Hip Hop Candy Review

(THIS STORE IS NO LONGER OPEN.)

Hello, my dearies! I apologize for not updating in what seems like an eternity. I have been incredibly busy with college classes and work, however my classes are over-for now.

I am taking this opportunity of free time to write a review for my latest Hip Hop Candy order.

As you all know, I am an immense fan of this gal's work-her beauty products are fantastic! In my recent purchase, I purchased the Earth Soy Candle, Rainy Days foaming body wash, Banana Cream Cupcake body lotion, and a compact mirror.

The Earth Soy candle is a lovely candle to add to my collection. Not only is it compacted in a cute, tiny tin with a lovely hand-designed drawing by the seller herself, but it smells wonderful. This candle has what it implies; an Earthy scent. It smells very organic and herbal to me, reminiscent of Lush's Dream herbal series. Because Lush does not carry a candle as such, I am happy to have found this little guy. He will definitely come in handy when I need those nice days of cooling off and relaxing.

Speaking of cooling off and relaxing, her Rainy Days foaming body wash does the same effect. This body wash smells like fresh, spring linen and fallen rain. As I smell it now, I am taken back to soothing nights with my friends, sitting out in the rain and soaking in the solitude and comfort of our own thoughts. A very nice body wash to add to one's collection, needless to say.

The Banana Cream Cupcake body lotion smells mouth-watering and absolutely yummy, I can't stand it. Well, I can, because quite frankly I love this too much. It smells just like fresh bananas and cream, tantalizing to the mind and teasing to the taste buds. The body lotion contains sunflower oil, which is a fantastic and healthy beauty substitute in place of harmful chemicals and such, which proves that Miss HHC knows what she is doing. The lotion is creamy and soaks well into dry hands, softening them for a bit. I would definitely recommend this.

And finally, the compact mirror. This mirror was purchased for my best friend, so I have yet to still give it to her, although I am positive she will adore it. The picture is absolutely adorable and quality of the mirror, grand. It is akin to one somebody might buy at the store, quite honestly!

In conclusion, another fantastic purchased made at Hip Hop Candy's store. I hope to buy more soon, and I also hope that you, my darlings, will soon check her out if you have not!

Her website is linked right here: Hip Hop Candy

Enjoy! (Also, watch out for any coupon codes she may have on her Deviant Art or Facebook page. She likes to give those out, which are great to catch when you can because you can purchase more products, and thus have more enjoyment.)

Oh, Honey!

Hello, my little bees! I hope you all have been working hard and working well!

I am here to share with you lovely-heads a topic I have wanted to blog about for a long while now-honey! In this blog post, I will discuss:

• the benefits of honey with beauty
• the benefits of honey with health
• the benefits of honey as health aides 
• honey products that I recommend to get your honey on Valentine's Day

First off, did you know that honey has many beauty benefits for your skin, face, anti-aging and hair?

According to Benefits of Honey, honey is great for anti-aging skin because it contains antibacterial agents such as antioxidants. Honey is popular for dry-skin use because it retains moisture well and gives back moisture, allowing for healthy skin. Just because it is stated that it works for dry-skin doesn't mean that all skin types can't use it; it is gentle enough for all skin types. The website above links to more information about the benefits of honey for anti-aging, as well as links to a DIY (do it yourself) facial mask.

The same goes for your hair, girls and gentlemen. Honey, because it contains moisture, is good for dry hair and preserving hair cuticles and strands from falling out. If you are suffering hair damage, or want to give your hair a healthy boost once more, try this home remedy: Voila!

Now getting back to the face, many may know already that honey is used in a lot of products, and I mean *a lot.* But do you understand what that honey is doing for your skin? We already know from the anti-aging description that honey is great for the face in that aspect because it contains all of that moisture which is great, but what else is it good for? It is wonderful for hydration and hydrating your face. Here is a link with lovely, delicious face masks to try out just for hydrating and rejuvenating your face: Voici!

Finally, I mentioned that honey is great for skin. As before, it contains a lot of moisturization, and although it may seem sticky at first, finding a great product pre-made containing honey will resolve all sticky doubts and give you smooth, tasty smelling skin.

On the subject of beauty products, Lush has a great line of honey soaps, bath bombs, etcetera. May I add, for Lush soaps, if you go into their store you can certainly ask for a small, free sample to try it out before buying the whole chunk.

 Now, what are the benefits of honey in consideration with health? Honey is great to eat because:

• it contains natural sugars which are great for a healthy boost
• honey, mixed with warm milk, is a great sleep aid before bed for sweet dreams and relaxing, restful hours
• it is a great laxative for digestion 
• it is a cough reliever
• honey never spoils
• and finally, among many others I could have chosen from, honey is great for healing open wounds and burns quickly-yes, you've heard me right. Girls, did you burn yourself with the straightener or curling iron? Put a dab of honey on it. Guys, did you..well, burn yourself somehow? Put some of that good stuff on. Honey, after five minutes, will immediately cool, heal and restore skin cells, healing the burn. 
• Here are some other great uses for honey: Follow this bad boy.

In the end, my lovelies, honey is fantastic. It can be eaten, has super healing powers, NEVER expires and is great for beauty products and softening skin. With the right honey, you can put it on toast, bagels, chicken, rice, the sky's the limit! If you have any great stories with honey, feel free to comment below and tell me! Just remember to keep your honey away from Winnie the Pooh, or he'll be knocking on your door begging for some of that golden treat.

Lush Christmas Haul Part 2

I apologize, life always gets in the way of my blogging-I am a bad blogger, I deserve a slap on the wrist.

I have, since my first Lush Christmas Haul post, been testing out all of the products for reviewing.

First up is the Dreamtime Bath Melt. 

These bars are full of chamomile, sandalwood and lavender, most which are sleep inducing-specifically the chamomile. These bars are creamy and dreamy, giving off an organic, herbal scent. Once dropped under running water, these babies last a long while-LONG while-and keep your bath water nice and milky. Almond oil, another key ingredient, keeps skin soft and makes for an alluring bath and silky-smooth finish afterwards.

I highly recommend this product; it is wonderful and sleep inducing. However, there was one personal issue for me-the almond oil. I am allergic to almonds, and I suspected something when the water turned SO silky, that I felt I'd never experienced that level of silkiness from a product before. I immediately jumped out and checked my phone, discovering the infamous almond oil. Despite my allergic scare, it really would've been a lovely bath and is delicious for skin-softening. The bars are relatively cheap and can be broken into chunks for multi-use and pleasure.

Atomic Toothy Tabs.

Lush has released what may be considered a long awaited product, toothpaste! However, it isn't toothpaste, they're Toothy Tabs! Toothy Tabs are small chewable tabs that are crushed between the front teeth and then brushed with a tooth brush. A foam is created inside the mouth and water is used to rinse it out.

What I enjoy most about these are that they're environmentally safe, not using up plastic bottles for toothpaste distribution. Also, the tabs are *delicious*. This one in particular is wonderful because it doesn't leave a bad aftertaste inside the mouth, so anyone can drink orange juice if so desired afterwards! Seriously, the tabs have baking soda which whitens teeth, and this particular case has key ingredients of chamomile and clove bud oil. I purchased "Aqua" for my friend-not on their United States website-and I look forward to updating you all on that one to see how she liked it. There are about five different Toothy Tab flavors, each for specific teeth and flavor. Although $3.95 may seem expensive for our US buyers, it is reassuring to know that there are *a lot* of tabs in one box. Plus, you're helping the environment.


Finally, my favorite Mange Too Massage Bar.

This treat looks delectable and delicious, and apparently you can eat it! It is made with bananas, white chocolate and honey-three of my favorite foods. When I discovered this gem last summer, I was stoked to get it and did for Christmas. It smells delightful and is mouth-watering.

The massage bar is simply used as it sounds, as a massage bar. Rub your hands over it or rub it on skin for soft, delicious smelling skin. It is one of my favorite products by far and is listed at a great price, considering how long it will last. It's fair in size and volume, so it should last me quite a while. I adore it and highly recommend it.

Until next time, m'dears, I shall be heading off to work on some other much needed tasks.

Tell me, which product strikes your fancy?

Lush Christmas Haul Part 1

Hello, my dears!

This Christmas was certainly a very "lush"ious Christmas-cue the badumpsh-and I wanted to review the items I received.

This is not a bragging entry, this is an entry to help those interested in buying Lush products who can't decide what to purchase.

My best friend is who I give all of my thanks to for these products, and I believe she was happy with the products I purchased for her from Lush as well.

First off, she gave me a Big Blue bathbomb, which I have been in love with since the summertime when I first tried one.

It contains seaweed within the ball, which is healthy for skin, as well as sea salt which provides soft skin and is a stress reducer. This bath bomb receives another big rating from me, as I gave it when I reviewed it previously.

The second product she gave me was the Gingerbread House Bubble Bar, which has a defining hint of ginger, the key ingredient to this product.

This product was so creamy and filled the bath tub with bubbles, as well as little sprinkles. It changed the water orange, quite predictable from the color of its solid form, and permeated a strong scent of raw ginger. It was relaxing and certainly heated me up faster than other bath bombs I have tried.

The third product she gave was the Stepping Stone foot scrub, which has signature scents of lemon and lime, lemongrass being the feature ingredient.

This foot scrub is a delight and it is made to be used multiple times, rather than just as a one-time use. To some it may seem rough on the skin, but after a few uses, it doesn't feel as rough. It is used to scrape dead skin cells off of dry feet, smoothen them out and let them heal. It should not be dipped in the water or put under running water, as a word of caution. This happened to me, where I dipped it in the water, and it began to disintegrate immediately. I literally screamed, because I thought that I had just wasted the product, but it left half of it for me to use. Live and learn, right? I would recommend dipping your feet in warm water and then scrubbing with the foot product dry, to keep more and for best results. Highly recommend this!

This is a two-part blog post, so I will post the second part in the next day or so, depending.

Which product from Lush do you want to try the most?