One of those bath bombs which you hope will return each year, 
Lord of Misrule was so popular in my local Lush last year, that it sold out before the Christmas sale!

Lord of Misrule has a distinctive scent, which includes Patchouli oil. Now that’s something I’d never come across before this particular bath bomb, and is something which is pretty challenging to describe.

Lush describe it as having an “earthy” scent – I’d agree with that, although it’s no way near as intense and earthy as last year’s Under the Mountain soap.

‘Breaking the rules’ once more, I spent a while hacking my bath bomb into pieces. This one was definitely not designed to break apart easily, and took a lot of time and effort to get it to separate.

Although the outer layer of Lord of Misrule is green, the centre is a purple shade. If you used the entire thing in one go, it would lead to a spectacular display, but as I broke mine into pieces, I get a slightly different effect.

It may sound strange, but I’m not all that keen on having the scent lingering on my skin for ages after I’ve finished my bath. Because I didn’t use all the bath bomb, the scent hardly lingered at all, but for me that’s perfect. If I’d used more (or all of it), no doubt the scent would still be lingering as I’m typing this.

Halloween 2018
Lord of Misrule – £4.25

Made with a Rosemary and Lavender infusion plus Juniperberry oil, Jumping Juniper has a relaxing aroma, which I spoilt slightly by having used a Whoosh! shower jelly before washing my hair.

The shampoo bar lathers up easily, which is a real bonus for my long thick hair. Lush say that the Juniperberry oil in the shampoo bar works to give hair a deep clean, which I can definitely agree with – where some shampoos can either make my hair dry, or feel like it’s weighed down, this one actually made my horribly greasy hair feel perfectly clean, without being flyaway.

Previously, I was told in the store to expect a shampoo bar to last for between 40 and 60 washes. Personally I’ve never achieved that yet, but I think the thickness of my hair has something to do with that. When I get to the point where the shampoo bar breaks, one of my housemates with shorter hair usually calls dibs on tidying up the pieces!

Shampoo
Jumping Juniper – £7.50

Monsters’ Ball is one of those bath bombs which stands out on the shelf – I’m sure those eyes were following me as I walked past the display. 

Scented with a mixture of lime, neroli and olibanum oils, it seemed vaguely familiar, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on what it reminded me of.

Now this is where I ‘break the rules’. I rarely use a bath bomb in one go – I break mine into pieces, and get multiple baths from the one bath bomb.

My Monsters’ Ball had a crack running around the middle, which made it ideal to cut through (I use a plastic knife so there’s less chance of catching my hand as I cut it). 

I didn’t use a huge amount of it, but the scent was superb and the effect in the water was equally spectacular.

It may sound strange, but I’m not all that keen on having the scent lingering on my skin for ages after I’ve finished my bath. Because I didn’t use all the bath bomb, the scent hardly lingered at all, but for me that’s perfect. If I’d used more (or all of it), no doubt the scent would still be lingering as I’m typing this.

Halloween 2018
Monsters’ Ball – £4.95

Because the packaging label was missing (there were lots of boxes in store, but none had any labels), all I knew is that it contained Snowcloud soap, and Dream Cream. The staff member in store told me it was a “small pot” so I’d assumed it was 100g, as that’s the smallest size I’ve seen for sale on the Lush site), but it’s actually a 45g pot.

The gift box was beautifully wrapped, and was approximately £12 full price (so about £6 in the sale). It contains a Snowcloud soap and a 45g pot of Dream Cream.

Opening the box, it was clear that something was rather greasy – the ingredients label was somewhat wet. Picking up the Snowcloud soap, it was clear this was where the greasiness had come from, as all the packaging pieces were stuck to it.

I know that some of the soaps can ‘leak’ oils, especially if they’re stored somewhere warm, and this is what I’m assuming has happened to the Snowcloud soap.

As with the Snap! gift box, Snowdrop gift box not something I would recommend, especially if it was full price! I’d much rather purchase the items individually, as then I know for certain the amount of each product that I’m getting, and also the quality.

Snap! is normally £16.50 (£8.25 in the sale), and contains Christmas Cracker bubble bar, Rocket Science bath bomb, and a Whoosh! shower jelly.

I love the citrus scent of the Christmas Cracker, and I’ve previously used Whoosh! so I knew I would get on with those. Opening the box, the Rocket Science bath bomb had shed everywhere – it wasn’t broken, but the base is a very crumbly texture, so each time it moved (if the box was tipped, or moved) a bit more sheds.

On to the shower jelly, which I know is usually a very wobbly consistency, but this one has definitely got a problem….

….it looks rather runny on the top doesn’t it? I thought I’d test it out to see just how much liquid there was in the pot, so I tipped it onto the lid….

….I stopped before all the liquid had drained off, as below the jelly in the pot there was even more liquid at the base!

So I really wouldn’t recommend this gift box, as it would appear the quality of the items aren’t what you would expect from an expensive Lush product.

Update:

I was able to exchange the runny Whoosh! shower jelly store, but my opinion of the gift box still stands – given that the box is sealed, you have no way of checking the quality of the contents until it’s opened.