LUSH and Things That Make Life Better

Today you get a completely random blog about LUSH, because it makes me happy and this blog is not a democracy, it is a dictatorship, so I can randomly write about bath and body products if I want to. (Ha. Take that, world at large. I win at something.) I went to LUSH this weekend to pick up refills of things I cannot live without. This is usually a quarterly event during which I spend way too much money and walk away very happy, even if I am poor.* Sometimes Laura needs presents. And the presents usually come from LUSH.

Why do I like LUSH so much? They use natural ingredients. This means I am not allergic to the chemicals inside soaps or shampoos...because there aren't any nasty allergens inside the soaps or shampoos.

Not only that, because their scents come from herbs, fruits, flowers, and the like, I am not poisoned by them. There are still some products I have to avoid, because I'm allergic to nature as well as to chemicals, but there are a huge number of things I can pick up and...use. And after I've used them, I can go on with my life without an asthma attack, rash, chemical burn, sneezing fit, or migraine. VICTORY.

Without further ado, here are the three things from LUSH I can't live without.

1. My favorite soap is Honey I Washed the Kids, which looks like a piece of honeycomb and smells beautiful. I first discovered it on a trip to Chicago with Rachael, and I haven't gone without it for more than a week or two since. It's gorgeous. If someone at LUSH tells me something else smells like Honey I Washed the Kids, I buy that other thing, too (including the Honey Bee bath bomb and Honey Trap lip balm--both of which are awesome). If I could arrange to have everything in my life smell like this soap, I would make that happen. Imagine if library patrons all could smell like Honey I Washed the Kids instead of like stale cigarette smoke, body odor, and filth...what a beautiful world that would be.
2. We have hard water, so I am constantly in search of a clarifying shampoo that can remove soap residue. I Love Juicy is the best shampoo. Not only does it smell like a pack of Juicy Fruit (does anyone else remember how good that gum smelled?), it also does brilliant things for my hair. If you have gross water, I Love Juicy is the shampoo for you. I use it every other wash to keep me from looking homeless--a never-ending struggle--and it lasts forever. The tiny bottle lasted me three months.
3. It took me years to find a scentless lotion. I tried everything. I used something from Neutrogena that went on like wax and kept my hands sticky for hours. I tried a multitude of other products that CLAIMED to be scent-free, but really had a smell. (Stop lying, cosmetics companies. We know when things have a scent. We have noses.) I finally found a hand lotion by Aveeno that has NO smell and actually works. It was a great day for me. But then I got a sample of Sympathy for the Skin, which made me think of a Rolling Stones song, Sympathy for the Devil. And I tried it, and I'm NOT allergic to it. It has a GREAT smell. And it is actually moisturizing. It's wonderful. It smells like happiness. I bought the full-size container on my last LUSH trip, back in June, as my reward for running the 5K without dying. It was like a medal, but useful.

In addition to my soap and shampoo, I tried a lip color this time, Believe. It's a bold pink/orange color and I'm liking it so far. It's matte, but it doesn't feel overly drying. It lasts for ages without reapplying and when it does wear off (after meals) it does so evenly (no bizarre patches of leftover color).

Do any of you have LUSH favorites I should try out? Let me know in the comments!

* Author's Note: For the purposes of this blog entry, please ignore that I spent too much money on bath and body products. It happens to all of us.