Bubblebeard Reusable Bubble Bar

2012 was the year of the moustache - at least in a fashion sense at least. You couldn't walk past a shop without seeing clothes, bags, phone cases, even bedding, plastered with the stereotypically-shaped black hair strip. Who compelled companies to get everyone obsessed with the fashionable upper-lip attire I'll never know, but it's presence was inescapable. 

When Lush brought out the Bubblebeard Reuable Bubble Bar, I was not in the least bit surprised. Despite my refusal to buy anything moustache-related, I couldn't fight the urge to pick up one of these and did so with a somewhat amount of suppressed excitement.       

Just like Lush's other seasonal reusable bubble bar, Magic Wand, this product is designed to last across multiple baths, which makes it great value for money. I managed to get four good quality baths from this bar, which is not as many as other bars have heeded, but it still works out at about £1 per bath, which makes it better value than most other bubble bars and bath bombs.

How you use the bar is simple; just run a bath and then swirl the bubble bar around in the water, like you would a wand in the air. You'll find that the water begins turns a very slightly blue colour and within a few seconds, silky-soft bubbles begin to form. This part is probably the product's most appealing aspect; for one, it means you can choose how much to use each time, and secondly, the action of waving it like a wand, is a fun factor that kids will love.

Unfortunately, the reason why Bubblebeard didn't last as long as the likes of Magic Wand, The Mum and Madame Butterfly, is that I found myself swishing it around the water for a lot longer to get the desired amount of bubbles. I found that this reusable bubble bar was rather stubborn when it came to creating bubbles. Not to mention the fact that the second time I used this, the bar fell off of the stick, which made it harder for me to use afterwards. 

What I enjoyed about this product was it's scent. When it hits the water, it doesn't take long before the beautiful herbal, woody smell makes itself known. With sandalwood, cedarwood and lavender oil in this bar, you can definitely smell a fresh herbal lavender here, intertwined with a strong but gentle woody note. It's definitely a very wintery smell and makes a great change from the fruity, candy products that often dominate the Christmas range. At times, the fragrance even reminded me slightly of dried pine, which was lovely. What made it even better was that this fragrance stayed with me throughout the entire bathing experience and left a gentle herbal note on my skin afterwards.

Furthermore, this product was really moisturising and turned the water into liquid silk. It made my body feel really soft and nourished, and was a treat for my tired and parched skin. It gives you a very comforting bathing experience and I can see why people would turn to this for the much needed comfort that winter weather can inspire.

I can see this being a popular and rather fun unisex product around the Christmas period. However, it didn't leave enough of an impression to make me invest in it again. There are far too many other bubble bars that offer more bubbles, a nicer scent and a better, more well-rounded experience. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Carbonate, Cream of Tartar, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Glycerine, Lauryl Betaine, Perfume, Cedarwood Oil, Lavender Oil, Sandalwood Oil, Tonka Absolute, Coumarin, Geraniuol, Limonene, Linalool, Snowflake Lustre.

Vegan?: Yes.

North Pole Soap

Despite it's beautiful design on paper, this soap never quite met my expectations on arrival. Perhaps it was the slice I was cut, but when my piece of North Pole Soap arrived with my Christmas 2012 order, it didn't look anything like the gorgeous candy-pink and white striped pole I was expecting. In fact, my first parcel contained only a pathetic looking piece of white soap and I had to visit my local shop to pick up a pink piece as well.  

What makes North Pole stand out is that each colour has a slightly different fragrance - meaning this soap can be cut and used as two different soaps, or combined to get a beautiful and rather unique scent.

While the white has a gentle sugary peppermint aroma, the pink section offers fans a gorgeous mint chocolate scent. Individually they smell lovely and because the block can be cut how consumers want, if you favour one scent over the other, it's very easy to buy only that colour. However, together they give off a rich, sensual and refreshingly sweet smell that is perfect for the winter months. Both fragrances compliment each other so that the chocolate element isn't too 'food', while the mint section isn't overly minty. 

After testing out both of these soaps, it was obvious that I preferred the white soap. Designed to smell like mint rock, this soap contains a combination of peppermint, cedarwood and cypress oils - which not only make this soap moisturising and soft on the skin, but give off an uplifting mint aroma that has a subtle element of wood about it. The pink soap has a slightly different ingredients list. Although peppermint oil has been used as well, this product also features cocoa absolute which gives the soap it's gentle but rich chocolately scent. Together these two scents compliment each other and offer Lush fans a warm, comforting but equally invigorating soap like no other.

In the shower these soaps are very easy to lather up and they both produce an oily foam that cleans the skin and leaves it smelling gorgeous. The mint element is the most dominating note here and you'll find that it lingers on your skin for a while after showering. However, the mint isn't overly strong in the mix so you don't have to worry about being blasted away by an overpowering peppermint smell.

While North Pole isn't drying on the skin, it isn't overly moisturising either so you may have to use a body lotion afterwards. Charity Lotion would compliment this scent well or you could use something like Wiccy Magic Muscles to further your minty experience. 

Overall, this soap is a very festive release from Lush and I only hope that they choose to bring it back during the seasonal holidays. While it's not the most popular of soaps, it does make a change from the fruity/cinnamon-scented products we usually get offered and it does help to warm those coggles without being too overpowering.

Quantitative Ingredients: Water, Propylene Glycol, Rapeseed Oil, Coconut Oil, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Sodium Stearate, Perfume, Peppermint Oil, Cocoa Absolute, Cedarwood Oil, Cypress Oil, Glycerine, Sodium Chloride, EDTA, tetrasodium Etidronate, Sodium Hydroxide, *Citronellol, *Limonene, *Linalool, Titanium Dioxide, Colour 17200.

Vegan?: Yes.

2016 Price: £4.25 for 100g.

Year Of Original Release: ?

Rocket Reusable Bubble Bar

2012 was the first Christmas that I really got involved in Lush in a big way, so I remember the seasonal range very well. Just like a lot of people discovering Lush for the first time, I focussed all of my attention on the most popular products available - Snow Fairy and Ponche Shower Gels, Candy Mountain Bubble Bar, Let The Good Times Roll Cleanser and the numerous other big sellers that year. This meant that certain items, such as the one I'm about to review, were overshadowed and forgotten about by myself until recently. 

Following the popularity of Magic Wand, Lush chose 2012 as the year to bring out two new reusable bubble bars - Rocket being one of them. What's great about this bubble bar, is that it can be used multiple times, which makes it exceedingly good value for money. In fact, I managed to get five good quality baths out of a single bar, and as long as you keep it stored somewhere dry in-between uses, there's no reason why you can't stretch this to ten baths, if not more. 

As the name suggests, Rocket is in the shape of a rocket and is decorated with strips of yellow and orange that trail behind the bubble bar. These brightly coloured lengths of paper not only add flair to the overall look of the product but come in very handy when you want to swish the bar around in the water. What's good about this design is that the paper is threaded through most of the bar so you don't have to worry about the rocket falling off mid-use. To make it that little more appealing, Lush have also added a sprinkling of silver stars. 

The Rocket is scented with a sweet and slightly spicy fragrance which is quite difficult to describe. With a combination of fire tree, clove bud and ginger oils, this bubble bar has a festive aroma that doesn't fit in with the usual humdrum of candy and cinnamon-scented products. There is a gentle violet smell present, which when mixed with the ginger, gives it more of a savoury scent than a sweet one. However, the clove gives it that festive edge that'll guarantee to warm up even the coldest of bodies, and there is a small sprinkling of citrus evident that compliments the floral element. This is definitely one of those smells that won't immediately appeal to everyone - it's not as versatile and instantly pleasing as the sugary-sweet scents. However, the combination of spice, citrus and floral will soon win you over. 

What is refreshing about this bubble bar is that it's fragrance lasts throughout the entire bath. I sometimes find that the scent of Lush bathing products fade in the water but that wasn't the case with this one. Rocket promises a very sensual bathing experience and this it delivers. When I climbed into the tub, I couldn't help but notice that the water was wonderfully soft and the whole experience left me feeling refreshed while relaxed enough to fall asleep. 

How you use the wand is simple; just run a bath and then swirl the bubble bar around in the water, like you would a wand in the air. You'll find that the water begins to turn a deep blue colour instantaneously and within a few seconds, large mounds of silky-soft bubbles begin to form. This part is probably the product's most appealing aspect; for one, it means you can choose how much to use each time, and secondly, the action of waving it like a wand, is a fun factor that kids will love. 

This is a great stocking filler for children and can even be given as a pre-Christmas treat to help relax and ease them into sleep before the bed day. While it's not my favourite smell from Lush, it does offer consumers a product that doesn't smell like everything else available around this time. It's a shame that this didm't make a reappearance in 2013 but I'm hoping that Lush chose to bring it back again. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Carbonate, Cream of Tartar, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Glycerine, Lauryl Betaine, Perfume, Clove Bud Oil, Fire Tree Oil, Ginger Oil, Eugenol, Geraniol, Citronellol, Limonene, Linalool, Methyl IUonone, titanium Dioxide, Colour 43090, Golden Edible Stars.

Vegan?: Yes.

Year Of Original Release: 2012.

Popcorn Lip Scrub

Having worked hard to 'witter down' and 'use up' every product in my collection, it is with slight sadness that I find myself down to the last lip scrub in my possession. I'm sad not because it's my last, but because from the moment I opened the tub, I realised how much of a good thing I had been missing out on.

Popcorn Lip Scrub started out as a limited edition product - last making an appearance during the Christmas 2012 seasonal range before being made a permanent feature - no doubt due to it's popularity. Sporting a pale yellow colour, this lip scrub doesn't look as vibrant as Bubblegum, nor as succulent as Sweet Lips. Yet it is easily the undisputed king of the lip scrubs. 

As a person who suffers from extremely dried, cracked and sore lips, these products are perfect to slip into my bag and top up that wonderful soft feeling throughout the day. Until I tried Bubblegum for the first time, I always assumed that these products were a bit of a gimmick, but I can confidently say that they actually work, and damn well at that. 

This particular scrub mixes jojoba oil, castor sugar, sea salt, polenta and coconut oil to produce a product that smells exactly like the deliciously inviting aroma you get when smelling freshly made popcorn at the cinema. It's beautifully sweet and buttery, with just a hint of the sea salt. Although I'm much more of a savoury popcorn fan, I love how Lush have combined sweet and savoury element perfectly here so it's the best of both worlds.  

To use, I simply scoop out a tiny amount with my finger and then rub the scrub all over my lips in a circular motion. Then the best part; I use my tongue to lick off the excess sugar from my lips before applying my favourite lip gloss or balm. Although it's not as sweet-tasting as it smells, the flavour of Popcorn is very reminiscent of the food it's trying to emulate so try not to consume too much! 

It leaves your skin feeling instantly soft and kissable - my lips felt more toned and resilient and the scrub removed all of the pesky dry skin that decorated my lower lip. It's a perfect accompaniment in the winter months when your usual lip balm just doesn't cut it on it's own. After using this, I used my favourite lip balm, Eggsnog and within two days my lips were back to normal and ready to face the world again.

I've recently finished my tub of this and I'm really glad that Lush have chosen to make it a permanent product, as I have been able to buy myself another pot to see me through until the end of the year. Whether or not you like the popular snack, I can assure you that this lip scrub will be a firm favourite. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Castor Sugar, Jojoba Oil (Simmondsia chinensis), Sea Salt, Polenta, Coconut Oil (Cocos nucifera), Popping Candy, Flavour.

Vegan?: Yes.

2015 Price: £5.50 for 25g.

Mr Punch Soap

Since I went vegan, I have slowly moved away from drinking alcohol and I can probably count the number of times I've consumed an alcoholic beverage since then on a single hand. I have never particularly enjoyed the taste and I've had far too many negative experiences to claim it has done me any good. So when Lush bring out a product based on or containing alcohol, I'm never normally that thrilled about trying it. 

Mr Punch was one of the first soaps that I ever brought from Lush and it wasn't until I was cleaning out my soap drawer recently, that I discovered I had amassed quite a stash of this seasonal favourite. First released for the 2012 Christmas range, this soap claims to be the cosmetic equivalent of a Mexican punch bowl.

What first attracted me to this product was the inclusion of blackcurrant absolute in the ingredients list. Blackcurrant is my all-time favourite scent, and knowing how amazing The Comforter is, I was hoping this soap would offer me something new and slightly different to this. That it does.

There is a clear blackcurrant scent intertwined throughout the fragrance of this soap but it doesn't have the same sweetness that it projects in The Comforter. Instead it mixes with the lime oil, gin and juniper berries and gives off a far more complex and slightly more mature aroma. It's quite difficult to pick out a single smell from this soap as they all combine really well. However, you can still appreciate the main scents that have gone into making this product and you'd definitely describe this soap as being heavily fruity.

What is strange about this product - something I have spoken about with other Lush fans and read about in other reviews, is that this soap changes slightly when you begin to use it in the shower. I found that Mr Punch gives off an almost sweet-floral and slightly musky scent when in contact with the water. I think it is the inclusion of both the coconut oil and the generous helping of juniper berries that come through when the soap is combined with the heat of the water. It's still a rather pleasant smell but not as nice as it's initial aroma.

In the shower, Mr Punch does need a little coaxing to produce a good helping of lather but that's not to say that the soap doesn't work wonders in other ways. The foam it does produce is super soft and really helps to make your skin radiant and smooth. Lush have added gin to help tone your skin and I could really feel the difference it made on my body - I could feel that tightness on my face, arms and legs, but not the same feeling you get when a product dries your skin out. 

A 100g block lasted me a good couple of months as it didn't shrink much during use, even though I had to keep it under the water for a while to produce the lather. The soap also leaves a light scent on your skin, although it doesn't stay around for long so you'll need to top this up with a body lotion or perfume afterwards. Speaking of body lotions - I can imagine the fragrance of this soap would work wonderfully in this format and I'd love to see Lush bring this out in the near future. 

What is great about Mr Punch is that it's scent is versatile and it can be used at any point in the year - it's a great 'pick me up' in the winter but it's fruity goodness also compliments the warmer weather. While it may not be my favourite soap, it is one I will buy every Christmas and use in those moments when I need something a little fruity to perk me up. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Water, Propylene Glycol, Rapeseed Oil, Coconut Oil, Sodium Stearate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Perfume, Gin, Juniperberries - dried, Juniperberry Oil, Blackcurrant Absolute, Lime Oil, Glycerine, Sodium Chloride, EDTA, Tetrasodium Etridronate, Sodium Hydroxide, Geraniol, Citronellol, Limonene, Linalool, Titanium Dioxide, Gardenia Extract, Colour 14700, Colour 17200, Colour 15510, Colour 42090.

Vegan?: Yes.

Year Of Original Release: 2012.

2017 Price: £4.50 for 100g.

Scent Family: 
Mr Punch Soap
Sparkly Pumpkin Bubble Bar

Once A Year Massage Bar

When I first began this blog, I found it almost impossible to review every product I was using - mostly because I'm always in the habit of using a large array of cosmetics at any one time. For this reason, when large seasonal releases came along, I was never able to use and review every new item before the next set of products made an appearance. 

When the Christmas 2012 releases first graced the website, I was very quick to order multiple amounts of every vegan product on offer. However, some two years on, I'm still digging out items and realising (with regret) that I would have stocked up on particular titles had I known how much I would fall in love with them. Such is the case with this massage bar. 

Sporting one of the strangest, yet equally the most interesting designs I have seen, Once A Year is a beautiful skin-coloured oval shape with a pearly-white moustache protruding from the surface. On closer inspection, you will also notice that the bar is decorated with tiny specks of golden glitter, which gives the bar a slight shimmer in the right light. 

What is great about this bar is that it's packed with some incredible ingredients that promise to do your skin a world of good. There's the usual shea and cocoa butter - two key ingredients that work with the natural oils of your skin to nourish, smoothen and repair over-tired and weathered skin. However, the key ingredient here is definitely the hazelnut oil - a feature that you don't see very often within Lush products. This wonderful oil not only moisturises your skin, but it also forms a protective layer across your skin so it stays soft, supple and radiant for a lot longer than the average massage bar can offer. 

Lush claim that the inclusion of brandy, sweet orange oil, almond oil and cinnamon leaf oil, give this bar a 'distinctive Christmas scent'. However, although I can detect all of these ingredients individually, together they create an aroma that reminds me very much of Juicy Fruit Chewing Gum - an uplifting, fruity concoction with the very faintest note of cinnamon. 

It's definitely very different from anything else I've smelt from Lush, and it's really one you have to experience to understand why I have compared the scent to a chewing gum. What I would say is that for those of you who dislike products that contain alcoholic scents, this is still a product you might enjoy. I drink perhaps once a year, and I have always claimed that I hate the smell of most alcoholic drinks, spirits especially. However, this is a very pleasant smell doesn't have any of the pungency that alcohol gives to most products. 

To use the bar, simply rub it between your hands to warm it and let the oils melt. This particular bar melts very easily and massages into the skin with no problems. It does leave your skin a little greasy for a good 10-15 minutes after application, but I recognised that this was just the hazelnut oil getting to work, so I would prepare myself before using the massage bar, giving the oils time to absorb into the skin before putting any clothing on over the top. 

I really wasn't expecting to like Once A Year as much as I did, and I now consider it one of my favourite massage bars to date. I love the fact that it has a very strong smell - in fact, when I left this in my walk-in-wardrobe, it was all I could smell in there for weeks afterwards. This smell transfers onto your skin and lingers on your body for the most part of the day. I happen to think that fragrance would work really well as a body lotion and I would happily buy a few tubs if they became available. 

The ease at which it melts makes it a really good intensive moisturiser, something you could use once a week to add a bit of radiance to dry and lifeless skin. Unfortunately, despite the fact that it's name suggests a yearly appearance, this massage bar has only been released once since I began to buying regularly from Lush. I'm currently having to use my last bar very scrupulously until Lush choose to bring it back. Hopefully, I won't be waiting too long. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Cocoa Butter (Theobroma cacao), Shea Butter (Butyrospermum parkii), Perfume, Hazelnut Oil (Corylus avellana), Iridescent Glitter (Polyethylene terephthalate & Acrylates copolymer), Brandy, Sweet Orange Oil (Citrus sinensis), Almond Essential Oil (Prunus dulcis), Cinnamon Leaf Oil (Cinnamomum zeylanicum), Benzyl Salycilate, *Cinnamyl Alcohol, Cinnamal, Citral, *Coumarin, Eugenol, Geraniol, Benzyl Benzoate, Benzyl Cinnamate, Farnesol, Limonene, Linalool, Hydroxycitronellal, Colour 14700.

Vegan?: Yes.

Year Of Original Release: 2012.

Candy Cane Soap

Despite the name and scent of this product, I was initially a little hesitant to get too overexcited about it until I had received my piece in the post and had given it a big old sniff. The reason I say this is because when it comes to candy-inspired fragrances, I can often build my expectations up a little too quickly, which sometimes leads to disappointment. Luckily, this product made a good impression. 

Candy Cane Soap was a seasonal release, last making a reappearance in 2011 as part of the Christmas range. Inspired by traditional sweet shops, this soap encompasses the magical, child-like allure of such places and shares it's scent with the popular Candy Cane Bubble Bar. There are a few variants in terms of design for this soap, but you can guarantee that each slice will sport a combination of white and pink - giving it a similar appearance to the very candy it is named after. 

Containing both almond and peppermint oil, this soap has been designed to play homage to the classic candy cane - a sugary sweet and subtly minty offering that compliments the mug of hot chocolate that keeps you company during those colder months. What I love about the scent is that the mint isn't overly strong - instead offering a refreshing but gentle fragrance that isn't at all overpowering. For those consumers who may be put off by mint-scented products, this is still a soap I would recommend you trying out. 

Furthermore, I found that I could detect an almost cherry-like fragrance in the mix and this worked well with the mint to create quite a mature smelling soap. When you read the name Candy Cane, you expect it to be a sugary-sweet offering much like Snow Fairy or Creamy Candy. However, I thought it was quite a delicate and slightly more sophisticated scent that would appeal to consumers of all ages.

The inclusion of rapeseed oil and coconut oil make this soap highly moisturising and offers users a creamy foam to wash themselves with. Candy Cane is very easy to lather up and you don't have to use much of the bar during each use. A few rubs between your palms and you'll have enough to clean your entire body. For this reason, a 100g chunk lasted me a good 1-2 months. 

Unlike other Lush soaps, this one isn't drying on the skin, although I did find that I still needed to use a moisturiser afterwards. In regards to it's scent, I found that the scent doesn't stay around for too long and this is probably my biggest grouch with the product. If I love a scent enough to use a product, I do expect to enjoy it outside of the shower as well as within. However, it could detect it on my skin for a while after leaving the shower. 

I do hope that Lush choose to bring this back as I prefer it to the likes of Godmother, which I find a little one-dimensional at times. Furthermore, I think this would work equally well as either a body lotion, shower gel or perfume and I'm excited to see if Lush choose to make different renditions of this in the future. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Water, Propylene Glycol, Rapeseed Oil and Coconut Oil, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Perfume, Sodium Stearate, Almond Essential Oil, Peppermint Oil, Labdanum Resinoid,Glycerine, Sodium Chloride, EDTA,Tetrasodium Etidronate,Sodium Hydroxide,Titanium Dioxide,*Limonene, Coumarin,Colour 14700, Colour 17200.

Vegan?: Yes.

2014 Price: £4.50 for 100g.

Year Of Original Release: ?

Santa's Sack Bubble Bar

Christmas 2012 was the first year I was heavily involved in Lush's seasonal range, and Santa's Sack was one of the company's new bubble bars that first made it's appearance that year. Unfortunately, it only made a fleeting visit and hasn't returned since, although I was clever enough to stock up with a handful of them to see me through until now. Today I decided to use up my last one and it was a thoroughly wonderful experience.

Santa's Sack Bubble Bar is a unique looking product - I wouldn't describe it as being particularly gorgeous, but it definitely catches your eye and entices you in. It's constructed to look like the very name it's been graced with - a large sack filled to the brim with presents and decorated with a piece of golden string. Straight away, I saw it's potential as a fun stocking filler for Lush fans across the globe, and would also be a fantastic gift for anyone wanting to convert non-fans to the company.

When I first tried this bar, I treated it just like all of the other bubble bars I have  used - breaking it into 2-3 nice sized pieces and crumbling each chunk under the water to produce an array of gorgeous bubbles. The video accompanying this review demonstrates me doing just this. 

However, after a little research, I realised that the bubble bar is supposed to be used in a slightly different way from the normal Lush bars. The parcels are actually reusable bubble bars and can be removed and used by themselves to create their own lavish bathing experiences. Each parcel offers a wonderfully soft and sensual bath, where the remaining bubble bar can be broken into pieces and used as well. In this way, you can actually get five separate baths from just one bubble bar, making it fantastic value for money. 

What first attracted me to Santa's Sack is the wonderful aroma that it gives off. Made from an array of beautiful ingredients - tonka, neroli and tagetes oil, this bubble bar makes for an interesting and unique experience. Lush claim that the product is designed to smell like coca cola - which it does, but there is a slight sweetness to it which reminds me more of cola laces than the popular drink. What I love about this bar is that, although I love Christmas Kisses and Hot Toddy, this makes a lovely change when you don't fancy being cocooned with the overpowering smell of cinnamon.

The bubble bar is very easy to crumble and it didn't take long for the bath to fill up with soft, fruity bubbles. The bar turns the water a beautiful deep orangey/red colour, which only makes it more warming during the colder evenings. I found that the reusable parcels didn't produce as many bubbles as the sack part, so I opted to crumble a little piece of the parcel alongside some of the red sack. 

Even two years after buying this bubble bar, the scent was still very prominent in the bath and it remained throughout the entirety of the experience. The bath water was really silky-soft and moisturised my skin wonderfully. I left the bath smelling delicious and feeling thoroughly uplifted - wishing I had a few more of these to see me through the winter months.

Overall, Santa's Sack Bubble Bar is a lovely accompaniment in any bath. It's great value for money; offering a delicious scent that would appeal to most people. It cleans and nourishes your skin and leaves you smelling good enough to eat. I say, bring this bubble bar back Lush!

Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Cream of Tartar, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Sodium Carbonate, Lauryl Betaine, Glycerine, Perfume, Tonka Absolute, Neroli Oil, Tagetes Oil, Cocamide DEA, Cinnamal, Citral, Coumarin, Linalool, Limonene, Gardenia Extract, Colour 14700, Colour 15510.

Vegan?: Yes.

2014 Price: £3.95 each.

Christmas Eve Bubble Bar

For the past couple of years, I have found myself with an abundance of this particular bubble bar - mostly through the generosity of family and friends who have lavished me with an array of beautiful gift sets every year from Lush's Christmas range. Distracted by the many new products the company spoil us with each time around, I've often brushed this bar aside in favour of the new additions. Recently, I've been feeling a little sorry for my collection of Christmas Eves and felt like it was time to give this bubble bar the spotlight.

Designed by one of Lush's shop managers, this product was not only created to be uplifting and invigorating for hard-working citizens, but equally relaxing so that it could be enjoyed at the end of an evening. Inspired by parents who have to 'work' late on Christmas Eve, filling in as the role of Santa Clause, as well those unlucky people who don't have the seasonal time off, this bubble bar is meant to be an affordable form of escapism for any who need it. 

Although it differs from the original design, this product still displays beautiful shades of yellow and ultramarine blue. When it was first brought out, the bubble bar was made as an entire slab of blue with a yellow moon protruding from the centre. However, Lush have changed it slightly so that the yellow moon is now part of the circular design. I do admit that I prefer the old version better but it's not that much of a big deal.  

Featuring both jasmine absolute and ylang ylang oil, this seasonal beauty has a strong floral smell. The jasmine is definitely at the forefront here but there are other layers of scent that help to pad the overall fragrance. Despite the potency of the bubble bar, it's still a gentle, soothing smell - perfect for an evening treat before bedtime. 

Even though I liked the smell of Christmas Eve, I didn't think it was particularly seasonal so the bubble bar could be sold all year round. Furthermore, I felt that the overall aroma, although pleasant, wasn't unique or interesting enough for me to get too excited over it. For me, it's distinctly average.

Given it's size, this bubble bar could be broken into pieces and used for up to three separate baths. As this is one of the cheapest bubble bars on offer around Christmas, the multiple uses makes this one of the better value ones available as well.

After crumbling this under the tap, Christmas Eve fills your tub with an impressive amount of bubbles. In fact, I haven't seen a bubble bar react in this way for quite some time. It turns the water a wonderful deep blue colour and the bubbles stay with you throughout the majority of your bath, cocooning you in a silky-soft haven that you won't want to leave.

The beautiful smell of jasmine stays prominent throughout your entire experience and you'll find that the aroma lingers around your bathroom for quite a while, as well as permeating your skin and leaving you smelling gorgeous. To add to the experience, the bubble bar leaves the water, and indeed your skin, amazingly soft and conditioned. You can really feel the difference once you've left the bath, and I noticed that it got rid of some of the dry patches of skin I was beginning to notice on my body.

Christmas Eve does leave you feeling rejuvenated as well as calm, and it works wonders at winding you down before you go to bed. Lush even recommend that you use this with your children, as it will help them to release some of that pent up excitement that threatens to keep them up later than usual.

While it's far from being my favourite bubble bar, it does make a wonderful bath and offers you something you can enjoy time and time again. For those that dislike the spicy or sweet offerings that Lush bring out at this time of year, Christmas Eve makes a nice alternative and leaves you feeling gorgeous.

Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Cream of Tartar (Tartaric acid), Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Lauryl Betaine, Perfume, Cocamide DEA, Irish Moss Powder (Chondrus crispus), Jasmine Absolute (Jasminum grandiflorum), Ylang Ylang Oil (Cananga odorata), Linalool, Limonene, Hydroxycitronellal, Gardenia Extract (Gardenia jasminoides), Colour 61585, Colour 59040, Iridescent Glitter (Polyethylene terephthalate and Acrylates copolymer)

Vegan?: Yes.

2014 Price: £2.95.

Scent Family:

Christmas Eve Bubble Bar

Northern Nights Ballistic
Updated Northern Lights Ballistic
Santa FUN