hand and body lotion, a bath bomb, and a massage bar from LUSH Cosmetics

Not too long ago, I was tromping through the first snowfall of the season! The holidays are here in full force now, and if you haven’t found the perfect gift for that special someone, LUSH might just have the thing for you! Especially if you’ve been wanting to tell that special someone something. What better time than the holidays to make a bold move, right?

Really, the folks at LUSH say it best:

Too embarrassed to tell your smelly cousin that he needs a good scrub with some soap? A little hesitant to approach the boy you have a crush on? Well, LUSH can help you with these uncomfortable situations – gifts that give a subtle (but obvious) hint.

LUSH sent me a few of the products from their Gifts That Give a Hint line to try out! Here’s what I thought.

I was really impressed when I opened the box! The packaging was minimal, and it included a note that they sell 65% of their products “naked,” meaning without any packaging. That’s pretty amazing, since packaging accounts for 1/3 of the waste in U.S. households.

The only downside to the lack of packaging was that I couldn’t sort out anything’s ingredients at a glance. Luckily, LUSH has ingredient lists for each product posted on their website. All three of the products they sent are totally vegan and they don’t test any of their products on animals.

Sexy Boy Massage Bar, $7.95
They call this one a “gift for your secret crush.” Since he’s sold unpackaged, you could really pass off this cute gingerbread man soap as a totally platonic gift, too!

I have to admit, I wasn’t too crazy about the scent, which they describe as a “sexy blend of sensual cocoa absolute and invigorating lime.” It sort of smelled like burning to me.

Despite my feelings about the smell, I pressed on in the name of Science. When I first tried to use the little guy, his head fell off! Once I got hot water on the bar, it gradually melted into a rich lotion and left very little scent behind. I massaged some into my feet and it left the skin nice and soft.

Charity Pot Hand & Body Lotion, $20.95
LUSH recommends this for the Scrooge in your life. They give 100% of the proceeds from this lotion to charities around the world that support animal rights, environmental protection and humanitarian concerns. There’s a label on the top of the jar that tells you all about the group that your Charity Pot benefits.

I also really dug the stickers on the side of the tub that told me the name of the fellow who made my lotion and encouraged me to return five clean, empty lotion pots to get a Fresh Face Mask for free! The pot is nice and sturdy with a screw on cap. I might just hang onto mine and use it for storing tiny sewing notions.

The lotion had a lovely light, almond scent and was super rich and creamy. You’d never guess it was totally vegan! It was a bit too rich for my hands but did wonders for the dry elbows and knees that bother me in winter. This was hands down my favorite of the three.

Want to Believe Bath Melt, $6.95
This spicy-scented lump of coal would be a great stocking stuffer! They recommend it for “those meanies who have been naughty to you this year,” but I think anyone with a good sense of humor would enjoy this bath bomb!

I’m really impressed that they use fair trade sugar to make these bath melts. Conventional sugar cane farming can be nasty business, and fair trade sugar is far better for the workers and for the environment!

This was my first time using a bath bomb, and I’ve got to say it was pretty great. I try to conserve water by being a little stingy when filling the tub, so it didn’t even take the whole thing to scent the water and moisturize my skin. When you drop the lump of coal in the tub, it starts to spin and fizz, which was fun to watch. The citrusy, spicy scent got a bit stronger as it melted, and thole experience was nice and relaxing! They may just have made a bath bomb convert out of me.

You can check out all of LUSH’s products, including the ones reviewed above, over at their website.