Hello again,

On Saturday we went shopping to the White Rose. We haven’t been in a while but needed to try get some shopping done. When we arrived they had closed the car park at the entrance to Debenhams. So we went through another one.

We went to Lush to see what soaps, bath bombs and hair bars they had in. I quite like Lush as I they are a great option if you are wanting to try reduce your plastic consumption. Which if you’ve read any of my blogs you will know I am truing to do.

When we went in someone asked us if we were OK, I asked where the shampoo bars were and they took us to them. They instantly recognised I was overwhelmed by the noise, the lights, the smells and all the array of colours that were to see in the shop. Mentioning that it was quite loud they said they’d get the music turned down. They hurried back and asked if it was OK, I said that was a lot better. Thank you very much. This instantly made my experience better.

For me sensory overload is a real issue. I prefer shopping online. However, I miss a lot of the experience in this way. Especially when you’re buying soaps, you want to feel them and smell them. It’s quite personal when you’re shopping for bath products. You want to know that what you’re buying is something you’ll enjoy.

After asking us what kind of hair products we would like they introduced us to some brilliant options. As my hair can be quite curly I need something which won’t suck all the moisture out. We were given some options and one of the bars I picked was ‘Jason and the Argan Oil’. The bar is a circular shape which is perfect because when I’m reaching for the soap in the shower I can feel the difference in shapes. Circular for hair shampoo bars and oblong for soap. (I put my shampoo and conditioner on one side of the bath and my soap on the other so I don’t get mixed up and ruin my hair). The shampoo bar is also a hot pink colour as it has rose in it. Making it look lovely.

Once we had picked our shampoo bars I asked where the bath bombs were which make your bath bubbly. We ended up looking at a variety of bubble bars. The person helping us left us to shop as we said were were OK browsing for now.

One of the bubble bars I bought is called ‘Candy Cane’, so naturally it is shaped like a cane and is red and white. It is Christmas after all…. well soon it will be. With this one I will just have to run the cane under the hot water and when I’m happy with the bubblyness of my bath, take it and leave it on the side to dry.

Today’s shopping at Lush was great because there’s no pressure, just people wanting to help. I found it excellent that they recognised straight away that I was stressed and overwhelmed by the shop and instantly made a change. This is such a massive thing to do to ensure a person is able to shop in a way that suits them. The time taken to help me out picking the right soap bars was excellent. I wasn’t over-faced and bombarded with options. I said what I needed and was given plenty of time.

In today’s society I genuinely believe patience is lacking. I think if we all just slowed down a little bit, our over all mindset would be much calmer. Making society happier. We don’t have to rush rush rush. If you give yourself enough time you’re doing yourself a favour.

Thank you again to Lush in White Rose Leeds. I will be shopping again at Lush. Anywhere that gives you a great shopping experience should be returned too. Even if it is their online stores.

Also on our way out I found out why they had closed Debenhams car park. It is also the entrance to Cineworld, and what has come out today? FROZEN 2!!! I’m excited. But closing a whole car park? wow.

I have all the soaps out on my bed and they smell amazing. I’m off to try out that Candy Cane bar. Hopefully relax a little before work tomorrow.

Twitter: @PhilippaB
Insta: @VisuallyImpairedPip