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Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me... Anything can happen, child. Anything can be. Shel Silverstein

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Review: LUSH

Alright, so I have read lots of absolutely wonderful things about the brand Lush, a company that makes fresh handmade cosmetics. And by cosmetics, they mean all things skin care. I had been interested in trying some things by them because I have recently been in a skin care kick and their products are usually vegan and do not contain any of the scary ingredients found in drugstore and department store skincare options. As I was browsing their website, I looked where some stores were, wondering if one was nearby. And guess what?! One just opened two weeks ago on 6th Street right in the middle of my favorite part of town by Whole Foods and Book People. Last night after our weekly "Whole Foods Monday" trip, Ethan, Sam, and I strolled across the street. While they were in Waterloo Records, I decided to go check out the new Lush store. I am obsessed. The products range in prices, anywhere from super cheap to around $50. Since I am trying to save money for my semester in France, I have allotted myself very limited funds to just shop for fun, so I only bought two things (both under $7) and got two free samples. I am so impressed with these products that I decided to share!

Lush Ultra Bland:

This is one of my free samples, but I have a feeling that when I run out of my current cleanser, I will be replacing it with this. The common theme throughout my use of these products is feeling a little uncomfortable with using things that aren't foamy and don't leave my skin feeling super squeaky clean, but no need for me to have feared! This was a strange product to use; you use it dry and apply it straight to a face covered in makeup. You rub it in like a thick body butter and it literally melts the makeup off your face. Then you take a dry cotton pad and remove as much as you can, then get another cotton pad damp with warm water to remove the rest. No splashing your face with water here. It got everything off my face, and left my skin feeling pretty moisturized actually! I still followed up with my usual moisturizer though.
http://beaut.ie/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/ultra-bland.jpg 
Ingredients: Almonds oil, Rose water, Beeswax, Honey, Fresh Iris Extract, Glycerin, Rose Absolute

Angels on Bare Skin:

This is one of the products I did purchase, but the best thing about it is that in the store, its basically a huge log of product and you tell them in dollars how much to cut off. I asked for a $7 amount, but I could've gotten less or more depending on what I wanted to spend. Also, another common theme amongst Lush products is that a little tiny bit goes a long way. This is because if water needs to be a part of the process, you add it yourself instead of it taking up room in a container like most drugstore and department store products. This is another cleanser, but unlike Ultrabland,  it is better to use this on clean skin since it won't remove your makeup well. I used Ultrabland at night and then Angels on Bare Skin in the morning. You put a little dime sized amount of product in your hand and mix it with a little warm water and make a paste to apply to your *dry* face. It has crushed almond meat in it so it also acts as a gentle exfoliator. Then you can either remove it with a damp wash cloth or just using your hands and warm water. I loved this product as well; it does exactly as the product claims, so I will post that!

"Our best-selling cleansing roll is perfect for all skin types. Made with finely ground almonds and heaps of balancing lavender, a pea-sized amount will gently scrub away the day. Ground almonds help to gently exfoliate the skin, clearing away dirt and dead skin. Rose oil and lavender oil are wonderfully toning, while the gentle exfoliation of the almonds helps to keep the skin clear and improve the texture of the skin. Lavender is extremely soothing for the skin."
Also, this product left my skin feeling clean, soothed, but also soft and moisturized.. a feeling I am not used to after using a cleanser.

http://maddyloves.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/dsc08365.jpghttp://1.bp.blogspot.com/_0lDIgR5vrUA/TOCYf_2veHI/AAAAAAAACiQ/bBLvJawf0GM/s1600/AngelsonBareSkin.jpg 
Ingredients: Ground Almonds, Glycerin, Kaolin, Lavender oil, Rose Absolute, Chamomile Blue oil, Tagetes oil, Lavender flowers

BB Seaweed Fresh Face Mask:

This is the other item I purchased ($5.95) and is probably my favorite and most fun of all the products. This is the one Lush item that you have to buy in store (not online), because it is made of 100% fresh ingredients with no preservatives. It has to be refridgerated and has a self life of only three weeks. The amount they give you in the jar is enough to use 10 thin masks or 4-5 thick masks, so plenty to use in three weeks, but not too much that you will waste product. I have already used two thin masks within 24 hours, that is how much I adore this stuff.

I went to a Mary Kay party the other day and it was very fun :) but unfortunately the skin care line is not from me and made me break out. This was frustrating to me because I had just gotten my skin to be consistently clear for a month or so. My breakouts were inflammed and irritated and not painless at all. This calmed my face, both from being chilled in the fridge and the calming ingredients in the mask. You put it on your fask and let it dry (about 10 minutes) and then wash off with warm water. This left my skin feeling incredibly smooth, moisturized, and calmed (all redness disappeared). This morning when I woke up, my breakouts had already healed most of the way (AMAZING), and I decided to do another quick mask to finish the process. 

"Relaxing and reviving, mineral-rich mask to cleanse, soften and beautify all skins. This blend, inspired by the sea, contains fresh and nutritious seaweed and seaweed absolute. Cleansing kaolin, antiseptic honey, calming aloe vera and rose absolute make this a great mask for everyone."

They have a handful of other masks that serve other purposes, and the one I would like to try next is the Catastrophe Cosmetic mask that apparently soothes your skin and evens out your skin tone flawlessly, leaving no traces of red. Which would be so perfect for the summer after getting too much sun (also how good would putting a cold mask on a sun stung face feel!?)

http://www.temptalia.com/images/summer09/lush_bbseaweed001.jpg
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-njdn74haY48/TX1UJz8GxjI/AAAAAAAAAag/T-P1RckkPo0/s1600/IMG_0155.JPG 
Ingredients: Lime Tree Flower and Sweet Violet Leaf Decoction, Kaolin, Honey, Glycerine, Ground Almonds, Toothed Wrack Seaweed, Organic Aloe Vera Gel, Millet Flakes, Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Bentonite Gel, Fresh Rose Petals, Rose Absolute, Patchouli Oil, Rosemary Oil, Seaweed Absolute

And oh yeah! Lush does not test on animals! :)
over and out.

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