Celebrate or not celebrate? That is a question that divides the Lush community time and time again. But if there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s that the introduction of Bubbly Shower Gel last year, and the likes of Bucks Fizz this season, is a blessing worth celebrating, no matter what our noses are telling us.
Sharing its scent with the liquid gel, Bucks Fizz Body Conditioner and Bucks Fizz Naked Conditioner, Bubbly Naked Shower Gel is a product that I simply cannot imagine removing from my bathroom any time soon. While my trusted and very much loved liquid gel is also up there as being a staple, this season’s new addition has won over my heart, despite the differences it shares with its older sibling.
Firstly, it must be noted that the solid edition is perhaps a little less attractive to look at. While similar, there is something rather beautiful about the glistening orange colour you find in the bottle, and the naked edition simply lacks that magic a little. However, I’m not about to write off a product because of the way it looks.
Much like Plum Rain and Snow Fairy, there are some aspects of this naked edition that don’t replicate the beauty of the original gels. Despite this, all three of these offer characteristics that make them worth investing in alongside the originals, yet set them apart enough to offer you an alternative experience as well.
As with all of the naked gels, you treat them as you would a block of soap. Simply expose them to water and then massage them across your skin in a circular motion. Just like a normal shower gel, they will create a fragrant larger to clean and fragrance your skin with; yet unlike a soap, they will not leave your body feeling at all dry or parched.
Just like all of the products with this scent, Bubbly Naked Shower Gel smells like a strong, fruity concoction of oranges and limes - a combination that smells so fresh and juicy, that you’re senses will tingle with pleasure and your tastebuds will be tantalised enough to make you salivate upon first sniff.
The first difference I noticed between the naked and normal gels is that the former version was perhaps a little more zesty than the original bottled edition. The orange made a much stronger impression in the naked format and I really loved how extra sweet and citrusy it was. In a way, it reminded me of fruit sorbet ice creams, which just made it seem more refreshing and fruity in the shower.
Secondly, I loved how much more generous this version was in terms of how much lather it created. While the consistency was far thinner and not as moisturising as the normal gel, the naked version needed very little stimulation to heed an impressive amount of product to clean yourself with. I could easily wash my whole body with the amount of ‘foam’ I was able to create from a few seconds of massaging the bottle between my hands.
What I did find frustrating when using the naked gel was that the bottle tended to ‘bleed’ quite profusely, without much encouragement at all. I only needed to wet the bottle for a split second to create an abundance of watery lather across my hands and body. The fact that this shower gel offers a bright and very messy orange lather doesn’t make the situation any better. If you’re not careful when using this, you may find that you get splatters of Bubbly across every wall and surface within the near vicinity of your shower.
Moreover, even though I tried my best to keep this product out of the way of the running water, I found that it shrunk far quicker than any of the other naked shower gels that I have tried so far. For this reason, a 250g bottle of the original Bubbly would outlast this solid version easily, and I think that’s the only major aspect of the naked edition that lets itself down.
While I couldn’t detect much of a scent on my skin a matter of minutes after towelling myself down, I did find that my skin looked and felt really radiant. Especially after using this to wash my face as well, I found that it worked just as well as using a face mask, and my skin felt smooth to the touch afterwards.
Ultimately, this naked gel only lets itself down by being rather messy during and in between uses. I would highly suggest that you store this in a Lush massage tin when not in use, as it will drip a little before drying. Annoyingly, I found that I had to wipe down the window ledge and sides of bath after using this - as no matter how hard I tried not to make a mess, it’s inevitable with a gel that ebbs so much colour and liquid when in or around whatever.
However, I still think the magical citrusy smell of this naked shower gel, and just how softening it is, makes the mess worth it. If you love Bubbly Shower Gel, you will definitely be able to notice a difference here. Yet, there is something wonderful about the the subtle variations that makes this naked edition equally as enticing.
Quantitative Ingredients: Vine Leaf Infusion (Vitis Vinifera), Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Propylene Glyco,l Sodium Cocoamphoacetate, Sodium Stearate, Lauryl Betaine, Fragrance, Sweet Wild Orange Oil (Citrus sinensis), Lime Oil (Citrus aurantifolia), Fresh Grape Juice (Vitis vinifera) (Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Juice), *Citral, Citronellol, *Limonene, *Linalool, Orange 4.
Vegan?: Yes.
2017 Price: £9.75 each.
Year Of Original Release: 2017.
Polyamorous means the practice of intimacy with more then one partner, in which all involved are aware of, and consent to, the arrangement. With humans being far more open and accepting of different sexualities and practices these days, it is only fitting that Lush have decided to celebrate this freedom and highlight one such different outlook on life.
Polyamorous is a new contender for my favourite Bath Oil, as well as being a new addition to the impressive array of oils and melts already on offer from the company. While I cannot claim that I turn to bath oils all that often, I have definitely found myself craving this one a number of times this last month, and I have enjoyed every single experience.
Shaped like a heart with smaller hearts painted across the surface, this is perhaps the most beautifully designed oils of all the ones currently available. For such a small product - coming in about the 3cm in length and 1.5cm in height - this miniature masterpiece is warming, comforting, and perfect for those who perhaps wish for more company but only have a bath tub to explore.
Containing a combination of orange, sandalwood and jojoba oils, you would expect Polyamorous to offer a fruity aroma. However, it is the inclusion of the violet leaf absolute that provides the strongest component overall.
To me, this bath oil has a warm, sweet and slightly musky violet scent - nowhere near as sultry and potent as Tuca Tuca, yet equally not as grassy as Kerbside Violet. In fact, it smells very similar to how I remember Metropolis smelling. The inclusion of the sandalwood grounds the different notes again, and you can detect a very subtle uplifting element that I thinks comes from the orange oil. However, this Bath Oil is predominantly violet with a touch of wordiness to completely to compliment the floral components.
In the water, this bath oil sinks like the majority of Lush oils and melts. This is always disappointing to be because I usually like to indulge in a bath melt or bath bomb whilst I am already in the bath myself. Once submerged, I like to watch the product dissolve across the surface of the water and see the oils become absorbed into the skin. Unfortunately, Polyamorous simply sunk to the bottom of the tub and I ended up melting the product down between my fingers because I didn’t want to find myself sitting on it while I was bathing.
Once fully dissolved, the Bath Oil didn’t really do anything to the water, which was expectation anyway so it wasn’t as if I was disappointed by this. However, I would recommend that you use this along a bath bomb (Ylang Song, Ne Worry Pas) or Bubble Bar (Baa Bar, Bathos) as you’ll end up with a rather disappointing looking bath if you use it by itself.
Another aspect of Polyamorous that I was little disappointed with was the fact that the scent didn’t linger on my skin after I had towelled myself down. Although I expect a lot from my products, and the main purpose of this bath oil is to add extra oils and butter to soften, I would still have liked to have detected a slight musky sweetness on my body. While I can vouch that the scent does make an impression in the water, and I was rather impressed by how much it held itself against other cosmetics I was using at the time, I would have assumed that at least a small note could have made itself known afterwards.
Having said that, my skin did feel lovely and smooth afterwards, and Polyamorous is definitely a bath oil that makes a difference to the softness of the water when it’s fully dissolved. You could probably cut this in half, if you’re rather reserved about using your Lush products. However, I think using the whole product in a single bath will heed the best results, and help you to make the most of this softening little gem.
To conclude I will say that this is a fantastic edition to Lush’s extensive bath melts and oils. It’s wonderful to have a violet-scented Bath Oil available at all times, as I know a lot of consumers love the naturally sweet and floral components of violets. This is definitely one I would buy again - perhaps over most of the other variations currently on offer - and I am equally excited to try the other two new editions to see if they’re equally as impressive.
Quantitative Ingredients: Fair Trade Organic Cocoa Butter, Sodium Bicarbonate, Laureth 4, Cream of Tartar, Perfume, Alpha-Isomethyl ionone, Organic Shea Butter, Brazilian Orange Oil, Sandalwood Oil, Violet Leaf Absolute, Organic Jojoba Oil, Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, Titanium Dioxide, *Citral, *Limonene, Colour 17200, Colour 45410.
Vegan?: Yes.
2017 Price: £2.50 each.
Year Of Original Release: 2017.
Coming soon!
castor oil, charcoal, coconut, Halloween, halloween 2017, limited edition, Lips, murumuru, naked, orange, Scrub, spearmint, ylang ylang
Despite it being a regular thing: my lips being chapped, I hardly ever use any of Lush's sugar scrubs to rectify the problem. There's a small part of me that almost forgets that the company even do such a thing, so if i own any they're usually buried away underneath the mountains of other products waiting to be used.
When I first caught a glimpse of the three new naked lip scrubs for this year's Christmas and Halloween ranges, I was immediately bowled over by how pretty the designs were. Aside from the lack of packaging (hence the 'naked' part), the shape and etched surfaces made these limited editions so much more appealing than the boring tubed varieties.
Yet, my very next thought was: how exactly am I supposed to use this and not completely soil the bag/purse I'm carrying it around in? Ultimately, while I have been using the cardboard boxes that they were delivered in, I've still yet to find a more effective way of carrying these lip scrubs around: they certainly don't travel very well naked.
Having said this, all three variations of this year's naked scrubs are exceptional in what they do, and offer a much better experience than the old-style scrubs.
Firstly, the product is much easier to use and less of a hassle to clean up afterwards. Whereas the original lip scrubs would need to be applied with the use of a finger, and you'd often cover yourself in sugar while doing so, these naked versions can be applied in seconds, without the unnecessary mess. Simply massage the block across your lips, applying as much pressure as you want, before either licking away the sugar or rinsing it away with warm water.
Secondly, you can apply more pressure when using these blocks, so you'll find that these naked scrubs are far better at scrubbing away excess skin. Furthermore, you can focus on particular areas of the lips, so if you have a particular stubborn spot, this scrub will do wonders at removing the dried skin.
Thirdly, there is less sugar to contend with, when it comes to the naked blocks. The condensed form means that there won't be as much sugar as there once was, but it also means that you can feel how nourished your lips feel after application, and this leaves your lips soft, smooth and plump. With the original lip scrubs, I sometimes found that you'd be massaging your lips for ages, unable to see exactly which areas needed a little extra buffering. Furthermore, there is an extra generous helping of butters and oils in the ingredients list, to make this a far more moisturising experience overall.
Obviously, the fact that these lip scrubs are naked means that there's zero wastage, which makes them much better for the environment.
What I really liked about Black Rose Naked Lip Scrub was that it was rather robust, and so I found it far easier to buffer away without the fear of it crumbling away. As someone with quite naturally dry skin, I enjoy a coarse scrub to remove excess dried skin and clean out my pores before I moisturise. The strength of this block means that I can apply quite a bit of pressure when I'm scrubbing my lips, without worrying about using too much product, or breaking the lip scrub in the process. Having used this daily, for almost two weeks, I have barely dented the corner of the scrub, and I see this lasting a good 4-5 months before it'll need to be replaced.
Scentwise, this beauty has a scent that reminds me a little of Yummy Mummy Shower Cream. While not identical at all, the combination of mandarin oils, along with the sultry and quite treacle-esque nature of the charcoal give off a fruity smell that is both as rich and as fruity as the aforementioned aroma.
One thing I will say about the Naked Lip Scrub is that the taste you get when licking your lips clean is definitely not the best flavour that Lush have offered, and I cannot imagine anyone wanting to nibble on this when they get a little peckish (which a lot of Lush fans do.) However, it functions incredibly well as a Lip Scrub and will easily last me another twelve months, before it makes a reappearance and I can buy another one.
Quantitative Ingredients: Castor Sugar (Sucrose), Murumuru Butter (Astrocaryum Murumuru), Illipe Butter (Shorea stenoptera), Extra Virgin Coconut Oil (Cocos nucifera), Organic Jojoba Oil (Simmondsia chinensis), Sicilian Mandarin Oil (Citrus nobilis), Spearmint Oil (Mentha Spicata), Ylang Ylang Oil (Cananga odorata), Charcoal (Charcoal Powder), Titanium Dioxide, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Benzyl Benzoate, Flavour (Fragrance), Tin Oxide (Tin oxide) Iron Oxides.
Vegan?: Yes.
2017 Price: £5.75 each.
Year Of Original Release: 2017.
If there’s one thing that most Lush fans have in common, it’s our love and excitement of colourful bath bombs. Most consumers make their way into the world of Lush through the Bath Bomb section first, and most human beings love a good show, while enjoying one of their favourite pastimes: bathing.
While Lush are renowned for being superior than most other other brands, when it comes to their bath products, the company still enjoy designing new concepts and pushing even more boundaries when it comes to how a bath bomb can manipulate colour; unique features of product design; and different ways they can perform in the water. It is only natural then, that the company have decided to start integrating super-sized versions of favourite bath bombs into seasonal releases, because who doesn’t want their favourite product quadrupled in size?
Giant Golden Wonder Ballistic is exactly what it sounds like: the Christmas best-selling bath bomb magnified for one hell of a festive soak. Almost six times the size of the original, this limited edition is surprisingly not as heavy as you would imagine - but works a dream at creating a haven of colours and smells to indulge yourself with.
Lush describe the original Golden Wonder as 'a pass the parcel gift – each layer has something different to offer. This is not for a quick bath because it takes its time, this bath bomb. Its layers of golden lustre, dazzling colours and soluble gold stars are a wonder to behold.' It really is a feast for the senses!
Designed to smell like an old Lush favourite, Snow Showers Shower Jelly, this ballistic contains a mixture of sweet orange oil, cognac oil and lime oil – a delicious citrusy concoction guaranteed to perk up anyone suffering from the winter blues. For anyone who hasn’t used anything in this extended scent family, Golden Wonder offers a light, spritzy aroma that reminds me of white grape combined with a dash of sweet, orange juice. It’s a fruity scent that does have a fizzy quality to it, which is where the idea of smelling like a glass of Bucks Fizz comes from.
Much like the original Golden Wonders, this one Immediately starts to fizz upon contact with the water. Surprisingly, this one was able to float throughout the entire experience, although it did tend to balance on one of its corners as opposed to resting top side up. Much like its original brother, this Bath Bomb started out by sending waves of creamy white and yellow froth that dissipated slowly across the water.
As the ballistic continued to work its magic, small parts of it broke away to reveal swirls of beautiful vivid blue that spread quickly across the tub and greater a wonderful shade of green. This ballistic also contains edible gold lustre and soluble paper stars, which gave the bath a magical sparkle that stayed until the end. Whilst I could see the lustre circling underneath the surface while I was bathing, very little remnants remained on my skin afterwards, and a simple spray from the shower hose was enough to wash away any excess left in the tub.
For £12.95, this is quite a hefty investment, and one I think is more suited to a one-off novelty factor than anything else. Despite its size, the Bath Bomb doesn’t offer a stronger scent, a more vivid bath or a more moisturising experience, so its more for super fans to indulge in a unique experience before the ballistic disappears for another year.
Overall, the bath water felt silky-soft and gentle on my skin, and the scent, though slightly fainter than when the ballistic was unused, was still zesty and warming. This fragrance stayed throughout the entire bath and left a hint of citrus on the skin afterwards, which is exactly what I needed to perk me up for the day. Having said that, you can get all of this after using a regular-sized Golden Wonder as well, so this is definitely more suited to super fans who want a one-off experience, or those looking to buy something different and unique for Christmas.
Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Citric Acid, Sweet Orange Oil (Citrus sinensis), Cognac Oil (Vitis vinifera), Lime Oil (Citrus aurantifolia), Water (Aqua), Cream of Tartar (Potassium Bitartrate), Glycerine, Titanium Dioxide, Gardenia Extract (Gardenia jasminoides), Sodium Laureth, Sulfate Lauryl Betaine, Dipropylene Glycol, Propylene Glycol, DRF Alcohol, Mica Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, Iron Oxides, Citronellol, *Limonene, *Citral, *Linalool, Fragrance, Blue 1, Yellow 8, Orange 4, Red 27.
Vegan?: Yes.
2017 Price: £12.95 each.
Year Of Original Release: 2017.
Coming soon!
So White is a scent that can steal my heart one moment, yet inspire next to no reaction from myself the next. In some formats it's like a dream to use, and I'll happily buy a handful to stash away for future months; yet there are other products in the scent family that I cannot wait to get rid of within moments of using them for the first time. Luckily, this body spray sits more with the former than the latter.
Lets be honest and say that this fragrance has been a long time coming. Having been lucky enough to score a bottle of the liquid perfume a few years back, I knew that this fragrance had to make a reappearance at some point. And with the Christmas range offering two brand new So White scented goodies this year, now is a good a time as any to introduce a portal spray to supplement and support the other products in the seasonal collection.
Containing bergamot, Brazilian orange and neroli oils, not to mention orange flower and rose absolutes, this body spray does not read at all like the fragrance it produces from the bottle. As most fans will already know, So White is known for its sweet, crisp and very natural apple aroma, and this liquid spray continues to offer the same, compelling aroma.
Imagine biting into a Granny Smith apple: how light, fruity and fresh the smell is, and you may begin to understand how natural the scent of this is. It's a very natural and very refreshing smell, yet there is also a subtle element of floral underneath that gives the scent of this a little more weight behind it. The inclusion of the neroli offers a subtle note of green, which is what aids the natural, apple aroma; while the orange flower absolute brings about a gentle cloudy note to ground the fragrance and give it a little more depth than simply smelling like an apple.
What I didn't like about So White Body Spray is that the smell from the bottle, and the initial spray, has a rather potent note that almost appears to echo that of the inclusion of the alcohol. When I first used this on my skin, I was put off by this element, and although I was able to smell the So White scent alongside this, the aroma was a little acidic for my liking. However, once you've given it a few minutes to settle on the skin, and begin to work with the heat of your body, you'll find that this element disperses really quickly, and leaves you with a beautiful, refreshingly-fruity fragrance to enjoy.
Surprisingly, So White lasted for a good 2-3 hours on the skin, which is impressive for a scent that is so uplifting and light. Furthermore, I found that the aroma lasted even longer when sprayed on clothes, although it did lose a little of its radiance as it clearly works better with the heat of your skin.
When compared to the seasonal body lotion and naked lotion, this spray is probably a little fruiter on the senses and a little less sweeter overall. I found that it complimented the lotions perfectly, but I could clearly smell a difference between the two. Having said that, I think So White Body Spray is closer to the aforementioned products than the Bath bomb, and the ballistic is far more musky and if so fruity.
Ultimately, I really enjoyed using this limited edition body spray. For those fans (new or old) who have fallen in love with the lotions or Santa's Belly Shower Jelly this year, or those old-schoolers who are trying to find a replacement for this year's absence of the bath bomb, So White Body Spray is a great way to fill that void. This is a great fragrance to use all year round: I can imagine a lot of people will be stocking up for the summer months, and rightly so. While it's not my favourite Lush fragrance, I can appreciate how and why this limited release will be popular, and I suggest you grab a bottle if you can.
Quantitative Ingredients: DRF Alcohol, Water, Perfume, Glycerine, Bergamot Oil, Brazilian Orange Oil, Rose Absolute, Neroli Oil, Orange Flower Absolute, Limonene, Linalool, Geraniol.
Vegan?: Yes.
2017 Price: £15 for 200ml.
Year Of Original Release: 2017.
Scent Family:Once Upon A Time Body LotionOnce Upon A Time Naked Body LotionSanta's Belly JellySo White Bath BombSo White Body SpraySo White New 2016 Edition Bath BombSo White Liquid PerfumeSo White Shower Gel
This review was going to start by throwing some shocking facts at you, about how little Orangutans there are left in the wild, and how endangered they have now become because of deforestation in Sumatra, Indonesia. However, the shocking fact is that far too many animals have now been added to the 'soon to be extinct' list, and it's a sad state of affairs that not many people are doing very much to diminish that list.
Orangutan Soap was release by Lush a few months ago - to not only raise money for the Sumatran Orangutan Society (to buy 50 hectares of land and restore it back to native forest) but to educate the world on just one of many problems happening around the globe, that may not reach our ears, eyes and hearts otherwise.
When head buyer Simon Constantine discovered the impact that the sourcing of ingredients was having on the planet, he established a commitment to removing palm oil from all Lush products and rectifying the the damage that the company had done by using the ingredient up until that point.
This is why Orangutan Soap is both palm oil-free and made from extra virgin coconut oil - directly sourced from Nias, Sumatra. This limited edition is a celebration of how far Lush have come in creating sustainable and responsible sourcing across the globe, as well as raise money for an important, and possibly life-changing, project in Indonesia.
Containing both patchouli and orange, this adorable looking soap is hand-carved and vividly orange. To the nose, I can smell the patchouli from the start. Unlike both Lord Of Misrule and Karma, there is nothing softening this component at all, so the soap gives off an exotic and rather spicy, green smell. While pine is not in the ingredients list, I can also detect a gentle homage to it, as the patchouli is rich, dark and slightly phosphorus.
The orange is slightly on the bitter side as well, although this could just be the patchouli's impact overall. However, the citrus note is very dry and tangy to my senses - meaning that this soap offers a strong and perhaps very acquired smell. This is not one that would suit many other formats, and makes a huge impact overall: hopefully mimicking what the money made from this will do for the dwindling species.
Firstly, this soap is incredibly generous with its lather - producing a very watery but equally cleaning 'foam' by which to clean your body with. In fact, you should probably not hold this soap anywhere near water for more than a second or two, because the soap will give you far more liquid than you could possibly use in a single shower. I should probably warn you that Orangutan will get very messy when in use - splattering orange residue all over your bathroom tiles and tub. Storage can also be a bit of a problem as the soap is hesitant to dry itself, and if left will fester in a puddle of its own mess, which will ultimately shrink the soap very quickly.
Linking on to this, I will say that this soap has a very gentle consistency, so if you're going to use it, I would recommend cutting off small chunks and using it this way. As a whole, I found that the soap had shrunk by almost half within the first two weeks of using it, which makes it one of the quickest diminishing soaps I had had from Lush in a long time. Having said that, the aroma is potent enough that it will stay on the skin for a good while after exiting the shower - although I was expecting it to be even stronger than it ultimately turned out to be.
As far as soaps go, it wasn't particularly moisturising for me, but then this is just my skin type and the way it usually reacts to most soaps. I did find that I had to moisture afterwards, and this meant that the fragrance didn't stay around for too much after this point.
Ultimately, this soap is fantastic, despite how quickly it shrunk and how much moisture it seemed to remove from my skin. The money raised from each sale will go towards a much-deserved cause, and I just happen to receive a soap out of doing so. I will always support the company in their endeavours to educate their customers, and I have gained a lot more out of this release than just a soap.
Quantitative Ingredients: Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, Patchouli Oil, Brazilian Orange Oil.
Vegan?: Yes.
2017 Price: £8.25 each.
Year Of Original Release: 2017.
Bubble Bar, bubbles, clove, karma, lavender, limited edition, Lush Kitchen, lustre, orange, patchouli, pine
Let’s be honest: I can think of very few reason not to love Karma. It’s a classic - a smell I go back to time and time again, and fall in love with each and every time. There is something for everybody in this fragrance, and this Bubble Bar is an extension of the family that needs to be experienced by all.
To look at, Bling Crosby Bubble Bar is not exactly the most exciting of bath products, although I know that the allure of the glitter will win some hearts over straight away. Sharing its scent with all things Karma, this limited edition boasts pine, patchouli, lemongrass, orange, lavender and clove. Yet despite this impressive list of potentially clashing components, the fragrance is one of many layers. You can smell a combination of orange and patchouli to begin with - which offers a sweet, spicy note reminiscent of the swinging sixties. There is something almost intoxicating and strange exotic about the combination of these two ingredients, which makes for a strong base on which the other notes flourish. Next up the lemongrass, which intertwines itself around the orange and hides a little of juiciness that citrus fruits sometimes display. This gives the scent a dry fruity smell rather than a zesty one, and adds a gentle layer of green to the mix. Then there is the pine oil, which works with the latter ingredient to offer something a little green and almost coniferous about the smell.
All of these elements work well together - offering a burst of smells that is richly sweet, with a spicy warmth that earns his scent family its massive following. What I love about Karma is that, while the notes work in unison with each other, you are also able to pick out each component individually as well.
Bling Crosby offers that unique Karma smell right away, although I would say that it’s slightly more subtle than the regular Karma Bubble Bar that you can buy in stores. What I love though is that it turns your bath water a wonderful shade of orange, which is reminiscent of the original Karma Bubble Bar - a colour that I think suits this fragrance a lot more than purple does.
The product is easy enough to crumble under the running tap, and it produces a wonderful layer of light, fluffy bubbles to submerge yourself beneath. Furthermore, the inclusion of the gold lustre means that you also experience swirls of pulsating sparkly glitter, under the surface of the water, as you’re bathing. However, I should point out that the lustre does not decorate your skin at all whilst you’re bathing, and it washes away easily afterwards.
As with most of Lush’s Bubble bars, my skin benefitted from the softness of the water and I could feel how smooth and moisturised my skin was after exiting the bath. Moreover, I was impressed when I was able to smell a note reminiscent of Karma on my skin after I had towelled myself down, and a spray of the liquid perfume, and a generous lather of Karma Kream, and I was able to enjoy the scent for the rest of the day.
Despite its physical lack of appeal to me, I can honestly say that I enjoyed the experience overall. While I used the whole bar in my bath, you could easily use a half or a third, and you’d still heed a fragrant bath to enjoy over the winter period. Although I much prefer the new and improved pyramid-shaped Karma Bubble Bar, this is a great (and slightly cheaper!) alternative for those who need a big dose of Karma to see them through the day/night.
Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Cream of Tartar, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Lauryl Betaine, Perfume, Lavendin Oil, Lemongrass Oil, Brazilian Orange Oil, Patchouli Oil, Pine Oil, Gardenia Extract, Titanium Dioxide, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Silica, *Citral, *Citronellol, *Geraniol, *Hydroxycitronellal, *Limonene, *Linalool, Colour 77492, Colour 14700, Whole Clove
Vegan?: Yes.
2017 Price: £3.95 each.
Year Of Original Release: 2006.
Scent Family:Bling Crosby Bubble BarDouble Fast Luck EmotibombKarma BallisticKarma Bath MeltKarma Bubble BarKarma Dusting PowderKarma Komba Solid Shampoo BarKarma KreamKarma Liquid PerfumeKarma Revamped Bubble BarKarma Shower GelKarma Shower JellyKarma SoapKarma Solid PerfumeKarma Sutra Bath BombLush Bath Bomb
agave nectar, Almond, cardamon, castor oil, Christmas, christmas 2017, cocoa butter, limited edition, murumuru, orange, pear, sandalwood, Seasonal, Skin, Soap
Once every so often, Lush bring out a product that completely defies the general constraints of cosmetics, and showcases exactly why this company are at the top of their creative game in the industry. This particular product is artistically stunning and makes you feel almost bad that you have to use it to clean yourself with.
Golden Pear Soap must have caused major excitement when it was first created in the laboratory - a soap that is not only extremely beautiful to look at but also contains so many exquisite ingredients, should be celebrated without a doubt. In fact, each and every time I have used this product, I have felt extremely grateful that the opportunity for me to do so has been there.
First and foremost, this soap contains an entire jar of pear puree - an ingredient that Lush don't use all that often, and certainly not to that extent. This not only brings out the extraordinary scent that I'll describe in a minute, but it also helps to give this soap a wonderful consistency when being used. There is something rather thick and wholesome about the lather that this product produces, and I think the pear puree has a big part to play in that.
As if this wasn't enough, Golden Pear also features both sandalwood and cardamom oils. Neither of these components offer particularly strong notes of fragrance overall, but they do give a warmth that you can feel and smell in the shower. In as many words, this soap is a rich, dessert-like feast for the senses, and you can feel that decadence when using it in the shower.
Surprisingly, I found that the soap was incredibly moisturising from the get-go. In a rare feat from Lush, this soap not only produced a lather that immediately softened my skin, but one that continued to work long after I had exited the shower. In fact, it has only happened to me on two other occasions, that a soap has not dried my skin out or at least made me want to moisturise afterwards. For this reason, the soap is very much revered by me, and there is no doubt that I will be buying many more of these before the season is out.
A combination of coconut oil and cocoa butter help to produce a thick, wholesome lather to wash yourself with. While it can be a little rigid at first, when massaging across your skin, I found that stimulating it between my hands first heeded better results. The inclusion of the murumuru butter that sandwiches both pieces together in the middle, help to add moisture to your experience, and you can feel that while you're massaging it across your body.
What I found most surprising was that, despite its size (which I thought was a little on the small side, given the price tag), the soap didn't seem to shrink as quickly as a lot of the other seasonal soaps that I was using around the same time. In fact, while a 100g chunk normally lasts me no more than a month with daily usage, this one is still sitting in my bathroom after almost two months. Unlike a lot of other soaps that also like to 'bleed' on surfaces, this one dries really quickly, and so you don't have to worry about finding messy glitter trails across your bathroom after you've used this.
To describe this scent is like trying to explain what it must smell like to walk through Wonka's chocolate factory. For such a gentle fragrance, there are so many elements that tantalise the senses. To my nose, the scent is like hot stewed pears and oranges, with a little dash of cardamom to bring a warmth that is very much needed during this time of year. It's super sweet and fruity; sultry and rich - there is something rather succulent about the aroma that gives it a real rounded appeal.
Despite the incredible fragrance that this offers, there were two downsides that I found. Firstly, the scent is not particularly strong to begin with. While some will no doubt appreciate the subtle sweetness that it offers, I would much prefer to enjoy this smell at a more intense level. Secondly, the aroma didn't linger much on the skin afterwards and it was completely masked after I had sprayed perfume on myself.
Overall, I would love to see this fragrance made into a body lotion or a shower gel. While I may have to wait another year to see this become a reality, the wait would be worth it I'm sure. As I stated above, I will be buying more of these, and I highly recommend that you grab yourself one to try before they disappear (hopefully not forever!)
Quantitative Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Propylene Glycol, Fair Trade Organic Cocoa Butter, Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, Organic Castor Oil, Sodium Hydroxide, Pear Puree, Perfume, Glycerine, Cardamom Oil, Brazilian Orange Oil, Sandalwood Oil, Murumuru Butter, Almond Oil, Organic Agave Syrup, Citric Acid, Titanium Dioxide, Sodium Bicarbonate, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Iron Oxides Silica, Tin Oxide, Citronellol, Coumarin, Eugenol, *Limonene, Colour 45410, Colour 45350, Fair Trade Whole Organic Clove.
Vegan?: Yes.
2017 Price: £6.95 each.
Year Of Original Release: 2017.
Much like Plum Rain and Snow Fairy, there are some aspects of this naked edition that don’t replicate the beauty of the original gels. Despite this, all three of these offer characteristics that make them worth investing in alongside the originals, yet set them apart enough to offer you an alternative experience as well.
What I did find frustrating when using the naked gel was that the bottle tended to ‘bleed’ quite profusely, without much encouragement at all. I only needed to wet the bottle for a split second to create an abundance of watery lather across my hands and body. The fact that this shower gel offers a bright and very messy orange lather doesn’t make the situation any better. If you’re not careful when using this, you may find that you get splatters of Bubbly across every wall and surface within the near vicinity of your shower. 
