Lush

Beauty Review: Lush Bella Fruta Box

Beauty Review: Lush Bella Fruta Box | Writing Between Pauses

I received the Lush Bella Fruta box for Christmas from my mother-in-law and I was so excited! I'm kind of a newbie to Lush's products, because there has never been one near me. But they are a vegan and cruelty free company, so I absolutely want to support their products. As a note, from what I can tell, the contents of the Bella Fruta box vary between the website and what is offered in store. So the box I received doesn't match the website whatsoever, but does match some other reviews I found online! 

My Bella Fruta box came with: 

  • A Yuzu & Cocoa Bubbleroon
  • The Comforter Bubble Bar
  • The Comforter Shower Gel
  • Strawberry Feels Forever Massage Bar
  • Sympathy For the Skin body lotion
  • Avobath bath bomb

That's a lot for one box, especially when on the website there are only 4 items listed! I loved trying everything out, even though I felt super overwhelmed as to what to try first. I;'ve been working on this review since December, so it's fair to say, I've gotten well acquainted with everything. 

Let's jump in!

Yuzu & cocoa bubbleroon

Yuzu is a Japanese fruit that is kind of like a Satsuma orange: it smells citrusy (I would say closer to lemon) and quite fresh. This bubbleroon also has cocoa in it, to give it a sweet, chocolate smell as well. It is shaped like a macaron with a center of shea butter, to have a moisturizing, luxurious bath with plenty of bubbles. 

I used this my first night home from my trip to Idaho for Christmas. Idaho is notoriously dry and I always struggle to get my skin to rehydrate after a trip. The entire time I was in Idaho, I was slathering lip balm on to try to protect my dry, dry lips; I was chugging water and applying hand cream like a mad woman. And yet, still, my knuckles started getting so dry, they cracked. (You’re probably wondering how I survived 4 years of college in Idaho; long story short, barely.) 

At first, all I could smell was a sort of earthy, lemon scent. I didn’t actually smell much of the cocoa; there is a light, sweet scent to it, separate from the lemon, but it wasn’t over-the-top cocoa scented! It felt very luxurious and moisturizing, although it did turn the water a not exactly flattering shade of yellow. I quite liked how bubbling it got. Afterwards, my skin felt very, very soft and moisturizer. I followed it up with Sympathy for the Skin body lotion. Later, Danny did remark that I smelled a bit like a chocolate orange! 

The Comforter bubble bar

The Comforter bubble bar is scented with black currant and bergamot oil; it turns the water bright pink and creates tons and tons of bubbles. It is quite a large bar and I didn’t think to cut or break it in half (or even into fourths) until afterwards! I used the entire thing, so it turned my bath bright, bright pink and there was absolutely tons of bubbles! My mistake, really. I do wish it was smaller (and cheaper) so that you got more bang for your buck. 

The scent was pretty light and struck me as quite like blackberry, as opposed to black currant (although now that I think about it, I suspect they are very similar). It was very, very relaxing and made my skin feel very soft and supple afterwards. 

The Comforter shower gel

The body cream has the same scent as the Comforter bubble bar: that is, a berry-like scent with a sweet undercurrent of vanilla to smooth it out. I quite like this shower gel, but do find it a bit thin and slightly sparkly, which isn’t always a great day look! But I do feel like it leaves my skin quite clean, but without feeling stripped. It contains almond oil, which explains how it feels so moisturizing. 

Strawberry Feels Forever massage bar

Of all the products, this has been the one I've used the most, for the longest, and really enjoyed. It smells very lightly of strawberries; I keep it in a little jar in my shower and use it on my elbows, ankles, tops of my feet, and hands every shower. It basically dissolves body oil over you as you use it, which is quite nice, but not something I need every single day. I do appreciate that it forms a barrier for the parts of my skin that I struggle with. Also, I just love the lightly fruity smell. 

Sympathy For the Skin body lotion

I didn’t realize it, but this body lotion is actually banana and vanilla scented (and includes both). When I use it, I primarily smell vanilla, but did notice an additional smell that I didn’t love. It’s the banana! I’m not a huge banana fan, but I do quite like this body lotion. I love dipping into the little tub and using it! It contains shea butter and almond oil, both of which are relatively heavy moisturizers, but it absorbs very, very quickly. I don’t get left with that greasy feeling after putting it on in the morning! 

Avobath Bath bomb

This bath bomb was HUGE! I scared Danny by trying to cut it in half in our kitchen, but then I ended up using the entire thing anyway. It made the bathwater a really lovely, mermaid green color (very on trend). It smelled slightly of lemongrass, but not super strongly; I almost wanted it to have a stronger smell, because otherwise it just smelled a bit like baking soda. I did enjoy it though and it left my skin very, very soft. 

What I Got for Christmas

What I Got For Christmas | Writing Between Pauses

A few days after Christmas, I ran a poll on Instagram about whether people like Christmas gift posts or not. The results were pretty much split in the middle: half said they hated them, half said they love them. I got quite a few messages asking that I still post. 

This is just going to be a fun little post, mostly a list. I'll be reviewing some of these things in separate posts, so if you see something you want more details either 1) let me know and 2) I'll either email you directly with info or tell you the date the post will be going up. See? Easy peasy! 

Let's get down to business! 

1. A fruit-themed box of Lush goodies

The gift set I got was the Bella Fruta, but from what I can tell, they change this set almost constantly. The set I got contains a Yuzu Bubbleroon, a Comforter Bubble bar, A Strawberry Feels Forever massage bar, an Avobath Bomb, Sympathy for the Skin lotion, and the Comforter shower cream. That's a lot of stuff! I was so excited to receive this because I've never really tried Lush products, but have always wanted to. And I love a nice, relaxing bath! 

2. A gift bag from Bath & Body Works

This is a gift I get regularly from my mother-in-law... it's one I come to expect and love! In this year's bag there was the bag itself (a large, sturdy tote), a Champagne Toast candle, a Winter Candy Apple hand sanitizer and lotion, a shea butter cream lotion in the Berry scent, an Aromatherapy Body Cream in Recharge (sage and mint), and an Aromatherapy Body Wash & Bubble Bath in Recharge. I've been obsessed with herb scents lately, so I'm very excited for the Aromatherapy products! 

3. More socks than I honestly know what to do with 

Last year while opening Christmas gifts, my husband and I had quite the crack up because everyone had gotten me socks. My mom got me socks; his mom got me socks; and Danny got me socks. In 2016, I got about 20 pairs of new socks alone. Danny was pretty worried that I would be mad because, seriously, who wants that many pairs of socks? But fortunately, I love socks. This year, he got me several pairs of new socks again (about 5 pairs) and I got two pairs from my mother in law... for a grand total of 7 pairs of socks. Needless to say, I have enough boot socks to last me an absolute lifetime. 

In case you think Danny only got me socks, he also got me a new heating pad (don't freak out, but I sleep with one) and a new pair of sweater leggings with pandas on them. 

4. Crossing a lot off my Christmas bucket list

I think the best gift I received (not to be an absolute cornball or anything) this year was the fact that I got to experience Christmas in a way I never have before. Going to Idaho to celebrate with Danny's family was hard because, obviously, I wish we could be with both our families every year! But it was really fun to have a new experience, something completely different, and to see how much fun Forrest had! As well, we had a white Christmas!! The first of my life! That's a great gift. 

What did you get for Christmas?