Lovin Lush!

I’ve been on a vegan beauty mission lately, researching all the options out there and trying to find the right products for me. I’ve always flip-flopped on products, never really committing to one single brand, and as a result my skin has suffered and my hair never knows what’s going on. Going through my bathroom cabinet I realised there is one brand I seem to return to over and over again…LUSH! I know a lot of people still think of Lush as a hippy flowery, does-nothing kind of place, but their stuff is actually amazing and they’re also a really good company to support, so hear me out okay?

Lush products offer a really good balance between great smelling and great working. A lot of  ‘natural’ or ‘homemade’ beauty products can often be disappointing so I can see why they get a bad reputation, but my experience with Lush is that for every beauty ‘need’ you have, they have a product that’s just right for you. They're also the best when it comes to knowing exactly what's in your product and ensuring you're buying 100% vegan and cruelty-free every time. They do sell products that aren't vegan but they only account for around 20% of their beauty 'menu'. All of their products are vegetarian and they never test on animals, and campaign year-round against it! I still think they're a fantastic company to get behind and have been the only brand that has managed to bring natural, ethical beauty products to the high street.

I just wanted to take the opportunity to share with you some of the products that I have tried and tested, and maybe you’ll see something you like? Below are all recommendations or warnings based on actual purchases I have made from Lush, nothing has been sent to me or given to me for free, so you know it’s real ;) 

Is this a lot of Lush? Can there be too much Lush?? I need answers...

For your body

This is probably what I go to Lush the most for, beauty products for your body. I love bubble baths and pampering myself, so a new treat from Lush always tempts me back in... For the shower I use two things; the RUB RUB RUB shower scrub and the Olive Branch shower gel. The scrub is made with sea salt scrub and works great at exfoliating your skin, you can even use it in your hair to add texture and volume - although I am yet to be brave enough to try that! The shower gel is nice and gentle, and although it doesn't come out like normal 'gel' it does lather up well and creates lots of beautiful bubbles! It does leave my skin feeling very soft and has a really nice, summery smell to it. 

OK we need to talk about Ro’s Argan Body Conditioner! Before I got this I'd never tried a body conditioner before and I was like "why would I need to condition my body?" but you totally need to be conditioning your body ladies. You smooth it over wet skin (I usually do this last after washing my hair and using either the scrub or shower gel) and just spend some time massaging it over your skin, and then rinse off. Make sure you just pat yourself dry when you get out the shower, and the softness will last all day and you won't need to chuck on any moisturiser after!

For my hands I use the Charity Pot (not pictured) which I keep in my desk drawer at work (reason why it's not pictured). It's my go-to hand cream as it's thick and creamy but absorbs fast. It is slightly oily but I like that in a hand cream as I know it's going to last longer with those oils in there, so I guess it's a preference thing really... I also have a pot of Handy Gurugu hand cream which I keep by my bed and try to put on every night before I go to sleep. It's very thick and luxurious which is why I only put it on in bed as it takes a long time to absorb. This nightly routine helps keep my hands looking young (for now anyway...) and the massaging of my hands after a long day of social media tapping is such a nice treat and a great way to get off to sleep. It contains Shea butter which comes from a women's cooperative in Ghana called the Ojoba Project. 

For your face

Finding products for my face is a bit more complex for me, I have a combination of oily and dry skin (thanks universe) so I need to make sure I don't use products that contain too much acidity in them as I find it makes both issues worse. I used Dark Angels face and body cleanser a couple of times and I'll be honest, I was not impressed (see this isn't all rainbows and unicorns in this review) I was recommended to try it to reduce the amount of spots I was getting and was told the charcoal and avocado oil would help combat my excess oil and control impurities. Well, all it seemed to do was wreck my bathroom sink and nearly stain my face! It's so so dark that it took me forever to scrub off my face and when I did my skin was so sore! You have to break it off in 'clumps' (that's a word right?) and add water and kind off form a paste that you then put on your face. Anyway, I either did it wrong or this product needs some fine tuning - would not recommend!

I bought the 9 to 5 Cleanser for my brother at Christmas time but he left it at my parents house when he went back to uni so it magically became mine :) I haven't had a chance to try it yet but the store assistant said it's great for removing make up - maybe I didn't actually buy it with my brother in mind...

The Dream Time Temple Balm is my favourite little thing that comes in a tin! You rub it into your temple (by the sides of your eyes, I think...) and just massage it gently in circles. The combination of lavender and chamomile is perfect for a bedtime routine, plus the massaging of the temples is super relaxing.

For your hair

Me and my hair. What can I say, it's been a journey. I've got extremely thick and long hair which people are always like "I wish I had your hair" but the struggle is so real when it takes you roughly 2-3 hours to wash, blow dry and straighten your hair. It's like a part time job that I am in no way getting paid for. I'm due for a haircut and the temptation to just go Sinead O'Connor on it is so so real. This is why I find it difficult to get shampoo's and conditioners that can work through all my hair without me having to use the whole bottle! 

I really liked the idea of the shampoo bars from Lush and recently bought myself the Godiva shampoo bar (not pictured) and was told it was practically a 2-in-1 shampoo + conditioner. The first time I used it I was impressed by how clean my hair felt afterwards but it did feel dry after I blowdried it. The next time I tried using it with a Body Shop conditioner to follow, but something didn't work well there and it was so greasy afterwards it was so frustrating! The next time I used it I went back to just using it alone and, again, it cleaned my hair but it didn't feel moisturised. It did also leave little bits of flowers/residue in my hair, which is cute if you're at a festival of hippies but not so much if you're heading into the office on Monday morning... It also fell apart after my fourth wash, I think it said it would last 25 washes so yeah that was disappointing (reason it's not pictured)

So then I bought the Veganese hair conditioner, hoping that the combination of the two would solve all my hair troubles. I was told Veganese was a lightweight conditioner and would leave my hair feeling soft and shiny. It did not. I had to use a lot of this product to even get through my hair, it didn't smell great and when blowdrying my hair it felt greasy and tangly. I nearly had a bitch fit that night and my partner legit had to calm me down. It's an actual war zone on my head.

So yeah, not much good stuff to report on the hairy side of things, but keep in mind my hair is abnormally thick and unmanageable so maybe you lucky thin-haired girls will be okay.

Anyway, that's all for now - I mean I think that's more than enough don't you?? Hopefully you can strut into Lush next week and pick out your next beauty treat with confidence! Remember to indulge yourself every now and then, buying yourself something that will help you feel relaxed or good about yourself is an investment in YOURSELF! So never feel guilty about that! I hope you found some of this useful and feel free to contact me if you have any questions or if you share any of the same dilemmas! Stay beautiful xoxox