Review: LUSH Christmas Range 2017

Two words: LUSH. Christmas.
Are there any two better words in the English language? Well, probably, but not to me right now. LUSH Christmas is always my favourite limited edition run of the year as it usually involves an increase in Twilight scented products, and we all know how I feel about that. It seems like it gets bigger and better every year, so the LUSH Christmas Collection for 2017 is unsurprisingly stepping up to new levels. In saying that, there’s a reason that LUSH products always make it to my list of products to actually write up, and it comes down to two things: practices and products. The 2017 range is a perfect embodiment of everything right with the LUSH world.

I’ve mentioned it in passing before, but part of the reason I’m a fan of LUSH is because of the way they approach business. As I get more and more involved in beauty products, I become more and more conscious of how my buying choices impact the world around me. LUSH’s new Christmas range reflects their push towards trying to offer more “naked” products – that is to say, products which don’t require packaging and thus minimise our impact on the environment. Now, the Christmas body conditioners and shower gels are available in solid forms for the environmentally conscious among us. With the recent addition of solid lip scrubs and lip tints, as well as their already existing solid shampoos, conditioners, hair dyes and bubble bars, it’s clear that LUSH is making this a key tenement of their business and I couldn’t be happier.

I was kindly sent some of the range to review. Whilst the only naked products in the mix are the bubble bars, the scent family is the exact same of their solid counterparts (which I’ll be picking up myself next time I’m in Rundle Mall!).

Magic Wand Reusable Bubble Bar – $11.50

This is an old favourite back again. Something about this product always makes me think of being a kid. Maybe it’s the wand, maybe it’s the sparkles, maybe it’s the snow fairy scent, or maybe I just never grew up. Either way, I find that the bubble bars on the wands always seem to last the longest of all my LUSH Bubble Bars. This one is no exception and the sweet, candy scent will appeal to the young or young at heart.

 

Christmas Eve Bubble Bar – $9.50

Ylang Ylang and Jasmine make this bubble bar a very strong floral scent. It seems a lot more strongly perfumed than a lot of other scents I’ve had from LUSH, but not in a bad way. The Irish Moss Powder is an interesting touch and adds to the conditioning properties of your bath. Turning the water a deep blue, this one will definitely be a winner during my weekend wind-down baths.

 

Luxury Lush Pud Bath Bomb – $8.95

Another old favourite returning to the shelves and I was so pleased to see it! I love the colours of this bomb AND its inclusion of lavender and tonka absolute makes it in the same scent family (though not the exact same I think, but maybe I’m just crazy) as Twilight – YESSSS! This will be one I stock up on. I love a bomb that smells amazing and makes my bath look amazing too and the ‘Pud delivers. Pick up one or ten – I won’t judge you.

Thundersnow Bath Bomb – $8.95

I love the colours of this bath bomb. The blue and white make your bath look a little like a cloudy day with blue/green skies. This bomb has a choc-mint smell to it that I really love. It’s really unique and different to anything else I’ve tried! I’m always a fan of peppermint too so it’s a big tick in my book. As an added bonus, this bomb has popping candy in it so it makes for some cool sound effects in the tub.

 

Sherbet Dip Bath Bomb – $7.95

You know those sherbet lemon lollies that Dumbledore was so obsessed with? This smells almost exactly like them but with the slightest hint of lime mixed in. With grapefruit oil, Sicilian lemon oil and lime oil, this is definitely heavy on the citrus. As it fizzes it reveals a green interior. It’s not my favourite scent but it is refreshing and zingy and great for Summer!

 

Once Upon A Time Body Lotion – $17.95 for 100g

LUSH body lotions are always so moisturising and lovely, but I have to admit I rarely stray from my favourite “Sleepy” lotion (am I predictable? Yes… Yes I am). This scent, however, is enough to make me reconsider. The Once Upon A Time scent is great because it’s unisex but still sweet. The main thing you’ll notice is the apple scent but there’s also lemon and grapefruit in the mix. I absolutely love it. It’s so light and perfect for the Summer months. From now on I’ll be using Sleepy at night and Once Upon A Time in the morning. Lizard skin be gone!

 

Buck’s Fizz Body Conditioner – $16.50 for 100g

I’ve said before that I’m not a big fan of citrus scents, but I stand corrected. Buck’s Fizz is a blend of orange, pink grapefruit and Kalahari melon and it’s amazing. Somehow it doesn’t have that same “bite” to it that I dislike in other citrus scents and is instead a refreshing and summery fragrance that I’m absolutely in love with (probably helped by the fact that it’s fairly unisex and pushing towards that “pretty boy smell” I love). If you’ve never used a body conditioner before, it essentially works exactly like a hair conditioner. You apply it whilst in the shower and wash off the excess, leaving your skin moisturised and protected for the day ahead.

 

Bubbly Shower Gel – $18.50 for 250g

This is another old favourite and another exception to my “citrus is meh” rule. I’ve actually already gone through a full 500g of this in the past so I was happy to have it back again. LUSH shower gels are always great as I find soaps generally too harsh for my skin so shower gels make a nice compromise (they’re also handy as a quick shaving cream replacement when in a hurry might I add). With orange and lime oil balanced out by vine leaf infusion and grape juice, this shower gel is perfect for hot summer mornings.

 

Santa Baby Lip Scrub – $9.95

Another old favourite, and something I bought last year but have since run out of. The Santa Baby lip scrub has a really unique taste. I usually associate it with a hint of cola but I really couldn’t tell you why as none of the ingredients scream cola to me. It has a mix of coconut milk powder, lime oil, aniseed oil and black pepper oil. Given my general dislike of aniseed I’m always surprised by how much I like this. As with all LUSH lip scrubs, it does a good job of exfoliating my lips but can be a little messy so just be careful when scooping it up. This scrub also has the cute little addition of red edible hearts in the mix which is a lovely detail which I appreciate.

 

Sugar Plum Fairy Lip Tint – $9.95

As mentioned in my previous Halloween Range review, the LUSH lip tints have an exceptional staying power. Once dried down they can be very difficult to move (although personally when I eat I tend to lose a lot of it, but that’s true of me for any formula including ones which others say lasts them easily through eating – I must just be a slob or something). Whilst I absolutely love the Black Rose lip tint from Halloween, this one is a little bit more wearable day to day as the colour isn’t quite as bright. It’s a little more purple than pink and very pretty.

 

Salt and Peppermint Bark Body Scrub – $12.95

This isn’t one which was sent to me and I’ve used mine up completely, hence the lack of photo, but I really wanted to mention this product. This might be my favourite scent of all time, even more so than twilight. With sea salt, peppermint oil and and cupuacu butter, I pretty much just want to stuff this up my nose and smell it all the time. Be warned though, the scrub starts off pretty harsh. When I bought this last year it actually scratched my skin the first time I used it so I didn’t end up using it again. I bought it again this year because the smell just gets me, and I found that if I got it properly wet I had no trouble with scratching at all (they’ve also possibly softened the formula but that’s speculation on my part – may well have just been user error the first year!). I find it equally effective and a heck of a lot less messy than a lot of the coffee scrubs I own. Honestly, I’ll be going back to the store just to purchase some more of these soon enough.

LUSH keeps on raising the bar with their collections, and just when I think they can’t possibly do better they always do. This Christmas range has such a huge variety that you’re bound to find a gift for any taste, including your own. The push towards less packaging is another indication of them leading the way with best practice and I hope other beauty industry members take note. In the meantime, there’s a bubble bath with my name on it.