I had a couple days off from work this week and decided to visit our local Lush. I browsed the stock online beforehand, where I noticed they had American Cream solid perfume in stock. I had used and loved the hair conditioner in this fragrance and wanted to see if it was all-day-wear-worthy in the form of a perfume. They also had a few others I hadn’t tried yet.
I have mixed but majority positive feelings about Lush products. I generally enjoy their bath and body offerings and I have found a few EDPs there that I love and own (Lust, Karma [on my second bottle], Breath of God [but only on my husband, never me; also on his second bottle and he previously had a solid, too]). I do think Lush perfumes are somewhat of an acquired taste, and the older scents in their collection, such as Karma, are more complex and enjoyable than the newer releases like Sun.
American Cream, the original purpose of my visit, and my second choice, Pansy, both smelled good, and maybe it was the masks we had to wear or just my experience that day, but they smelled kind of similar to each other? I look forward to trying them again under better circumstances. While nice, neither seemed distinctive enough to merit a purchase that day, but the shopping trip was still a success. My third choice, Love, offered a more unique fragrance experience and is ultimately the one I chose to bring home.
Lush Love Solid Fragrance Review
Size: 0.2 oz./6 g
Packaging: small glass jar with a black plastic lid. Paper sticker label. Recyclable. Reusable/zero waste. Even getting a paper bag or paper receipt is optional with Lush purchases.
Base: organic jojoba oil, organic castor oil, candelilla wax.
Vegan-friendly: yes.
Color and texture: soft golden yellow, oily/fatty solid that yields easily to the swipe of a fingertip.
Natural perfume or mixed media: mixed media (the label lists both natural and synthetic fragrance components).
Fragrance description and notes: From the Lush USA website: “Flirty rose and jasmine swirl together with crisp lemongrass and bergamot to create a sweet, tart take on a delicious caramel apple scent.”
Longevity: decent, at four to five hours.
Sillage: goes on big and bold; becomes largely a skin scent after two hours.
The experience: The store associate also described this as an apple scent, with strong lemon tones. I honestly don’t get the apple note, at least not in the heat of summer. What I do get is big, loud citrus, with woody and cinnamon stick undertones. The fragrance lists oakmoss essential oil as an ingredient, and while ingredients are not necessarily notes that will be detectable in a fragrance, I can smell the oakmoss in Love. It’s a nice counterpoint to all that cinnamon and lends a slight barbershop vibe to the fragrance.
My husband also wore this one, and his skin pulls more of the sweet lemon and floral notes. On my skin, Love is dried citrus, fresh-ground spices and a woody-floral drydown. I get a bit of dried stone fruit (not apple, maybe peach?) at the two-hour mark. I definitely would not categorize this one as a Fruity-Floral, nor is it Gourmand in any way. Lush categorizes it as a “sexy floral” and that doesn’t seem quite right, either. Citrus Aromatic seems more appropriate, at least for how the solid performs on my skin.
Love presents as unisex/genderless, leaning slightly masculine, and it won’t be everybody’s thing. I’m still wearing it and processing it and it is more of a good strong “like” for me at the moment. You absolutely must love lemons for this one to work! I would recommend sampling in person or ordering a Love Wash Card (a brilliant format for sampling) from the Lush website, if you can’t get to a store.
Where to buy: at your local Lush boutique or Lush USA (or Lush.com for international).
Additional Info: Lush lists a creation date and also an “end date” on their solid fragrances. I admit I’ve gone a little past that date (like 12 months or less) on previous Lush solids, but your mileage may vary. The fragrance will likely perform best if used before that end date.
All photographs and original artwork by me.
Solidly Scented 
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