Lush Halloween Bath Bombs

October for me means that the count down for Christmas is officially on.  I’ve 6 siblings to purchase gifts for alongside my parents, boyfriend, his family and my pals – so I always start my Christmas shopping around this time.  I know… I’m THAT person.  Don’t get me wrong though, I might be gearing up for Christmas financially, but I’m still very much all about Halloween until November comes along.  It’s why October is my favourite month of all!  I’ve got all of my Halloween spiced candles looked out and they’re burning away, and of course I’ve been in and out of Lush on several occasions lately picking up their fabulously creepy Halloween bath bombs to set the scene.  With the weather finally turning that little bit chiller and the nights are creeping in that little bit earlier, is there any better way to end the day (or spend the afternoon?!) than soaking in a tub of spooky fragrances?

Pumpkin Bath Bomb

This was the one that I was the most excited to get my hands on when I first saw the list of Halloween Lush goodies this year.  Cinnamon is my all-time favourite scent ever, so the vanilla and cinnamon spiced pumpkin sounded like a beautiful spicy sensation.  Pumpkin looks rather creepy, he has a wicked smile that fizzles slowly in the tub, and eyes that watch your every move.  Although pumpkin does not give you much of a show as he fizzles out – his scent makes up for this in every way possible.  The room fills with his aroma that lingers on your skin for hours.  He leaves his mark on you with the ever so subtle glittery pieces that appear in the tub.  I was worried that his orange tint would leave the bath in an awful mess like Yoga Bomb, however I was pleasantly surprised when all traces of him disappeared down the drain.  I’ve fallen in love with Sir Pumpkin, and will absolutely be stocking up before he disappears for the year.

Lord of Misrule

I’ve heard lots of fantastic things about this particular fragrance over the years that I’ve been indulging in Lush.  Little did I know that the Sugar Scrub bar that I have picked up in the past shares a very similar scent with her.  Defiantly not a fragrance that I think everyone would be crazy about – I personally really like the spicy aroma and subtle exterior of the bath bomb.  After watching the Lush Halloween promo video – and I will admit that I watched that bad boy over, and over again – I was desperate to get my hands on one of these to try.  When you pop her in the bath the water turns a ghoulish green, and releases the beautiful scent into the room.  Moments later, the pink centre starts to spill into the water, resulting in the most mesmerising swirls of colours in the tub.  Even better, the popping candy starts to crackle, making the whole experience hat little bit more spectacular.  Lord of Misrule puts on a show that is not one to be missed – it will be a sad day when she has to pack up again for the year.

Monsters Ball
This fantastic little critter really made a crappy day into a wonderful evening.  Lime is one of my favourite scents ever, so Monsters Ball aroma really stood out at me when I picked it up in store.  Looking very innocent with just the one eye looking at you, it dissolves very slowly in the tub - keeping the best part for last.  Monsters Ball eye remains until the last of its presence fizzles away.  The eye consists of a very gooey, chocolaty smelling substance - the whole thing reminds me very much of a chocolate lime sweetie.  The water fills with a variety of blues, white, pink and purple colours throughout your soak, which all churn together to create a fantastic blue coloured water to spend the remainder of the evening in.  Monsters Ball is the perfect companion for when you need a little uplifting or you're simply in the mood for some fun!

These guys have been my favourite Halloween Lush goodies this year?  Can you spy any of your favourites too? 

Until the next one, 
 

Naturally Radiant Hot Cloth Cleanser

Towards the end of the summer/start of autumn I noticed that the “in thing” for a lot of bloggers was to be trying out hot cloth cleansers.  I’ve read a lot of fab things about them, in particular the Liz Earl one – however due to the high price tag (for me, anyways) it wasn’t one that I thought that I needed to try out.  That and the fact that I’m not entirely sure that they are a cruelty free brand.  Anyway, I read about a couple of other ones during this period too – Soap and Glory and Botanics versions both sounded equally as great, and both had a price tag that I could live with. 

So back in September when Kirsty and I were doing our monthly shop and coffee date, I had my heart set on picking up a hot cloth cleanser that was 100% cruelty free.  It was just by chance that I came across the Naturally Radiant collection in Superdrug – and it was an even bigger surprise when the hot cloth cleanser jumped out at me.  Since having changed all of my beauty cosmetics to cruelty free alternatives, I have been pleasantly surprised by how much of the Superdrug goodies are branded as cruelty free – and a lot of them branded as vegan too!  This hot cloth cleanser is of course no different – its designed to cleanse, gently exfoliate and best of all leave your skin looking nice and glowy.

Packed with kiwi and mulberry extracts, the two work together to buff away any dead skin cells with the help of the muslin cloth, whilst the cocoa butter ensures that your skin is left feeling soft and moisturised at the end of each application.  The cleanser is a really nice, thick and cream consistency that rubs smoothly into the skin to allow the nutrients to be absorbed.  I like to buff this in for about a minute over my face, and then leave it to sit for a little bit longer.  The cream has a really nice relaxing fragrance, it smells like lavender with a hint of fruity scents.  My favourite part about the cleanser is buffing it away with the muslin cloth.  This is when the exfoliation takes place, and when my skin gets the most out of the experience.  The warm cloth works nicely on the skin to remove the cleanser, and you can definetly feel it buffing away the cells – however it is so very gentle, so there is no need to worry about it being too harsh.  After each use, my skin always looks really fresh, even around my blemishes.

I’ve been using this a couple of times a week since purchasing since I’m not too sure if it’s okay to use daily.  My skin is still rather bumpy over my forehead and cheeks, however I have noticed a great improvement is the over all appearance of my skin.  I definitely feel as though my complexion looks a lot better when I’ve not got any make up on, which I’m totally pleased about because I’ve been getting a little lazy on the make up front as of late.  I picked up this gem for just £2.95 when the Naturally Radiant range was all half price – however I think I would be tempted to pick this up again and pay the full price – I’m really enjoying the results that I’ve been getting so far!

Have you tried out any hot cloth cleansers this season?

Until the next one,

The Good Hour…

Well, that’s it!  I am officially an adult.  21 is the year when you technically start to adult, but people don’t care if you mess up because “you’re only 21!”  By 22, we should have our lives together, either working full time and saving for the future or studying something that we enjoy (hopefully) and are working towards our dream jobs.  “No more messy around” so they say, however I’m quite content plodding along for now in my busy but relatively peaceful routine.  I feel so blessed to be surrounded by people who actually care for me, my family, my education, my well being and my happiness – thank you to everyone who has supported me in everything I have done this year, and an even bigger thank you to those who made my 22^nd birthday so special!

My birthday this year started four days early, when Martin and I traveled down to Edinburgh (first class!) for a spot of shopping, some fine dining, a stroll around the zoo and my first ever Lush Spa treatment, The Good Hour.  This was a gift from Martin for my birthday, and I had known about it for several months – simply because he wanted me to pick which treatment I wanted!  Honestly, nothing can compare to the amount of excitement that was  buzzing inside… except of course that time I found out I was getting my baby boy Hulk, Happy I Gotcha Day pooch! 

For months I’ve been putting ideas together in my head, trying to decide how amazing this experience was going to be.  I’m a Lush addict, I go to bed with the smell of my bath bombs lurking from my drawer… I have a problem, I know.  This being said though, there is no way on earth that I could have imagined The Good Hour treatment the way it took place on October 10^th – there are no words to describe how magical it was.  From the moment I made myself known to the staff, they made me feel so at home, so chilled and most of all – excited.  My therapist Janine was honestly the sweetest, happiest and most comforting people I have ever met.  She explained everything to me perfectly, whilst leaving the elements of surprise too where she felt need be.  I was so relaxed before the treatment had even started!  I’m not going to tell you anything much about the experience, as I found it to be the most magical event ever having going in with no clue what to expect.  What I will give you though is a few key words that make up the experience…

Think refreshing brews, witches style cottage, sea life, pirates and the BEST deep tissue massage that you will ever experience – did I say it was a 70 minute session?!

I cannot thank Janine enough for making my first ever Lush Spa treatment so special for me, nor can I thank Martin enough for the wonderful gift.  With The Good Hour under my belt, I’m ready to make my 22^nd year a special one – and I am already considering my next treatment too!

Have you ever been to the Lush Spa?  If so, what did you get?!

Until the next one,

Toning Waters

I’ve been trying out a lot of different facial mists lately due to the change in the weather and the changes in my skin.  I’ve read lots of good things about facial mists ever since I received the Bloom and Blossom one in a beauty box a few months back.  I’ve done my research, have been out buying and have picked up three different variations of toning waters that double as a refreshing facial mist throughout the day. 

I was loving the Lush Tea Tree Water for a freshen up and gentle cleanse every morning to start my skin care routine, however when this ran out I opted for another one of my trusty toner tabs to do the job as they are my favourites.  I popped one in my old tea tree bottle, added some hot boiling water from the kettle and left it to fizzle and cool down for a while.  It’s the best toning water that I think I’ve used to date, it gives my skin a nice freshen up in the morning and evening – and does not sting or irritate my sensitive skin, like may tea tree products do.    Next time I’m going to try using two tabs in the bottle and see if that gives an even better effect… watch this space!

Breathe of Fresh Air was one that I actually bought on a whim, I had £2.99 left of a gift card and wanted to try out something new.  I seriously think that this is one of my new all time favourite Lush skin care products to date!  On a fresh face this water soaks up beautifully like my skin is taking a drink.  I like to spray this on and leave it to absorb, although I think it would be nice to use a cotton pad and rub it in this way too.  It had a lovely smell to it, and leaves my skin feeling soft to the touch.  When you spray it on it does feel like a lot has been used, however this is just due to the harshness of the pump.  I really adore this product, and will definitely be repurchasing as its perfect for carrying around in my pocket at work and keeping in my handbag. 

I’ve recently found and fallen for the Boots Botanic range after discovering that they were a primary organic and totally cruelty free brand.  I picked up a few bits from the range recently, one of them being their rose water toning spray which is totally amazing.  The stuff smells like Turkish delight which I absolutely adore, and the bottle sprays out the gentlest mist which I like to use before I apply my moisturiser both morning and night, as well as after applying my foundation each morning.  I find that using this and then blotting ever so gently before applying my press power gives my skin a little bit of extra hydration and a really nice sort of dewy finish to my makeup.  I keep this bottle at home for when I need a pick me up throughout the day, and will definitely repurchase at just £3.99. 

As you can tell, I don’t really have a favourite this time round, just a new found love for facial mists – and really good priced ones at that!

What’s your favourite facial product right now?

Until the next one,

Soap & Glory Face Mask

So the last couple of weeks have been slightly crazy to say the least!  My summer is officially over, uni has started up again and I’m already having stress related symptoms just processing the idea of fourth year!  I wasn't prepared for the crazy work load that got thrown at me during the first week, and so my blog took a little it of a hit during that time - so my apologies for my unexplained absence, but I'm back now and ready to carry on again!

In August I treated myself to the Soap and Glory No Pores Allowed deep cleansing mask, after I had used up the last of my Lush ones.  It’s been a while since I bought myself a face mask that wasn’t from Lush, and over time I’ve noticed that my pores have become a lot more noticeable – so I wanted to go for something that will tackle them without being too harsh on my skin.  My eczema has been acting up too after trying my luck with some yeast foods (won’t be doing that again any time soon) so as a result I’ve been really careful as what I’m using on my skin to avoid an even bigger flare up. 

Soap and Glory have always been favourite brand of mine, however I’ve been using them a lot more ever since I went cruelty free.  I’ve only ever seen good reviews on this particular mask, and the £12 price tag was made an awful lot better when it was BOGOHP on all of their skin care products… boost! 

The mask itself is designed to unclog pores and leave them looking smaller, if not removing them completely over a period of time.  It’s a self-warming mask that heats up as you rub it in, which I find stays warm for the first few minutes of wearing, then cools itself down gradually until your skin actually starts to feel cold (or this is what happens to me anyways – I leave it on for around 20 minutes).  I like to feel face masks doing the work as I wear them, so this one definitely ticks that box for me.  As you’re rubbing it in, your skin benefits from an ever so gentle exfoliation, which is perfect for opening up the pores, right before the heat kicks in.  The bottle states that your mask should turn blue as you rub it in, which I have yet to experience.  You shake your bottle, then apply the off white mask to your face, which turns an ever so slightly grey colour in the process.  I’ve only ever seen my mask turn blue on occasion when I’m rubbing it off, so don’t let that bottle fool you or put you off reusing.

Having used the mask for around 2 months now, I have to say that it’s one that I really, really like.  It always leaves my skin feeling a lot cleaner, especially if I give myself another gentle exfoliation after a wear.  I will say though that it does ALWAYS make me break out, and I personally don’t mind this as I try and time my uses for days when I know I’m about to be bumming around for a while – but if you do have plans that require a fresh face and fancy a mask treat prior to the big day, this is not the one for you – unless you’re planning on using it the week before!

A fabulous mask with a great price tag, this is one that I would totally pick up again on any Soap and Glory special offer events.

What’s your favourite face mask right now?

Until the next one,