Haul: Boxing Day

The long-awaited Boxing Day sale is here!  There are always huge rumors about if there will be a sale, what will be on sale, etc.

I received my email last night: buy one get one free on all holiday gift sets, regular gift sets, holiday products and soaps.  I quickly looked through my Lush times to make a plan.

Well, unfortunately for me, I don't like a lot of the holiday items or the gifts.  But I was excited about the soaps.  My top three favorites are Honey I Washed the Kids, Alkmaar, and Vanilla in the Mist.

Sadly, I can no longer get Vanilla in the Mist, because it was on the Discon 2011 list and my Lush store has completely sold out.  I think I did pretty well, regardless.

I purchased:

• 2 Christmas Delights tins, which include: Heavanilli massage bar, Angel's Delight soap, Candy Cane soap, Vanilla Dee-lite lotion, Sugar Babe sugar scrub, and Snow Fairy shower gel.
• 2 large Snow Fairy shower gels
• 2 Superstar bubble bars
• Appox 3 pounds of Honey I Washed the Kids soap (cut in two pieces)
• Approx 5 pounds of Alkmaar soap (cut into two pieces)

I think we're set on soap for the entire year!!

Haul: Christmas and More

My three year old loves all things pink and princess.  So naturally, I had to buy some Snow Fairy products for her.  The Snow Fairy gift set included Snow Fairy shower gel, a star shaped Angel's Delight soap, and a Shimmy Shimmy.  I also bought 2 Magic Wands and a large bottle of Snow Fairy shower gel -- the small one will not last long enough! 

I also purchased the Gingerbread Tin -- mostly for the cute reusable tin!  But it also contained lots of Christmas items I have yet to try: Cinders and So White bath bombs, and Gingerbread House and Candy Mountain bubble bars.  Unfortunately, no Golden Tickets in either gifts.  Maybe next time!

Oh, and a big bottle of Veganese that'll last me a few months. (:

Review: the Snowcake Craze

Smitten lotion and Snowcake soap

When I chat with other Lushies and mention Christmas time, the word that usually spews from their mouths is "Snowcake!"  What is with this Snowcake obsession.  Seriously?

Snowcake is a limited edition soap that comes around Christmas time.  It is made of almond oils and is supposed to smell like marzipan.  Smitten, the Retro line lotion, has a similar scent.  What the heck, I thought, I like eating marzipan, I'm sure I'll like smelling like it too.

The first time I used Smitten, I was not smitten.  It has a very strong sugary top note, like frosting.  The texture of the lotion was actually quite nice -- very thick but fluffy -- and the fragrance lingered a while.  (Here's where some Lushies will growl at me)  Since I didn't like the scent, I started using Smitten as a foot lotion.  And it worked great!  I always put a dab of Lemony Flutter on the balls and heels of my feet after I shower, then apply a thick lotion over that.  Normally I use Helping Hands but ran out, so I started using Smitten.  The Lemony Flutter and Smitten smelled like a lemon dessert on my feet!

A couple of weeks ago, a Lushie friend gave me some Snowcake soap.  So I tried it out.

MY SCORE: 4 OUT OF 5

Hey, this stuff ain't bad!  The soap when dry smells really sugary sweet, but once you use it in the shower, it's not as overwhelming.  It was very creamy and luscious -- reminded me a lot of Alkmaar -- and the fragrance that was left in the shower was exactly what I wanted Snowcake to smell like: a very deep, sweet, just-baked marzipan scent. I would definitely recommend this to others, especially since it's a limited edition Christmas item.

And I'll have to admit, after a few weeks of using Smitten, I've really grown to love it.  Sure, it's not as warmingly sweet as Sympathy for the Skin, but that's the beauty of Lush products -- every one is unique!

If you really want to go Snowcake crazy, you can use the Marzibain bubble bar and the Melting Snowman with Snowcake soap and Smitten lotion afterwards. (:

Review: Ruby Red Slippers

"Pretty" is the first word that comes to mind.  I put it in the palm of my hand and couldn't stop looking at the glitter.  I'm like a bird -- I'm attracted to sparkly things!  It's pretty obvious why they call it Ruby Red Slippers.

What's in it:  Rose oil extract, carnation extract, tangerine oil.
I did smell the rose extract, but also something spicy (not like a pepper; more like a cinnamon), which I suspect was the carnation extract.  The overall smell was pretty mild and not overpowering.  It didn't leave my bathroom fragrant, like many other Lush bubble bars and bath bombs tend to do.

This bubble bar is about the size of two solid shampoo bars.  I cut it into quarters, which is plenty of bubbles for a bath.  After cracking it open, I realize that the ultra-fine red glitter is only on the outside of the bar. 

How to use:  Crumble the bar under running water.  The agitation of the water creates more bubbles.  If you have access to a tub with spa jets, watch out!  Those bubbles will dominate and spill over!  Fortunately, I do not have such luxuries so I don't have to worry about that. (:

The water turned pink, not red -- maybe because I only used 1/4 of the bar.  If I had used the entire bar (I have no idea why anyone would!  That's a lot of bubbles!) the water would be more red.  Also, the glitter gets lost in the water below all the bubbles so the "fun" really didn't last too long.  The glitter doesn't stick to your skin, either, which is a good thing.  But I did find some of it left in the tub after the water drained out!  No worries, one quick rinse and they were all gone.

MY SCORE: 3 out of 5

Compared to other Lush bubble bars, this one's pretty mediocre.  The fragrance is mild, and there's no skin softening agents added.  It is festive and attractive looking, but I got more glitter out of half a Dragon's Egg than this bubble bar.  I'm glad it's only seasonal.  I wouldn't use it as a staple year-round product.