feeling.      

What is great about Dear John Body Spray is that it's only £17 for a 200ml bottle. When compared to cheaper, shop-bought sprays, it does seem rather overpriced. However, when you consider the fact that a 10ml bottle of Dear John Perfume will set you back £14, it's easy to see why this works out a lot better value than it's fragrance counterpart. 

I will warn you that the spray comes in a glass bottle so it's not something you want to carry around with you - for fear of smashing it as well as the weight it adds to your bag. As far as the design goes, it does have quite a generous squirt to it so you'll need to be careful not to spray too much with each use.

Despite all of this, it is a well-lasting spray - I could still detect it on my skin some 3-4 hours after initial application. It also lasts a really long time - I've easily sprayed it 10-12 times so far and it's not even below the neck of the bottle yet.

If you love Dear John, you will love this new addition to the family. While it's not as condensed as the perfume, it does offer a strong fragrance and it might even appeal to those who love the scent but find the perfume too compact on the skin. I will definitely buy this again and I only hope that Lush choose to release other body sprays that match their favourite scents - they're a great addition to Lush's scent collection.

Quantitative Ingredients: DRF Alcohol, Perfume, Cedarwood Oil (Juniperus virginiana), Vetivert Oil (Vetiveria zizanoides), Coriander Oil (Coriandrum sativum), Clove Bud Oil (Eugenia caryophyllus), Benzyl, Benzoate, Benzyl Salicylate, Coumarin, Eugenol, Farnesol, Geraniol, Limonene, Linalool.

Vegan?: Yes.

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The Sun Solid Perfume

They say that cosmetics can't change a person, but I know differently. Ever since I began collecting Lush, I find that I get more pleasure out of deciding what to take on holiday with me than the actual holiday itself. On Sunday, I jetted off to beautiful, sunny Spain and I found far more excitement in choosing the products I was going to share my trip with, than that I was going away for the first time in years.

Knowing that it was going to be scorching, I opted to take a perfume that would accentuate the wonderful heat - The Sun. Originally released as a liquid perfume for the Volume 2 range, Lush have recently brought it out in solid form as well.

There are many reasons why solid perfumes are a good investment. Firstly, they are very easily to transport from place to place. They take up very little space and have no way of leaking, so can be stored in pockets, purses and bags and taken near enough anywhere. Secondly, they are great value for money. This one in particular comes in at £5 for a 12g tub, and while the weight in conjunction with the price may seem rather expensive for perfume, it's far more compact than your typical liquid fragrances so you get a lot more bang for your buck.

Finally, and this is more of personal preference, there's just something really wonderful about the packaging and designs of these solid editions. They're a great little collector's item and when bought in conjunction with others, look rather fantastic on your shelf. 

What I like about The Sun Solid Perfume is that it isn't as acidic-smelling as it's liquid counterpart. When I first tested the liquid perfume, I was a little put-off by how strong it was in the bottle. Luckily it mellows out quite a lot and I grew to love it, but the solid addition doesn't have any of those potent acidic smells to begin with.

Made from a combination of orange, sandalwood and jojoba oil, this perfume is a bright, refreshing and very uplifting fragrance. Straight from the tin it reminds me of freshly peeled oranges - it captures the tartness you experience when peeling back the layer of skin and pith from an actual orange. There's nothing synthetic about this citrus smell as all - it's as natural as you can get.

Underneath this, there is a very subtle but equally warming hint of sandalwood. This gives the orange a base on which to stand so it's not as thin and two-dimensional as you can imagine it being. The sandalwood makes more of an appearance on the skin, where it pads out the zesty scent and grounds the overall aroma. It makes the perfume just slightly more sultry and sophisticated, which I love.

To use solid perfumes, all you have to do is massage your finger over the surface of the perfume and then rub it into key areas of the body. It's much more conservative than liquid perfumes as you don't lose any of the product when you're applying it to your skin - a 12g tub would easily outlive a 100ml bottle in that sense. 

Unfortunately, the one downfall with this solid edition is that the scent is very short-lived. I applied quite a lot to both of my wrists and found that within 10-15 minutes, the smell had all but disappeared. My friends did say that they could detect the perfume on me, but they too said it was a very weak one and not something they could pick up without standing almost on top of me.

While solid perfumes are definitely a unique way to enjoy the wonderful smells of Lush, I don't think that this one will prove as enjoyable as it's liquid cousin. While the fragrance itself is flawless, I will be sticking to the liquid edition in future to get my Sun fix. While I have given it a high rating, this is because of the design, the fragrance and the usability - it's the longevity that lets it down. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Organic Jojoba Oil (Simmondsia chinensis), Castor Oil (Ricinus communis), Candelillia Wax (Euphorbia cerifera), Brazilian Orange Oil (Citrus sinensis), Perfume, Sandalwood Oil (Santalum austro-caledonicum vieill), Mimosa Absolute (Acacia decurrens), Limonene,  Linalool, Titanium Dioxide, Calcium Sodium Borosilicate, Tin Oxide.

Vegan?: Yes.  

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My Two Trips To The New Gorilla Perfume Shop

When I found out that Lush were opening the very first Gorilla Perfume shop in London, my credit card groaned and the sound of screeching tires echoed behind me as I flew head first out of the door. 

When Volume 2 came out, I was still trying to establish myself as a blogger and I had so many products to review that it was a little soul-destroying thinking about having to invest in a whole range of perfumes to add to that list. However,  I am now far more organised with my writing and couldn't wait to pick up all of new scents as well as some of the repackaged older ones. 

I visited the shop on it's opening day and walked away with one each of the new range. However, the itch returned very quickly and I made a second trip on Friday to pick up the body sprays and some of the new solid tins. Unfortunately, they seemed to have sold out of the Smuggler's Soul Body Spray but I managed to get everything else.

The shop is beautifully decorated and holds such a wonderful atmosphere. I've only been in there twice, but the staff were incredibly friendly and helpful. A wonderful employee, who I met both times I went in, even gave me a vinyl of music that has been specially written to coincide with each and every one of the new perfumes. I cannot wait to settle down one evening this week and have a listen and enjoy the fragrances even more. Thank you so much - you made my day!

I already feel third trip coming on but I'm going to try and hold off for as long as possible - I do need money to eat and stuff!

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