If you follow some gothic fashion and lifestyle hashtags on Instagram, you'll probably have seen a few beautiful ladies photographed in unusually-coloured bath water: green, red, blue, black... There may be a few manufacturers of bath bombs that achieve that kind of effect, but the one I've heard of is Hexbomb, based in Belfast, UK.
I saw the photos and wondered if the colors shown were really that vivid in real life, without the aid of photo filters. My only previous experience with bath bombs is a few bought from Lush, years ago. Also, I saw Hexbomb were advertising a restock of their 200ml glass coffin Hexwash bottles, one of which was a black shower gel. I thought the bottle was great - it is refillable glass with a skeleton in relief on the reverse - and I wanted to see if it was a good replacement for my much-missed Lady Gaga Fame black shower gel.
I placed an order for a variety of bits and pieces. I wanted to try lots as it was my first time trying their products. According to the website, most are vegan and contain fragrant oils which should be suitable for sensitive skin. A couple of the items were unavailable and/or substituted; these were the most Halloween-themed of the items, and my order was long after the spooky season had passed, so it wasn't a big deal. Shipping was a bit pricey, but understandable due to the package weight. The items were sent by Hexbomb and received incredibly quickly considering the current pandemic - even for a 'local' UK purchase - and I'm very happy with items. I've now tried:
And from the website, this is what each fragrance name corresponds to, at least for the selection of items I got:
Name | Fragrance |
---|---|
Black As Your Soul | Rose Garden |
Harvest Night | Pumpkin Chai |
Nightfall | Black Orchid |
Haunt | Ghostly Walk |
Lore | Hocus Pocus Musk |
Samhain | Pumpkin Nectarine |
Invoke | Patchouli Rose |
Nether | Cherry Berry |
Macabre | Dark Plum |
The colour result of the 'Black As Your Soul' bath bomb is pictured below (no posing bath pictures from me, you'll be pleased to hear; neither me or my sage green bathroom suite make for a glamorous shot). I let my daughters use it, and luckily it didn't stain them or the bath, despite making the water turn a rich, true black. The 'Rose Garden' scent was very strong and filled the room. It was nice, but maybe a little overpowering if you're not a fan of heavily-scented products.
The 'Black As Your Soul' Hex-wash has the same 'Rose Garden' scent, so while it matches my old Fame shower gel in colour - though not quite in consistency - the aroma is very different. I'm not sure if I prefer it, but it has a less 'chemically' smell. None of the Hexbomb products seemed to have a chemical edge to their scent. It lathers well on a mesh shower puff or sponge, but doesn't work as a bubble bath. I'll have to keep the glass bottle well out of the reach of my girls as it's quite heavy, and could be easily dropped when wet and slippery; that's something to bear in mind if you have kids.
The Hex-mists and Hex-Oils separate in their bottles and need a shake before use. The Nightfall Hex-mist's 'Black Orchid' scent seems closest to the Fame aroma to me, but by no means a match. Of the three body mists, it's my favourite. Haunt's 'Ghostly Walk' seemed pleasant but very woody, without any of the sweeter notes to lift it to the level of Nightfall. Harvest Night's 'Pumpkin Chai' is an odd one for me; I like the smell of it in the bottle, but I'm not sure it works on me as well as sweeter fruit scents. The Samhain Hex-oil is more wearable for me because of the nectarine. Both of the pumpkin-based scents feel like growers, and I'm warming to them the more I try them. The Lore Hex-oil is a winner for me: the matching bath bomb elaborates that the 'Hocus Pocus' scent includes white musk, jasmine and magnolia.
I bought the grey Victorian Hand Invoke soap because I love the design and I enjoy patchouli as an aroma. Visually it is similar in theme to some Gothic Pins I have bought, especially those by Spooky Box Club. The other two soaps - a skull and a pumpkin - are fabulously fruity.
Overall, the items I bought from Hexbomb certainly didn't disappoint, and their bath bombs do seem to achieve the colours seen on social media. Their products are reasonably priced compared to competitors such as Lush. The coffin-shaped bottle costs a bit more, but it is intended to be a one-off refillable purchase. Hexbomb are well worth a try if you would like to make your bathtime a bit more spooky or witchy.
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