I AM, unashamedly, the Halloween Queen — it is, without a doubt, my favourite time of year. Anything to do with the spooky season is right up my street.
From house decorations to unique days out to costumes, whatever it is, you can bet that I’ll be a part of it on the run-up to the eeriest night of the year.
And one thing that I get super excited about is Lush’s Halloween countdown calendar.
The high street beauty brand launched the exciting new calendar for the first time last year and became an instant success.
Normally, when you hear ‘advent calendar’ or ‘countdown calendar’, everyone immediately thinks of Christmas, but Lush has completely changed the game.
It’s not just about getting festive goodies and treats for December 25 anymore – now lovers of Halloween can get in on the excitement as October 31 approaches.
The incredible set includes seven supernatural bath, shower and body treats to enjoy on the run-up to the eeriest night of the year.
It makes for the perfect treat for those who love the spooky season, giving them one product a day as they anticipate the arrival of fright night.
I couldn’t wait to get my hands on one of this year’s boxes, and it was absolutely worth the wait – I was totally bewitched by the incredible range of goodies inside.
Describing the calander, bosses at Lush said: “Doors locked? Good. Now open these. Seven doors, seven eerie bath, body and shower treats – counting you down to the big night.
“This frightfully fabulous box was designed by Brooklyn-based Illustrator Iain Burke, whose penchant for the supernatural and love of ephemera inspire his work.”
The calendar itself comes in a delightfully spooky, colourful box decorated with all our favourite Halloween characters.
This year, the front of the box was a spooky graveyard scene with an owl sitting on a branch in front of a full moon, pumpkins grinning in front of headstones, and skeletons rising from the ground as a black cat lurks.
The box then opens up to a set of green numbered doors which each hides a Halloween product inside to be opened on the last week of October.
The thought that has gone into the design of this box is incredible – each door is expertly designed with artwork of pumpkins, bats, skeleton ghosts and cats.
It also comes with a tag that reveals all the products that are included, but we’re not going to show that because we want to leave some of it as a surprise.
For that reason, I only opened four out of the seven doors and left the other three closed until the days before Halloween.
The first door I opened was door number two, which was hiding Lush’s Palm Reader naked hand cream, which brings dry hands back to life.
Describing the product, experts at the beauty brand said: “Don’t leave soft hands down to fate: nourishing shea butter, soothing rosewater and beautifying koji paste practically guarantee it.
“And what’s this? Your love line tells of a luxurious, complex affair with the floral aromas of orange flower absolute and sophisticated woody notes. We’re jealous!
“Bring hands back to life with antioxidant-rich marula oil, lightweight with hydrating qualities to soften lines looking a little too deep for your liking.”
I then jumped straight to door number four, where the Demon in the Dark soap was eagerly waiting.
This bathtime treat has glow-in-the-dark powers and is infused with refreshing aromas of peppermint, which enliven the senses with the spine-tingling refreshment.
It also has notes of apple juice and warming clove bud oil, which lifts he spirits.
To make it glow, all you need to do is charge it under light before lathering all over.
A skeleton Monster Mash Head bath bomb was then hiding behind door number five.
Describing it online, Lush said: “Give weary bodies some time to lay bone idle and enjoy the skeleton key to a comforting bathtime.
Inside Lush’s new Halloween launch
LUSH is famous for its luxurious skincare and haircare products as well as its incredible bath bombs.
But what the global cosmetics retailer also has a form for is its incredible themed products – especially around the festive time – and this year’s Halloween range has knocked it out of the park.
Here are three of the most unique creations from Lush’s new collection that will delight fans who are anticipating the arrival of fright night:
- Alien Egg Farm Shower Jelly (£10) – Lush has teleported us back a few decades with their brand new shower jelly inspired by the iconic jelly Alien Eggs toys from the 90s. This incredibly zesty Halloween treat comes straight from Area 51 and is full of sweet lychee juice and lime peel infusion, which makes the skin feel mysteriously soft and soothed.
- Boo-tiful Eye Pads Eye Mask (3.50) – Fans of the Nightmare Before Christmas will love these. Created to look like the beloved spirits in the opening credits of the much-loved Tim Burton film, these incredibly hydrating pads make tired eyes look un-boo-lievable by making dark circles vanish into thin air.
- Mr Pumpkin Face Mask – If you’re looking for something a little more grown-up this Halloween, then don’t worry – Lush still has you covered. Pumpkins are full of vitamins, making them a perfect fall treat for the skin, so the experts have packed this face mask full of their goodness.T he Vitamin-rich pumpkin purée nourishes the skin, while the organic pumpkin seed butter softens and moisturises it.
“Softening oat milk powder dissolves to form creamy skin-soothing water, while the sweet scent of ylang ylang helps you unwind — what a bone-us.
“Say bone voyage to dry skin and skell-o to creamy oat milk water, to seriously soften and soothe.”
The last door I opened was number seven, which revealed the perfect product for any Halloween lover – a bottle of Pumpkin Spice Latte shower gel.
A drop of autumnal magic, this decadent shower gel is sweet and spicy.
But it is also balanced with roasted cocoa extract and coffee absolute to capture the true, complex aromas of this not-so-basic fan-favourite order.
Swirls of indulgent coffee and vanilla absolute meet aromatic clove and cinnamon in the gourd-damn serve of the season, Lush experts say.
But if you want to know what is being door numbers one, three, and six, then you’ll have to buy it for yourself!
