Lip Blocks

On the outside, these are gorgeous to look at - three different palettes of colour that just beg to be used. If there is a lip tint on the market that is going to suck you in with its presentation, these little beauties are going to be it. And so they did - when I ended up walking away with two out of the three in a recent Lush splurge. 

To begin with, I was a little unsure about whether these innovative Lip Blocks would be more of a novelty item than a practical idea. While Lush have proven time and time again that their quirky take on make-up works, I still end up harvesting a little doubt about the productivity of an item until I've given it a go myself. As to be expected, these wonderful blocks of colour are spellbinding, and once again I was left marvelling at the brilliance of such an idea.

Priced up at £20 each, I can imagine a lot of consumers would be a little hesitant to invest in something they're unsure about. Yet after the promising results I've had from a lot of Lush's new make-up range recently, I decided to take the plunge, and the results that I have yielded have confirmed that I made the right choice.

Available in three colour combinations; Shades Of Red, Shades Of Pink and Shades Of Nude, these lipsticks can be used in an array of different ways. The basis premise is that you apply the colour to your lips with a lip brush - running the tip across the surface very gently and transferring the product to your lips.

How these blocks differ from a normal lipstick is that you can either choose to concentrate on one particular colour and apply a single layer, or blend multiple colours together and create a unique, taylor-made shade to wear - one that will be different from anything that anyone else is wearing. 

What is great about these blocks is that I can see them lasting so much longer than an average tube of lipstick; meaning that £20 seems very much like a steal when compared with other brands currently on the market. Furthermore, the lack of packaging means that these are so much more ethically inclined - a factor that makes them even more appealing in my eyes. 

As someone who considers herself a make-up novice, I found these extremely easy to use, and as long as you have a steady hand, it's not too much trouble outlining your lips and then filling them in afterwards. I found that I only needed to brush the block lightly to get enough colour for a large section of my lips, and after a good twenty uses, my product doesn't even look like it's been touched.

My only grouch with this product is that you have to be careful when blending to get the shade of your choice. While you can blend the colours across the blocks before applying to the lips, this does prove a little messy, and you may have to wipe the different colours off of each section before using it again.

I would recommend that you blend the colour while you are applying it to your lips. Not only does this prevent colours seeping across the different shades, it also allows you to see the true colour once it is on your skin, and you're then able to adjust this to create the perfect match. 

Unlike a lot of lipsticks, these ones are not sticky at all, and once they have been applied, they act as more of a lip tint - in that they are very light when worn and don't pertain a glossy finish. However, they aren't as vivid as some of the lipsticks I have tried from Lush, and will need to be applied after a few hours if you wish to maintain the colour. 

Obviously, they are also prone to smudging a little, so I would recommend that you use Lush's Lip Barrier alongside this to keep the colour contained and give it a longer lifespan on your lips. Having said this, this is nothing that most other lips products don't do, so I wouldn't say you were at a disadvantage wearing this at all - if anything, I'd say the inverse!

Overall, these little blocks are fantastic value for money. Even with daily use, one of these would last you a good year at least - that's unless you're nibbling it at the same time! Not only are they a fun and innovative way to use and apply lipstick, but they're so very very pretty. 

Shades Of Red: 

Quantitative Ingredients: Organic Jojoba Oil (Simmondsia chinensis), Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Castor Oil (Ricinus communis), Watermelon seed oil (Citrullus Lanatus), Sunflower Wax (Helianthus Annuus), Orange Peel Wax (Citrus Aurantium Dulcis), Candelilla Wax (Euphorbia cerifera), Rose Wax (Rosa damascena), Glycerine, Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), Cetearyl Alcohol, Colour 15850:1, Colour 77499, Colour 12085.

Shades Of Pink:

Quantitative Ingredients: Organic Jojoba Oil (Simmondsia chinensis), Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Castor Oil (Ricinus communis), Watermelon seed oil (Citrullus Lanatus), Sunflower Wax (Helianthus Annuus), Orange Peel Wax (Citrus Aurantium Dulcis), Candelilla Wax (Euphorbia cerifera), Rose Wax (Rosa damascena), Glycerine, Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), Cetearyl Alcohol, Titanium Dioxide, Potassium Aluminium Silicate, Colour 45410:2, Colour 77891, Colour 77491

Vegan?: Yes. 

2015 Price: £20 each.

Year Of Original Release: 2015.

Bamboozled Lip Stain

I don't know what it is about the opening of the Oxford Street store, but I feel as if I have suddenly tripled my excitement for make-up products, more than I have ever done so before in my life. To give you an example - I have probably worn more lipstick this week alone than I have throughout the rest of my life combined, and this is a completely alien concept to me - one that I am excited about exploring at my own leisure.

When I began my journey a few months back, I can honestly say that I was unable to state the difference between a lip stick, tint or stain. To me they were just a repackaging of the same product - a fact that isn't strictly 'untrue', but one that is a little bit more complex than the sweeping statement above.

Upon research, I discovered that the primary difference between a lip stain and a lipstick or gloss is that a stain actually acts as a temporary dye on the lips. Whereas a lipstick tends to add a layer of wax and oil to 'mask' the lips and give them a certain colour, a stain saturates the lips with a particular shade so that they remain a certain colour for a good many hours after application.

Bamboozled Lip Stain happens to be the first and only stain I have ever bought - an intimidating concept when I saw the vividity of the colour I was dealing with. Having said that, the reasoning behind the packaging and the gorgeous design instantly warmed me to the concept and purpose of the product, and my fears turned to excitement when I got the product home to test out.

On a buying trip, Simon (Head of Lush's creative buying team) brought back some bamboo sticks which started a chain of events that would lead to some wonderful future opportunities. Not only did it inspire the likes of this particular product, but it also opened up an opportunity for Lush to forge new working relationships with various people across the globe. One of these projects led the company to Japan, where Lush worked to create sustainable incomes for certain farmers by giving them opportunities to grow and supply bamboo for a fair price.

This lip stain is encased in a bamboo stick about 15cm long. Of course each and every one is slightly different in size, but that's part of the allure about Lush products - no two are ever alike. Aside from the gold wrap-around label, this product comes with no other packaging, which means that Bamboozled is environmentally friendly in multiple ways.

To use, it's advised that you use a stiff lip brush to stroke over the surface of the stain a good 3-4 times and then apply the colour to your lips. What I was instantly impressed by is that the colour is very easy to manipulate once it is on the lips - meaning that you won't be left with patches or darker/lighter areas to contend with. Furthermore, if you accidentally smudge or get any unwanted product outside of your lips, it's very easy to remove, and you won't look like someone who's being drinking a particularly potent glass of red wine.

Having said this, once the product is on the lips, it doesn't smudge very easily and you won't have to worry about having to reapply every time you eat or wipe your mouth. In fact, once I had applied the product, I was able to leave it for a good 5-6 hours before I felt the need to top up, and even the stain didn't look terrible, it just wasn't as vivid as I wanted. 

What is great about Bamboozled is that the product doesn't give you that heavy feeling that lipsticks, glosses and tints can cause. There is no other layer on top of your lips that you're always aware of, which allows the stain to feel a lot more natural on the wearer. At the same time, you don't get the moisturise that lipsticks can offer you, so if you suffer from dry lips, you might wish to apply a lip balm afterwards, just to replenish the moisture and help to bring out the vivid shade of crimson that this item produces.  

As demonstrated in my picture above, Bamboozled creates a rich shade of red on the lips, and you have the freedom to choose how generous you are when it comes to the vividity of the colour of the finished look. I find that one coat is more than suffice to give me a vivid shade without it being too 'in my face' for work. Especially after battling the winter weather during my journeys to and from work, my lips can often become dry and drained of colour. A quick brush of this stain rectifies this problem and gives me enough colour to see me through a full working day.

While a few months ago I would have laughed at the concept of using a lip stain on a near-enough daily basis, I now happily rely on this beautiful product to give me a boost of colour most mornings before work. Priced at £15.00, this product will last you months and months and months. You really don't have to use a lot each time so I can see one stick of this lasting an entire year - a great investment, if there ever was one!

Quantitative Ingredients: Organic Jojoba Oil (Simmondsia chinensis), Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Castor Oil (Ricinus communis), Watermelon seed oil (Citrullus Lanatus), Sunflower Wax (Helianthus Annuus), Orange Peel Wax (Citrus Aurantium Dulcis), Candelilla Wax (Euphorbia cerifera), Rose Wax (Rosa damascena), Glycerine, Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), Cetearyl Alcohol, Colour 15850:1, Colour 45410:1.

Vegan?: Yes.

2015 Price: £15 each (15g).

Year Of Original Release: 2015.

Ambition Lip Stick

Before I start this review, I feel I should slip in a small disclaimer. As an avid fan of Lush, the initial reason I became engrossed in the company was because of their bathing range. Like most consumers, I came to know Lush for their bath bombs, bubble bars and bath melts - not for their make-up range. In fact, it was my love and loyalty for the company that persuaded me to invest in a handful of their new eye jewels, powders and lipsticks on a recent trip to their flagship store. 

Yet before I purchased the three lipsticks I will be reviewing over the coming weeks, I had only ever owned one lipstick prior to this - a lovely but rather plain shade that played it safe and was hardly noticeable at all once it was on. My limited experience means that I don't necessarily know what to expect from a lipstick, and I certainly don't have the capacity to compare these to other companies. So while I will be honest in the following review, I don't really have a lot to go on aside from my time spent with the product. 

With an impressive 29 colours to choose from, Lush haven't made it easy to pick which shade to go for. However, having recently secured a promotion at work and feeling confident enough to dive into the deep end, I chose to purchase Ambition - a vivid, hot shade of red that just begs to be noticed. 

This is easily one of, if not the brightest colour in the collection - a product that comes with the tagline 'make it happen' - empowering the wearer to reach for the very goals they want to achieve and let nothing stand in their way. A pretty positive message to accompany a lipstick, I knew it was the one for me. 

From experience, I could see straight away how the ingredients in this product catered towards making this an effective lipstick for the wearer. Jojoba oil is the main ingredient - a natural, non-greasy emollient that helps to keep the lips moisturised and smooth while offering a slight shine to hold that colour in the place. 

Proving a popular ingredient in a lot of lipsticks, castor oil is used to help set the product in place - forming a rigid and rather shiny film across the lips when it dries so the product doesn't smudge. The inclusion of sunflower and orange peel wax also work as emollients to keep the colour in place as well as keep your lips well-moisturised and beautifully soft. 

What is great about Ambition is that once it's been applied, it looks as bright and as vibrant as it does in the packaging. The colour coats the lips with ease, with one layer being enough to create the desired effect without having to reapply the product to deepen the shade. Once the lipstick was on, I found that my lips felt fairly soft throughout the duration of the day.

While I found the shape of the lipstick a little tricky at first, this is no doubt due to my lack of experience with lipsticks. The flat design meant that I had to twist the lipstick on its side and use the edge of the product to apply the colour to the corners of my mouth. This didn't prove to be much of a problem but it did take a little getting used to at first. 

Whether its the high standards I have set my lipsticks or indeed my lack of experience with multiple brands, but I was a little disappointed to discover that the lipstick didn't fully set - still being slightly 'damp' some hours after initial application. Now whether or not this normal - I'm sure someone will be able to enlighten me, but for someone who doesn't want to have to worry about leaving smudges all over my myself or anything I touch, I found this a little unsettling. 

While none of the product bled from my lips, I did find myself having to be very careful whenever I ate, and I found it rather challenging to keep on when my four month old niece was intent of wiping her hands all over my face during a recent family barbecue. I guess this gives me the excuse to purchase Lush's Lip Barrier and see if that eradicates these problems.

Having said that, the product remained vivid throughout the most part of my evening and had I not been consuming so much food, it would have no doubt stayed on far longer than it did. After a few hours, I did notice that it wasn't as glossy as it had been to begin with - no doubt due to a large amount of it coming off, but the lipstick does stain your lips a little so you'll always have that base colour to see you through the day if need be. Never once did I notice gaps in the colour, which was comforting. 

What is great about all of Lush's new lipsticks is that they come with a twist up applicator, which is really easy to use and slips in your bag without taking up any space. Furthermore, as to be expected from the company, the packaging also happens to be recyclable so you know you're not adding to the overabundance of waste that litters the landfills. 

Overall, I am so glad I purchased Ambition. It is definitely not a colour that I was ever expecting to find myself wearing, and it took a little getting used to leaving the house with something so vibrant on my lips. However, it has definitely broken down the barriers of buying more confident colours to wear, and I look forward to testing out a few more shades in the coming weeks. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Organic Jojoba Oil (Simmondsia chinensis), Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Castor Oil (Ricinus communis), Watermelon seed oil (Citrullus Lanatus), Sunflower Wax (Helianthus Annuus), Orange Peel Wax (Citrus Aurantium Dulcis), Candelilla Wax (Euphorbia cerifera), Rose Wax (Rosa damascena), Glycerine, Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), Cetearyl Alcohol, Titanium Dioxide, Tin Oxide, CI45410, CI45380, CI12085, CI19140.

Vegan?: Yes.

2015 Price: £13.50 each.

Year Of Original Release: 2015.

Life's A Beach Body Scrub Powder

I have struggled with years to cope with the envy I feel when I see a limited edition Lush product come out and know that I won't be able to get my hands on it. While I recognise that I am privileged to live in the very country that Lush first originated, which means I have been able to access both the Lush Kitchen and the flagship superstore immediately, I still feel that pang of jealously when I see a product I haven't tried and know that I probably never will.

When word reached me that Australia had released a limited edition body scrub called Life's A Beach, that familiar feeling of envy began to resurface a little in the pit of my stomach. This near-on exploded when I researched further and discovered that the product was watermelon-scented. Luckily, the website allowed me to purchase three tubs of the stuff and I waited anxiously for the beauties to arrive.

Inspired by the ocean, this bright and uplifting body scrub is full of everything you would expect to find at the beach. Fresh sea salt and sand make up most of the scrub, with perfume added to give this limited edition product a beautiful, uplifting and very fruity watermelon scent. In the tub, Life's A Beach smells very much like a watermelon-flavoured Jolly Rancher - a factor that helped me to fall in love with this scrub immediately. 

What I love about this product is that it is so different from all of the scrubs that I have tried from Lush. While the company offer solid blocks of oils and sugars, exfoliating body masks and liquid equivalents, this particular scrub is like a lose grit that can be used as sparingly as you wish. 

Simply measure out the amount you want to use and massage it over the area you're looking to scrub and soften. The product is pretty much glorified sand in a way so you get a lovely natural roughness that can be used as gently or as severely as you wish. I'm one for a coarse exfoliator as it keeps my skin soft and free of dry areas so I loved that this scrub was able to get to work at cleansing and smoothening my skin so effectively.

I would suggest that you step away from the running water when you're applying this and shake the scrub into your hand before lathering it across your body. I say this because if you were to scoop out Life's A Beach with your damp hands, you'd experience a similar outcome as you would when adding water to a bucket of sand. 

While I like most of the scrubs that I have tried from Lush over the years, I find myself rather frustrated with how gentle I have to be in fear of breaking them from brute force. And while I could crumble them into a pot and use them like this one, I always find you get very little product by doing this and I often end up using up the scrub far faster than I would when it was in its solid form. 

Life's A Beach is great because the size of the tub means you get a lot of product for your money, and the fact that these 225g tubs only work out to be about £5 each, mean that it's exceptional value for money. Furthermore, this limited edition product was created to support Lush's campaign to save the Great Barrier Reef. Just like the Charity Pot that we have over here, 100% of the money raised from each pot went towards this great cause and helped to raise awareness across the countries it was available in. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Fine Sea Salt (Fine Sea Salt), Sand (Sand), Sodium Bicarbonate (Sodium Bicarbonate), Citric Acid (Citric Acid), Perfume (Perfume), Limonene , Gardenia Extract (Gardenia jasminoides. 

Vegan?: Yes.

2015 Price: $9.95 for 225g.

Year Of Original Release: 2015.