(Review) Northern Lights: A Soakable Light Show

Another blurry picture...the irony being my last eye appointment was only a few weeks ago...

For as long as I can remember, I've always had my head turned upwards.  There's something so mysterious about the night sky, I can't resist taking a peak upwards, seeing how many stars I can spot in the light polluted city I call home.  And I often wonder if someone's looking back our way, wondering if anyone else is looking their way.  It's a chilling and exciting thought!  I've always loved space.  The infinite darkness, the constant unknown, it's exhilarating and terrifying at the same time and that's what makes it so amazing to me.  Having my head turned upwards paid off for me once though.  Back in the days of community college (or as I like to call it, two straight years of partying) I was driving to a friend's house, singing along to the radio and looking forward to a party filled with loud music and good friends.  I remember getting stuck in a minor traffic jam and quickly becoming annoyed.  I'm not the most patient of drivers, so I sat in a huff, irritated that I was now running late.  I remember stealing a glance upwards, and despite not living too far north, I saw a brief glimpse of the northern lights!  A turquoise and neon green flash swooped across the sky and perked my attention.  It was quick, but I knew what I saw.  Traffic soon let up and I told my friends when I got to the party, but I doubt they cared (or they were too inebriated to care).  And when I left the next day, tottering to my car with a nasty headache and covered in sharpie (don't ask), that image still stuck with me.  Even writing this, I can still remember how exhilarating it was when I saw that celestial flash for the first time.

 

Northern Lights was a bath bomb inspired by those neon swirls that are basically the sun's way of saying "whoa, I almost burned you into crispy space bacon!  Sorry about that, here's a light show!"  Co-founder Mark Constantine designed it to match Sparkler, the other Halloween bath bomb into a wand shape.  With bath bomb mix at both ends and bubble bar in the middle, the ends were to fizz away while the middle took its sweet time melting into the water.  Scented with jasmine and ylang ylang, this bath bomb shares its scent with Christmas Eve bubble bar.

 

So one early, albeit chilly autumn night, I picked up this much sought after bath bomb (half of our shipment came in shattered and it sold out rather quickly) and dropped it in my tub of steaming hot water.  I was intrigued by the wand design and wanted to see it spin around in circles like a firework.  Sadly, it didn't do that.  It kind of rolled over and over, spitting out fluorescent purple froth.  I didn't find it aesthetically pleasing as it melted down (the bath bomb itself I mean...three guesses what it reminded me of) but as soon as it was met by the blue and yellow melting ends, that's when I started to take notice.

 

The color of it melting reminded me of Twilight bath bomb, melting in a beautiful silky lavender color that smelled heady and floral without being too cloying at the senses.  With both colors propelling the bath bomb stick around the tub, it reminded me of the retro game "Space Invaders," a game my dad would let me play on the box of a family computer we had during my youth. 

After the bomb was completely dissolved, I sank in, feeling like I was being steeped in a tub of brightly colored herbal tea.  I have to admit it was very relaxing, and I soaked for much longer than intended.  Out of all the bath bombs I've used, this one had to be the most fragrant, and while the scent of jasmine is something I can't stand, I liked how the ylang ylang balanced it out and lightened it.  When I got out, my legs were jelly, and the insomnia I had been experiencing for a little over a week all but dissipated when the last of the water flowed down the drain.  I clambered underneath my covers and slept like a baby for the first time in a long time, lulled to sleep by the faint glow of my tv and the scent of jasmine and ylang ylang on my skin.

 

Overall, this was a fantastic bath bomb that I'm glad will be sticking around until Christmas.  I will admit I'm not a fan of the wand shaped design, but maybe if it was tweaked a bit so it actually spun around I might become a fan.  It smells beautiful, it made me silky smooth, turned my bath water the color of lilac petals and lulled me to sleep like a tightly swaddled newborn.  Though it reminded me nothing of the aurora borealis I saw that one night a couple years back stuck in traffic, the colors were still beautiful and vibrant.  Definitely go out and get this one for yourselves, especially if you're having trouble sleeping!

**This bath product is certified Vegan   

**Don't forget to comment and subscribe via Google+ or Bloglovin'!  Every little bit of support means the world to me!!**

(Review) Inhale Exhale: A Guide on Breathing

"Keep your head above water, but don't forget to breathe" - Alexi Murdoch

 

There's nothing I love more than a Sunday.  Waking up without an alarm clock blasting you deaf, the promise of a new week ahead, it's the perfect day to just sit back, relax, and decompress.  There's something sacred about a Sunday.  With society's whole "I needed this done yesterday, rush rush, busy busy busy" attitude, a day off is something that's become a foreign concept to us.  However, there are those of us that keep the traditional alive.  Some find solace in Sunday mass, some choose the meditative monotony of cleaning relaxing.  But for me?  It's my weekly Sunday soak.  I can't start my week without a nice, long, 3 hour soak in my tub.  Complete with a bath bomb from Lush of course!

I can never get flash to work properly...

Enter Inhale Exhale.  A dual colored reminder to take time for ourselves now and then.  Limited edition for Mother's Day, Inhale Exhale is not only dual colored, but dual scented as well.  The pink side is scented with Inhale, a bright, fresh melon scented perfume, while the blue side is scented with sandalwood and amber, giving off a peppery, incense vibe.  These two perfumes combined make up the Breath of God fragrance Lush currently sells.  For me this was love at first sniff.  I'm an avid incense burner, never going a day without lighting at least one smokey stick of Dragon's Blood, so this was right up my alley as far as scents were concerned.  This was inspired by Tibetan incense after all, so the heady, smokey notes make sense.  So let's test this baby out, shall we?

Poor little guy is camera shy...

Upon dropping this into the tub, I noticed the pink side fizzed away within seconds, filling the bathroom with this fresh and slightly floral aroma, while the more heady, spicy blue side took its sweet time.

The pink had fully dissolved within literally a minute, leaving in its wake a warm lavender color and a creamy, bubbly coating that felt soft and fluffy when touched.

Braaaaaains.  Fizzy, sweet smelling BRAAAAAAAAINS

 

 Inhale Exhale not only contains sandalwood (which, in my opinion, is the sexiest scent on a man) but neroli as well.  What do these two oils have in common?  They're both soothing!  Neroli and Sandalwood oils help sooth and calm any inflamed, red, and sore skin.  I chose this one specifically because I had an allergic reaction a week before to a product I had used (a blog entry soon to come about that) which caused a rash to spread across my chest and down my ribcage.  Inhale Exhale also contains cade oil, which is that smoky smelling oil used in the Soak & Float shampoo bar.  Cade oil works as a stimulant to help improve circulation in the body and remove any debris in the body.  I hate the word "detoxify" because it's a hot button word tossed around like a rodeo clown, but that's precisely what it does.  Upon getting out of the tub, I did notice that my chest felt better.  The redness was toned down and it wasn't tight or itchy.  Which was nice, since scratching your boob in public isn't the classiest of moves.

Wait...what's that?  In the top right corner...do you see that?

It's a note!

A little affirmation pops out of the bomb when it's dissolved enough.  A nice little reminder that we all need to take five minutes and just breathe once in a while

Once the bomb had fully dissolved, the water turned a beautiful cool lilac color, reminding me of my great-grandma's favorite flower.  And when I sunk into the nice, warm water, I felt like I had wrapped myself in a fluffy down comforter in a warm, incense filled room.  I laid back, stared at the remnants of Essie's Aruba Blue on my toenails and contemplated the meaning of life for a good 30 minutes.  And by the meaning of life, I mean how the hell I was gonna get the rest of that polish off of my toes (seriously, it won't budge!).  I breathed in the spicy smokey aroma and marinated for about 2 hours before I dried off, slapped on a face mask, and started this entry.

Overall, this was a fantastic bath bomb.  A not too strong heady, herbal smell with water the color of sugared violets.  My skin was soft, the rash on my chest looked worlds better, and it inspired me to just stop and breathe, and take in everything around me, whether I have 5 minutes or 5 hours.  In this hustle bustle world, filled with caffeine and deadlines and unnecessary stress, whenever you feel overloaded and on the verge of exploding, just keep one word in mind.

BREATHE