Gold FUN

The Lush FUN line started out as five different coloured bars, each with a different unique scent. You have Pink FUN, which is a fruity candy smell, Yellow FUN, which has a vanilla scent, Red FUN, which is mandarin and orange, Green FUN, which possesses a lemon and lime scent, and Blue FUN, which offers a lavender scent.

Wrapped in a biodegradable wrapper, FUN encompasses everything I love about Lush;

1. It's completely ecologically friendly.

2. It's incredibly versatile and can be used as a shampoo, shower gel or bubble bar.

3. It's incredibly good value for money.

4. It comes in five beautiful and completely unique scents.

5. It encourages your inner child to indulge itself as you can actually play with FUN, much like you would plasticine.

So I was rather excited when I saw that Lush were releasing a sixth variety, the Gold FUN. Encompassing the popular scent of Honey I Washed The Kids, this royal version of the much loved bath bar smells divine. If anything, I think it's initial smell is far sweeter than it's soap counterpart, which gets a thumbs up from me.

Comprised of comforting sweet wild orange oil, uplifting bergamot, softening cornflour and plenty of gold lustre, Gold FUN is a fun-filled, feel-good product that brings out the child in even the stubbornness of adults. 

This bar, along with the other five varieties are multi-use products. They can be broken off and used on the body and hair, and crumbled under running water and used as an alternative to a bubble bar. However, out of the six colours, I found that Gold FUN was one of the least effective at making a lot of bubbles, which is a shame as that's the main reason I bought it in the first place.

Despite my initial pleasure, I was a little disappointed that the smell was rather weak in comparison to the other FUN bars, once it had been fully dissolved in the bath. I had to 'top up' the smell by using a Ma Bar alongside it, which made it's purpose almost redundant.

I did appreciate the golden lustre, which decorated the surface of the water throughout my entire bathing experience. However, this pleasure was soon dampened when I found that the gold stuck to sides of my bath, even after the water had been drained, and I had to use a cloth to wipe it away, taking the FUN out of the entire experience.

Overall, it's not a product I am interested in buying again, although I wonder whether Gold FUN has been slightly overshadowed by the variety of beautiful bath products that Lush have offered it's customers this Christmas. Perhaps if it didn't have Shoot For the Stars, Lord of Misrule and Luxury Lush Pud to contend with, I may have enjoyed it somewhat more. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Talc, Cornflour, Glycerine, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Lustre Radiant Gold, Sweet Wild Orange Oil, Bergamot Oil, *Limonene, *Linalool, Benzyl Benzoate, Butylphenyl Methylpropional, Perfume.

Vegan?: Yes

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Shoot For The Stars Bath Bomb

Shoot For The Stars is one of those bath ballistics that instantly grabs your attention, whether you're interested in it's scent or not. It's composed of a beautiful rich blue shell and decorated with the shape of a yellow shooting star across it's body. Scattered amongst these features are small specks of pink, which give the impression of a starlit night-sky. It's definitely one of Lush's most vividly beautiful ballistics to date, and hints at the wonders that it does in the bath tub. 

When you drop it in water, you'll realise that this is one of Lush's slower working ballistics, and it actually look close to 10 minutes for it to fully dissolve. However, despite it's speed, it did start to work immediately in turning the water an enchanting shade of blue, something which was truly magical to behold.The bomb spins slowly while swirls of pink, purple, silver and yellow ooze out and settle into beautiful clusters on the water's surface. Lush claim that small stars should shoot out at this point, although I did not see any at all. However, once I was in the bath, I did notice a slight shimmer of silver glitter under the surface. 

Enriched with the popular Honey I Washed The Kids scent, this sensual bath bomb remained potent until the very end of my experience. The mouthwatering honey toffee fragrance lingered from the moment the bath bomb hit the water, until the moment I resentfully climbed out of the tub. The scent was perfectly balanced; not too strong to seem overpowering, but not too weak as to dissipate in the water.

About this bath bomb, Lush say; 'this one's for all you star gazers out there, creating a magnificent bath with swirling lustres and beautiful colours. As various and enchanting as the night sky.' And I couldn't agree more. This bath bomb is magical from it's design to it's beautiful scent. There is nothing I'd change about this product aside from making it an all year-round product. Buy one of these while they're still available because you'll regret it if you don't.

Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Citric Acid, Brazilian Orange Oil, Bergamot Oil, Cream of Tartar, Lauryl Betaine, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Propylene Glycol, Perfume, Gardenia Extract, Titanium Dioxide, Benzyl Benzoate, Butylphenyl Methylpropional, *Limonene, *Linalool, Colour 14700, Colour 45410, Colour 17200, Colour 42090, Colour 19140:1, Silver Lustre, Pink Lustre, Yellow Lustre, White Edible Stars.

Vegan?: Yes

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Fresh Farmacy Facial Soap

Fresh Farmacy is described by Lush as a "cleansing chamomile and calamine bar for troublesome skin". Although I don't consider my skin to be at all troublesome, I was intrigued to step away from my much-loved Angels On Bare Skin, and try something a little different. 

A great aspect about Fresh Farmacy is that, because it's solid, it tends to last a lot longer than other 'wet' alternatives. A 100g block, which cost me £4.75, lasted close to four full months, almost a two month difference when compared to other Lush cleansers. It is also the cheapest option on their site, meaning it's a lot more bang for your buck. 

The cleanser is described as a facial soap, which may concern those of you who know how dry and tight a soap can sometimes make your skin feel. Thankfully, Fresh Farmacy leaves your skin fresh and firm but without the tightness that some other soaps normally cause. 

Fresh Farmacy has the soft fragrance of rose, tee tree and lavender - a fresh and floral scent that is probably perfectly suited to anyone looking for a light cleanser with minimal smell. Containing calamine powder, which is supposed to calm red blotches and blemishes, chamomile, which helps to calm the skin, and tea tree, which is antibacterial and antiseptic and is meant to help with spots, this is an all-rounded powerhouse of a cleanser.

To use it, you simply have to wet your face, rub all over to create a creamy lather, and then rinse it off. To start with, you may find it easier to rub it between the palm of your hands and then apply it that way, as the shape of a new block can often make it hard to reach the nooks and crevices on your face. The cleanser is very effective at removing makeup, including eye makeup, and makes your skin feel beautiful when coupled with a good facial moisturiser such as Enzymion or Celestial. 

A word of warning; I do suggest that you store this bar away from the shower as if it is left in constant contact with any moisture, it will shrink a lot quicker than when kept dry. I patted mine dry after each use, which is probably why mine lasted so long.

After using this cleanser for a month, I've noticed that my skin felt smoother and firmer, and I had fewer blemishes around my chin, which I consider to be my 'problem area'. It hasn't stopped me getting a few spots but I blame this on my excessive soda consumption! 

When I was using this, I applied it twice a day, and found that it was slightly drying. This wasn't so much a problem as I coupled it with my facial moisturiser and my skin was fine. However, I'm unsure whether my skin will remain as forgiving in the cold winter months, when I notice my skin gets incredibly dry and damaged.

Overall I'm very impressed with this cleanser. It's good value for money, doesn't irritate my skin, leaving it generally clear and free from blemishes. I'm happy with it, although for now, I plan on sticking to my regulars: Angels On Bare Skin and Buche De Noel.

Quantitative Ingredients: Calamine Powder, Propylene Glycol, Chamomile Decoction, Elderflower Decoction, Rapeseed Oil and Coconut Oil, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Sodium Stearate, Sodium Hydroxide, Water, Lavender Oil, Chamomile Blue Oil, Tea Tree Oil, Rose Absolute, Glycerine, Sodium Chloride, EDTA, Tetrasodium Etidronate, *Limonene, *Linalool, Perfume.

Vegan?: Yes

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Competition Winner!

Thank you to everyone who entered, via my blog or tumblr page. To make it fair, I have selected the winner using a random number generator. I also flip a coin to determine whether I start counting from my tumblr page or my blog.

The winner is one of the anonymous posters on my blog, who I'll be sending an email to tonight. Hopefully we can ship it off so it arrives in time for Christmas.

Keep you eyes peeled, I have lots more exciting Lush giveaways to announce over the coming months :) 

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Star Light Star Bright Bath Melt

Lush have definitely gone all out this year on their Christmas range, especially with so many products making their debut appearance. One such product that caught my eye was a new bath melt, Star Light, Star Bright that is ladened with sparkly silver glitter and promises to be a magical (and perhaps slightly messy) experience.

Packed full of Cocoa butter, this is a bath product that promises to soften your skin and heal up those dry patches. The shea butter fondant centre inside this bath melt is rich and moisturising, creating a soft and creamy bath that not only relaxes you, but helps to relax your skin as well. It also contains coconut oil which hydrates, nourishes and strengthens the skin, making you ready to face the nasty winter weather.

Simply add into an already made bath for a slow melting experience, or drop into the path of running water to dissolve it quicker. The melt dissolves slowly whilst the silver lustre from around the bath melt, slips into the water and drifts peacefully on the surface. 

As soon as you drop the product into the water, the glitter comes off to reveal a largely plain white butter underneath. This is turn dissolves to reveal a blue centre that taints the water a light turquoise colour and makes the water look incandescent alongside the silver sparkles.

The aroma is evident throughout the entire bathing experience, and is perhaps one of Lush's strongest smelling bath products to date. Refreshing ginger and zesty lime oil inspires positivity and will also give you an extra boost, making it a perfect companion at Christmas time. Although I'm not a fan of ginger scented products, there is only a slight hint of it in this bath melt as the citrus scent is far more prominent.  

I loved the fact that my skin felt softer without feeling greasy or oily in anyway. I also appreciated that the scent stayed on my skin for hours after I had left the bath tub, meaning I couldn't stop sniffing myself all evening.  

To conclude: A lot of people are saying that this product is rather messy, and although I believed that this would be the case before I had first tried it, I found that it wasn't messy at all. It smells really lovely before, during and after the bathing experience, and leaves the skin feeling softer and far more hydrated. 

To me, this bath melt has elements of both the R and B hair moisturiser and the From Dusk Til Dawn Massage bar, although it is far less synthetic smelling than the former. I am definitely keen to try this bath melt out again, perhaps this time alongside another sweet scented bath bomb or bubble bar, to really vamp up the lime scent and have a refreshing, citrus dip. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Cocoa Butter, Organic Shea Butter, Laureth 4, Sodium Bicarbonate, Citric Acid, Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, Perfume, Chinese Ginger Oil, Lavender Oil, Persian Lime Oil, Cream of Tartar, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Lauryl Betaine, Titanium Dioxide, Colour 42090, Snowflake Lustre, Silver Lustre, *Citral, *Citronellol, Geraniol, *Coumarin, *Limonene, *Linalool.

Vegan?: Yes

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Atomic Toothy Tabs

The Aquatic Toothy Tabs are described as a 'gloriously romantic' confection. They contain Earl Grey tea, lime oil and jasmine which acts as an aphrodisiac, although I don't really know why you'd want to get heated whilst brushing your teeth! A beautiful combination of Organic Earl Grey and Sencha tea combined with jasmine absolute and fine sea salt, leaves your mouth feeling fresh and clean and with a delicate perfume on the breath.

Aquatic, like all of Lush's toothy tabs, works in the same way. You place one tab between your front teeth and gently nibble until it becomes a powder. Then you wet your toothbrush and proceed to brush your teeth as normal. The addition of water from the brush helps the power to foam up and it works in exactly the same way as normal toothpaste.

These tabs didn't foam up as much as other ones I have tried, and they did dissolve very quickly when placed between my teeth. Although, they still did a good job of making my mouth feel sanitised, clean and fresh.

One box (which contains roughly 40 tabs) will last you around three weeks, although at £3.50 a box, this is definitely more expensive than a normal tube of toothpaste. However, the results speak for themselves; my teeth felt clean throughout the entire day without the overpowering minty aftertaste that I disliked about using normal toothpaste. 

Although I was a little skeptical about these tabs tasting of Earl Grey tea, I soon discovered that the flavour is very mild, so you don't have to be a fan of the English delicacy to enjoy and use this product. In fact, I would go as far as saying that the lime was the more prominent taste here, which made them sweeter than I expected.

Overall, these are the second flavour of toothy tab that I have been more than satisfied with and I will definitely be buying these again in the future. However, these will only be bought every few months to change up my morning routine as I preferred Breath of God toothy tabs and these are £1 cheaper!

Quantitative Ingredients: Dicalcium Phosphate Anhydrous, Sodium Bicarbonate, Cream of Tartar, Sorbitol, Lauroyl Sarcosine, Kaolin, Organic Sencha Tea Powder, Jasmine Absolute, Lime Oil, Wakame Seaweed Powder, Fair Trade Organic Earl Grey Leaves, Fine Sea Salt, Sodium Saccharin, Flavour, *Citral, *Limonene, *Linalool.

Vegan?: Yes

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Luxury Pud Bath Bomb

Having tried a Lil' Pud earlier in the week, I thought I'd indulge myself with Lush's more modernised version; the Luxury Lush Pud. Making is debut as part of the Christmas 2013 range, the ballistic is a grander, more attractive version of it's former self. In fact, it's safe to say that apart from the holly decoration on the side, this bath bomb could be sold alongside Lil Lush pud without anyone complaining of seeing double.  

While Lil Lush Pud was made to resemble a traditional Christmas pudding, the Luxury Lush Pud has stepped away from this somewhat and created an original take on the classic pudding. Part purple and part white, with multicoloured polka dots lavished all over it's sides, this bath bomb is a feast for the senses. 

And it's not only the attractive design that makes this bath bomb so exciting. Sharing it's scent with the infamous Twilight bath bomb, Luxury Lush Pud offers a delightfully strong fragrance for anyone that is lucky enough to be in it's presence. In fact, when I went into a local Lush store recently, it was this ballistic that out-shone all of the other bath products on sale.

Although I wouldn't consider lavender to be one of my favourite scents, both this and the range of Twilight products offer a more sophisticated, mature malty fragrance that would appeal to younger consumers; it's very far from the pot-pourri type of lavender that you expect to find in old people's homes.

Finally, if you were wondering why Lush have chosen to bring out a bath bomb that shares it's scent with an established product, just you wait until see what it can do in the water! I couldn't help but marvel when the pastel colours spilled out of the bath bomb as it frothed and fizzed on the water's surface. Luxury Lush pud really puts on a show; I'd probably rate it as one of the most entertaining bath bombs that Lush have ever released.

Although it's not the most hydrating of bath products, and did leave my skin a little dry, I was able to rectify this with some moisturiser afterwards, so this didn't at all detract from the experience of the bath bomb. The only other qualm about this bath bomb is that it's a seasonal product so will only be available to buy for a few more weeks.

Luxury Lush Pud is a bath bomb I recommend stocking up on; it truly is a feast for every one of your senses, and you'll regret not putting aside a few to last you the year. I'd be gutted, and rather surprised if this didn't make a reappearance next year.

Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Citric Acid, Mandarin Oil, Bergamot Oil, Orange Flower Absolute, Cream of Tartar, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Lauryl Betaine, *Limonene, *Linalool, Gardenia Extract, Perfume, Colour 19140, Colour 42090, Colour 14700.

Vegan?: Yes

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