Spa Birthday Party Inspired by LUSH Cosmetics
Scout (and Davis, too) just turned TWELVE and she has become more obsessed with Lush Cosmetics over the past year, so we turned it into a unique party theme!
If you are not familiar with LUSH, it is a cosmetic brand that makes fresh, handmade cosmetics that are both fun and effective, while also placing an emphasis on being environmentally-friendly, using ethically-sourced ingredients, avoiding animal testing, and celebrating all types of realistic beauty. Best of all, the products smell and feel amazing! For me, it feels like a line of products I am indeed comfortable with my twelve-year-old daughter being a little obsessed over.
Unsurprisingly, as Scout gets older, her opinions about her birthday parties are strengthening. This year she expressed that it was important to have a more “mature” tone to her event, which posed a bit of a challenge finding decor that was both fun and youthful, but didn’t cross her line of being “too kiddie.” To achieve this effect, we ended up using Lush’s branding for our inspiration of a black and white color scheme, with wood accents and pops of fun, bright colors. For me, it was also a chance to pull back a little and focus more on the spa experience (versus going overboard with paper-crafted decorations).
My daughter has an amazing group of friends, many of whom she has been friends with since her toddler years. I typically try to limit her party guests to around the age she is turning (i.e., twelve guests invited to her twelfth birthday), but this year she pushed hard for a few extra and everyone was able to attend. Including Scout, that was FIFTEEN! Thankfully, they are the sweetest group of kids and I am glad that Clara has a relationship with each one of them. That said, having a large group impacted the “spa treatments” that we felt we could handle. I was glad to have the help of two other moms working alongside me. We were successful in providing each girl with a facial (cleanser, hot towel steam, face mask, toner &, moisturizer), foot scrub, and hand treatments.
We started the treatments by cleansing the guests’ faces. Due to the size of the group, we asked them do this step themselves. If we had fewer girls we may have been able use this step as a way to massage their skin and apply it for them (adding to the “spa” feel). We gave each girl a dime-size dollop of 9 to 5 Cleanser and cotton pads. Each girl then gently rubbed the cleanser into her skin and wiped the product off with the cotton pads. This was the perfect product to use for this because it gently cleanses the skin and doesn’t require water. With two bathroom sinks and 15 girls, we had to keep sink traffic under control. 9 to 5 cleanser comes in two sizes - we used the small 3.3 oz bottle and it was plenty.
Next, we gave the girls hot steamed towels to open their pores. We heated the towels up by wetting them and placing them in a crockpot. The girls placed the towels on their skin for about 5 minutes as the towels cooled down. We then had the girls keep their wet towel near them to use later on to take off their masks.
The biggest hit for the girls had to be the fresh face masks. Lush carries 8 fresh masks. We offered 4 of them for the party: Don’t Look At Me, Cupcake, Rosy Cheeks, and Catastrophe Cosmetic. These come in fun colors and are made with fresh ingredients like cocoa, lemons, rose oil, and blueberries. The guests enjoyed selecting the mask and giggled seeing one another with funny colors on their faces. Each mask pot was good for 4-5 applications, so in having one of each of these four masks was the perfect amount for 15 people. These particular masks are so fresh that they need to be kept in the fridge and have a three week shelf life. I suggest waiting to purchase the masks until you are within a couple of days of your party. Because the masks must be refrigerated, you cannot purchase them online and have to visit a store. If that is not an option for you, Lush does carry a couple of masks you can order online that I have personally enjoyed in the past (Cup Of Coffee for a skin pick-me-up and Mask Of Magnaminty for a deep cleanse). (Fun Lush tip: If you bring 5 of the black Lush containers back to the store to recycle, they will give you one of these fresh face masks for free.)
Gift Totes: I am a big fan of giving gift bag items that can really be used and would rather spend a little more money on something that is actually useful. Admittedly, the gift totes were the most expensive aspect of this party, especially since I was buying for 15. Luckily, I was able to find a nice collection of items fairly inexpensively, including shower totes, hair wraps, shower puffs, cold compress eye masks, cosmetic spreaders, hand mirrors, Lush Butterball Bath Bombs, and container of homemade lip scrub. We also included a pamphlet on Lush products (given out in Lush stores) and I added a fun cucumber paper cut out to tie all the items together. I lucked out and found 15 black Sterilite brand shower totes at Dollar Tree. I used my Silhouette Cameo and transfer vinyl to add each guest’s name to their tote and create personalized “Thank You” tags.
Once all of the masks had been applied, the moms slathered the girls’ feet with Volcano Foot Mask and then wrapped their tootsies in saran wrap. In the past I have used this foot mask on a couple of girls trips and absolutely loved it! It has peppermint and cinnamon leaf oil in it (among muds and other good for the “sole” ingredients) that both cool the feet and then heats them up like a volcano! It’s a spa party must! After use, your feet feel smooth and rejuvenated. The girls absolutely loved the cool down and heat up feeling! We had the perfect amount of product for the 15 guests with 3 pots of Volcano. As a finishing touch, I recommend applying Pink Peppermint Foot Cream. One pot is plenty for 15 guests.
Once their feet were all masked up, we then smoothed Golden Handshake on each girls’ hands, making their skin super soft and moisturized. This particular product is solid to start, so you have to put it in a mug or bowl and add hot water to melt it. I used my tea kettle and it took about 15 minutes for the product to completely melt. Follow the instructions found on the tag! Don’t let this product fool you, a little goes a long way. We used two Golden Handshakes and had plenty left over after the party.
When it came time for rinsing off, the girls took turns washing their feet in the shower to get the foot mask off and using the bathroom sinks to wash the masks off their faces.
We then sprayed some toners on their skin, giving them the choice between Breath Of Fresh Air for balancing the skin or Eau Roma Water for more sensitive skin. After the toner, we applied Light Touch Naked Facial Oil to leave their skin soft and moisturized. It was perfect for their tween skin because its light and helps clear the skin of any breakouts. Lastly, as a mom who wishes I was educated early on eye creams, we took this opportunity to teach the girls how to gently apply eye cream and encouraged them to start using eye cream when they are old enough to vote in a few years. We told them their 40-year-old selves will be thankful! We used Enchanted Eye Cream because it is simple, yet effective at moisturizing the skin, and a little bit goes a very long way.
Since the spa party was in the evening, we wanted the girls to head home relaxed for a lovely night’s rest. We let the girls each dip into a shared pot of Sleepy Body Lotion to rub on their skin. It smells absolutely divine of lavender and tonka and truly helps knock sleepy heads right out!
The lip scrub was homemade, but modeled after Lush products. This recipe was very easy to make with just 4 ingredients: 3 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 tablespoon coconut oil, 1 tablespoon honey, and a few drops of vanilla. Essential oils could be added if desired, but this simple combination smelled like vanilla and tasted like coconut candy. Each guest was able to take home a small container of it in their gift tote.
Instead of cupcakes or birthday cake, Clara decided on a donut wall. My husband attended a work event where there was a large donut wall, sent her a photo, and ever since, the idea has made her happy. He built this easy to store, free-standing, table top version that he stained. I used my Silhouette Cameo electronic cutting machine to cut out the vinyl lettering of “Happy Birthday, Clara!” This whole section of lettering was made from a 12 x 12 page of vinyl and will be easy to change out the next time we use this piece. I could have gone bigger with the lettering, but loved the idea of adding a mini balloon arch with paper leaves and Lush inspired bath bomb cut-outs. The clear balloons were the same ones we used for the Champagne balloon arch and look like bubbles.
Also on the snack table were various treat from Trader Joe’s: the Vanilla Meringues, the Dark Chocolate Shortbread Hearts, Black & White Cookies, and several snack mixes.
** As an Etsy Amazon Affiliate, we earn with qualifying purchases.
Useful Links:
Lush Fresh face masks: Don’t Look At Me, Cupcake, Rosy Cheeks, and Catastrophe Cosmetic. One of each mask was the perfect amount for 15 people. These can only be purchased in store, as they need to be kept refrigerated.
Other Lush products used: 9 to 5 cleanser (3.3 oz), Breath Of Fresh Air Toner (3.3 oz), Eau Roma Water Toner (3.3 oz), (1) Light Touch Face Oil, (3) pots of Volcano Foot Mask, (1) Pink Peppermint Foot Cream, (2) Golden Handshake Hand Mask, Sleepy Body Lotion (7.4 oz), (1) Enchanted Eye Cream, Butterball Bath Bomb (one for each of the guests to take home in their gift totes). If eye makeup needs to be taken off or for an alternative to 9 to 5, you can use (1) Ultrabland Cleanser (1.5 oz). This product takes off absolutely anything someone may have on their skin and it’s extremely gentle to boot. A tiny bit goes a very long way!
Etsy Printables: The Lush inspired bath bomb graphics from Amber Jungle were a great Etsy find for this unique party theme. I cut them out (sized about 4 to a page) and added them to the door, the tissue paper pom-pom banner, and the balloon arch on the donut wall. I also liked the SPA Party digital clipart from Little Moss on Etsy. I was drawn to this package because my daughter has a wonderfully diverse group of friends that are well represented in this set. I added the slippers, mirrors, cucumbers, towels, and floral images to the banner since they matched the treatments we planned to do at the party.
Amazon Mini Containers - I made personalized stickers (0.8 in. circle cut) with my Silhouette Cameo and put on these little containers, then filled them with homemade lip scrub.
Essential Oil Diffuser - I used this essential oil diffuser to help create nice relaxing fragrance in the room with a lavender blended oil. I also had an additional diffuser in the connected bathroom that the girls used to rinse their treatments.
Amazon Music - Spa Music - We loved the spa music playlist that we played via an Alexa Dot in the playroom. The music was calming when we were setting up and even when the first few guests arrived. However, with the enthusiasm of fifteen twelve-year-old guests, the music was barely noticed a half hour into the party.
Photo Backdrop - Woodgrain design - I like to find photo backdrops that can be used for multiple parties or events. In this case, I added a simple tissue paper tassel banner in the background, but also put felt hearts all over it to change it up for Valentine's Day photos.
Wooden Trays - Adding natural, rustic wood pieces to the black and while space helped connect with the Lush and spa-like look. I was able to use several from kitchen that are used for both decoration and serving pieces. I bought two from the Project 62 line at Target and some from their Threshold line.
Faux Plants - I recently updated some of the faux plants around my home and these came in really handy in creating a simple spa-like atmosphere in our playroom. Most of these were Project 62 or Threshold brand from Target. They came with white pots and in various sizes. Grouping several together seemed to really help transform a playroom into a spa-like space.
Hand Held Mirrors from Amazon. I purchased these mirrors from Dollar Tree, but they are not always available.
Shower Puffs from Amazon. I purchased these from Dollar Tree.
Shower Tote - This is not the same one I used. I lucked out and found some durable black ones at Dollar Tree that don’t seem to be consistently in stock.
Great go-to Lush Cosmetics Gift Options: Cosmic Wrapped Gift - contains 3 fun bath bombs, Butterfly Gift Set - contains bar soap, shower gel, and body conditioner, Bath Art Gift Set with bath bomb or if you want to spend a little more, my daughter loves the Honey Gift, which contains 4 great products with the same scent.Lush inspired bath bomb graphics from Amber Jungle