Stagger into the store!
LUSH Fresh Handmade Cosmetics
New review!  LUSH's B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful Shower Gel
(Discontinued in 2003) – B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful Shower Gel was part of Lush's original line of honey products, which
included Honey Waffle Soap, Honey Comfort Bath Ballistic, Honey Bee Have Dusting Powder, and Flying Saucers Bubble Bar. Though
the other products in this line primarily consisted of a honey and ylang ylang recipe (which provided a lighter, more saccharine air), B
Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful Shower Gel took a headier approach while still managing to be the closest thing yet to showering with
raw honey.  (Its consistency is even sticky like pure honey!)  Now, I must confess that before discovering Lush, I was never a big fan of
honey in general, as I've always been struck by a sickly, mildly bitter "after smell".  Yet because Lush's honeyed bath products were
rounded out with sugared floras, l suddenly found myself reconsidering my anti-honey stance!  But when I bought this shower gel,
expecting a similarly softer edged fragrance, my senses were taken aback by the overwhelming smack in the nose with
five different
types of honey (plus red clover flower which, incidentally, also has a honey-like fragrance) infused with heavier florals that actually
accentuate honey's naturally acidic side.  Yet while the fragrance is a bowl-you-over perfume unto itself, the beauty of this gel is that it's
one of the kindest in existence to both skin and hair.  In fact, truth be told, I personally believe it goes down as one of Lush's all-time
best shampoos!  Honey is a marvelous anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial detoxifier, softener, conditioner, healer, and nourisher (packed
with vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and enzymes) that also acts as a sedative on the mind.  Every body part it touches becomes
retextured and tamed, leaving all known hair and skin care problems (from rugged dryness right to the other end of the spectrum with
acne prone oils) to become a distant memory.  As long as you can get past its powerful aromatic density, you'll discover that a shower
can be so much more than just another hygienic chore if taken with B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful.  
NOTE: In 2003, Lush
discontinued this Shower Gel to make room for the opening of their new parfumerie of the same name.  It is there that you can buy a
"new" version of this gel, which continues to be a Lush cult favourite to this day.
(Discontinued in 2005) – This is one of Lush’s “wakey-wakey” shower gels for kicking your butt out of bed in the morning. The irony,
however, is that Back For Breakfast primarily presents you with a breakfast fragrance that most people dread going back to:  tart, bitter
grapefruit -- the notorious fruit of choice of all torturous detox diets. (Mind you, those diets usually tell you to simply
have half a
grapefruit for breakfast.  And being that I'm all for the exploitation of dietary loopholes, I hereby rule that showering with it instead of
eating it is fair and square!)   Yet while clarifying lime and lemon tend to enhance grapefruit's acerbic side, honey water and orange run
to the rescue, attempting to add a mild sweetness to the mix.  But with this Shower Gel's recipe already teetering on the cliff of lip-
puckering astringency, due to the natural inconsistency of fresh ingredients' flavourful strengths and weaknesses from piece to piece
let alone crop to crop, depending on the handmade batch your bottle of Back For Breakfast comes from, you can either find yourself
showering in a deliciously sweetened glass of fruit juice or at the mercy of a cleaning product's spray nozzle.   Either way, though, Back
For Breakfast certainly achieves its aim of waking you up as promised, and for those who wish to tone down its tart aroma just a tad,
they should try freezing this gel for a slightly milder fragrance combined with an even louder wake-up call.  As for the 2-in-one shower
gel and shampoo that Back For Breakfast was meant to be, this enzyme rich, astringent formula is fabulous for rebalancing oily skin
and hair and calming blemishes, but can therefore also be a bit drying for almost everyone else.  Yet this is another problem that can
be minimized by freezing this gel (by simply pouring it into an ice tray), as freezing citrus products tends to kill off a few of the harsher
enzymes, leaving you not only with a milder scent, but also a milder effect on the skin.
(Discontinued in 2005) –  Do you know how some scents are so strong that you feel as though you can even taste them?  Well, that's
how Chai's overwhelmingly powerful fragrance comes off.  Not a favourite of many, this recipe of soothing chai tea, astringent lemon,
and warming cinnamon, allspice, and ginger is a bit of an acquired taste -- in part because it's overbearing, but also because it
imparts what can range from a smoky to medicinal air.   Those who go into a Chai shower expecting to come out smelling like
sweetened chai tea will no doubt feel let down, even though by now, they should know Lush a bit better than to name a product after its
scent rather than its ingredients.  Chai should be reserved for winter, and used when you're chilled to the bone and need to snuggle up
to this Shower Gel's fire red heat, lest its fragrance and aromatherapeutic effects strike you as rather off-puttingly out of place during
warmer months.  What never goes out of season, however, is Chai's unmatched ability to soften and smooth both skin and hair, this
being one of few Lush gels that actually lives up to its hype of doubling as a shampoo for all hair types.  If you can just bring yourself to
acquire a taste for Chai's intense, smoked spice aroma (for those who haven't yet done so, please postpone your attempts until
January, or you'll be guaranteed to fail), you might find yourself better able to appreciate the fact that this is actually one of Lush's better
shower gels when it comes to caring for the body and mind.
I'm generally a big fan of jasmine, but even I have my limits when it comes to partying at the ol' Jasmine Love-In Festival otherwise
known as a Flying Fox shower. This was (sort of) Lush's replacement for their discontinued B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful Shower
Gel, which was primarily a dense, bittersweet honey & red clover affair with just a dash of jasmine. But with Flying Fox, Lush has opted
to up jasmine's volume  --
so much so that initially, the voice of more subtle notes (ylang ylang, cypress, and palmarossa oils)
inevitably get lost in the bass line. At the same time, even honey ultimately gets relegated to playing cheerleader to jasmine's
saccharine side, serving to initially assault you with an overwhelming sweetness that doesn't leave you with enough aromatic space to
unravel jasmine's naturally complex air of mystery at your own leisure. Rather, Flying Fox unravels at
its own leisure. So be patient.  
Because over time, the potent bouquet of jasmine flowers will gradually round itself out on your skin and hair -- that which once struck
you as sickly sweet will slowly blossom into a heady, richly exotic, soul-soothing aphrodisiac. In all seriousness, once this happens,
don't let a man go near your hair unless you plan to insatiably take total advantage of his every weakness!  (And speaking of hair, Flying
Fox doubles wonderfully as a shampoo. Unless your hair leads a rather abusive lifestyle, you mightn't even need conditioner.) But
given how the fragrance initially approaches you, unless you altogether dislike honey or jasmine in large doses, Flying Fox will likely
prove to be a "mood shower": if you're in a sweet mood, you'll like it from start to finish. If you're not, you won't. Mood plays a large role in
what notes our olfactories will decide to detect, let alone what they'll choose to embrace or reject. And while that's true of our interaction
with most scents, the reality is that Flying Fox has opted to bet the balmy bank on it.
(Discontinued in 2005) – Intended to combat the blues associated with Seasonal Affective Disorder, violet-hued Happy For SAD is the
perfect anecdote for tired eyes and gloomy moods on the dreariest mornings, infusing your grey day with colour therapeutic purple,
widely considered a venous stimulant and hypnotic analgesic. In the shower, you're first hit with the bright scent of fresh Mandarin
oranges, followed by the zest of grapefruit to add a distinct dose of tart "wowsa" zing.  And yet, this is not your ordinary citrus scented
shower gel, as Lush also folds in alluring depth and a subtle air of mystery with the addition of tropical flora.  Anti-depressant,
euphoria-inducing neroli, a famously expensive oil from the flowers of the orange tree (and generally only found in the poshest
perfumes -- leave it to Lush to spoil us) dance in Happy For SAD's breezy, sun-filled grove, while the delicate beauty of Panamanian
dove orchids (their national flower, commonly known as the "Holy Ghost Orchid") surround it as if to protect and defend the luminous
tranquility contained within.  The result is a blurred brain cleared of clouds, this effect continuing throughout the day as you're blessed
with the occasional whiff of freshly picked fruits on your subtly sun-kissed skin and hair.  Do, however, be aware that though Lush
recommends Happy For SAD for use as both a shower gel and a shampoo, those same fruits that serve to liven your spirits
(especially oil and blemish combatant grapefruit) can also throw anything less than oily hair into a bit of a strop.  But those who can't
use this gel as a shampoo, finding the royal amethyst Happy For SAD a tad too drying for their crowning glory should look on the bright
side:  all that gel you save can be used as a bubble bath to make you just as happy during winter's rapidly descending eves as it does
in the melancholy of morning.
Normally, most people would think of grapefruit and recall those horrible diets in the 80s where half a grapefruit for breakfast left your
lips permanently pursed.  Personally, I'm not usually a big fan of the typically sour taste and aroma of grapefruit, so when I first tried
Lush's Happy Hippy Shower Gel, you can imagine my surprise when this immediately became a favourite, based on scent alone!  A
delicious concoction of pink grapefruit juice and grapefruit water, the acidic, soured edge of this fruit is softened with bergamot oil from
the fruit peel of Italian bergamia oranges (which are literally a cross between pear lemons and Seville oranges) and gently sweetened
with astringent frankincense (also known as olibanum) which adds a rich balsamic air.   This combination of oils make Happy Hippy a
scrumptious eye-opener of a morning use shower gel, far better than the lemon scented Back For Breakfast Shower Gel that it
replaced, with a far more complex fragrance to boot.  Meant to also double as a shampoo (as is the case with all of Lush's Shower
Gels bar for Skinny Dip which is actually a specially categorized skin conditioning gel), it can be a bit drying for all but oily hair.  
Grapefruit is excellent for adding shine to dull locks, but it's also quite a hefty antiseptic, most commonly used in products for oily skin
thanks to its potent enzymatic action.  And though Happy Hippy will leave its delicate perfume in your squeaky clean hair, the downside
to is that it generally leaves little trace of itself on your skin, which is a real shame considering its tension relieving, rejuvenating,
centering aromatherapeutic powers could otherwise have made a positive impact that lasted far longer than the stream of water from
your shower head.
(Discontinued in 2005) – Narcotick, a thick beautiful looking royal blue shower gel, is supposed to have rather medicinal purposes: it’s
excellent for ridding your body of spots, and used as a shampoo, it’s quite good for dandruff and itchy scalps (thanks to tea tree).
Problem is, it’s almost too medicinal: the predominant notes in the shower are the oddly sweet tea tree, sharp lemon, and herbal
rosemary, which together manage to smell a bit like old-fashioned cough syrup. (Perhaps that’s where Narcotick gets it’s name?)
Once out of the shower, the scent gradually lightens up; as tea tree calms down a bit, you'll be better able to appreciate the freshness
of lemon and rosemary before rose finally introduces herself. For the body, however, even oilier skin will find Narcotick to be slightly
drying, and sensitive skin might even encounter a bit of itchiness along with this dehydration. To counter these effects, I recommend
following this shower with a touch of Dream Cream body lotion, as this will also serve to bring Narcotick’s rose & lavender  to the
surface a bit more, enabling you to overcome the powerful scent of tea tree early on.
The Olive Branch shower gel smells a lot like fizzy orange soda. With mandarin, lemon, bergamot, and orange flower, it has an
uplifting zing with the occasional note of masculinity thanks to antioxidant-rich vine leaf and olive oil lending a slightly greener air to the
sunshiny mix. Not to mention you get the feeling that there’s a bit of musky spryness contained in the secret “perfume” ingredient, as
well. This makes The Olive Branch an excellent shower gel for luring men into Lushland; it’s essentially a unisex fragrance that leans
ever so slightly towards the sparkling scent of men’s cologne. And it leaves quite a bit of that sporty deliciousness in its post-shower
wake, especially when used a shampoo. Moving beyond fragrance, The Olive Branch is an unusually watery gel: even moreso than
Sonic Death Monkey.  Yet though it's next to impossible to
get just a little being that it runs out of the bottle so quickly (and shaking the
bottle first doesn't do much to thicken its consistency), a little does indeed go a long way.  Just a few drops will lather your body and
hair fabulously, leaving both feeling soft and smooth: olive oil is packed with nourishing, moisturizing vitamin E, one of the great anti-
agers, and when combined with lemon and mandarin, hair (especially normal to oily) is given shine, scalp and skin are toned and all
of the above are left looking at least 30 minutes younger!
(Discontinued in 2005 and reformulated as a Buttercream) – Despite its always having been described as “Lush’s white chocolate
shower gel”, there’s nothing so basic or universally delicious about Skinny Dip’s fragrance. Don’t’ get me wrong: candy-rific creamed
coconut and cocoa butter do indeed blend with tiny shavings of rich white chocolate and sweet ylang ylang. But then Lush adds
penetratingly spicy oriental cloves, herbal clary sage, incensed cedarwood (used by Egyptians in the embalming process and as a
moth repellant in the West—‘nuff said), and mossy vetivert oil, with the sweet vs. smoky end result reminding you more of a cigar shop
than a candy shop. And this is no wimpy perfume, either; it follows you around all day (especially if you wash your hair with it),
mercilessly putting you in a choke hold for the remainder of the day. Do yourself a favour, though: try (hard as this might be) to get used
to it. I know, I know…sounds crazy to suggest such a thing after I’ve made the whole aromatic experience sound positively horrid—and
this coming from someone who refuses to make compromises on any beauty product’s behalf. But hear me out: there’s a reason
Skinny Dip used to be listed with the skin conditioners and not with the shower gels. As regards skin care, it is genuinely the best
shower experience on earth, what with all of the aforementioned ingredients respectively performing miracles as moisturizers,
nourishers, softeners, firmers, anti-irritants, tonifiers, stimulators, and balancers. It works magic on
all skin types (though it’s nothing
short of a godsend on dry skin), and even works as a great deep-conditioning shampoo treatment for normal to dry hair, thanks in
large part to Skinny Dip’s coconut and cocoa butter base. Yes, it can be more than a bit pongy, but when you hear people say “I hated
the smell at first, but then I gradually became addicted to it and couldn’t live with out it,” now you know why: Skinny Dip literally works
over your nose’s head, schmoozing with your body until the two become best friends.
(Limited Edition for Christmas 2005) –   For the first time in their ten year existence, Lush finally decided to create a Christmas Shower
Gel!  Yay for them!  (Insert my celebratory dance solo here.)  But that's not the only good news:  this is, in my opinion, one of the best
Shower Gels they've
ever created.  If you like sweeter, fruitier scents, you'll love Snow Fairy:  it's bubble gum and cotton candy love at
first sniff, but once in the shower, it smells quite a bit like watermelon Jolly Rancher candies and ripe bananas.  Some people say that
they find this fragrance to be "plastic" and "chemical", but I disagree.  All I smell are candied Floridian fruits.  Others say this fragrance
is far too sweet, but again I disagree: it is indeed a potent "ooh mama!" of a fruit cocktail, but I believe that to be part of its greatness.
Besides, those most likely to find this scent sickly will be those who don't like bananas. (Bananas aren't listed in the ingredients, but
they are most definitely lurking around in the secret "perfume" ingredients, and doing so in a not-so-subtle fashion -- kind of like a
sequined drag queen at a corporate conference.)  Once out of the shower, what began as an intoxicating concoction turns into a
perfectly subtle dose of sweet, musked fruit on both skin and hair. And when this Shower Gel is doubled as a shampoo, not only does
hair smell good enough to eat, but it's softer than ever, this also being one of Lush's all-time greatest Liquid Shampoos for all hair
types.  Extremely dry, damaged, coarse, thick hair might want to follow up with a light detangler, but for everybody else, conditioner
need not apply.  (I owe this to the nature of softening, conditioning bananas, which I swear are in there!)  The only disappointment
regarding this Shower Gel is the lack of promised iridescence.  The label tells you to expect glitter (hence the name "Snow Fairy", as it
contains "fairy dust"), and if you look at the bottle, here and there you'll occasionally spot clusters of sparkling purple-blue hues.  But
that's the catch:  there's so little glitter, for the most part it basically just sticks to the inside of the bottle.  Those who aren't glitter-happy
will be pleased to know that they won't encounter a single speck of fairy dust.  But for self-proclaimed glitter goddesses who emerge
from the shower untouched by a fairy, they will doubtless feel a bit cheated.
Thanks to the heady scent of hemp oil, Sonic Death Monkey often strikes you as a sort of milk chocolaty version of Skinny Dip shower
gel (which was made with white chocolate, that.) Hemp oil gives this shower gel a smokier air, and one that seems a bit out of place
as it often overpowers this shower gel’s fragrant core: the foodier sweetness of cocoa, orange, tangerine, and vanilla – all of which
combine with the bitterness of top quality Arabian coffee. But while I believe that Sonic Death Monkey could have easily done without
the hippy-ish perfume of hemp oil, fact is, it is precisely this ingredient that makes Sonic Death Monkey such a wonderfully moisturizing
2-in-one shower gel and shampoo. Hemp oil is fabulous for dry and mature skin, as it contains omega-3 and gamma linoleic acid,
both being considered two of the world’s best anti-aging fatty acids for all skin types. Coffee and cocoa jointly act as stimulants (and
both are excellent at combating water retention) while restorative, astringent, tonifying lime, tangerine, and orange oils leave slackened
skin feeling firm and smooth. As a shampoo, even the thickest, coarsest hair is tamed and softened, making this the perfect travel
companion for light packers and gym-goers alike. Compared to most shower gels on the market, you’ll find that Sonic Death Monkey is
a bit watery: just shake the bottle a bit and don’t feel a need to compensate for the consistency; appearances can be deceiving as a
little goes quite a long way. Like Skinny Dip, this is a top notch skin conditioning gel, but
unlike Skinny Dip, the lingering aroma isn’t
terribly overpowering. Nor is the smokier aspect of this shower gel’s fragrance quite as overbearing. Skinny Dip fans will want to see
these two shower gels sitting side by side in their shower caddies at all times. On the other hand, those of us who love what Skinny
Dip does for our skin, but find its scent of stale cigar smoke to be utterly off-putting, just might have found a slightly more tolerable
substitute that simply takes a wee bit of getting used to.