Egg Hunt Soap

When this soap was first announced as a new edition to the Easter 2013 range, I couldn't wait to get hold of a piece and try it out for myself. As soaps go, this is definitely one of the most beautiful offerings I have seen from Lush, although you need to witness what an entire block looks like to understand what I mean. Before it has been cut into saleable chunks, Egg Hunt Soap is designed to look like a field full of multi-coloured eggs; it's truly gorgeous and very fitting for spring. 

Sharing it's scent with the Mumkin Bubble Bar, this sweet and fruity offering is perhaps one of my favourite smelling soaps to date. On first sniff, I was able to pick up three separate layers of scent; a natural-smelling part that I associate with fresh grass or wheatgrass. This is intertwined with notes of raspberry, orange and lemon to produce an uplifting and fruity fragrance. Then for depth, the whole aroma is dominated by the gentle but sultry smell of violets. 

Combined, this soap gives off an incredibly beautiful and very unique scent.

In it's favour, Egg Hunt showcases a much stronger and more defined smell than the Mumkin Bubble Bar, and I found that I was able to pick out the key notes when it's in this form. The fragrance is strong and very invigorating, without being too cloying, and lingers on your skin for the most part of a day. If Lush were to ever bring this out as a perfume or body lotion, I would no doubt have to sell every possession just to buy out their stock. 

In the shower, I found this soap to be very easy to use - lathering up without having to massage it for very long between the hands. It produces an almost fluorescent-coloured foam, which at first worried me that it would stain the edge of the bath, or indeed my skin. However, I discovered very quickly that this is not the case, and the green splodges washed away with ease. 

Unfortunately, I found Egg Hunt to be slightly drying on my skin, and I noticed that my hands were very taut after use. Although the foam felt lovely and smooth whilst it was being lathered onto my legs and arms, once the water had washed it away, my skin didn't feel very hydrated and I had to use The Olive Branch Shower Gel to revive these areas. After a few weeks of use, I didn't find that my skin accepted it at all and I had to stop using it and switch soaps.

Furthermore, I found that despite patting the soap dry after each use, my chunk was very quick to shrink and my 100g block halved in size in under two weeks. For this reason, it's definitely not one of the better value soaps. 

Overall, I will have to hold out for other products made with this scent and hope that Lush don't wait too long to do so. While I love the scent and design of Egg Hunt, it's just not a match for my skin, but that's not to say that I don't at least recognise the merits of this product. I would still recommend that you try it for yourself, if Lush ever choose to bring it back as, if it works well with your skin, you're definitely onto a winner.

Quantitative Ingredients: Water, Propylene Glycol, Rapeseed Oil, Coconut Oil, Sodium Stearate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Perfume, Bergamot Oil, Sicilian Lemon Oil, Violet Leaf Absolute, Glycerine, Sodium Chloride EDTA, Tetrasodium Etidronate, Sodium Hydroxide, Gardenia Extract, Titanium Dioxide, Geraniol, *Limonene, *Linalool, Colour 42090, Colour 454`0,  Colour 14700, Colour 17200, Colour 15510, Colour 45350.

Vegan?: Yes.

2014 Price: £3.45 for 100g.

2015 Price: £4.50 for 100g. 

2016 Price: £4.50 for 100g.

Year Of Original Release: 2013. 

Scent Family:

Easter Egg Hunt Soap
Mumkin Bubble Bar

The Brightside Bubble Bar

There are rare moments during my obsession with Lush, when a product or experience has that extra 'wow' factor that sets it apart from most of the other items available from their range. The Brightside is one such product. Originally released for the Easter 2013 range, this bubble bar proved to be so popular that it was brought back again this year, with many rumours circling that this will be made a permanent member of the Lush family. I really hope that it does.

This generously sized bubble bar is enough for more than one refreshing bath. In fact, it is the same size as the famous Comforter Bar, which will easily give you four incredibly soft and super bubblelicious baths. Priced up at a very reasonable £4.95, this bar is somewhat of a brick in size, so you're definitely getting your money's worth when purchasing one of these.

Named after the much loved Monty Python song, this product is definitely something that'll cheer you up and wash away those winter blues. This bubble bar is packed full of refreshing, uplifting and hydrating ingredients to give you a wonderfully satisfying bath.

Firstly, The Brightside features tangerine oil, which not only gives the bar it's wonderfully zesty fragrance, but can also aid digestion and reduce the appearance of scars and stretch marks. Next up there's Mandarin Oil; a clean and zesty scent which is believed to inspire positive energy as well as improving mood and restoring equilibrium. It is said to help relieve stress and restlessness as well as improving circulation and maintaining water balance in the skin. Finally, there's Bergamot Oil - an uplifting oil that works alongside the mandarin oil to combat stress and stimulate circulation in the body, which in turn can relieve muscle tension.

Together, these ingredients help to create a beautifully uplifting, calm bathing experience, which in turn makes you feel pretty damn wonderful once you've prized yourself out of the tub. Furthermore, these ingredients also help to soften the water and product lots of fruity, velvety bubbles that leave your skin feeling beautifully smooth and moisturised.

Its scent is very orangey and zesty; it reminds me of freshly peeled satsumas when they're perfectly in season; a sweet (and slightly fizzy) smell with a sugary, sherberty bite. Much like orange Fanta but with a bit more of a warm, well-rounded citrus fragrance.

What is great about The Brightside this year, is that Lush have obviously improved upon the recipe, as last year I found that some of the bars tended to be a little too compressed for my liking, and it was often difficult to get the bars to crumble properly under the tap. However, this year the bars are much softer and work perfectly in the bath. They crumble and dissolve with ease and don't leave any pieces in the bottom of your tub.

Much like last year, this product creates a vivid orange-coloured bath, which immediately looks warm, summery and very inviting. This beautiful shade of tangelo remains with you for the duration of the bath and washes away at the end, without leaving any staining on the tub.

Overall, I think The Brightside is a all-rounded perfect product. Firstly, it's stunning to look at and will immediately draw your attention to itself in the shop. The beautiful swirls of reds, oranges and yellows make it perhaps the most gorgeous bubble bar I have ever seen come from Lush. Furthermore, the scent is very strong before and during the bath, but it's a very light, refreshing smell so it's not at all overpowering. This beautiful fragrance remains throughout the entire bathing experience and lingers on your skin for a few hours afterwards.

The Brightside left me feeling invigorated, highly moisturised and very happy when I got out of the tub. It's a product that needs to be made permanent as I just don't think I can go another year before being able to try this again. Lush should definitely create a shower gel using this same fragrance, as it is simply beautiful. However, this would mean that I would most probably spend the duration of my life in the shower, smothering it all over myself for hours at a time. Alongside Ponche, this is quite easily, the best new product to come from Lush in a good many years. Simply amazing.

Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Cream of Tartar, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Lauryl Betaine, Sicilian Mandarin Oil, Tangerine Oil, Bergamot Oil, *Limonene, *Linalool, Perfume, Gardenia Extract, Colour 14700, Colour 15510, Sicilian Mandarin Oil.

Vegan?: Yes.

2016 Price: £4.95 each.

Year Of Original Release: 2013.

Scent Family:
Brightside Body Lotion
Brightside Bubble Bar
Brightside Solid Perfume
Here Comes The Sun Naked Shower Cream
The Jester Reusable Bubble Bar
Sunrise Soap

WebRep

currentVote

noRating

noWeight

The Immaculate Eggception Yellow And Pink Ballistic

Lush first released The Immaculate Eggception as part of their 2012 Easter range; an oversized ballistic that can be used to create one epic bathing experience, or three slightly less epic but still amazing ones. Available for a limited period of time, this is a bath bomb that you don't use lightly. Priced at £6.95, it's definitely an investment, so it's one that has to impress. Luckily, that it does. 

This ballistic is packed full of refreshing, uplifting fragrances that'll help you to unwind whilst washing away those winter cobwebs. Containing grapefruit and lemon oils, this fruity bath bomb is incredibly beautiful and Lush have also included a dash of vanilla absolute to round off its scent with a warm, sensual kick.

Lush have included the grapefruit oil to help clear the mind and refresh the body, while the lemon oil is added to brighten, tone and cleanse the skin. Together, they create a beautiful fragrance that invigorates the senses whilst leaving your body feeling velvety soft and clean. There is something rather complex about the aroma of this bath bomb - one that comes alive when it meets the water and lasts on your skin long after you've left the bath. 

Despite both the pink and yellow designs supposedly possessing the same fragrance, I did notice a slight difference to their scents. The yellow variety is definitely very fruity and fresh smelling - perhaps the grapefruit and lemon scent seemingly intensified because of the colour the ballistic as well as the colour it turns the water. On the other hand, the pink variety is a little more musky-smelling and I found that the vanilla fragrance is more prominent here; giving it an almost chocolately scent that I love.

In the tub, both varieties perform a little differently as well. The Pink Eggception spews out an array of vivid colours; blues, yellows and pinks, which quickly fill the tub and turn the water a wonderful deep carmine colour. The Yellow Eggception spits out streams of yellow and orange, both of which merge to form a golden yellow bath. 

When comparing the two ballistics, the pink one is slightly more appealing to me. The smell is a little richer and more sumptuous, and the colour it produces in the water is prettier and just feels more relaxing. Furthermore, I found that the Yellow Eggception stained the edge of my bath tub and I had to spend a good 5 minutes scrubbing it off afterwards.

If, like me, you decide to crack open an Immaculate Eggception before using it, you'll find that there is a little surprise inside to greet you. Depending on the colour you get, you'll either find a mini bunny or a mini chick inside. I'll leave it up to you to decide which one goes with which ballistic - I don't want to spoil everything for you!

Overall, I really enjoyed using this ballistic, and it's one I will buy again if Lush release it in the future. It does possess an expensive price tag, and I can see why a lot of people would be put off buying it because of this. However, I think that, as a seasonal product, you can justify purchasing it as a one-off luxury treat for either yourself or a loved-one. In particular, it would be a great Easter present to give and receive, especially for those of us who don't want to or can't eat chocolate. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Citric Acid, Perfume, Grapefruit Oil, Lemon Oil, Vanilla Absolute, Dipropylene Glycol, Gardenia Extract, Colour 15510, Colour 42090, *Limonene, *Linalool, Candy Jelly Diamond.

Vegan?: Yes. 

2015 Price: £6.95 each.

2016 Price: £6.95 each.

Year of Original Release: 2012.

WebRep

currentVote

noRating

noWeight