Am I the only one who thinks Lush is completely and utterly overrated? I can count the number of Lush products I've bought on one hand, but still ... only one was as great as the site's online reviews made it out to be. (The Volcano foot mask.) Either Lush is hiring people to write raving reviews, they have some biased and seriously hardcore fans, or there is something wrong my skin's ability to properly use Lush products.

Another thing I take issue with ... isn't entirely their fault, but they sort of have a reputation for being more wholesome or natural than other brands. Yet, this isn't exactly the case, at least not in terms of parabens. Check out this ingredients list:


I bought the Lush Fair Trade Foot Lotion while I was in Taipei, most probably because I felt like buying something somewhat luxurious that I was at least somewhat familiar with. (Not that Taiwan doesn't have familiar, international brands.) It was costlier in Taiwan than it would've been in the U.S., but not by much. The 7.9 ounce (225g) pot goes for $23.95 in the U.S. Lush isn't an inexpensive brand.

Okay, what I liked about it: its scent. A peppermint-spearmint toothpasty kind of smell, and the mint made my toes tingle as promised, and made them smell fresh and clean. The pot lasted forever (over a year with an average of twice per week use). And ... that's about all I liked about it.

I would've said that I liked its color, but I found that it stained not only clothing that it came in contact with, but my toes themselves, if I applied just a tad more than could be absorbed immediately. I also hated, hated the feel of the lotion. The texture of the lotion itself was very thin and easy to spread. After application, it left a really shiny, greasy -- dare I say OILY -- top layer that could potentially be dangerous if you plan on walking on a non-carpeted surface barefoot or even if you plan on wearing sandals. The only way I found to combat this was to wrap my feet up in plastic bags and let the lotion "sweat" itself out for an hour. That gave me the best results, both in terms of greasiness and hydration. But let's face it -- ain't nobody got time for that.

This product claims to "relieve aching feet and soften hard skin" and keep your toes "soft, supple and minty". Minty, yes. Soft, temporarily. Supple, not really. Soften hard skin? Absolutely not. Unlike other products you can pile on a particularly calloused spot, this lotion did not keep well in any particular spot and stained my toes a reddish-pink when I tried. Did it relieve my aching feet? Ha!

Would I repurchase? Of course not. In fact, I think I might never purchase another Lush product again. It's just not worth it.

Extra information about the Lush Fair Trade Foot Lotion, 7.9 fl oz/225 grams ...

Ingredients: Arnica Montana Infusion, Almond Oil, Cocoa Butter, Glycerine, Stearic Acid, Triethanolamine, Spearmint Oil, Peppermint Oil, Tagettes Oil, Lanolin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Limonene, Linalool, Perfume, Colour 17200, Methylparaben, Propylparaben.