I don’t know how to tell you this. But I’m like, a teeny tiny bit of a hoarder. Not like Hoarders level bad, though. Probably. I am a total product junkie, especially if it’s special, glamorous, or seasonal. My tons and tons of bath products are all half-full (I’m ever the optimist), perfectly organized, but still probably an issue. I just feel like I have to try everything and I like to have a scent for every occasion. Which brings me to one of my favorite places to casually drop my rent money by accident: Lush. I’m so obsessed, in fact, that I actually had to start exploring creative ways to get more Lush. I’ve used their regular line products so many times that I wanted more. So for all of you, here are some of the best kept Lush secrets to make the most of your shopping at Lush.
Lush Kitchen
If you have never shopped at Lush Kitchen, I’m sorry, you’re doing life wrong. The Kitchen is part of the UK store exclusively. It’s where they come up with all the Lush recipes and product ideas, and they release limited edition lines of products. The products are always amazing, in super high demand, and sell out almost immediately. I recommend following Lush Kitchen on Instagram or Twitter (@lushkitchen) so you’ll know when a new release is coming.
Products can be anything from totally brand-new stuff to old seasonal favorites to new creations using the same scent as popular products. For example, in my most recent Kitchen haul, I got a Lord of Misrule body lotion and an American Cream body lotion. Lord of Misrule is usually a shower cream that is only available around Halloween, and American Cream is the most heavenly smelling hair conditioner ever. I also ordered 10 other things I didn’t need. I have no regrets.
The only downside from shopping at Lush Kitchen is that you do have to pay for shipping from the UK. But again, you literally can’t get these products otherwise. Shipping is something like £7.99. I don’t know what that is in dollars, look it up. If you total up your cart and the shipping is like, £40, it means you’re ordering too much weight-wise, so it has to go to the more expensive shipping. To circumvent this, just divide your order up so you’ll only pay the £7 on each. #Math. However, if you’re only getting a couple of things from the Kitchen, check out the regular UK store (on the same website). They always get products before we do in the US and their product sizes are usually way bigger. Lush USA just recently started selling products in the XL size that the UK has had for years. What a scam.
Seasonal Products
Seasonal products are the best at Lush. The best holidays to shop for seasonal products are Halloween, Christmas (obviously), and weirdly enough, Mother’s Day. Just a couple tips: If you want anything seasonal, buy what you have to have online literally the day it’s released. Lush products always are available online about a week before they’re in stores. All these products are also limited edition, so once they sell out, they’re gone for good. One Halloween, they sold out of everything I wanted before it was even October, and tantrums were thrown. You can always return items if you hate the scent once you get them, but at least you don’t miss out on trying it. This is especially true for Christmas products. Don’t wait until it’s December to buy; all the best stuff will be gone. By the way, Halloween is already on their website. In case you were thinking of procrastinating, don’t.
Christmas Sale
Speaking of Christmas, both in stores and online starting the day after Christmas, all holiday products are 50% off. One year, I went online and I bought one of every gift package they had left, and I had Santa-themed baths until July. Shopping at Lush in the store is not recommended because are f*cking psycho, so avoid them and shop online. The only caveat to shopping online is you have to be super fast. I mean like, at 12am on December 26th, you better be checking out on their website fast. The best products will have sold out long ago, but you can still get decent bath bombs. They also always have Snow Fairy left because it smells like someone smacked you in the face with a sugar plum fairy. Not in a good way. Is there a good way to do that?
Samples
Lush will give you samples of literally any and everything. They will even cut off tiny slivers of solid soap. Whenever you do make it into the store, stock up on whatever they will give you. Some of their moisturizers are pretty expensive, so get some of those. I’m not sure why, but anyone who works at a Lush store behaves as if they snorted bath bomb-scented cocaine. They are all so enthusiastic about showing you the new products and watching bath bombs fizzle out in their little tubs. It’s super unsettling. But whatever. Just act very, very interested and walk away with tons of free sh*t.
Free Face Masks
They put little sticker notices about this on all of their labels, and yet somehow I still see people paying for fresh face masks. Never, ever pay for these, people. They are free if you bring in five empty containers. Lush is basically trying to force you to recycle via bribery, and I’m here for it. I keep a bag under my sink that I toss all my empty Lush bottles in and when I need a new mask, I collect from it. Okay, that makes me sound like a hoarder again, but at least there’s a reason for it. You can thank me for your flawless skin later.
Images: Shutterstock; Giphy (2)
