Yes, Lush has great fragrances in their screamingly loud line-up: here’re two of my favourites.
Lush was founded in 1994, and my first encounter with it was in the High Street of Canterbury (England) in 1999, where it stood for everything I didn’t want in my beauty products: shrill colours, punny names and a scent projection that could knock you out easily. (I was an overly earnest student these days.)
Well, that changed – not Lush, but I did (and maybe Lush). Nowadays, it’s a million-dollar corporation, with 900+ shops and spas worldwide. And, at one point in my life, I had my own little Lush shop in my bathroom, or at least it felt that way. Which is to say: I have tested A LOT of their products in the last 20 years. Here’re my affordable fragrance favourites from Lush.
- More: my Lush favourites.
- More: the best Zara fragrances
The best affordable fragrance favourites from Lush
Fragrance isn’t something you’d immediately associate with Lush. That’s because fragrance used to be a “special” produced for avid fans and usually not available in stores at first (apart from Karma. Karma will be still around with the roaches when humanity isn’t any longer). They’ve been building their perfume portfolio over the years now, but I want to talk about two classics today: Twilight and The Olive Branch fragrances.
The Olive Branch/Pansy fragrance
The Olive Branch (TOB) has been around since 1994: it’s one of the oldest Lush products in its iteration of a shower gel. There has been TOB perfumes (and a solid perfume) in the past. I’ve no idea why nowadays there’s still TOB shower gel, but a whole line with the TOB scent called Pansy: amongst which is a perfume and a solid fragrance.
Description
Official notes: rosemary, orange blossom, galbanum
Lush fragrances are generally perfumes: that means they have an incredible projection and lasting power. Beware if you’ll be in proximity to other people (I wouldn’t wear a Lush fragrance on a plane, for example).
My TOB perfume is nearly 20 years old, and hasn’t suffered at all. It lasts easily 12+ hours on me. My new Pansy solid perfume is a bit tamer in comparison (lasts for about 6 hours), and I always layer that with the bodylotion for a true TOB experience.
How does it smell?
First things first: there’s no real progression with Lush fragrances. Sure, the citrus notes are always the most volatile and vanish first, but generally, what you spray is what you get.
You know when you think of citrus scents, the first association is always “fresh”? This isn’t fresh. This is like a warm, cozy hug from a mix of mandarin orange peel, resinous galbanum and bitter orange leaves. The whole experience is citrus fruits, but make them warm and spicy and aromatic.
It’s absolutely unisex. Thank God it’s affordable: A 30ml bottle of the perfume is 25€, the solid perfume (6g) is 14€.
Twilight/Sleepy fragrance
Same story with different names: there’s a Sleepy bodylotion and shower gel, while there’s a body spray, fragrance and bath bomb called Twilight. They all share the same scent. You do you, Lush. The perfume came into the world for the first time in 2011.
Description
Official notes: lavender, tonka bean, ylang-ylang
We’re talking about the body spray here, because the proper fragrance isn’t sold right now. (I guess it’ll be possible to get decants or bottles from perfume sites like parfumo.) But that’s not a problem at all, because the body spray will give you everything the perfume might give you. (A body spray problem: the nozzle sprays like a shower head. Beware!)
How does it smell?
I’ll harp on this till the end of time, but I always smell a simpler, less complex Guerlain Jicky when I smell Twilight.
The lavender isn’t a soapy lavender, but has the spicy earthiness of dried flowers, and the scent that lingers on your fingers after having rubbed lavender buds between your hands. There’s the faint, flowery, lush note of Ylang-Ylang giving it life. And then there’s the tonka bean: like a nearly burnt caramel, but with a hook: that’s the slight spicy scratchiness that comes when you taste tonka on your tongue. It pairs very well with the lavender, and is, for me, the embodiment of comfort, hygge, Gemuetlichkeit, gezellig.
Projection and longevity are similar to an Eau de Parfum: Whenever I thought that the scent had vanished completely after one day, I would turn my head and get a slight whiff of caramel and lavender.
The body spray will last you for life: 200ml will set you back 28€.
Please note that this review is not sponsored in any way. We buy products ourselves, with our own money, and don’t accept exchanging goods, or money, for reviews. We are completely independent, and our reviews reflect that.
1 Comment