Ice Blue looks great - unfortunately it isn't! (Lush Ice Blue Soap)

Member Name: i_am_joy

Product:	Lush Ice Blue Soap
Date:	19/07/09 (40 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Looks wonderful, cleanses well

Disadvantages: Smells like men's shower gel, not refreshing as it's made out to be, leaves my skin dry

I absolutely adore the smell of peppermint so while browsing the Lush site recently I decided to treat myself to a piece of their Ice Blue soap after reading that it is not only peppermint scented but will also make my skin tingle in the shower, giving a deep clean much that that I have come to expect from the Original Source brand.

Now, my problem with buying Lush products online is the fact that I cannot handle and smell the item before I purchase it. Because Lush are such a consistent and reliable company though, this has never really been an issue for me and I have loved most items I have bought - until Ice Blue, that is.

While this is a good soap it's not at all what I was expecting from the information given on the website. There is not even the faintest aroma of peppermint in my soap, in fact it doesn't really smell any different to much cheaper soaps you can buy in Boots or the supermarket. To my nose the smell is reminiscent of a very, very mild male shower gel such as Lynx and there are definite aftershave undertones to the soap.

I do find the soap to be cleansing, I have used it in the bath and also as a hand soap although would not consider using it on my face as it seems to be a very drying bar on my body and after use I always have to apply a thick body cream to stop my skin becoming irritated and dry. Since Lush stopped using Palm Oil in their products the soaps don't tend to lather at all, and Ice Blue is no exception. The bubbles produced by soap is largely aesthetic and it's the layer of actual soap you leave on your body which does the cleansing, the lack of lather doesn't really bother me but my daughter has stopped using Lush soap as she doesn't feel clean unless she has coated herself with a multitude of bubbles!

When I first used it I was expecting a zingy feeling in the bath or shower, I have been spoilt by the strong sensation of my favourite Original Source shower gel and was very disappointed by the barely-there tingle the Ice Blue soap produces. It's not refreshing nor awakening in any way and again I was disappointed by this as the information on the Lush site led me to believe that it was going to be a good 'wake up' soap.

In Ice Blue there are miniscule grains of Fine Sea Salt which act as an exfoliator; this is too mild to really be noticeable in the condition of my skin, although it does help provide a deeper clean as I can vaguely feel the salt grains as I use the bar of soap.

I personally think the best thing about Ice Blue is it's appearance. It looks fantastic on the soap holder in my bathroom, being an opaque blue colour - it actually has the look of a jelly soap so I was quite surprised when I first picked the bar up and discovered how hard it is. It seems to last forever too, I have been using this soap for almost two weeks now on a daily basis and it's still not much smaller than it was when I bought it - unless I get very bored and change soaps for the sake of it then I can envisage this one lasting at least another three weeks.

I like the fact that it doesn't go all sloppy and drippy in my soap holder after use, there really is nothing worse than a bar of soap that has gone soggy and slimy at the bottom - cleaning the soap scum off the holder and side of the sink can sometimes ironically be harder than cleaning off dirt using the soap!

Lush soap is sold by weight, my bar cost me almost £3 for what must be a slightly larger than average bar as the website states the price as £2.56. This is expensive for soap, but I didn't mind paying it as I am usually a fan of Lush soaps - unfortunately this one is a big disappointment in my opinion and a mistake I will not be repeating.

Summary: I do love Lush soap, unfortunately this is not one of the best in the range.