Wednesday, October 27, 2010

My Own Little Pot Of Happiness!

Ok, so maybe the Lush posts are getting a little rediculous, but I went in yesterday to check out the new Holiday line, with high hopes of seeing a comeback from my favourite Lush product, Santa's rice Porridge Fresh Face Mask.  Made with brandy and cranberries, this mask was detoxifying while nourishing my tired, snow-stricken face, and I looooved the smell, so you can only imagine my disappointment to see that they decided not to bring it back this year......but........



I present to you: Buche De Noel, Lush's newest Limited Edition Facial Cleanser.  Now if you've been reading my blog posts for a while, you might remember my rave about Angels on Bareskin, my absolute fave facial cleanser by Lush. [ click here if you haven't seen it yet: http://deanne5253.blogspot.com/2010/03/lush-angels-on-bareskin-cleanser.html ]  This is very similar in concept, but they have created it entirely around the basis of the Santa's Rice Porridge face mask!  It smells like cherries and almond (LOVE), and applies exactly like Angels On Bareskin [again, click the link to see the application in more detail].  I've only been using this for two days, which is usually enough for me to decide if it's going to irritate my skin in any way, and it's unreal.  I do suffer from a lot of redness in my skin, and find that this cleanser works better with my skin than products i've tried that are geared toward roseacia, including the clinique redness solutions.  HIGHLY recommend, based on scent alone.  OH and also, if you create a concauction of this stuff using more product and less water, i.e. more of a thick, paste type consistency, you can smear it on and leave it for about 5 minutes for a makeshift face mask :) LOVE! 


Sunday, October 24, 2010

5 Tips for Lovely Lush Face Masks

I am fully aware that I create a written blog post about once every 2 months, and they are almost always about skincare. Weird. However, as I was scraping the last of my Catastrophe Cosmetic out of its little black jar the other day, I thought, I wonder how many people only use these face masks as a face mask? These things expire so quickly, are people really putting 3-5 face masks on their faces in the span of a week? Any why wouldn't they? Labels like that can be so restricting on our creative minds.  Here are a couple of tips and reminders on how to use your Fresh Lush Face Masks!

For reference, my faves are Catastrophe Cosmetic, Oatifix, and the LE Santa's Rice Porridge.
On my dislike list; Love Lettuce and Ayesha (only because of the smell, couldn't stand to keep these on my face for more than 3 minutes...but I know many people LIVE by love Lettuce.)

1. Body Mask


This is probably the most obvious second use, but looking at that large jar and the quickly approaching expiry date, slap it on....allllllll over.  Some of these face masks including Love Lettuce have little tiny granules in it that will also serve as a nice exfoliant.  I love to use them on my legs....you can either stand around in the bathroom over a towel as it dries, or use it in the tub while leaving your arms/legs out of the water to dry. Or if all of this is a little too much for you, a simple rub on and rinse off in the shower will do just fine!


2. Spot Treatment




Don't reach for expensive drying serums or spot treatments! Lush Cupcake face mask has to be one of the best spot trreatments I've ever used.  I dont get zits often, but when I do they are the kind that I can feel growing deep beneath my skin, without showing any surface evidence.  I love to jump in a bath or open up my pores with some warm water, then use this mask as a little on-the-spot treatment.  Cupcake is a wonderful thick mask made with cocoa which actually pulls impurities out of your skin, although I have not tried any other face masks for this purpose, I'm sure there are many others which would serve just as well!

3. Pack it on, Grind it off


Some of these babies can be prettttttty thick; and coming from a history of store-bought, paraben-filled face masks, you will be tempted to be extra cautious and apply a thin layer of the thick Lush goodness.  In order to achieve full results, you're going to want to apply a thick layer to a clean, prefferably open-pored (i.e. use warm steam or water to open the pores prior to applying) face.  The tough part about this can be taking it off....many Lush masks can include blueberries, almonds, cranberries, etc.  and can be a b!tch to cram down your bathroom sink.  I recommend taking early measures to get a strainer, use a face cloth you aren't emotionally attached to, or even remove it over your garborator in your kitchen sink to avoid any unnecessary clogged sinks.


4. Face Wash




This is a tip you sensitive-skinned girls will love.  I, myself, suffer with a lot of redness on my skin, and anything that foams up too much or has a high soapy content, my skin will tomato-ize in a matter of seconds.  The nice thing about these face masks is they really do get your skin nice and clean, while nourishing it and not leaving any residue behind.  I reccommend using a face wipe or makeup remover prior to this, as you should avoid your eye area and definitley not rely on this to remove eye makeup. The granuled masks also serve as a great exfoliator, although with ingredients like almonds, they can be a little harsh to use more than once a week on your face.

5. Five = Free!
 Possibly the best part of this whole ordeal! Now that you know how to use your Lush face masks, and you'll be whipping through a new one every week, remember to keep all your little black pots! Save 5 of them and bring them back to the store to get a new fresh face mask for FREEEEEEEE!!!!