Lush American Cream

Annoint Yourself With Vanilla Milkshake! Mmmm!

This is by far my favorite Lush conditioner! Not only is the smell absolutely divine, it works wonders on my curly, curly hair! Unlike most curly hair, mine is quite fine and is easily weighed down by most conditioners specifically designed for curly hair. This makes American Cream perfectly suited to my hair, since it's light enough that it doesn't weigh down my curls, yet it conditions enough to detangle, as well as leave my hair looking shiny and smelling positively delightful! I like to combine this conditioner with either Big or Ibiza Party shampoos. And just for the sake of changing things up from time to time, I'll occasionally switch this one out with Coolaulin conditioner - another lovely light conditioner that works wonders on my ringlets! As for the other reviewers trying to scare you about the SLS (Sodium Lauryl Sulfate) in Lush's products, please don't buy into the scare tactics! Among many, many others, Snopes has already thoroughly debunked this as a myth invented almost surely to drive up sales of alternative quote/unquote "natural" shampoos. There's nothing in this conditioner that's going to give you cancer, for goodness sake! If you doubt me, just do a quick search on Snopes for "Shampoo Sham" and read all about the truth on SLS for yourself from a non-biased third party who has absolutely nothing to lose or gain in shampoo sales. As they say on Snopes, the worst thing that could possibly happen is that you might get a bit of scalp irritation... if you leave it on your head for hours on end without rinsing it out! Or if you purposefully drank this like the milkshake it smells like, it might give you a case of the runs. But certainly nothing bad is going to happen if you use it like the conditioner it's meant to be. I'm sure all of you have more sense than to do something silly like drink your conditioner! :)

December 3, 2009

Lush Coolaulin

Great for Keeping Curls Light!

When I pair this conditioner with either Big or Ibiza Party shampoos, I always get great results! I have incredibly curly hair that never fails to turn into ringlets, but the hair itself is quite fine. I've tried tons of conditioners meant specifically for curly hair, but they always seem to be so thick and heavy that they just weigh my curls down and I lose a lot of body and volume. Not so with Coolaulin! It's light enough that my curls maintain their bounce and vigor, yet it conditions enough that I'm able to brush through my tangled tresses in less than 10 minutes (and trust me, that's a HUGE blessing, since with non-Lush conditioners, it can take me up to an hour to brush through my hair!) I've also been pleasantly surprised with how shiny my hair is after a good round with Coolaulin. And best of all, my hair seems to lock in its beautifully light coconutty smell. All in all, this is definitely a conditioner I can't live without! But, as with all good hair care routines, it can always be good to mix things up from time to time. So whenever I'm not using Coolaulin, I rely on my other favorite Lush conditioner - American Cream. Either one of those, paired with either Big or Ibiza Party is sure to be a winning combination for anyone with light curly hair like mine!

December 3, 2009

Lush Big Shampoo

Fantastic & Thoroughly Cleansing!

I've been a long-time Lush customer because nothing else seems to tame my tangled curls as much as Lush shampoos and conditioners! I tend to rotate my use of their different products to keep my hair fresh, and Big is definitely included in my rotated collection of shampoos and conditioners! Even though Big doesn't exactly have the sweetest scent, what it lacks in fragrance it makes up for in cleansing prowess. The chunks of sea salt are absolutely brilliant at cleaning my scalp, even when its been coated in hair gels, mousses, and other sticky, nasty products. It never fails to strip all that gunk right off my hair and my scalp, leaving my head feeling brand new and absolutely fresh. And for those girls out there like me with insanely curly hair, I can tell you, Lush stuff works wonders! It used to take me literally an hour to brush through my curls using any other shampoos or conditioners. With Lush - no joke - it takes less than ten minutes. Yet it accomplishes that without diminishing my curls in the slightest! They're still just as bouncy and full of ringlets as usual! So if you're a Shirley Temple like me, I'd definitely recommend combining Big with either Coolaulin or American Cream. I've found that's the best combination to get volume with your curls, along with just the right amount of conditioning that won't weigh your curls down in the least. And if you can occasionally switch things up and swap Big out with the retro classic, Ibiza Party, trust me, your scalp will thank you!

December 3, 2009

Harajuku Lovers Love Eau de Toilette Spray

Adorable, Light & Happy!

Out of all the Harajuku Lovers fragrances, this is by far my favorite! The scent is very light on my skin, but not in a cheap or unnoticeable way. It's just so happy, pleasant, and mildly floral that it never fails to put a smile on my face. Of course, I'm also rather attached to it because somehow Gwen Stefani managed to perfectly capture the smell of my best friend's house! So now whenever I'm feeling glum, I spritz this on and am temporarily transported to one of my most favorite places on Earth. But even beyond my sentimental attachment to this fragrance, it still smells absolutely divine. The only reason I'm not giving it ten stars is that it is true that it doesn't tend to last very long on my skin. Of course, that can be somewhat expected given the fact its only Eau de Toilette. Also, nothing ever seems to stick to me very long, whether it's perfume, nail polish (it literally peels right off my nails, no matter what I try), or even hair dye. So there is a chance it could just be me. Bottom line, though, this is still one of my all-time favorite fragrances! And of course, the absolutely adorable packaging is lovely as well!

December 3, 2009