The Kiss

The romantic scent of the rose is said to help restore inner balance and is considered by some to be an aphrodisiac. 

Rose petals are the source of rose oil, which some say was the first floral essential oil to be distilled. Rose oil has been an important part of fragrances and flavours for thousands of years. It is perhaps the most beloved floral scent in the world. The many versions of rose materials that we include as key ingredients in our products have an array of different qualities that will serve your senses, your skin and your mind!

Depending on the concentration, roses products may:

Soothe

Balance

Subtly tighten the pores

Restore radiance

Improve elasticity

Reduce the appearance of broken capillaries

Rose flowers are used in our products in several forms (essential oils, infusion, petals, dried buds…) and each of them can be purchased in different places around the world. To find out more, browse your Lush product’s list of ingredients and click on the ones you are interested in. This should take you to a page full of details!

A juicy lemon will always brighten your day - and your skin! 

Oh, we all know what lemon is, surely!? Okay, for those of you who don’t, it’s a fruit that grows on a small, slightly thorny, evergreen tree that belongs to the Rutaceae family. The lemon tree typically grows in Italy, Asia and East India, and produces highly fragrant blossoms and shiny leaves as well as this bright yellow, oval-shaped citrus treat. 

Lemon oil and juice are known for their deeply cleansing and brightening effects on the skin.

A lemon’s natural fruit acids encourage the cuticle of the hair to lie flat, reflecting more light and in turn enhancing shine in the hair.

Lemon oil is often used as a top note in perfumery, adding a refreshing quality to fragrances to directly delight your synapses.

The juice is full of vitamin C which makes your skin glow and helps the complexion.

Since 2005, Lush has sourced bergamot, lemon and mandarin essential oils directly from a family business that have been producing citrus oils for three generations. While the lemons and mandarins thrive under the sun of Sicily, the bergamot fruits are grown in Reggio Calabria, Southern Italy. Grown without pesticides, the lemons are collected by hand and pressed entirely with their peel. The resulting liquid then goes through a centrifugal process that separates the oil from the juice. 

When it comes to fresh lemons and their zest, peel or juice, browse your Lush product’s list of ingredients to find out more. Click on the ingredient you are interested in and it should take you to a page full of details!

Let castor oil put a nice soothing spell on your skin and scalp!

The evergreen castor bean shrub (Ricinus communis) is considered native to eastern Africa. Castor oil is produced by cold-pressing the seeds and goes through a clarification process by heating before use. The oil is a colourless, odourless and tasteless pale yellow liquid. 

Castor oil is both antibacterial and soothing.

It takes care of the scalp so well that it allows hair follicles to develop strong and healthy hair.

It has been used medicinally around the world for thousands of years, mostly to treat skin conditions such as eczema or psoriasis, as well as burns or acne.

It can be mixed with sodium hydroxide along with other vegetable oils to create a thick and stable soap base.

‘Castor’ means beaver in French!

To find out more about our suppliers, browse your Lush product’s list of ingredients and click on castor oil. This should take you to a page full of details!

Waxes give cosmetic products a pleasant texture and feel while protecting the skin and hair.

Initially, wax is a substance that resembles beeswax. It’s usually a thick and oily substance, sometimes solid at room temperature, sometimes spreadable. There are many types of waxes, which can be of animal, mineral or plant origin. Here, we’ll focus on the many vegetable waxes that Lush uses, such as rapeseed, rose, sunflower or candelilla wax, to name a few. 

The processes for obtaining vegetable wax are quite different depending on the plant's species and the desired texture and properties. Here are some examples:

Acids - Candelilla wax is infamous for being extracted from a succulent plant with sulfuric acid, a very dangerous material. Luckily, Lush creative buyers have found a supplier that has pioneered a new technique with the less harmful citric acid.

Hydrogenation - This process is frequently used in the vegetable oil industry, improving textures and shelf life. The transformation can range from the slight thickening of an oil, to its solidification into a wax. Soy wax is a good example of this.

Solvents - Take rose absolute. Like all absolutes, it is produced by soaking the raw material (rose petals) in a solvent such as ethanol. This results in a waxy paste called concrete which is ‘washed’ again with solvents to separate the wax from the fragrant rose oil. The oil is called absolute and is sold separately. The remaining wax has a faint scent and retains some of the plant’s properties, which is ideal for cosmetic use.

Benefits will depend on the type of wax but, as a general rule, they give our products a nice texture and shine. They sit lightly on the skin and hair to protect them, giving lustre and softness. Some waxes will be very fine to the touch and hardly felt, others will provide a strong conditioning sensation.

Each wax has its very own story! To find out more, browse your Lush product’s list of ingredients and click on the ones you are interested in. This should take you to a page full of details.

Your order will be expertly protected against impact during transit by biodegradable Eco-Pops, compostable packaging nuggets made from potato starch! They're easily dissolvable in water or soil.

Fresh cosmetic ingredients are more effective on skin, hair, and mind than heavily preserved beauty products. 65% of our raw material spend is on natural ingredients.