Rudolph Jelly Face Mask

I have experienced a lot of Lush products over the years, many of which have smelled good enough to eat, and some of which I have actually tried to consume because the temptation was far too great. But I have never purchased a Lush product before that has had me doubting whether or not it was actually a cosmetic or a pudding. 

Those who have already experienced Rudolph Jelly Face Mask will know what I mean when I say that this is easily the most frustratingly tasty smelling product on the planet. Never have I wanted to grab a spoon and tuck in more than with this seasonal special. Put it this way: when I was craving chocolate the other day, I used this very jelly mask to curb my cravings as opposed to actually eating anything.

Containing so many amazing skin-worthy ingredients, this gorgeous product is easily my favourite jelly mask that Lush have ever released. It has everything that makes a product great, and then some. Kaolin clay helps this face mask to absorb excess oils on the skin and clean out the pores; carrageenan extra gives Rudolph a boost of skin-softening properties that leave your complexion looking beautiful.

As if that wasn't enough, the fresh orange juice and tangerine oil help to brighten the skin and leave it looking super radiant, while the vanilla and cocoa absolutes give this limited edition its wonderful scent. And if there's one stand out feature about this face mask that needs to be talked about, it's the aroma that greets you from the moment you remove the lid.

Imagine a high-end chef creating a chocolate orange mousse for dessert with the most exquisite of ingredients. This mousse has the richest of cocoa powders, the sweetest of oranges, and the smoothest of textures. This may give you some idea of how delicious Rudolph is to smell and use on your face. To say I didn't at least lick this jelly mask a few times, in the hope that it tasted of pudding, would be a lie. Yes, it really does smell that good.

Fragrance aside, the whole purpose of this product is not to simply wish that it was a pudding. While its consistency is very jelly-like, it was really easy to tear a little piece away (about the size of a penny) and massage it in the palm of my hand, with a little drop of what. What this did was create a thick, mousse-like paste that I could then apply across my face and leave on for twenty minutes to get to work.

What was great about Rudolph was that I didn't find any pieces fell off of my face during this time, which some of Lush's fresh face masks tend to do. In addition, I could also feel it getting to work at tightening my face a little bit, without removing any of the moisture from my face.

After the twenty minutes, I was able to remove the face mask under the running water in the shower, and immediately feel how smooth my complexion felt from using this. There was something very warming about this experience and my face felt slightly plumper and radiant after rinsing off the product. While I knew there was nothing on my skin, my face felt like it was radiating heat: it felt so full of life.

What I did find with Rudolph was that using it on a daily basis didn't heed the same amazing experience every time. This I feel was because my skin became spoilt, and the effects of the powerful ingredients wore off. However, applying it once a week, or even once a fortnight invigorated my complexion so much - to the point that I found myself reliant on using this every Friday night to rid my pores of the working week. 

Overall, this is a really effective jelly mask that is going to sorely missed by both myself and many other members of the community. While I'm not suggesting that Lush would consider making this a permanent product, I do hope that this formula comes back again before next Christmas. Other variations with similar smells and effects would be equally appreciated.

What is great about this jelly mask is that it lasts far longer than the regular fresh face masks, so you could buy a few of these and store them for when the Christmas range disappears from shelves. However, Rudolph would easily be my go-to face mask if it was a regular, and I just know I wouldn't be able to sustain a collection big enough to see me through the whole year.    

Quantitative Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Glycerine, Propylene Glycol, Meadowsweet and Orange Peel Infusion, Talc, Kaolin, Fresh Orange Juice, Cocoa Powder, Fullers Earth, Rhassoul Mud, Carrageenan Extract, Tangerine Oil, Brazilian Orange Oil, Vanilla Absolute, Cocoa Absolute, Titanium Dioxide, Synthetic Tin Oxide, *Limonene, Perfume, Colour 45410, Colour 14700, Colour 15850:1, Colour 77947.

Vegan?: Yes.

2018 Price: £7.95 for 65g.

Year Of Original Release: 2018.