Sparkled Beauty

Though I am a Lost fan, this post is not about Oceanic Airlines and its famous flight 815. But on a similar note, I was "vacationing" by seaside with Lush over the last few weeks :) By using their oceanic inspired products, that is lol.

It was great to be taken to a beautiful place with ocean view and great smelling treats. Not very often that shower time has become enjoyable, let me tell you.

I normally choose bath products with fruity or calming scents, but trying an invigorating scent once and I'm kinda hooked.

For the face, I tried the Breath of Fresh Air toner water. This is a soothing seawater spray, ocean breeze in a bottle, to simply put.

I prefer using this as a refreshing spray than a toner, as I found the effect was more intense that way. The Pacific sea water is supposed to gently cleanse, seaweed softens and provides essential vitamins and minerals, rose and aloe vera sooth. So there's a little extra than just water on your face.

It is also suggested to be used after being in the sun, on the airplane or air-conditioned offices, which is exactly what I did. It did not disturb my makeup, the mild scent disappeared quite quickly too. And In the summer, leave it in the fridge for a bit and you can have a cool splash of fresh air :)

Ingredients: Spring water, Fresh Sea water, Aloe Vera gel (Aloe barbadensis), perfume, Carrageenan extract (Chondrus crispus), Rose absolute (Rosa centifolia), Patchouli oil (Pogostemon cablin), Rosemary oil (Rosmarinus officinalis), Seaweed absolute (Fucus vesiculosus), Limonene, Linalool, Methylparaben

This toner water is good for all skin types, retails $8.95 (3.3oz/ 100ml) or $19.95 (8.4oz/ 250ml).

Now we start the shower routine with the Seanik shampoo bar, a mineral-rich voluminizing shampoo.

I never tried solid shampoo before and found it is pretty cool to use. Less messy (easy to travel with when need to), more concentrated scent, and it washed the hair just as well.

Seanik has seaweed and sea salt to nourish and soften hair and pump up the volume, plus lemon oil for extra shine.

I follow the instruction to glide the wet bar down the length of my wet hair about three times, work into a lather and rinse. Thought the shampoo did not lather as well as my regular one, my hair felt really clean and soft, even without a conditioner afterward. And the scent woke me up real quick, I am not exaggerating! Can't say I know how to describe the scent but it was awesome, not overwhelming nor herbally nor sweet.

Ingredients: Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Irish Moss gel (Chondrus crispus), perfume, Nori seaweed (Fucus vesiculosus), Sea salt (Sodium Chloride), Lemon oil (Citrus limonum), Mimosa absolute (Mimosa tenuiflora), Orange Blossom absolute (Citrus dulcis), Jasmine absolute (Jasminum officinale), Cocamide DEA, Limonene, FD&C Blue No. 1

The shampoo bar is $10.9 for 1.9oz. The tin ($3.95) is awesome in keep the solid shampoo dry between uses.

For the body, I used the Dirty Springwash shower gel with Gorilla perfume.

It was described as a dip in a mountain spring kinda feeling and I agreed. With spearmint and menthol, it gives the skin a cool feeling in the hot shower, and again, soft.

I chose to skip the bath oil after shower, for testing purpose. My skin feels incredibly clean and soft, way into the next morning. Just one thing to note: the scent did remind me of toothpaste, which, to be honest, is not my favorite. But it was subtle and did not linger.

Ingredients: Water, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Sodium Cocoamphoacetate, Glycerine, Lauryl Betaine, Sodium Bicarbonate, Propylene Glycol, Fine Sea Salt (Sodium Chloride), perfume, Spearmint oil (Mentha viridis), Menthol crystals, Hydroxcitronellal, Methyl Ionone, Limonene, Linalool, FD&C Blue No. 1, Methylparaben

The shower gel is $9.95 (3.3oz/ 100ml), $17.95 (8.8oz/ 250ml) or $27.95 (16.9oz/ 500ml).

And to finish up, Ocean Salt face and body scrub comes in to play.

What got me excited about this scrub is the avocado and coconut (hydrate the skin) and the salt (coarse and fine, exfoliate). There is also lime and vodka (!!!) that have antibacterial effects, great for blocked pores, blackheads and blemishes. Me want!

I normally use a teaspoon to scoop out a small amount. You don't need much for the whole face. Make sure to get both the salt on top and the cream-like lotion underneath. And the bonus is it smelt like a cocktail, a light swift of scent across your nose, not to overwhelm you. The coarse salt is, well..., coarse, so those with sensitive skin might need to take note. Also note that the salt might irritate any open-faced blemishes, so avoid using the scrub in that situation.

A cotton pad test after washing my face using just this scrub surprisingly showed almost no trace of makeup, I didn't expect that at all. Yay for saving time before bed.

Ingredients: Fine Sea salt (Sodium Chloride), Fresh Grapefruit infusion (Citrus grandis), Coarse Sea Salt (Sodium Chloride), Stearic acid, Fresh Lime extracted in Vodka (Citrus aurantifolia), Sodium Cocoamphoacetate, Glycol Cetearate, Triethanolamine, Fresh Avocado butter (Persea gratissima), Coconut fat (Cocos nucifera), Lime oil (Citrus aurantifolia), Seaweed absolute (Fucus vesiculosus), Violet Leaf absolute (Viola odorata), Glycerine, Lanolin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Limonene, Linalool, perfume, FD&C Blue No. 1, Methylparaben, Propylparaben.

This scrub is $10.95 (4.2oz/ 120g) or you can get the larger size for $34.95 (8.8oz/ 250g).

This routine is great anytime, especially when you feel a little sluggish or like you are coming down with something (speak from experience, of course). Though if you have troubles sleeping, oceanic scents might keep you awake more than you need. Make sure you scent test before buying.