15 June 2011

A Lush Catastrophe


Recently I've been reading a lot of beauty blogs. Make-up expert I am not, but feeling a little stressed lately has really had a bad effect on my skin [if only due to a constant presence of the middle man...chocolate] and so I've really enjoyed picking up hints and tips from a different genre of blogging. 

Frankly, after seeing the care that so many people take over their skin, I've realised how lacking my skincare routine is, and so have taken it upon myself to buy some lotions and potions in order to get it in tip top shape for the summer. I'm hoping that this and some serious water guzzling will do the trick [usually, I have the water capacity of a Camel and feel no need to drink for most of the day....bad Danni].

Lush is a chain that I've avoided as far back as I can remember. When I was younger, I could hardly bear to be in the shop because of the smell...it was so overwhelming, and as a complete asthmatic nerd [the two are, of course, not related, I just happened to conform to every unfortunate stereotype going] I could never force myself to stay in there for more than a few seconds.

Now I've grown up [debatable] I've learnt to avoid Lush for different reasons - mostly as I always associate heavily perfumed products with irritation...that's usually the way it goes for my fickle, flaky skin. But during my day trip to Oxford a while back, my friends [and a particularly sweet member of staff] managed to persuade me to buy one of their facemasks, and now I believe I'm what you call a convert.


After explaining the condition of my skin [extremely dry, tendency to break out with stress] the salesman suggested Catastrophic Cosmetic, a blueberry facemask. He explained that it draws out the spot-inducing oils in the skin, without dehydrating it and thus keeping it moisturised.

SOLD. And here's what I thought.

Smell: From the pot, there was a very faint herby smell which I was indifferent to in all honesty, but once applied, the scent took on a much fruitier character - delicious indeed.

Texture: A much thicker consistency than I'm used to for facemasks, but this was no bad thing. There were small blueberry pieces in it which was a great natural touch. A little went a long way and there were no annoying drips. Gloopy in a good way.


Results: Skin felt incredibly soft throughout the day, I didn't need to moisturise which for me was a shocker. Spots have reduced since using, but that outcome was unnoticeable straight away, and is probably due to drinking more water.

Overall: Despite not having an immediate effect on any breakouts, this facemask felt like a real treat for my skin, and I'm guessing with more applications it will only improve. The smell was divine once applied, and I'm more than happy that I spent my money on it. It's not a cheap, everyday product, but if your skin needs a treat it'll do the job perfectly.

Next up I'm hoping to try some of their bath products - I've heard great things about The Comforter, and for my next facemask I'd love to try out the chocolate one... I just hope it ends up on my face and not in my belly.

I'd love any recommendations or products to avoid - if you're a lush lover/hater, get in touch!

xxx

21 comments:

K said...

Ooh, I've never tried that face mask, it looks good though :) I have tried the chocolate one, and liked it :) HOWEVER, don't eat it, it doesn't taste nice. Trust me, I know from experience! :P
I am a Lush lover, I am a big fan, although it is a bit expensive for a penniless person such as myself. I reccommend the 'Seanik' solid shampoo and 'Karma' bubble bar, lovely :)
Sirens and Bells xx

Jessica said...

Good to know. I'm very tempted to get some myself now! As an aside, I've read that mashed avocado makes a nice facemask for dry skin, and I've tried a few drops of olive oil massaged into skin and a warm damp face cloth laid over the top, which worked great.

daisychain said...

I am a Lush lover, but OH SO FREAKING allergic. I can't even be in the same room as their products :(

Tonya said...

I love Lush products! The stores are so cool..unfortunately the closest one to me is in Canada!

www.themoptop.com

Hannah said...

I've been wanting a mask for a while now so I must try this out. I love lush despite the overpowering smell. I too have sensitive rubbish skin that goes red if i even look at the wrong product but I use a lot of stuff from lush that really helps me out. celestial facial moisturiser is a godsend and ultrabland face wash and roma water toner are really great too.


Bow Dream Nation xx

Rachael said...

I can't fault Lush's hand creams. I get awfully dry hands and they are the only products that seem robust enough to deal with it and lasts! Love both their bath bombs and their massage bars - the latter makes my skin so soft and they smell yummy.

Gem said...

oooh nice!
I've started to take a little more care of my skin. I have quite bad breakouts so I use Clinique products. They have a great antibacterial soap and a gel that you put on a spot and the redness goes and it is much smaller when you wake up in the morning.

Ani. said...

I've recently started their Brazened Honey face mask - that one is amazing as well and my skin smells of honey all day!

Unknown said...

I used to have the same problem with lush, that and perfume shop would be enough to make me run a mile, way too overwhelmingly smelly! I do love the lush bath bombs though - they are awesome!

herecomesthesun said...

I LOVE Lush. It has only recently starting popping up in NZ and I go in there every chance I can and always come out smelling amazing!

Sherin said...

I recently converted to Lush as well. They definitely do fantastic products. The Ocean Salt thing is amazing. But the Tea Tree Water cleanser is possibly the greatest product ever invented in the history of the Universe (true story). I swear by that product!

Filipa said...

This a really good review! I always buy things for my skin but somehow can never get myself to use it daily. I'm a really bad at self discipline! But I might try the Lush catastrophe (what a fun name btw! :)

eliza said...

I love Lush, it's a fun store to wander around in. I must admit though, I have only ever bought soap from there though, so maybe I'll have to try some of the skincare. These exams are certainly not being nice to my face and its tendency to break-out.

xx

StephanieDJL said...

oo lovely review bb! I need to try a Lush facemask. I bought the chocolate one (no idea what it was supposed to do but hey, it was chocolatey!) & completely forgot about it & it ended up going out of date...rubbish!

In regards to products to avoid, in regards to bath products I'm not a fan of the things that basically change the colour of your water & add a little bit of scent. It's fun to melt them down but then that's it, you're just left with funny coloured water & in relation to the Satsumo Santa one wee coloured water & suspicious looking bits in the bottom...delish.

Bubble bars are fab though! Exciting to mess on with, smell amazing, create loads of bubbles & change the colour of the water. It's like a party in the bath.

& I realise it's June but when Christmas comes around, Snow Fairy is a MUST.

Another product I love is their lip scrubs (especially Lip Dip) expensive for what they are & mostly pointless but they taste good & do the job so who am I to complain?

Good grief, this is an essay isn't it?!

DediLovesFashion said...

i have never tried a face mask. but i love the honey bee bath bomb. =)
xo

Becky said...

I usually just buy bath bombs from LUSH but I love them!

Ivonne said...

I've heard so much about LUSH and I've been wanting to try out their products for some time and reading this review definitely is gearing me towards maybe ordering a couple things online one of these days. My skin has been a bit weird for the past few couple of months and their masks sound like they could maybe get my skin back to being a bit more healthy.

I've heard a lot of buzz over their "Honey I washed the kids" soap around the beauty blogs and such.

Thanks for the little review! :D

x, I

Unknown said...

i love lush but there shop assistants scare me - ever so eager x

Lil said...

I LOVE Lush and I have in fact just written the first of four posts on their skincare range which I've recently invested in. I've tried basically everything type of product they do in my time: bath, shower, perfume, shampoo, but this is my first foray into skincare. My favourite products (I have very dry skin) are Angels on Bare Skin cleanser and Snow Fairy shower gel which is a Christmas limited addition. Xx

Yu said...

I want!

Zoe said...

I may have to try this, sounds like the same problems I have with my skin. I also avoid Lush as I find their staff overbearing lol

Zoe xx
Life of a Vegetarian Girl