Catastrophe Cosmetic face mask

Note: Please be aware that what is suitable for my skin, may not work for you, and vice versa. All reviews of masks, cleansers and facial products are based on my experiences only.


When you go into Lush, one of the first things you might see is a large tray of ice, with bowls of fresh face mask, surrounded by little black tubs of different masks you can buy. This is Lush's fresh face mask selection. These face masks are blended with fresh ingredients, so must be kept in a fridge, and used up within 3 weeks.

This was never really my first choice of Face Mask, I always thought Lush's Oatifix mask would suit my skin more, but after trying this on a whim, I was very impressed, and now it is my first choice.

Catastrophe cosmetic is a thick, clay-based mask, which is grey/lilac in colour and laced with pieces of fresh blueberry. It has a gentle smell of blueberry, with a slight soft floral undertone. It is designed for people with sensitive skin and redness. Catastrophe Cosmetic contains calamine, rose, chamomile and almond which they claim will soothe and nourish skin, while cleansing gently.

My skin is dry, and also very sensitive, so I thought I would pick this up and see how it worked. I actually got a sample a year ago, but it had gone bad by the time I got round to using it, so I wanted to see how a fresh one would work for me.

It smooths onto your skin very easily, it's quite a wet paste consistency which spreads easily and sticks to your skin without any of the blueberry bits falling off. Once you leave it on for 5-10 minutes, you can feel it harden, and you pretty much know when it's time to wash it off as it starts flaking.

It washes off fairly easily, or if you are lazy, you could wipe it off with babywipes, although it can make a mess. I was worried the fresh blueberry pieces may have gotten stuck in the plughole, but they seemed to go down fine without blocking the sink.

Once washed off, my skin did feel amazing, It felt smoother and silky, with some of the redness and soreness calmed. The dry patches on my cheeks were softer and my face felt totally hydrated, without being greasy.

However, I was so keen on Catastrophe Cosmetic I decided to keep using it all week- probably not a good idea. I felt that because I used it so often, my pores were producing more oils and I began to break out a little around my t-zone. This is a fault of my own, as I know face masks are supposed to be used as a weekly nourishment for your skin, and not a daily cleanser.

I would recommend Catastrophe Cosmetic as a weekly treat, especially if you have dry/sensitive skin. I am unsure if it would work on oily skin, but Lush usually hand out free samples if you are not sure, so I would ask for one before parting with the £6.50 price tag.

9/10

Snowcake soap

Snowcake was never really a soap that appealed to me when I first saw it in 2013. Although the design was simple yet pretty, with a solid white block topped with engraved patterns and gold lustre, I wasn't overly keen on the smell as it wasn't like any of my 'usual' sugary sweet candy favourites.

Fast forward a year, and when this became available again in the limited edition Christmas product selections, I decided after buying a slice of Yog Nog that I would have a look and smell of this soap again and see what I thought this time round.

I was intrigued with the smell of Snowcake, and pleasantly surprised at the soft, yet comforting almond aroma. It wasn't overpowering, but it was a nice change from the other soaps in the LUSH range that I buy, that can sometimes be quite strong. The scent reminded me of the marzipan used on Christmas cakes, and that along with the pretty design and creamy-looking texture persuaded me to part with my money for a couple of slices.

Snowcake is the easiest-lathering soap I have ever purchased from LUSH, it literally foams within seconds of massaging it across your skin, and doesn't need any help from a shower puff or sponge to help it. However, it is a soap which easily shrinks, so I recommend that you don't handle it under the water for longer than you need to, and after you have finished using it, rest it in a cool, dry place.

I found after using this soap, my skin felt clean, but it wasn't dry so it is obviously quite a moisturising, yet cleansing bar.

Although this soap is decorated in lustre, it doesn't end up on you, and after a couple of uses, it wears off and you are left with a simple, white bar of soap with no added 'bits',

Snowcake is a surprising favourite of mine, and I regret passing it by two years ago just because I didn't want to venture out of my comfort zone of scents and try something new. I will definitly pick up more this year if LUSH bring it back, and I hope they re-release their limited edition Snowcake shower gel- I've never managed to try it and it's something I would definitely be interested in.

8.5/10

Wiccy Magic Muscles massage bar

When I was in Lush last week, I went to one of the shelves at the side of the shop, where there was several massage bars. I remembered trying out Wiccy Magic Muscles a few years ago, and not really enjoying it, but somehow I decided to give it another go and see if it had changed at all since Lush reformuated their bars to an aerated formula.

The shop assistant particularly recommended using this massage bar as a solid moisturiser as the oils in it would help my dry skin, and the beans in the bar were ideal for massaging legs and feet to help relax me before sleeping.

Wiccy Magic Muscles is a massage bar available from Lush's regular range and the first massage bar I ever tried. I decided to give it a go on a whim one day, while browsing the massage bars for the first time. The bar was wrapped in a paper bag and given to me.

When I took it home, I tried it out after I'd had a bath to put some moisture back into my skin. After massaging it in, taking care not to apply too much oil, my skin felt pretty tingly and warming. It felt a little different at first, but I imagine people with pulled muscles would appreciate the sensation which is very similar to using deep heat products.

I was a little skeptical about the beads, as I bought this bar a few years ago before Lush reformulated their massage bars, and they seemed to fall out immediately after first use. However the second time I bought this (last week), none of the beads have slipped out yet, and I have used the bar around five times.


The scent of this bar is quite a potent fusion of peppermint and cinnamon (with the peppermint coming out on top), so I would recommend that unless you like the smell, you either keep it in another room or go for another massage bar instead. I wasn't overly keen on the scent a few years ago, but now I actually quite like it. It is strong, and can be overbearing if overused, but a little of this bar goes a long way and it can be pleasant. It is also quite a unisex smell so guys could use this before/after exercising on sore muscles and enjoy it too.

Overall, I might buy this again when the one I am currently using runs out, but I look forward to trying other bars from Lush's range, such as Pearl, and Each Peach.

Rating: 6.5/10

Recipes-Pancakes

Although pancake day has passed, I found this recipe online last week while I was away, and I thought I'd share it as it's the best one I have used. You can use different toppings, and as the pancake recipe doesn't contain sugar, you could use savoury toppings such as smoked salmon or ham and cheese.

This recipe will make four large pancakes or several small scotch style pancakes

110g plain flour

pinch of salt

2 large eggs

200ml semi-skimmed milk mixed with 75ml water

50g butter

To serve- toppings of your choice

My favourites are

Nutella (either on it's own or topped with banana slices)
Maple syrup
Lemon juice and sugar
Jam

Method

First of all sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl with the sieve held high above the bowl so the flour gets an airing.

Now make a well in the centre of the flour and break the eggs into it. Then begin whisking the eggs using an electric whisk or a balloon whisk – incorporating any bits of flour from around the edge of the bowl as you do so.

When the mixture starts thicken, gradually add small quantities of the milk and water mixture, still whisking (don't worry about any lumps as they will eventually disappear as you whisk).

When all the liquid has been added, use a rubber spatula to scrape any elusive bits of flour from around the edge into the centre, then whisk once more until the batter is smooth, with the consistency of thin cream.

Now melt the butter in the pan. Spoon 2 tablespoons of it into the batter and whisk it in, then pour the rest into a bowl and use it when needed to lubricate the pan, using a wodge of kitchen paper to smear it round. 



Now get the pan really hot, then turn the heat down to medium and, to start with, do a test pancake to see if you're using the correct amount of batter. I find 1¾ tablespoons (35mls) about right for the Delia Online Frying Pan.

It's also helpful if you spoon the batter into a ladle or a small coffee cup so it can be poured into the hot pan in one go. Hold the ladle so that the base is very close to the bottom of the pan then pour in.

As soon as the batter hits the hot pan, tip it around from side to side to get the base evenly coated with batter. If you have any holes in it, add a teaspoon of the mixture just to fill them in. It should take only half a minute or so to cook; you can lift the edge with a palette knife to see if it's tinged gold as it should be.

Flip the pancake over with a pan slice or palette knife – the other side will need a few seconds only – then simply slide it out of the pan on to a plate.


Top your pancakes with whatever toppings you have, or simply enjoy them plain with a little butter.

SOURCE: http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/cuisine/european/english/basic-pancakes.html

Unicorn Horn bubble bar

For Valentines day, LUSH release a few limited edition products, and this was one of the first ones that jumped out at me to try, due mostly to the beautiful, colourful design. It is a slim cone design, with stripes of turquoise, purple, yellow and pink, dotted with little multicoloured stars.

Looking at Unicorn Horn, I expected a fruity or candy scent, but was surprised to find out that it smelled of lavender. It isn't an Potpourri air-freshener type of scent, it's more a sweeter, less overwhelming aroma, a little like Twilight bath bomb.

Crumbling this bubble bar into the water is very easy, once exposed to water it falls apart quickly into soft grains and dissolves in the water, creating a good amount of bubbles and a lilac coloured water. Depending on whether you like muted colours, or not, you may be disappointed that the rainbow shades of the bar don't make your bath water multiple colours.

However, it is very relaxing with the soothing smell and the soft, subtle lilac colour. The water is soft and moisturises your skin too. 

If I could make one criticism about this bubble bar, it seems that the bubbles created don't last very long, and you are mostly left with the lilac water on it's own. 

Unicorn Horn is probably not my favourite bubble bar, but it's a great relaxing one for before bed, and a good one to try out, especially as it's limited edition and might not be back next year.

7/10

Rock Star soap

Every time I visit lush, I am always drawn to the big wheels and blocks of soap, they remind me of cheese counters. Picking out the perfect soap to try, having a piece sliced off and wrapped in greaseproof paper, then taking it home to enjoy.

Rock Star is part of Lush's permanent range, and although it isn't particularly fancy from the outside as a plain pink block with white star imprints, the smell is what drew me to this one, and it's remained one of my favourites since.

When your slice of rock star is cut, it is simply a plain pink block - if you're lucky, your piece may have  star imprint inside, although mine never has, but it doesn't affect the quality of the soap in any way

The scent of Rock Star soap is a girly, creamy, candyfloss mixture.  It smells of vanilla, with cotton candy, and just a subtle hint of coconut.  There is also a slight floral aroma, although it's very faint- this is more a gourmand type of aroma, rather than a flowery one.

If you enjoy creamy candy bubble bar, and the Christmas candy mountain bubble bar, you will be glad to know this shares the same sugary sweet scent.

As a hand soap or in the shower, this is quite a soft soap and lathers up nicely. The scent remains on your skin faintly but does last fairly well, although you will still need to moisturise afterwards as it can unfortunately dry your skin out.

As this soap is quite soft, left under the water it will melt and dissolve very quickly. My best tip for this is don’t handle it under the tap or the shower head for too long, and when you are finished, pat it dry and leave it in a cool, dry place.

For 100g of Rock Star soap, it costs £3.40

Overall, I love the scent of this soap, it is in my top 3 LUSH scents ever.  I just wish they'd re release creamy candy lotion and perfume which have the same scent, so I could layer it.

I would also recommend this soap for fans of Snow Fairy, because although it doesn't share the same scent (Regular product 'Godmother soap' has the Snow Fairy scent), it provides another take on the sugary sweet scents lush has to offer.

Rating- 9/10

Lush Cocktail- Candied Rosie

Sorry I have not posted for so long, I have been pretty busy this week on a break away, so there may be a delay of posts until Saturday. 

As Lush cocktails are very popular among lush fans, I have decided to post a recipe to one of my favourite ones. I haven’t actually got any pictures of it to show you as I did this cocktail last week before I went away, but I hope my descriptions do it justice.

YOU WILL NEED

1/4 of a snow fairy sparkle bar (if you can bear to cut it!)
A few drops of snow fairy (around a couple of teaspoons’ worth)
Rose Jam bubbleroon (half)
PEARL massage bar OR the rest of your snow fairy sparkle bar

1. Run the bath, and as it’s running, crumble half the bubbleroon in. It will get to work and produce pale pink water, a sweet rose jam smell and lots of fluffy bubbles.

2. Drop in the snow fairy, and even more bubbles will be produced as well as a candy scent that is sweet but isn’t overpowering.

3. When the taps are off , drop the sparkle bar quarter in. It will act as a bath melt, and as it slowly dissolves,  puddles of sparkly, pink oil will float along the surface of your pink, bubbly water.

4. Afterwards, massage your skin with PEARL massage bar to lock in even more rose-jam scent. If you are more a snow fairy fiend, you could use the rest of your snow fairy sparkle bar to massage yourself instead.

This is a great cocktail with those who have a sweet tooth but also appreciate the floral tone in Rose Jam. It is sweet, but not overpoweringly sickly, and the melted massage bar makes it particularly moisturizing.

I hope you enjoyed this recipe!