LUSH Santa’s Grotto Gift Set Review and Pictures

More LUSH goodies to review! This gift set was part of my Boxing Day sale haul, but I waited until I actually tried everything in it to write this review. Considering that the contents are quite pricey for what they are, it’s no surprise I took my time to savor them.

Santa’s Grotto gift set was inspired by LUSH’s very first store at 29 1/2 High St., Poole, England. The set contains four seasonal bath bombs: Secret Santa, Father Christmas, Cinders, and Snowman.

Santa’s Grotto Gift Set – all wrapped up!

Santa’s Grotto Gift Set – recycled cardboard box inside

Santa’s Grotto Gift Set – contents

Father Christmas bath bomb

Father Christmas bath bomb – size comparison

Secret Santa bath bomb – it’s huge!

Cinders bath bomb

Cinders bath bomb – size comparison

Snowman bath bomb – Mr. Frosty lost his nose-ty 🙁

Snowman bath bomb – size comparison

Secret Santa – It’s basically two bath bombs in one. The name is a play on words, because if you crack the house, you’ll find another mini-sized “secret” Father Christmas bath bomb hiding inside. I ended up crumbling it into pieces and using for three separate baths. This fizzy makes the water turn light orange, like you’re swimming in Fanta or something, and the sweet citrusy fragrance is perfect for the color. The secret mini-bomb looks like a boring red blob, but it’s actually quite delightful. It colored the water the color of blood oranges, and smelled like them, too. Secret Santa is one of those bath bombs that are used for aromatherapy and relaxation rather than for their body moisturizing properties. It leaves the skin smelling of sweet citrus and spices, and that fragrance lingers for hours.

Father Christmas – If you hate cleaning your bath, then this bath bomb could be a nightmare to handle. On the outside it looks quite harmless – judging by that white and pale pink appearance, you expect some sort of milky-fruity mix, but soon as you drop it in the water, that layer disappears and reveals all colors of Christmas: green, red, and of course glitter, turning the water in your tub a beautiful emerald color. The fragrance is bitter-citrusy, thanks to bergamot and mandarin oils, but I found that it disappears far too quickly. Despite the short-lived scent, I really enjoyed how soft my skin felt after the bath.

Cinders – I have a love-hate relationship with this bath bomb: it has lots of pros and only one, but very important con. I’ll start with pros, and the first one is of course the fragrance. It’s divine! It’s exactly what Christmas smells like to me – almonds, oranges and cinnamon. LUSH also added some gardenia oil into the mix, to make the bath time a really relaxing experience. If you thought that sounded great, wait until you find out this bath bomb also comes equipped with popping candy to imitate the crackling of the fireplace. If I close my eyes it really does seem like I’m listening to one, so I thought that was a genius idea. Cinders contains a very high concentration of oils, which leaves the skin extra soft and delightfully scented, with a fragrance that lingers on the skin for 2-3 hours. Another pro is the price, Cinders is actually one of the cheapest seasonal items. Now the important con I was talking about, I don’t know what’s wrong with these bath bombs, but it stained my tub yellow and it was very hard to get it off. If you have a ceramic or cast iron tub, I’d probably recommend avoiding this one. I’m definitely staying away from these in the future.

Snowman – I adore this little snowman! This bath bomb really doesn’t smell like much, but it moisturizes the body like no other. The secret lies within the bomb core – it hides bits of pure cocoa butter and vegan glycerine, that melt after contacting the steaming bath water. That oily concoction works wonders to lock in the moisture for smooth, kissable skin. Due to high concentration of cocoa butter, this bath bomb definitely requires a cleanup afterwards, however, unlike Cinders, it doesn’t stain the tub. As you can see in the pictures, my poor snowman lost his nose during shipping, but that didn’t make me love him any less, and I will definitely purchase more next year!

Secret Santa bath bomb – the “secret” inside. Took this photo with my phone, so the quality is not the greatest.

THE VERDICT
This was a good opportunity to try several seasonal products at once, and I definitely don’t regret buying this gift set. I expected more of Cinders, mainly because I fell madly in love with the fragrance, but I’m really scared to use it again in case it decides to permanently stain my tub. My favorite was definitely Snowman, and next year I will know what to buy. All of these bath bombs are available individually, and as part of gift sets during Winter Holidays.

PRICE & AVAILABILITY
£18.95 for the set. Available exclusively at LUSH during the Winter Holiday season.

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Ingredients:
Snowman – Sodium Bicarbonate, Citric Acid, Cocoa Butter, Synthetic Musk, Ylang Ylang Oil, Glycerine, Cream of Tartar, Sodium Carbonate, Lauryl Betaine, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Perfume, Colour 14700, Colour 17200, Colour 15510
Cinders – Sodium Bicarbonate, Citric Acid, Coarse Sea Salt, Popping Candy, Perfume, Gardenia Extract, Almond Essential Oil, Sweet Orange Oil, Cinnamon Leaf Oil, Cinnamal, Eugenol, Limonene, Colour 14700
Father Christmas – Sodium Bicarbonate, Citric Acid, Mandarin Oil, Bergamot Oil, Orange Flower Absolute, Cream of Tartar, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Lauryl Betaine, Limonene, Linalool, Gardenia Extract, Perfume, Colour 19140, Colour 42090, Colour 14700
Secret Santa – Sodium Bicarbonate, Citric Acid, Perfume, Ylang Ylang Absolute, New Caledonian Sandalwood Oil, Indian jasmine absolute, Lime Oil, Sicilian Lemon Oil, Tonka Absolute, Water, Citral, Benzyl Benzoate, Limonene, Linalool, Methyl Ionone, Hydroxycitronellal, Benzyl Alcohol, Coumarin, Butylphenyl Methylpropional, Colour 14700, Colour 17200, Colour 15510, Colour 45410, Snowflake Lustre