My Honest LUSH Review Part Two

LUSH might be out of my price range, but they're still one of my favorite stores to browse. The bright colors, bold fragrances and varying textures make LUSH a dream for people who value sensory experiences. For fellow LUSH enthusiasts, here's my honest, non-sponsored review of a few products I tried recently--including a limited-edition formula that we might not see again for a while.

1. Banana Conditioner

Banana Conditioner is loaded with creamy ingredients that I'd love to eat, including almond milk, coconut yogurt, extra virgin olive oil, cupuaçu butter and organic bananas. Ideally, these ingredients come together to strengthen your hair while boosting the softness and sheen.

Inside the pot, this conditioner smelled like a blend of bananas and Play-Doh. I scooped out some of the white, creamy conditioner and scrubbed it into my hair, expecting a thick lather. In fact, the product didn't lather like I was expecting, so coverage was a little hard to determine.

Luckily, it worked: my hair felt softer the next day, and brushing out tangles was a breeze. I didn't use shampoo at first because I wanted to see how this product worked on its own. After a couple of days, my hair started to feel a little sticky and stringy, so I started using my regular shampoo alongside the conditioner.

Throughout the week, my 2A hair responded well to this product. I noticed fewer tangles, increased volume and reduced frizz and matting, although the frizz didn't disappear entirely. If I had the money, I'd probably start using this conditioner regularly, but I'll have to stick with samples for now. Maybe one day, LUSH will start offering a bargain bin for broke authors like me.

2. Shoot For The Stars Body Scrub

Shoot For The Stars Body Scrub's eclectic mix of ingredients includes sea salt, creamed coconut, corn starch and Brazilian orange oil. This creates a thick, exfoliating lotion with hard granules that aim to scrub off dead skin and leave you with a healthy glow.

With a bright blue hue and an intensely sweet fragrance, this scrub seemed like a sugary treat for my skin. I expected an abrasive texture, but when I applied this product in the shower, it was surprisingly smooth and soft. The formula briefly tinted my hands blue before it dissolved into a clear, soap-like substance with a thin lather.

The scrub worked quickly, too: right after rinsing, my skin felt soft and clean. You can use it almost anywhere on your body, so if you're trying to buff out some tough areas, this product might leave you feeling clear and refreshed. Plus, LUSH sells a variety of body scrubs for people who prefer different colors and scents.

3. Medusa's Snake Foot Smoothie

When I searched for Medusa's Snake Foot Smoothie online to find a list of ingredients, I learned that LUSH had already deleted this product from their website. Turns out, this is a limited-edition Halloween formula and not a permanent product. Still, it might come back, so I'll share my review for interested parties.

True to the Halloween theme, this formula had a creamy texture, a metallic purple hue and a fruity, mildly spicy aroma that I can only describe as a cross between plums and fresh laundry. My feet are pretty dry, so I didn't have high hopes for this product, but I massaged it into my feet and rinsed it off to see what happened anyway.

Surprisingly, my feet immediately felt softer. This lotion also tackled the dead skin on my heels, which have been problem areas for a while. When I tried the lotion on my hands, the abrasive formula left my skin feeling intensely smooth and "squeaky" with tiny flecks of dead skin on the surface, implying that the exfoliant did its job.

Clearly, this was a more heavy-duty product than the traditional body scrubs. For this reason, I wish Medusa were a permanent fixture, but I guess I'll have to wait for next Halloween before I can try it again. In the meantime, I'll keep looking for a tough, hard-scrubbing exfoliant.

4. Blueberry Roly Poly Fresh Cleanser

Blueberry Roly Poly Fresh Cleanser features clay, aloe gel, organic blueberries, coconut yogurt, calamine powder and other refreshing ingredients. Essentially, this is a cross between a cleanser and a mud mask, and application takes some effort: you'll mix the formula with water to form a paste, then smear it on your face and rinse it off.

Once I brought it home, I quickly noticed that this product had a sweet, earthy fragrance, a bluish-grey hue and a texture that reminded me of modeling clay. When I pinched off a piece and ran it under the faucet, the formula became wet and runny. I felt like I was back in middle school, making clay projects for art class.

The product left a greyish, chalky residue on my face until I rinsed it off with a cloth. Afterward, my face felt drier and smoother, which was nice because my skin is fairly oily. However, it's easy to leave some of the product on your skin, so make sure you wash thoroughly after application.

LUSH excels at creating products for people who enjoy tactile sensations, and this cleanser was definitely fun to use, but the added effort is also a drawback. If you're in a hurry, you probably won't want to spend time mixing the clay with water. This product is best for customers with extra time for skincare, not people who want a moisturizer they can quickly dab on their faces.

5. Cherry Lip Scrub

Cherry Lip Scrub is one of the few "forbidden snacks" that you can actually eat. The list includes caster sugar, cherry kernel oil, shea butter, cocoa absolute, almond essential oil and more edible ingredients, although they probably don't taste very good in this format. Once you've applied this scrub, the website recommends licking off the excess.

Bright and cheery, this scrub had a bold magenta hue and a synthetic aroma that reminded me of cherry-flavored cough syrup. As instructed, I scooped some out and smeared it on my lips, noticing that the formula turned my fingertip pink. When I licked off the excess, the flavor was fruity and saccharine.

The sugar crystals created a tough, abrasive scrub that removed most of the dead skin from my lips, creating a softer, smoother texture. It didn't eliminate dryness, but it's a good option for people with chapped lips. Plus, the bright pink color might put you in a peppy mood.

Have you tried any of these products? What's your usual LUSH order? Let me know in the comments.