Clockwise from L to R:

TAYA BEAUTY Amazon White Clay Thickening Shampoo & Conditioner ($20/10oz each @ tayabeauty.com) – listen up flat and thin-haired peeps! These two will puff up strands to unseen proportions! Ok, maybe I’m being dramatic but my hair did seem a tad thicker than usual after using these for a few weeks. Both are formulated with real Amazon White Clay, extracts of Croton Lechleri Resin (also called Dragon’s Blood and is used to kill germs and heal wounds. Not sure why they use it in these two products!) and Raw Avocado Oil.

SKIN & CO. ROMA Sicilian Body Gel ($18.50/7.7oz @ dermstore.com) – this product has made this my favorite new line this month! It uses coconut-based surfactants (for lather) and extracts of organic olives, Sicilian oranges and a combo of oats and rice to keep dry skin at bay, which is really needed this time of year. The smell of this one is hard to describe besides what I picture every sophisticated house in Italy to smell like. Big recommendation (obviously)!

BE DELECTABLE Coconut & Cream Super Smoothing Body Polish ($14/8oz @ target.com) – coming to us from the Canadian line, Cake Beauty, this whole collection made up of creams, mists, body washes and body scrubs is quite obsessed with smelling like desserts! Take the aforementioned body polish. It’s made with coconut oil, aloe vera, and super fine apricot shells. And I’m normally not attracted to smell of dessert unless I’m eating it, but this coconut and cream really has me hooked.

LUSH Whoosh ($6.95-$11.95/3.5oz to 8.4oz @ lush.com) – when temps drop, most of us conserve water by taking less showers and baths but when we do, don’t you want to use one that conserves moisture too? This jelly body cleanser contains glycerin and honey to help skin keep skin from getting dry, which is my problem during these months. Oh and they also threw in some rosemary, grapefruit and lemon to give your nose a thrill too.

ZELENS Aka-Shiso Reviving Mineral Shower ($45/6.8oz @ barneys.com) – how cool is it that the Zelens line has moved into body care or did I miss it when they went in this direction? Anyway, I’ve been alternating between the above body cleansers and this one in the shower. This one contains 5 essential minerals and omega-3s (one of which is Shiso (Perilla) Oil) to not only clean but really feed the skin and energize it. 

Disclosure: Some of these items were provided for review purposes. Some I bought.

I’ve been feeling a little fruity when it comes to scents in the shower and these two have been filling up my nose with delight!

LUSH Rose Jam Shower Gel ($10.95 - $29.95 @ lush.com) – I just noticed that this is not a permanent product in the line, however, their UK site ships internationally so I’ve linked to that site if you want to order. And oh, you should so order this! Upon first giving this one a whiff, it’s like one of those Zest soap commercials from yester-year – the whole body wakes up and a smile comes across the face. The combination of Rose Obsolute, Rose Oil Egyptian Geranium and Sicilian Lemon is so delightful. And oh, before I forget, you should know that it also works nicely as a shower gel. Haha. Hopefully they will make this a permanent product in the line soon. 

GOURMET BODY PASTRIES Lemon Soufflé Sugar Body Scrub ($14/4oz, $25/8oz @ gourmetbodypastries.com) – If you like dessert-scented products, support indy brands, and prefer using products with real ingredients inside, this would be a great brand for you to try. Take their scrub. You just gotta love a product with just the essentials – sugar, castor oil (not just for constipation. It’s a great humectant), olive oil, essential oil and fresh lemon zest. Like the above one, this is another that has me sniffing and sniffing it for the love of the lemon. And the prices are right on. 

Disclosure: Samples of these item were provided for review purposes.

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What It Is: a bevy of LUSH Bath Bombs - $4.95 to $6.95/3oz to 7oz @ lush.com

Why I Like It: I wanted to get this recommendation in early as the holiday parties will be starting! Since we’re in full-on bath season, why not get creative with your gift to the host/hostess? Instead of a boring bottle of wine, a few bath bombs in a basket makes a for a fun gift. Pick some of the holiday ones like Father Christmas (bergamot, citrus, gardenia), Cinders (gardenia, orange, cinnamon), or the year round best-selling Snowman (musk, ylang-ylang,vanilla). Over 25 different combos to choose from!

It’s funny how we are programmed to think something is good if it smells good and it’s bad if the smell is unpleasant. So not true and I’ve really had to train myself to not think like this. And I was challenged with the new Blousey Shampoo from LUSH. It doesn’t smell bad, just not as pleasant as 99% of Lush products are.

I’m always so careful of what I put on my hair not only because of my hair color but also my Brazilian Straightening Treatment, or whatever name it’s going by these days. Companies sneak things in so I have to read the ingredients when it comes to any shampoo or just stick with what I know, which is usually from Pureology.

I know that Lush uses real quality ingredients when it comes to their products but I have tried a few that had Sodium Laureth Sulfates in them, which we know messes with hair color/Brazilian, so the ingredient list on this one was like 50 Shades of Grey, a must-read!

First, know that this one is made just for those with chemically-treated, damaged or color-treated strands, and the first ingredient in the list? Fresh Organic Bananas! Then Pimento Berry, Fair Trade Cloves a few more and then … BAM Ammonium Laureth Sulfate. Sounds bad. Sounds related to the Sodium Laureth Sulfate/SLS’s I mentioned above, and it is. Yes, it’s a surfactant that gives you the lather but they claim this one is gentle in, “a minimum concentration.” So this one might hassle your color/Brazilian a little bit but, if you are a Lush fan and the rest of this jives with you, you may want to try/investigate this one for yourself. Just don’t look to it to smell nice, because it doesn’t. $25/8.4oz @ lush.com.

If you’re talking gift giving, then the LUSH brand should jump into your brain as all of their products are great for giving.

What it is: LUSH … Had A Very Shiny Nose

Why I like it: Gift sets are the total way to go and this one is all wrapped up and ready. It contains: Mr. Punch soap (3.5oz), The Olive Branch Shower Gel (3.3oz) and Sandy Santa (3.6oz). No small sample sizes here.

Price: $23.95 @ lush.com.

Lush Jasmine and Henna Fluff Ease- Hall of Fame Worthy?

Pros – a deep conditioning hair defrizz-er.
Cons – none that I can think of!

Does it stay in the Hall of Fame?

Click here to read more

Lush BIG Shampoo – Hall of Fame Worthy?

Pros – smells sooo good and helps give hair volume.
Cons – contains sulfates. Pricey.

Does it stay in the Hall of Fame?

Click here to read more

You know you’ve got a winner on your hands when you can smell the product through the packaging. And this is the case with LUSH’s Angel’s Delight Soap ($5.95/3.5oz @ lush.com). This one has real tangerine oil inside and just a splash of blackcurrent. And this one is just so colorful, which is great for anytime of the year, really.

LUSH puts our great holiday items, so I’ll be peppering this guide with a bath bomb here or soap there, so be sure to check back.

My first pick from their line of holiday goodies that won’t break the bank is their Golden Wonder ($6.95.7.8oz @ lush.com) bath bomb. This one smells of fruity citrus of orange and lime and contains cognac oils.

Disclosure: A sample of this item was provided for review purposes.

 
Leave it to LUSH to continue to come up with super clever names for their products (how does one apply for this job?). Rub, Rub, Rub is the latest one and it falls into my favorite category of body exfoliators. Made for me by Vic (I’m going to start recognizing the person on each product in reviews!), this one uses fine sea salt, fresh organic lemon juice, jasmine flower infusion, mimosa absolute and orange flower absolute, to name a few ingredients; smells great, works great! And it can do double duty and be used as a shampoo.

One thing I can’t quite figure out is why it’s blue? There’s nothing in the ingredient list I can see that would make that color except the last one listed on the label, the Blue No. 1 dye inside. So Lush, why the blue? $19.95/11.6oz @ lush.com.

The product contains Sodium Laureth Sulfate, which is seen by some as an ingredient of concern. Read more about it here.

Read my ingredient disclaimer here.