Every year Lush bring out at least one soap that gets forgotten about soon after the season is over. In all honesty, this year there is a selection that I could associate this idea with, despite how nice some of the scents are. Christmas Citrus is one such soap.
While bright in colour, this limited edition is still not the most attractive soap to have been released by the company, for the Christmas period. With the likes of Old Father Time and Angel’s Delight springing to mine immediately, the allure of the fluorescent-like green and yellow colouring doesn’t exactly match up to these aforementioned masterpieces.
With a lemon decoction as a base ingredient, not to mention the name of the product itself, Christmas Citrus is the sweet, fruity citrusy smell that you would expect. Bergamot, lime and lemon juice have also been included in the ingredients, so you can almost imagine what the fragrance of this soap would be like, before even trying it out for yourself. Surprisingly, I found the scent to be far more subtle than I was expecting, and I was almost disappointed that it wasn’t anywhere near as bright and zesty as the design suggested.
From the first sniff, my nose detected a warm, fruity and rather lime-dominated citrusy smell. The lemon intertwined around this to add a warmth that helped to pad the smell out a little. To me, the aroma had an almost chemical-like element to it, which reminded me of scented wet wipes or the smell you sometimes get after you’ve finished cleaning the bathroom. It’s a very clean and refreshing smell, but definitely not one that bowled me over. It’s nowhere near as potent as the likes of Baked Alaska, yet equally not as interesting as Hedgewitch.
The inclusion of both the cocoa butter and coconut oil meant that Christmas Citrus felt and worked very gently on the skin - creating a gel-like lather that glided easily over the body during the shower. Just like many of the seasonal soaps this year, I found that this one produced a lather more naked Shower Gel would that a regular soap. This meant that my skin felt a little softer and more moisturised after using this across my body.
While there’s nothing in the ingredients list to suggest why this might be, I also found that the soap had an element of exfoliation to it, which I really appreciated. When rubbing it across my body, I found it to be slightly scratchy on my skin - which offered a little buffering without being too coarse of scratchy.
The scent itself lingered on the skin during use, although I found that it tended to fade dramatically if you used another product alongside it. For this reason, I couldn’t really detect much after I had left the shower. Furthermore, given what Christmas Citrus smells like, I found that I preferred using this as a hand soap as opposed to a full body one. However, this is just down to personal preference and there is definitely no reason why you cannot use it in the latter way.
As with most of Lush’s soaps, this one left me feeling squeaky clean, and the inclusion of the lemon oil meant that there was an element of radiance to my skin afterwards. Despite this, I still needed to apply either a Body Conditioner or a body lotion after using his, as my hands appeared slightly parched if I didn’t do so.
Much like Hidden Mountain, this soap also shrinks rather quickly - which I think is due to the inclusion of the cocoa butter. For this reason, you need to be careful where you store it in between uses, and I would suggest not holding it under the running water for too long, to preserve the chunk for as long as possible.
After using this daily for about two weeks, I came to the conclusion that this soap is simply ‘nice’: it has a nice smell; a pleasant texture; and it’s easy enough to lather it up in the shower. However, there is nothing about this that blows me away enough to want to invest in more than one piece. While there are some products that will be remembered for years to come, I cannot imagine this one being missed if it doesn’t reappear in next year’s line-up.
Quantitative Ingredients: Propylene Glycol, Lemon Decoction (Citrus Limonum), Water (Aqua), Fair Trade Organic Cocoa Butter (Theobroma cacao), Extra Virgin Coconut Oil (Cocos nucifera), Rapeseed Oil; Coconut Oil (Brassica napus; Cocos nucifera), Organic Castor Oil (Ricinus communis), Sodium Hydroxide, Lime Oil (Citrus aurantifolia), Bergamot Oil (Citrus Aurantium bergamia), Styrax Oil (Liquidambar Styraciflua), Lemon Juice (Citrus limonum), (Citrus Medica Limonum (Lemon) Fruit Juice) Glycerine, Sodium Chloride, Titanium Dioxide, Gardenia Extract (Gardenia jasminoides), Citric Acid, Sodium Stearate, EDTA, Tetrasodium Etidronate, Sodium Bicarbonate, *Cinnamyl Alcohol ,*Limonene, *Linalool, Fragrance, Yellow 8 Blue 1 Yellow 5 Green 8.
Vegan?: Yes.
2017 Price: £4.25 for 100g.
Year Of Original Release: 2017.
What would be your Self Esteem Machine, I was once asked: a question that took me a little while to process and an even longer amount of time to answer. While I don't wish to share my answer at this moment in time, it was one that made sense when it finally popped into my head.
Self Esteem Machine Body Spray was not a product that I planned to rush out and buy when it made itself known. While I really enjoyed the experience of using the Liquid Perfume, I wouldn't say that it was one that stood out as a personal favourite, and until recently had been sat on my shelf untouched. However, after my visit to Lush's pop-up Volume 4 gallery in Edinburgh, my opinion as well as my excitement for the fragrance changed dramatically, and the body spray has now become a staple.
Made from a collaboration of mandarin and grapefruit oils, you'd be mistaken for thinking that this one is in any way citrusy. Not only would I never describe Self Esteem Machine as being particularly fruity, it is also certainly not anywhere near as juicy as I was originally expecting it to be.
Firstly, what made me fall in love with the body spray even more than the liquid perfume is that it is less compact and therefore less intense on the skin. While I normally expect and want my fragrances to be both strong and withstanding, the reservation of this one allows the scent to breathe a little when in use. This makes it far more refreshing and helps the key ingredients to pronounce themselves a little better, which only better the experience in my eyes.
On the skin, both the mandarin and grapefruit oils dance beautifully in unison to create a light, fruity fragrance. The grapefruit loses its tart, citrusy element and instead offers a crisp burst of flavour that reminds me a little of tinned fruit you can buy in the supermarket. The mandarin wraps itself around these notes and thickens the fragrance: adding an almost syrupy element to the perfume, whilst still holding back some of the sweetness you find in the likes of 1000 Kisses Deep.
Together, there is a level of sophistication that you wouldn't necessarily expect from this combination. There is something rather mature about this pairing - something that I think is helped by the inclusion of the vanillary note. While I wouldn't say that there is a strong note of vanilla in the overall smell, the inclusion of this ingredient does have an impact, and gives the scent a gentle dusting of sweetness, which I'd compare to that of a cloud of icing sugar, albeit not as sweet.
Self Esteem Machine is a crisp, refreshing blend of smells - one that is far more sophisticated than you would expect from the ingredients used to create it. It would be complimentary to wearers of all ages, as it is both light and airy for the younger users, while also being strangely complex for the older consumers. This one is perfect for those of you who like reserved fruity smells but are looking for something a little 'more'.
What is great about this body spray is that it's longevity is just as impressive as the perfume variation. While it is not as intense as the Liquid fragrance, it lingers on the skin for the same length of time. In fact, I could still smell it on my skin and clothes 4-5 hours after it had been initially sprayed.
Self Esteem Machine is a great perfume to wear during the change of seasons. Although it compliments the warmer weather as there is something quite cooling about the smell, it's also light and complex enough to suit those damp and slightly less pleasant days.
Overall, this body spray has become one of those products that I use multiple times per week, and I cannot see that changing any time soon. My bottle will no doubt need to be replaced far sooner than most of the other body sprays I own, but it's worth it, knowing how good I smell.
Quantitative Ingredients: DRF Alcohol, Water (Aqua), Perfume, Glycerine, Sicilian Mandarin Oil, Grapefruit Oil, Vanilla Absolute, *Benzyl Benzoate, *Cinnamal, *Citral, *Coumarin, *Geraniol, *Limonene, *Linalool, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone Butylphenyl, Methylpropional Hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene carboxaldehyde.
Vegan?: Yes.
2017 Price: £29 for 200ml.
Year Of Original Release: 2017.
While I wasn’t around for much of the Mother’s Day hype online, I do remember seeing pictures of a whole array of soaps that were coming out as part of this year’s seasonal range. Although I remember thinking how beautiful each of them looked, there was a small part of me that was disappointed that some of them hadn’t been made into other formats instead. Upon using Purple Loosestrife for the first time, I ate my words.
A trio of three exquisite floral syrups have gone into making this soap, and both the fragrance it offers and the way it works with your skin is a testament to each of these three components. If you love violet scented cosmetics, this is one you have to try for yourself.
Rose, hibiscus and lavender are three of the main ingredients here: each one adding something wonderful to the overall fragrance, and making this perhaps the greatest smelling soap that Lush have brought out this year. The rose adds a floral sweetness without the usual powdery note that the component is often used for in other products; the hibiscus adds a slightly acidic fruity floral element, although this is definitely the most subtle of all three ingredients; the lavender adds a natural but subtle herbal layer to the mix.
Together, these three ingredients intertwine with both the cananga oil (which offers a gentle woodiness to ground the aroma) and the violet leaf absolute, to produce a rich but very light and airy violet aroma - one that shares its scent with Daddy O Shampoo.
From the first sniff, it was obvious that the latter ingredient was the most dominant component in this soap - offering a wonderful delicate violet aroma, with a warm woody layer underneath. It’s such a beautiful smell, easily one of my favourite violet smells from Lush because it’s so beautifully rich, yet at the same time there is something soft and hazy about it as well. I really appreciated the fact that I could smell all of the different layers when I was using this soap in the shower, and if anything, this is probably the best example of this fragrance that I have sampled so far.
In the shower, Loosestrife is so easy to use - lathering up like a dream to produce a creamy lather to massage across your body. I was amazed by how silky-soft the bar felt between my hands, and this feeling continued after I had towelled myself down.
As far as soaps go, this is very moisturising, and may even be a little more nourishing on the skin than some of Lush’s most recent Naked Shower Gels. You may feel the familiar tautness on your skin after you’ve rinsed the suds off of your skin. However, you’ll notice how velvety smooth you are one you are dry and out of the shower. I used this across my whole body and found that there wasn’t even one area of my body that felt like it needed to be moisturised afterwards.
My only gripe against Purple Loosestrife Soap is that it shrinks very quickly, even when you attempt to keep it out of the way of the running tap. After using this only 4-5 times, I found that the bar had significantly shrunk and I wouldn’t envisage that it would last even a month if you used it daily.
Having said that, the fragrance of this wonderful product lasted for a good while on my skin afterwards and it made me realise how much I would love more violet-dominated perfumes to be made by Lush themselves.
The scent of this (alongside the beautiful design) would make this a beautiful hand soap in any dish - especially one that you’d like your guests to comment on after using it. However, I would say that this soap would be wasted if it was only used in this way.
This is one I would definitely buy again, although I’m not opposed to seeing this fragrance being made into a liquid shower gel instead, if I had a choice. A wonderful present to give your mother this Mother’s Day, or simply a beautiful soap to enjoy for yourself.
Quantitative Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Propylene Glycol, Fair Trade Organic Cocoa Butter, Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, Organic Castor Oil, Sodium Hydroxide, Perfume, Rose Syrup, Hibiscus Syrup, Lavender Syrup, Violet Leaf Absolute, Rose Absolute, Bergamot Oil, Cananga Oil, Glycerine, Titanium Dioxide, Citric Acid, Sodium Bicarbonate, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Tin Oxide, *Limonene, Alpha-Isomethyl ionone, Benzyl Alcohol, Coumarin, Hexyl Cinnamal, Isoeugenol, Colour 77491, Colour 77492, Colour 77007, Colour 47005:1, Colour 42090:2.
Vegan?: Yes.
2018 Price: £5.95 each.
Year Or Original Release: 2018.
Scent Family:
For a large percentage of established Lush fans, the announcement of this bubbleroon probably sent them into a bit of a frenzy to begin with. Knowing how popular Plum Rain Shower Gel is, many people no doubt assumed, as I did, that this limited edition would share the same scent. How disappointed was I then when I discovered that the two products were nothing alike - a sombre feeling which didn't last very long after I actually used the product in the bath.
Inspired by Purple Rain by Prince, this gorgeous bubbleroon is one of three limited edition varieties for this year's Mother's Day range. Unfortunately, neither one of my three bubbleroons arrived with the marbled cream on top. However, to see what they look like is to marvel pure beauty in a bubble bar format.
Featuring peppermint, black pepper and clove bud oil, it is perhaps difficult to envisage what this bubbleroon smells like to begin with. Given that the clove oil featured first, I assumed it would be a spicy collaboration, with a certain level of heat from the black pepper and a refreshing blast of peppermint to finish up. In fact, the components read backwards as far as the ingredients list is concerned.
To my nose, the bubbleroon offered a gentle but very warming bubblegum smell with just a hint of both the clove and the peppermint. In some ways it reminded me of Ladybird Bubble Bar, although far more comforting and not as potent. It was a combination that felt like it didn't quite piece together perfectly, but worked none the less.
Once the bubbleroon had been crumbled under the running tap, the fragrance came out in full force: not so much that I would ever describe it as being potent, but enough that I could smell it for a good hour after I had left the bathroom. It was then that the peppermint made itself known more. Again, this note offered a very warm feeling in the bath. Not once did I ever feel as if the peppermint was at all cooling or refreshing, as it normally is.
All three ingredients create a sweet and very comforting smell - something that reminded me slightly of Witches' Ball Bubble Bar in just how unique it was with the different elements working together in unison. In my mind, this shouldn't work very well, and yet it does.
As with all bubbleroons, this crumbled easily and filled the tub with beautifully-soft water that nourished and replenished my skin within seconds. While there weren't as many bubbles as a regular bubble bar, the bubbles that were created were silky-smooth and fragrant, and I even indulged in using them to clean my body with. The pastel purple colour that the water turned in the beginning stayed just as beautiful throughout the whole experience, and the scent lingered on my skin for a good while before I went to bed. In fact, I remember waking up at various points throughout the night and I was still able to make out the fragrance on my pillow and surrounding duvet cover.
Ultimately, Lush need to consider bringing this out in many format as a body lotion and spray would be incredible in this fragrance. While I can imagine more products being made closer to Halloween and the colder months, as this is definitely more of a wintery scent, I do hope that this is not the last we see of such a beautiful, warming smell. I would buy this again without a doubt.
Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Cream of Tartar, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Fair Trade Organic Cocoa Butter, Murumuru Butter, Lauryl Betaine, Perfume, Laureth 4, Cornflour, Fair Trade Shea Butter, Clove Bud Oil, Black Pepper Oil, Peppermint Oil, Titanium Dioxide, *Eugenol, *Limonene, Colour 45410:2, Colour 42090:2, Colour 45410, Colour 45380:3, Colour 17200.
Vegan?: Yes.
2018 Price: £4.75 each.
Year Of Original Release: 2018.
Let’s be honest: when Lush advertise a brand new soap by the name of Rosebud, most fans aren’t exactly going to get overly excited by the prospect. Unless you’re a new fan of the company, another product based on the rose is as far away from original as could possibly be. Lush’s back catalogue is simply saturated with the fragrance.
Although Rosebud has a floral aroma, and one heavily influenced by the inclusion of the white rose petals, the scent of this is definitely a lot more interesting than I was expecting it to be.
There is something rather old-fashioned about the smell of this. Both the neroli and the orange flower combine to create a fragrance that is very intoxicating without being powdery; as well as producing a scent that is bitter, fruity and floral at the same time. The neroli adds a citrusy, green layer that’s gives the aroma a light, fresh floral note to the soap; the orange flower offers a sweet but slightly wet-like cloud of smell that drives this aroma forward.
Finally, the inclusion of castor oil adds a rich, sultry layer that gives the soap an almost smoky, liquorice element to enjoy. While this is very subtle in the mix, it is definitely part of the layers that make up this wonderful fragrance.
Together, these ingredients intertwine with the white petals to create a very rich, complex floral aroma - one with many layers that can be picked out individually whilst still working so well in unison with each other. The smell of this is very different to anything else that Lush have released so far, which meant that I enjoyed this fragrance more than I was expecting to.
As with Loosestrife, this soap was shaped perfectly so I found it very easy to use this in the shower, without dropping it constantly as I often find myself doing. Likewise, the scent was super strong both before my shower and whilst I was using it in the shower, and it stayed on my skin and my hair for a good whole after towelling myself down.
In its favour, this soap was incredibly easy to lather up and produced a thick, oil-like foam to wash my body with. While not as generous as the aforementioned Mother’s Day Soap, this one didn’t need too much stimulation to work well and I found that I could create enough lather in my hands to place the bar away from the shower whilst I washed myself. This was definitely important, as this soap did tend to shrink very quickly when in contact with the water. If you don’t keep this dry in between uses, you will find that you’ll use Rosebud far more quickly than you would perhaps like to, making it an expensive investment when compared to other soaps.
Unlike Loosestrife, I found that while this soap cleaned my skin and left it feeling really refreshed and crisp, the soap didn’t offer much in the way of moisturising properties. For this reason, I had to moisture myself after my shower as my legs in-particular began to look rather dry and parched. Despite this, I was pleased to find that the areas of my body that had been sunburnt the previous day appeared to feel far calmer and less sore after using this a couple of times afterwards, and I believe that the rose petals helped to calm my skin and speed up my recovery.
Overall, the smell of this was an experience that I really enjoyed as it was far different from anything that Lush have ever released before. Fans of floral scents, both heavy and light, will appreciate the naturally beautiful scent that this soap has to offer, and even those not so keen on these types of fragrances might still enjoy it to some extent as well. While I would never claim to be much of a floral fanatic, I would definitely appreciate a Bath Bomb in this scent, and think a dusting powder might even be an interesting format as well.
Quantitative Ingredients: Propylene, Glycol, Water (Aqua), White Rose Petal Infusion, Fair Trade Organic Cocoa Butter, Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, Organic Castor Oil, Sodium Hydroxide, Perfume, Neroli Oil, Orange Flower Absolute, Ylang Ylang Oil, Tuberose Absolute, Oat Milk, Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Glycerine, Rose Water, Tincture of Benzoin, Gardenia Extract, Titanium Dioxide, Citric Acid, Sodium Bicarbonate, Stearic Acid, Triethanolamine Cetearyl, Alcohol, *Benzyl Benzoate, *Farnesol, *Geraniol, *Limonene, *Linalool, Benzyl Salicylate, Hydroxycitronellal, Colour 45350, Colour 14700, Colour 17200, Colour 15510.
Vegan?: Yes.
2018 Price: £5.95 each.
Year Of Original Release: 2018.
Long gone are the days where my mum would expect me to present her with obscure paintings or homemade Easter hats whenever I go to visit her. In fact, I think she’d be really worried if I came home for a short stay and offered her any of the strange but creative ‘rubbish’ I used to make my parents when I was a lot younger. I’m not saying she wouldn’t be thankful - it would just be a little weird.
Yet Mum, Look What I Made You Bath Bomb celebrates the loving gifts that most of us litter our parents’ with when we’re still in school. As someone who considers herself to be rather creative, I can only imagine the amount of space that I must have taken up in their cupboards over the years. The artefacts may have long since been thrown away, but the memories are very much intact.
Containing coconut milk powder and coconut blossom nectar, I was already envisaging how incredibly creamy this bath bomb was going to be before it arrived. And I was right. This beautifully-rich limited edition is like a dessert for your bath tub and a royal treat for your skin to boot.
Yet, I wouldn't describe the scent of this to be at all coconut like, nor at all chocolately as the inclusion of the chocolate extract might suggest. Strangely, I would describe the smell of this to be a combination of cherry and almond oil, which has led me to believe that this shares its scent with the new Cherryish Body Scrub.
There is something quite powdery but equally sweet and slightly fruity about this bath bomb, which hints at the cherry component. A nuttiness then folds itself around the sweeter notes and makes this bath bomb smell absolutely divine. In fact, I would say that this fragrance suits the bath bomb format more - only because the powdery element makes it appear more delicate and creamy overall.
What makes Mum, Look What I Made Bath Bomb so special is that it's a slow fizzer, so you can climb into the tub while its working its magic and watch the show from a front row seat. As thick yellow and pink foam ebbs away from the bath bomb, MLWIM reveals a vibrant blue centre that only serves to add more colour to your experience.
Having said that, once the bath bomb has fully dissolved, you are left with a very pale orange-coloured water, which wasn't something worth writing home about. Furthermore, this definitely wasn't the most moisturising of bath bombs for my skin, despite the inclusion of many ingredients that would suggest otherwise.
While the scent did linger in the bath for most of the experience, I wouldn't say that it was particularly strong, and sometimes I needed to leave the bathroom and return to pick up the scent again. For this reason, I didn't notice much on my skin afterwards, although my body did feel rather soft and well-pampered.
This is definitely not the most impressive of bath bombs from this year's Mother's Day range, although it's definitely not at all bad. Given how many products from this range can sometimes be too heavily floral dictated, I appreciated the fact that Lush have brought out a brand new bath bomb, with a brand new scent to boot. While my mother may not have received any artwork from me this year, at least she'll be able to enjoy the artistic shots that Mum, Look What I Made offered me in the bathtub.
Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Citric Acid, Coconut Milk Powder, Cocoa Absolute, Almond essential oil, Cream of Tartar, Water (Aqua), Coconut Blossom Nectar, Chocolate Extract, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Dipropylene Glycol, Lauryl Betaine, Propylene Glycol, Benzyl Benzoate, Cinnamyl Alcohol, Coumarin, Hexyl Cinnamal, Perfume, Colour 47005, Colour 14700, Colour 45410, Colour 42090, Colour 17200.
Vegan?: Yes.
2018 Price: £3.95 each.
Year Of Original Release: 2018.
Scent Family:
Cherryish Body Scrub
Mum, Look What I Made For You Bath Bomb
coming soon!
Sometimes you just need a little sunshine in your life, and when you live in England you often have to create this yourself. If there is one scent that lends itself to helping you bring that warmth and happiness to your shower it is lemon.
Lemon Zest is a simple soap - not one that can boast a complex or overly complicated fragrance, nor one that is going to win any awards for its design. Yet there are always times in my life when simplicity appeals to me, especially when I’m looking for something to wake me up in the morning.
While the perfume added to this soap was created with longevity in mind, I found that this was perhaps the weakest out of the four Mother’s Day soap family specials. Sharing its fragrance with Refresher Shower Jelly, this soap features a powerful concoction of lemon oil, fresh lemon peel and lemon myrtle oil. Together, these ingredients offer a refreshing, fruity lemon aroma. Smelling a little like a freshly made lemon meringue pie, or a bag of lemon sherbet, this smell is both zesty and bright.
Rosewood adds a warming undertone that holds the citrusy components together while the cocoa butter and coconut oil help to thicken the scent and give the smell a creaminess that will make you salivate from the very first use.
Part of a new four part floral collection featuring 3D printed designs, Lemon Zest has a shape designed to make it easy to use and just as simple to store. As with the other three limited editions in this series, I found the shape of this meant that I was able to lather myself with ease and didn’t drop it a single time on the shower. Even when the soap had shrunk quite dramatically, I still found that it was easy to grapple with - which helped increase the life-span of each bar a little more than your average soap.
The soap produces a yellow-tinted lather which is both light and fluffy and very easy to massage across your skin. My only qualms with this soap is that I didn’t find it particularly easy to stimulate a lot of suds with Lemon Zest, unless I rubbed it between my palms beforehand. Having said that, I didn’t need a lot of soap to clean my whole body with so I was able to keep this soap out of the way of the running water for most of my shower. Ultimately, this meant that this soap worked out to be one of the longest lasting ones from the collection.
Unlike the other Mother’s Day Soaps, this one didn’t leave its scent on my skin afterwards, which would have cemented this as my favourite if it had done so. What was great about this one however was that it retained its shape for a long time and was rather stubborn to shrink. This meant that the bar lasted me a good month with daily washing before it had even gotten to half of its original size.
After using this, my body felt super clean and crisp, and there was a slight radiance about my skin which lasted a good while through the day. Despite how soft my hands felt, I did need to moisturise afterwards as the spaces between each of my fingers felt a little parched and dry. However, no other part of my body suffered from this and I was able to enjoy smooth legs for the whole day without using a body lotion.
Overall, the smell of this was what won me over the most and I enjoyed how refreshing it made me feel after using this. The longevity was also another positive merit that this soap possessed, and those using it as a hand soap would be able to stretch the life of this out even more. Having said this, I wouldn’t replace my favourite shower gels with this soap as it’s not as nourishing as it could be, and it would be far more impressive if the fragrance lasted longer than simply in the shower.
Quantitative Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Propylene Glycol, Fair Trade Organic Cocoa Butter, Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, Glycerine, Organic Castor Oil, Sodium Hydroxide, Lemon Oil, Fresh Lemon Peel, *Limonene, Murumuru Butter, Rosewood Oil, Lemon Myrtle Oil, Almond Oil, Citric Acid, Titanium Dioxide, Sodium Bicarbonate, *Citral, *Linalool, Perfume, Colour 47005.
Vegan?: Yes.
2018 Price: £5.95 each.
Year Of Original Release: 2018.
Scent Family:
Lemon Zest Soap
Refresher Shower Jelly
As I’ve said in previous reviews, my mother is unlucky in the fact that her skin doesn’t allow her to use most cosmetics at all - especially taking baths with any of Lush’s wonderful bath bombs and bubble bars. For this reason, I feel slightly disappointed when the company bring out their yearly collection for Mother’s Day and I can only talk about the products with my mum, as opposed to her experiencing them for herself.
Last year Lush brought Mum Bath Bomb for the first time, which was a beautiful bomb to look at but one that didn’t leave much of an impression in the water. Offering a sweet, fruity scent that reminded me very much of the Refresher candies you can get in the UK, the bath bomb offered powdery notes of both orange and lemon that lingered playfully on the senses but next to disappeared when placed in the water.
This year’s Love Boat Bath Bomb is the new improved version - sharing the same scent as last year’s aforementioned release, as well Rose Lollypop Lip Balm. Not only does it look far more appealing and works better in the tub, but the scent is definitely a little more defined in this format.
As I said above, the smell of this is a powdery, sherbet-like aroma - one that wouldn’t win any awards for its complexity, but one that is both light and youthful enough that it will brighten up your day, especially if you use this first thing in the morning.
This year’s design means that it is also more appealing whilst its dissolving - floating on the surface and sending out frothy waves of both blue and pink foam. Unfortunately, I found that both of the ones I tried seemed to be rather bottom-heavy, so the bath bomb ended up capsizing after a few minutes and spoiled the experience a little. The type of water in your area and how hot you like your baths will affect how your products work, so I might have just been unlucky in that sense.
Disappointingly, the scent of Love Boat did disperse quite a bit while I was in the tub. While it appeared stronger to begin with, I think the nature of this type of smell means that it’s not one that will ever make a huge impression in the water. For this reason, the scent didn’t linger on my skin afterwards at all, and every product I used in the bath overpowered what little aroma that I was still able to detect throughout.
Again, the bath water left little to be desired: offering a very weak peachy colour that changed as soon as I can began using my other products. Having said that, I did really appreciate the layer of golden lustre that pulsated under the surface during the whole bath - it meant that the water had a pretty glisten throughout, without coating your skin with glitter afterwards.
Despite the above points, Love Boat proved to be a very moisturising bath bomb. The water appeared to take on thicker qualities once it had dissolved and I found that my skin felt really velvety-soft and nourished afterwards. In addition, the citrusy oils appeared to help elevate my mood whilst I was bathing (even though I wasn’t really able to smell anything) and I felt so much more relaxed after my experience.
Overall, he design is beautiful to look at and I’m really glad that Lush chose to bring this out for the consumer to enjoy. Design and smell-wise, this Bath Bomb ticks all of the boxes. The company just need to work on making the water a little more interesting and the fragrance a little stronger.
Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Citric Acid, Sicilian Lemon Oil, Organic Sweet Orange Oil, Rose Oil, Cream of Tartar, Water (Aqua), Titanium Dioxide, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Dipropylene Glycol, Propylene Glycol, Lauryl Betaine, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Tin Oxide, Hydroxy propyl methyl cellulose, Sodium carboxymethyl cellulose, *Limonene, *Linalool, Perfume, Colour 16255, Colour 45410, Colour 42090, Colour 42090:2, Colour 45350, Colour 19140:1, Colour 15850:1, Colour 45410:1, Colour 77491, Colour 47005:1.
Vegan?: Yes.
2018 Price: £4.25 each.
Year Of Original Release: 2018.
Scent Family:
Love Boat Bath Bomb
Mum Bath Bomb
Rose Lollypop Lip Balm
coming soon!
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With a lemon decoction as a base ingredient, not to mention the name of the product itself, Christmas Citrus is the sweet, fruity citrusy smell that you would expect. Bergamot, lime and lemon juice have also been included in the ingredients, so you can almost imagine what the fragrance of this soap would be like, before even trying it out for yourself. Surprisingly, I found the scent to be far more subtle than I was expecting, and I was almost disappointed that it wasn’t anywhere near as bright and zesty as the design suggested.
The scent itself lingered on the skin during use, although I found that it tended to fade dramatically if you used another product alongside it. For this reason, I couldn’t really detect much after I had left the shower. Furthermore, given what Christmas Citrus smells like, I found that I preferred using this as a hand soap as opposed to a full body one. However, this is just down to personal preference and there is definitely no reason why you cannot use it in the latter way.
