Frozen Over: A Mini Lush Review

I initially had no idea why this bath bomb from Lush Cosmetics was called a Frozen bath bomb.  Frozen in colour, yes, and theme – and no, it’s not just my Disney-fried brain making the connection here; in the description of this bath bomb on the Lush website, there’s all sorts of references to “Let(ting) It Go” and “enjoying the most magical soak in the kingdom” – but the scent?  I was expecting mint, or something sort of mentholated. This smells like citrus floor cleaner, at times bracing and not altogether natural.

So I didn’t enjoy the scent all that much (I actually like very, very few of Lush’s scents) and my poor guy came dented and dinged all to hell and back (which has virtually no bearing on the bath bomb’s performance, although I like it when my pretty bath goodies are actually, you know, pretty) but once it hit the tub, it exceeded my admittedly rather low expectations.

What a stunner!  Erupting into a mass of pale, creamy bubbles, this Frozen bath bomb quickly cracked open, unleashing a torrent of dark turquoise water sprinkled with champagne-hued mica dust.  Once the big show was over and done, an act that took but a few minutes (a pretty average amount of time for a bath bomb to break down) this bomb split into two neat halves, the shimmery little islands spiraling off to different ends of the tub to float among the icy blue, glitter-dusted water.

So the water’s an icy blue and it’s called a Frozen bath bomb – is that all I got for ya?  Well, then, right as I was about to step into the tub, I noticed that the creamy white bubbles floating along the surface of the water had formed themselves into fine swirls around and in between the little trapped clusters of shimmery mica dust. The resulting look is fine skirls of snow drifting across a frozen pond, and it’s so beautiful!  A truly gorgeous effect, those bath time Frozen fjords.

Really one of those bath bombs where the payoff came long after the big show – glad I glanced down before destroying this lovely, unintentional bath art by sticking my foot through it!

Shame about the scent, though – if the smell of this bath bomb were a bit more in line with its otherwise fantastic themeing, it’d be a solid 10 of a bath product.  $8.95 at Lush.ca, and, as nearly always, vegan-friendly.

 

Disney Girl Challenge: Elsa (Frozen Fever)

Here’s another Frozen-centric entry in my ongoing Disney Girl Challenge, this time Queen Elsa’s summertime duds from the short film Frozen Fever.  I think Elsa and her sister, Anna, have THE dopest wardrobes out of any of the Disney lasses, with Elsa’s summer dress, a turquoise-to-neon-green ombre-shaded gown dusted with shimmering pink flowers, being my absolute favourite.

Frozen Fever, which you can find on the newly-released Short Films Collection, along with 11 other classic Disney shorts, follows a summer flu-ridden Elsa as she plans her sister’s birthday party.  Unbeknownst to her, every time she sneezes, she creates a tiny little anthropomorphic snowball (actually, many, many, MANY tiny little snowballs) that get up to all sorts of shenanigans and threaten the queen’s best laid party plans.  It’s super cute, and the reason my thumbnail Elsa here is sporting flushed cheeks.  Feel better soon, Ice Queen.

Time to Let It Go

Is it my imagination, or is Frozen mania finally beginning to loose its icy grip? Parents and Frozen fans, please correct me if I’m wrong, but it seems as though some semblance of sanity is beginning to reassert itself regarding this cute, but so insanely hyped, movie. To make the wretchedest of horrible puns, it would appear as if audiences are at last thawing on the animated, feature length music video for the mega smash hit Let It Go. 😉 I’m not saying it’s time to boot Frozen out into the cold, but the crazy could stand to be dialed down a notch. Or 20.

So before Frozen well and truly jumps the Greenland Shark (the closest thing to an Arctic shark – that’s right, friends, occasionally you will actually learn something along with your daily dose of nail art) I thought I’d share this collage of manicures inspired by some of Anna and Elsa’s more memorable dresses, outfits perfect for nearly any social occasion, from being sworn in as sovereign to tromping through the icy Scandinavian tundra with a talking snowman. As you do.

Disney Girl Challenge: Anna (Outerwear)

When a girl’s just gotta tromp through waist-deep snow after her tantrumy, emotionally damaged sister, shouldn’t she do it in style? And thank goodness for the Wandering Oaken Trading Post’s not-the-least-bit-varied but somehow still perfect women’s outerwear department for conveniently meeting all of Princess Anna’s cold weather fashion (and carrot) needs!

Disney Girl Challenge: Anna (Coronation)

As I commented over on Instagram where this manicure first made its appearance, Frozen is the movie experience that will! not! die! I’m truly boggled by its appeal and subsequent longevity, not because I don’t think it’s a good movie – it is, it really is, please don’t hurt me, Frozen-lovers! – but because I don’t think it’s any better, or worse, than any of the other animated offerings Disney has put forward in the last five to 10 years. The songs are cute and catchy – even if I think Let It Go is terrifically shrieky – the characters are sweet and engaging and it’s flat out beautiful when viewed from the comfort of your couch on your giant ass 3D television, but I could also say the same about Tangled and Enchanted and, going back to the glory days of Disney animation, even The Little Mermaid (which I recently rewatched, and guys, it’s not as good as we remember, Ariel’s really super annoying and Prince Eric is a stone cold moron.)

But the one thing that Frozen excels at, and the part of Frozen mania that I am totally on board with, is its gorgeously detailed set and costume design. I’ve joked in the past that Anna and Elsa have individual wardrobes that could rival the efforts of every other Disney lady combined, and when you factor in an entire castle’s worth of intricately animated fabrics and furniture, it makes for a truly stunning visual experience. Little wonder our world is awash in tiny Elsas and even tinier Annas – their world, and wardrobes, are just too vibrant and beautiful to pass up. That’s little girl (and maybe boy) pay dirt right there!

So jumping aboard this runaway Frozen train (I’d make a Snowpiercer joke here, but did anyone like that movie besides me? Did anyone see that movie besides me?), I thought I’d leap into the fray with this manicure inspired by Anna’s green embroidered “corneration” day dress. This mani also fits in nicely with my ongoing Disney Girl Challenge, a self-imposed bit of nail art lunacy I began a year or so ago in which I’ve attempted to capture all the ladies of the Disneyverse in wee, lacquered form. Somehow I had yet to tackle any of Anna’s beautiful dresses, an oversight now nicely corrected!

Disney Girl Challenge: Queen Elsa (31DC2014)

The ice blue gown Elsa whammo kablammos herself into in the second act of Frozen when she decides to LET IT GOOOOO gets all the love when it comes to her wardrobe, but I actually prefer the teal and magenta and black velvet dress she wears on her “corneration” day, as her sister would say, as Queen Elsa of Arendelle. You really can’t beat a glittery, snowflake-embroidered gown in the maximum impact department, although a dramatic, high-necked velvet dress (with cape!) certainly runs a close second. Elizabeth Taylor would certainly agree. And Eva Green, too, I think – if ever there were a woman who could carry off a cape, right?

Day 10’s theme in the 31 Day Nail Art Challenge is the ever-popular gradient. I had a bit of a tough time thinking of something related to both Disney and gradients until I remembered that I’d yet to tackle Elsa’s teal-coloured coronation dress, which ends in a lovely embroidered gradient fishtail. And so I did, ticking off yet another lady in my ongoing Disney Girl Challenge while tackling a mani I’ve been meaning to do for some time. Disney-centric progress!

Do You Wanna Build a Snowman?

I debated adding these nails, inspired by Olaf the snowman from Frozen, to my ongoing Disney Girl Challenge because holy crap, does he ever scream like a little girl! I get that Olaf is one of those Jar Jar Binks-esque characters you either love or hate (hmm, unfair comparison; NO ONE, not even the kids he was designed to amuse, like Jar Jar Binks), although I really don’t have an opinion on him one way or another.

Which is sort of my attitude towards Frozen in general. Don’t get me wrong, I thought it was a great, fantastic looking animated musical in the very best Disney tradition, AND I’ve watched the ever-living stuffing out of it (I’m one of those people that puts movies on when they’re doing other stuff like cooking or cleaning as opposed to, say, music), but I am a tad perplexed as to why it’s made allllllllll the movie money. I mean, between the soundtrack leaping to the top of the charts – and staying there – and the movie remaining in theatres for five times longer than any other release in the last decade and the popularity of the characters and the inability to find any branded merchandise and, and, and…well, it’s easy to see how Frozen has really taken on a life of its own, becoming so much more than your average movie musical.

But I’m still so perplexed as to the hows and whys of Frozen’s domination. Is it the soundtrack? Did it earn its popularity on the back of that Let It Go song (which is so insanely popular, if it were to run for President of the United States today, I’m pretty sure it would win by a landslide.) Because that song is sort of shrieky and NOT easy to sing. Plus, with very few modifications, all of the lyrics could be referring to toilet humour (which amuses the boys, or at least it amuses my husband, who should know better.) 😉

Or is it because it’s a predominantly female-driven story of sisters finding their way back to each other through a literal (snow)storm of forces beyond their control? I like to think so. It warms MY heart to think that the sweet story of Elsa and Anna speaks to the kinder part of our generally cranky natures. But still, it’s a story that’s really no better or worse than any of Disney’s other animated offerings, from new classics like Tangled to old standbys like The Little Mermaid.

Maybe it’s the love (is an open door) story between Anna and Kristoff (we shall not speak of Hans; he’s a dick and his sideburns are stupid.) Or did something in Arendelle’s unexpected deep freeze speak to our own never-ending winter? Or do we all just wish we could live somewhere we could drop the word “fjord” into casual conversation with our reindeer friends? Jeepers, what is it?! Like I said, perplexed.

But not perplexed enough to turn up an opportunity to do some Frozen-inspired nail art. So when I received this polish the other day, KB Shimmer’s Snow Much Fun (which, IP, trademark and other issues aside, KB should really market as “Frozen in a bottle”), I just knew I’d have to put it to use as the perfect base for a tiny lacquered Olaf, who will always scream like a girl and likes warm hugs.

Disney Girl Challenge: Elsa the Snow Queen

I’m actually partial to the black and teal and magenta outfit Elsa wears before she bolts from Arendelle, but I respect her need to let it go (LET IT GOOOOOO!) and change into something a little less restrictive and high-necked.

This is the first manicure I’ve done inspired by Frozen, though surely not the last (between the two of them, Elsa and Anna have one MAJOR wardrobe.) I’m particularly proud of the tone-on-tone striping tape work I did on my index and ring fingers that I think looks like the glittery rectangular sequins on Elsa’s ethereal ice blue dress. And snowflakes, because, you know, everything’s Frozen (no, really, that movie has taken on a life of its own; these days, everything truly IS Frozen.)