Almond and Coconut Smoothie!

So, I don't often say this, but Amond and Coconut Smoothie was one product I never really got into previously, even though just about anyone who's ever tried it - Lushie or newbie alike - adored it. I had tried it once, a long time ago, and for some reason, hadn't been crazy about it. But recently, I decided almost on a whim to purchase a full-size one and try again. Talk about best decision ever! Everyone on staff always talked about how wonderful it was as a shaving cream, so I decided that would be my first test for it. Can I just say, it was one of my favorite Lush experiences thus far! I couldn't get over how soft and smooth it felt on my skin, needless to say how silky my legs were after. I am usually very picky about what I will use as a shaving cream, since my skin is super sensitive...but I absolutely loved the way this practically melted into my skin, giving the slightest hint of lather when encouraged.

After I shaved, I was so excited about how awesome it had been, I decided to try it as a body wash as well, and it was absolutely heavenly! Ridiculous amounts of lather where achievable, but it never felt even a little drying. After that, I finished with a little King of Skin. Talk about softest skin ever! Needless to say, Almond and Coconut Smoothie has become an exciting new addition to my Lush routine.

How to melt your Deodorant!

o we all know the Lush's deodorants are a little different than most on the market. Not only are they aluminum free, but they also are sold in chunks by the quarter pound. They are unique because they are not antiperspirants, but they are amazing at actually deodorizing your pits!
There are two powders: The Greeench and Coconut Powder.
After that is T'eo, which is made up of baking soda crystals and tons of lemon oil.
The two Solids are Aromoco and Aromorant, and they kind of melt onto your skin.

The downfall? They are sometimes kind of a hassle to apply. I know that's what made me hesitate- I like to get ready and get out the door as fast as possible. So after reading through the Lush North America Forum, I found an idea to help me out, and I will be showing you how you can do it too!

So basically, we are taking the solid deodorants, and melting them into a typical deodorant container. This way it is easier to apply, and easier to transport. Let's begin!

1. Pick out what you're using. The products that I used today are Aromorant and T'eo. I imagine you can use any combination of the deo's that you'd like, but a solid one is pretty mandatory.

2. Obtain an empty deodorant container. I used one from an old Secret I had pre-Lush. Twist it all the way up and use a butter knife to get big chunks out, hot water is great for getting it out of the tray at the bottom.

 

3. Prepare your choices. I cut the Aromorant into chunks, and I chopped up the T'eo to be super fine.

4. This part can get tricky: Because the tray that hold the deodorant has empty holes in it, you need to take little pieces of the solid deo and smoosh them into the holes. This way, when you pour the melted deo into the container, it doesn't fill up the bottom, instead of the tray. Twist the tray back into the container.

5. After this, find yourself a MICROWAVE SAFE bowl, glass is the best option. Put one or two chunks of the Aromaco or Aromarant in it. I also put my T'eo powder in there too, in hopes that once melted, they two could mix and be awesome.

6. I put the bowl in the microwave for 15 seconds at a time. If it wasn't completely melted I just put it in again. Be careful when you take it out though because not only will the liquid be super hot, but some pretty strong deo smells came out of the microwave too.

7. Twist the container all the way back down. Carefully pour the liquid into the container. Once you get to the top you can go a little over the top, the excess just drips over the sides.

8. Now, you wait for it to harden. If you're impatient like me, you can put it in the fridge, as long as it's still standing up right.

9. You're pretty much done! Just clean off any drips down the sides and put the cap back on!

*I will say that mixing the T'eo in with it made it a little bit gritty, but not as gritty at the actual T'eo bar. If you react badly to minor irritation, I wouldn't recommend mixing in T'eo.

I hope you all enjoyed my instructions, hopefully it makes your deo's a little easier to put on!!

If any of you try any other combination, I'd love to see how they turn out!!!

I'm really loving our Knots . . .

We recently donated all of our paper gift wrap and are now carrying what we call Knot Wraps... inspired by the Japanese tradition of Furoshiki.

Here you can check out our lovely limited edition MUM wrap.


I don't know about you but I hate wasting paper on gift wrap and I usually do it only because its what socially expected. Our Knot Wraps are perfect for preventing that... its a part of the gift! You use it to transport items and to give items.

In the Japanese culture some wraps are Family tradition and have been in the fmaily for years and years. When using a wrap that is a part of the family, you keep the wrap but present the gift from the wrap. When it is a part of the gift they keep it and can either use it for future gifts or many many other things!





Here is how I sport mine =)

My favorites are being discontinued... What now!?

I've just received the e-mail from Lush about the products that will be discontinued in the next few months. A few of which are my personal favorites, but I'm sure each will be missed dearly! So what are some replacements that we can use?? Most of these are for the scents, feel free to share any replacements you might have in mind!

1. Yummy Yummy Yummy Shower Gel

This strawberry scented shower gel can't really be replaced by any other soap in the store, but the Strawberry Feels Forever massage bars is basically the exact same scent.

2. Happy Pill Bath Bomb

This citrus-y bath bomb is one of the slow fizzers, and this experience can't be replaced by any other. But in an attempt to recreate the scent, an Avo Bath bath bomb and a chunk of Pop in the Bath bubble bar might suffice. The Avo bath will take care of the lemon-y side of Happy Pill, while the bergamot oil in Pop in the Bath provides the warm happy feeling.


3. Tramp Shower Gel

To satisfy your inner hippie with patchouli, crumble some Blue Skies and Fluffy White Clouds into your bath. Sugar Scrub's scent will provide the earth-y undertones from Tramp. Also be sure to check out Lush's Goth Juice hair styling gel!

4. Mirror Mirror Neck Cream

The brand new product Lovely Jubblies is virtually the exact same thing as Mirror Mirror if you look at the ingredients. I think Lush just decided to make a bigger pot of it since so many people were using Mirror Mirror on their cleavage and entire chest area. Plus, who can refuse that name!?

5. I Should Coco Soap

Lucky for coconut lovers out there, Lush LOVES coconut! Here are just a few of the coconut scented products: Coco Lotion, Coolaulin Conditioner, Trichomania Shampoo, Coconut deodorant powder, Almond and Coconut Smoothie shower smoothie, and Curly Wurly Shampoo!

6. Karma Dusting Powder

Unforunately, no other dusting powder has a similar scent to Karma, but so many other products come in the Karma scent! Where do I even start? Shampoo bar, lotion, bubble bar, solid soap, solid and liquid perfume, (holiday) emotibomb!

What are you going to replace your favorite discontinued items with?

My 3 New Favorites (this month)

I recently decided to give three products that I previously thought weren't for me a try. And let me tell you...I'm SO glad that I did. They've quickly become some of my newest favorites.

Product number 1: Herbalism


I always thought it wasn't for me because I have never seen my skin as "problem skin." And I thought my combination skin was the poster child for Coal Face. The problem was Coal Face didn't do it for me when my skin started to get the occasional pimple. (Which has been happening more than usual lately.) :(

Brice and I decided to try out Herbalism at the same time - because her skin had been acting up too. I cannot rave about how much my skin has improved in the last couple of weeks. The pimples are under control (thanks to the nettle powder), my skin is softer (courtesy of the ground almonds and glycerine), and more even looking (thank you rosemary, chlorophyllin water and rose absolute). If your skin sounds like mine, don't be afraid to give Herbie a try. You might be just as amazed as I was. :)

Product number 2: Curly Wurly


I don't know why I didn't try this shampoo sooner. I've always loved the coconut and vanilla scent of it, but I thought it just wasn't the right product for me because: a) my hair isn't curly (except for that one hair stylist that I had that told me that I had naturally wavy hair, but I didn't believe her.), and b) my hair isn't dry.

I LOVE Lush's haircare products, but haven't found my ultimate favorite combination yet. So, I've been experimenting a lot. This morning I tried Curly Wurly for this first time and I LOVE how my hair looks and feels. That natural waviness is coming out and it's not frizzy! (And a bonus: I didn't have to use a conditioner.) I shouldn't have ignored the fact that one of the benefits of this shampoo are it helps tame frizz. Absolutely amazing. Here's a picture to prove it. (I let my hair air dry, which usually means a frizzy mess.)



Product number 3: King of Skin



Ok. So maybe it's not that I didn't think this product was right for me. I was just stubborn and didn't think that I needed it. After all, I have a million lotions and massage bars. But, my legs have been really dry lately - so much that I'm scratching them - and I needed a solution.

The ingredients in King of Skin: cocoa butter, shea butter and coconut butter, bananas, toning essential oils, jojoba and almond oils, fresh avocado and oatmeal - are amazingly luxurious and soothing. I LOVE the convenience of using the product in the shower and not having to put lotion on after. And the moisture lasts all day and then some!

So, those are my new favorites. What are yours?

KOS

I just fell in love with the King Of Skin all over again.







Buffy has always been my girl and she has been exfoliating and moisturizing my body everyday for a year now.



For some reason my skin has grown to become itchy in the middle of the day!....That's because I was not rotating with the King of Skin. I ran out of this guy maybe 3 months ago and kept telling myself Buffy will get me through this and I don't need another body butter. Boy was I wrong.

The oat, banana and avocado make this puppy not only the most nourishing bar we carry but it also gives it a unique 3 month self life. You should always use on your skin what you would put in your body.

Speaking of what we eat, has everyone seen the documentary FOOD INC.?

YOU should Coco

I'll start out by saying, I am one of those hardcore coconut lovers. Not only do I like coconut flavored anything, but I am in love with the scent as well. This fruit is a key component in almost every natural beauty product out there because it is so moisturising. Luckily, Lush products can satisfy my scent cravings and whisk me away to a tropical island...or at least make me smell like one. Summer isn't that far away, so I thought it would be great to get Lushies in the warm weather spirit with some of my favorite coconut scented products. I will also include some good cocktail suggestions to turn the coco-haters into coco-lovers! Haha... Here are some ideas on how to coco yourself from head to toe!

1) Curly Wurly Shampoo, Trichomania Shampoo & Coolaulin Conditioner- Not just for curly hair! Try to mix a little of each with another type of shampoo or conditioner and make a tropical hair cocktail. One of Carissa's favorites is Big with Curly Wurly. Volume and moisture in one, plus the scent of lime. Or try Coolaulin with American Cream for sweet coconut milkshake scented hair.

2) I Should Coco Soap & Almond & Coconut Smoothie- The other day, some girls came into our shop and picked up the I Should Coco soap and exclaimed, "This smells like vacation!!" I thought that was a perfect description. Not only does this soap have a certain toasted coconut smell, but it has loads of little coconut shreds throughout it to give you a nice soft scrub. In regard to the Almond & Coconut Smoothie, pretty amazing on its own, but try mixing one of our fruity shower gels (like Olive Branch!) to make it smell even more tropical.

3) Coco Lotion Hand & Body Lotion- Our newest lotion! This one doesn't have any added fragrance except for its subtle natural coconut oil smell, along with a hint of mandarin, rosemary, and pineapple juice. This product is so light and creamy, without any cocoa butter, so it is especially great for warmer weather.

4) Coconut Deodorant Powder- After you are all showered and moisturised, grab some Coconut Deodorant Powder and scatter it anywhere that you want to stay dry and smell nice. Sprinkle some in your shoes, too! This might be fun to mix with the Vanilla Puff Powder or on top of Heavenilli Massage Bar, which has extra virgin coconut oil in it, too.

Enjoy your tropical cocktails!