Lush Easter Collection!

 

Okay so by now you've probably realized I am a HUGE Lush fan, and when I saw their Easter/Mother's Day collection I fell in love, it's all so CUTE! You may also have noticed that this collection came out a few weeks ago so I'm slow of the mark with this post, but I did take these photos literally the day after the line was released, but university has been swallowing up all of my free time so this is the first time I've had an hour (I'm having a break from revision) to write a post. 

When I walked into the Lush shop it truly felt like spring had arrived with gorgeous floral bubble bars and a variety of egg shaped bath bombs. Some of my favourite aesthetic products are the 'Mum Tulip' because my favourite flower is the Tulip and I think the 'Bunch of Carrots' are super cute. 

As for the ones I actually purchased, I chose 'Brightside Bubble Bar' (£4.50 each), it has a lovely citrus-y scent, which is more tangerine/orange rather than lemon or anything, and it turns your bath really bright orange (here's an instagram vid of when I used it). I also bought the 'Golden Egg' (£3.50 each) I got this one purely because of its smell, it's SO delicious, it smells of chocolate, honeycomb, toffee and all that yumminess, very reminiscent of a crunchie bar! 

However I have yet to use it because I'm scared of how glittery myself and the bath tub is going to be, and I've mentioned in a few of my reviews how much I detest glitter... so buying this one may have not been the best idea, but I'll have to wait and see once I've used it. I'll probably say how I felt about it on twitter and then post a video on twitter of what it looks like in the bath, so if you're interested keep an eye out for that!

That's all for now, my breaks up and I have to get back to work. Hope you enjoyed this post!

Keep smiling!

Birds in Blossom x

GIVEAWAY | 100 blog lovin' followers!

Hi everyone! 

Well, a few days ago I hit 100 blog lovin' followers! I honestly never thought I'd get even one reader of this blog, and so, never ever thought I'd see the day that I'd hit a milestone that would justify a giveaway! Yet here we are!

Anyway down to business, as a thank you for all of you who have followed my blog on blog lovin', I'm hosting a little Giveaway!

(You must be following me on Blog lovin' to enter the giveaway. Also, unfortunately it will be a UK ONLY giveaway this time.)

I've decided to give the lucky winner a One4all voucher, now if you don't know what that is it's a gift card like any other but you can use it in a wide range of shops and restaurants. For example Boots, Debenhams, Miss Selfridge, New look, Oasis, Pizza Express, River Island, Topshop and so many more!! Check out their website here to see where else it can be used! 

(source, source)

Now it's going to be a £20 voucher up for grabs and you can enter via the rafflecopter widget below! You have a week to make your entries count!

Good Luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Keep smiling,
Birds in Blossom x

REVIEW | LUSH The Comforter

So here it is, my all time favourite bubble bar from LUSH, The Comforter (£4.50 each). If you go into a LUSH store you'll see this one right away, it's much bigger than many of their other products, so though it is more expensive than the other bath bombs and bubble bars, you can get quite a few uses out of it so I suppose it is pretty justifiable, well at least, I think so. Personally, I tend to split it into quarters (see below) and as I reckon by using that amount you can still get the full effect of the bubbles, scent and colour. 

As for the scent, a strong blackcurrant fragrance instantly hits you, it's so fruity and sweet, I just love it! Even when you use it the scent stays strong in the water and you can smell it in your hair and skin for hours after your bath. Also, it does its job really well, by that I mean, when you crush it under a running tap it makes bubbles instantly and in vast quantities (even when using a quarter of the bar). Lastly it turns your water a lovely bright pink colour (as you can see quite well in the photos below) which I adore as I love all things pink!

So yeah, I definitely recommend The Comforter, it smells lovely, it creates plenty of bubbles and easily gets at least 4 uses from just one bar. If you're ever in the store you should check it out!

Okay, so that's it with LUSH products for now as I've run out (I doubt that will be the case for long though!) but I am going to review some other bath products soon and maybe a few make-up items, so keep a look out!

If there's a particular product you would like me to review from lush or anywhere else, leave a comment below and I'll see what I can do!

Keep smiling,

BirdsinBlossom x

REVIEW | LUSH Creamy Candy Bubble Bar

This lil' cutie is the Creamy Candy Bubble Bar (£2.50 each), it actually smells very much like a product I have recently reviewed, the Mmmelting Marshmallow Moment, by that I mean it smells just like a sweet shop! (though you do get more of a hint of vanilla with this one, especially once used in the bath)

Now this product, as it's name suggests, isn't a bath bomb or even a bath melt but it is actually a bubble bar. So to use this you crumble it up under the running tap water when filling the bath, and then leave it to work its magic, which just happens to be creating lots and lots of bubbles! Even though it doesn't turn your bath a funky colour like others it does smell amazing and obviously bath colour isn't that important but sometimes I do like the novelty! Oh yeah, it also contains cocoa butter and almond oil so it leaves your skin moisturised, refreshed and feeling silky smooth! 

It comes in as a close second favourite bubble bar from LUSH (I'm going to review my all time favourite next, so look out for that!), mainly because I only get one use out of this one whereas with the other one manages about 4 uses (and the fact that the other one makes my hair and skin smell so, so good for hours).

I absolutely love this product as I am a sucker for bubble baths and definitely recommend it for those with a sweet tooth, though I suggest you don't try to eat it! 

If there's a particular product you would like me to review from lush or anywhere else, leave a comment below and I'll see what I can do!
Keep smiling,

BirdsinBlossom x

REVIEW | LUSH Butterball

This is the Butterball (£2.50), if you read my last LUSH review you'll know that I got this particular bath bomb in the 'Baby Frosty' Christmas set, but I have bought this on its own before. You wouldn't notice it for it's smell or it's looks but if you've used this, you would know that it does amazing things for your skin. 

It's full of cocoa butter and moisturiser, so it's super good for dry skin. There's not much more to comment on with this bath bomb, it doesn't transform your bath like other ones do (just see the pictures below, it's hard to tell which is the before and which is the after), though when it first dissolves the cocoa butter melts and looks like actual melted butter on top of your water, which is weird the first time you use it, but you soon become accustomed to it.

So obviously I recommend this one, especially if you have dry skin, it's a great addition to a pamper session, leaves your skin feeling moisturised and refreshed.

If there's a particular product you would like me to review from lush or anywhere else, leave a comment below and I'll see what I can do!

Keep smiling,

BirdsinBlossom x

REVIEW | LUSH Shoot for the Stars

Before I review the bath bomb itself, I want to comment on the gift set it came in, the 'Baby Frosty' (Original price £9.75, sale price around £4.90) this is a Christmas exclusive (no shocker there) and I bought it in the sales for half price. There are two bath bombs in the set, Shoot for the Stars (Also a Christmas exclusive) and Butterball (Available all year round, I think). I would never buy this at full price as one bath bomb is £3.25 and the other is £2.50, so you're paying £4 for a cloth to go over them, and though it is adorable, unlike some of the other cloth wrappings you get at lush, it isn't something you could use again (unless wrapping bath bombs for a Christmas present of course) and as it wasn't a gift, but for myself I don't really care about the wrappings. However the sale price was reasonable, so I thought I'd try it out. 

Anyway to the first bath bomb in this set...

So this one is obviously Shoot for the Stars (£3.25 each) it's a super cute bath bomb that's only available around Christmas. I didn't pick this one out for it's looks or scent as it was in the set but when I opened the cloth up I immediately recognised a very subtle 'Honey I washed the kids' scent coming from this bath bomb (which is a honey-caramel kind of smell), but it does smells a little fruitier than the soap to me.

Like always I just popped it in my bath and waited for the show to unfold, and it didn't fail to deliver! Straight away there were bright blue and yellow streaks fizzing out, and as it span around vibrant pink bubbles also started to come out of the bath bomb in all directions. It left the water a very beautiful dark indigo colour.

I must say, once the bath bomb had fully dissolved I was disappointed to find that there was virtually no scent coming from the bath, which is not what I have come to expect from LUSH products. Then,when I was finished and out of the bath I noticed my skin was covered in glitter, which usually I am not a fan of, but they weren't particularly large pieces of glitter so it wasn't too bad and I suppose if I was going on a night out it does leave a nice shimmer.

Overall I've decided that I wouldn't purchase this particular bath bomb again. I like ones that are greatly fragranced and leave your skin smelling lovely afterwards but Shoot for the Stars didn't do that in the slightest, also I  personally don't like having glitter in my bath and it didn't really leave me feeling like it benefited my skin like other LUSH products do.

I'll review the second bath bomb in this set, butterball, next and then I'll comment about the set on a whole.

If there's a particular product you would like me to review from lush or anywhere else, leave a comment below and I'll see what I can do!

Keep smiling,

BirdsinBlossom x

REVIEW | LUSH Mmmelting Marshmallow Moment

This one, the Mmmelting Marshmallow Moment (£3.95 each) literally smells like you've walked into a sweet shop, you're almost tempted to take a bite out of it! Though it isn't a bath bomb but a bath melt, however you still use it in the same way (by just popping it into your bath when it's ready). 

Marshmallow moment creates a sort of foam on the top of the water which is more like lathered soap than normal bubbles so I actually use it to clean my skin, it also contains cocoa butter which is really good for dry skin and I definitely find that it moisturises my skin really well.

Most of the times I have used this product the water has turned a soft pink colour but this time (I don't know how well it comes through the pictures) it was more lilac than pink, it still smelled the same so I figure it may have just been the lighting in the room or something.

I highly recommend this bath bomb if you love sweet smelling things and due to it's scent it would be great for children, I've given a few as gifts to younger relatives and they've gone down a treat (and according to the website it's perfect for young skin).

If there's a particular product you would like me to review from lush or anywhere else, leave a comment below and I'll see what I can do!

Keep smiling,

BirdsinBlossom x

REVIEW | LUSH Dragon's Egg

I had never used the Dragon's Egg (£3.25 each) before but I bought it as it smelled so fresh and lemony, though the exterior didn't really look like much, except for a few bits of confetti poking out, but you can never judge a book by the cover (lame cliche, I know) so I thought I'd give it a go!

So I put it in my bath not expecting much but I was actually pleasantly surprised, it fizzed white at first and released a few bits of confetti, which was what I was expecting, but then a glittery golden core emerged (go look at the website images to really see what I mean), but I will add it doesn't make your skin glittery or anything, which is something I am definitely glad about. 

After a while I kept hearing crackling and I thought the tap was just dripping or something, but I soon realised it was the bath bomb, it has a sort of popping candy in it, a unusual but cool touch!

The pictures below showing the colour change of the bath don't really do this bath bomb any justice, it is a much more vibrant gold in reality. I will definitely be purchasing this one again, the citrus fragrance was enticing and for some reason I always feel even cleaner with lemon scented soaps and shampoos etc., probably due to years of using citrus kitchen cleaning products!

I would definitely recommend this one if you aren't really into sweet or floral scents, I have a friend who doesn't like those kind of scents and she absolutely loves this bath bomb!

If there's a particular product you would like me to review from lush or anywhere else, leave a comment below and I'll see what I can do!

Keep smiling,

BirdsinBlossom x

REVIEW | LUSH Twilight

Okay, I did say that I was going to do one huge LUSH products review, but I realised it would be a REALLY long post and take a while to complete as I have to use all the products first, so I've decided to do a mini review for each product separately. I hope that's okay (well, it kinda has to be because that's what I'm doing).

Also in each of the LUSH reviews I will make the names of the products a link to the website page.

This is the Twilight Bath Bomb (£3.25 each) and it's definitely up there as one of my favourite bath bombs from LUSH, as it just smells so pretty! It's actually a lavender fragrance but it's a lot sweeter than a usual lavender smell, it's like a cross between lavender and parma violets in my opinion, which for me is a big plus!

If you haven't used a bath bomb before you simply run your bath to your ideal temperature and then pop the whole thing in and watch your bath transform! Though you could half your bath bomb if you wanted, I always use the whole thing with bath bombs as my tub is really quite large and holds a lot of water so they do get diluted quite a bit and LUSH employees often say you don't get the full benefit if you only use a portion.

When you first put this particular bath bomb into your bath it fizzes and gives off a pale pink colour, but when that outer layer breaks down you will reach the blue core and then colours will start to swirl around mixing into one another, it's quite the treat to watch.

As you can see from the photos Twilight actually turns your bath into a pretty shade of lavender that matches it's scent! I highly recommend you give this one a go, if you like sweeter scents that is, as it leaves your skin and hair smelling lovely all day long!

If there's a particular product you would like me to review from lush or anywhere else, leave a comment below and I'll see what I can do!

Keep smiling,

BirdsinBlossom x

Little shopping trip to the Trafford centre!

So today my boyfriend had a ski lesson booked at the chill factore, (the lucky boy is off to France tomorrow with uni mates on a skiing holiday for a week! I was invited but uni assignments take priority, sigh) since he was going there I thought I'd drive him and then have a toot around the Trafford centre, which is right next door.

Well I dropped him off at half eight as his lesson started at nine and went straight over to the Trafford centre, little did I know it only opened at 10 (though i did get a cracking parking spot). I literally sat in my car for 20 minutes doing nothing, until boredom truly set in and I decided to go inside incase the cafes were open. If you've ever been to the Trafford centre you'll know how hectic and crowded it is but for about 2 hours it was just this...

Utter bliss!

(And Starbucks was open so I just sat down and relaxed with a frappucino waiting for the stores to open.)

Right, let me set something straight, I had gift cards and Christmas money to spend, so if you read my last post and saw that one of my New Years resolutions was to not spend frivolously, I'm going to say this trip didn't count as it is totally part of my Christmas presents!! (Blatant denial, the money saving starts tomorrow, I promise!)

Anyway I thought I'd show you all some of my january sales purchases...

First up is some Make up.

These were a bargain at £3.99 each, especially the eye-shadow mini palette, recently I've been coveting the Urban decay naked palette collection but it's a tad out of my budget but these are just what I was looking for in a replacement. There's not just this one, there's a whole collection and loads of gorgeous shades, but I tend to only use pinks and nudes so this was the one for me!

H&M - £3.99 each

 Next up... Nail polishes!

The red ones on the left were bought together in a set, and I got these as a... sort-of impulse buy as they were at the till but I have been looking for a replacement red glitter nail polish since my topshop one ran out and they don't sell it currently. The ones on the right are topshop and I saw them from the shop entrance and I had to have them, and since it's the sales there was a little deal which made me feel a little less guilty when purchasing them (that and the god-send of student discount!). They are a little pricey compared to some more budget nail polishes but they are worth it in my opinion not only because the colours are always lovely but they're really great quality.

Red ones are from H&M- £2.99

Blue ones are from Topshop- £6 each or 2 for £9

Now for some Accessories...

This is a really cute elastic headband which will go perfectly with a skirt I have and several other items, it's fake leather from what I can tell and feels really good quality, perfect for the spring.

Topshop - £6

I couldn't not buy these, they are so darn cute! Not exactly for everyday but cosy and have kittens on them so what's not to like?

River Island- £3 each or 3 for £7

Point of notice, as I've said these are 3 for £7 and I did have another pair of socks that were black with koalas on them (and just as cute) but the woman at the till was too busy chatting with co-workers so didn't scan them, I'm a little disappointed with that. Oh well.

Here are my favourite things to buy, the Clothes!

I have a little obsession with velvet at the minute, though admittedly I do have a red velvet skirt and I don't usually purchase things of which I own similar items, but it was in the sales and I tried it on and it's so soft and looks amazing. It's knee-length, which is another thing I'm loving right now, and there was also a lovely royal blue version (I would have bought that as well but I have recently bought a royal blue 3/4 sleeve velvet dress that's not so different).

Miss Selfridges- £20 (£18 with my student discount)

I have completely adored this coat since I first saw it and when ever I saw someone in town wearing it I would turn green with envy! However I could not justify paying £98 for it, then I saw one in the (actual) topshop store today in the sales and got all excited, but it was size 14 and £65, too large and still a little too pricey, so sadly I put it down. But later on I was looking in the small topshop section they have in Debenhams and there was one more in my size no less, and I checked the price tag again and found it was £45, that I could justify! So obviously I snapped it up (and with student discount it saved me even more moolah).

Topshop (Debenhams) - £45 (£40.50 with student discount)

Now I do have white/cream jumpers but this is a lot more fitted and lighter (as in thickness/weight) than my others, and it's got a nicer design so I thought it would be great for spring when it's starting to warm up but not quite vest top weather. It's a size or two larger than I actually am, but that's usually okay with regards to jumpers (in my opinion) and this one, like I said, is more fitted so it's just right for what I wanted. A good find, I reckon.

River Island- £10

I wasn't to sure about this skirt at first as it has a crinkly texture (which you can see in the photos) and it feels like it looks but I liked the pattern (shown in more detail underneath), but it's not uncomfortable to wear or anything it just rustles a bit when you walk. Yet when I tried it on (with the jumper above) it was just so lovely and looked really pretty and for the price I couldn't say no!

River Island- £5

This scarf was in the sales section, but didn't have a sales price tag like everything else, so I thought maybe someone had just left it there, but it was so soft, thick and with such lovely colours that I decided to take it to the till with me just in case it was on sale, as the normal price was £22 which wasn't shocking, because it's huge and really good quality but I wouldn't pay that much for this kind of thing. Lo and behold, it was on sale, and £7! Bargain!

River Island- £7


Lastly, little bath time treats!

I don't know if you can tell but I do love my LUSH bath bombs and bubble bars (even the little snowman is from LUSH) so I got quite a few. I think I'm going to make a post entirely on this 'haul within this haul' as I bought a variety of things and I think I'll review them individually, so keep an eye out for that in the very near future (I've got to use them first though!).

LUSH- Variety of prices, total around £30

I'll be more specific on prices etc. in the post I'm going to write solely for these, I just don't have the info. at hand at the minute.

I don't often go into The Body Shop, but I'm not sure why because they do so much gorgeous stuff. I need to get more things from here, most definitely! But I did wander in today as I had time to kill and there were so many amazing offers, but this caught my eye, well more my nose, as it smells AMAZING, it's passion fruit scented body butter and shower gel and I am in love with it, great price as well!

The Body Shop- £8 Bought together as a set (originally £15)

That's all folks!
Well not really, I did buy a ton of pretty Christmas wrapping paper as well since it was all dirt cheap and so I thought I'd stock up now, why not?

I had a really nice chill shopping day today, just by myself, it's sometimes nice to have change. I do love going shopping with friends and family but there are times you just want a little day on your own to browse at your own pace, on your own timescale, and for such a hectic shopping center I left surprisingly relaxed!

Hope I didn't blather on too much...

Keep smiling!
BirdsinBlossom x

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