Aloe Aloe - Are You Getting Sticky? (Palmolive Deodorant Soft & Gentle)

Member Name: belfin

Product:	Palmolive Deodorant Soft & Gentle
Date:	01/05/06 (270 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: no stickiness - lovely fragrances

Disadvantages: can only be used under arms

***Background***

This deodorant stick is made by Palmolive which I was surprised to learn are part of the Colgate group. Wasn't sure what to make of that one. They have been making this Soft and Gentle range since the 1970s and I remember my mum always using roll ons. As a teenager I started to use body sprays like Impulse - which were very cool and were meant to stop a guy dead in his tracks and do anything to give you a bunch of flowers - in the 80s but didn't really work as anti-perspirants but just masked the smell of sweat very well.

Now I am older and hopefully more mature (although some would disagree) I tend not to let advertising campaigns sway me too much but like to try out various brands to see what works best for me. After all personal preference is a big factor in this type of product. I got fed up of sprays leaving white marks on clothes though and the first time I tried a deodorant stick was when I got a free sample of Secret in my bounty pack after having my son 4 years ago. I thought since it was free I might as well give it a go and was very impressed with this product.

***The Product***

This has both anti-perspirant and deodorant in this product which means that as well as masking the body odours it should reduce the level of sweat produced - in this case it's stated to be around 40%. This stick claims to give 24 hour protection against wetness and odour and although I would agree to some extent for the odour part I would have to disagree with the wetness as there are times when you do feel sticky with this product if you have been exerting yourself. (I'm not going into details here - read on) The part I like about this product is the fact it has Aloe Vera in it which I have found to be an excellent benefit to moisturising my dry skin and I can even use it after shaving without any stinging or irritation.

***The Range***

I first tried out Soft and Gentle Aloe simply because it was the one on special offer at the time. I got a 2 for 1 offer from Boots at the time. I picked out the After Hours and the Soft Jasmine fragrances to try.

There are 6 fragrances to choose in this range which extend to the aerosol and roll-on varieties too so even if the stick is not your chosen form of protection or if you feel you want to use the spray for other areas of your body you can still enjoy these scents and not have different fragrances colliding with each other. The packaging is the same for each one with the exception of colour and features an aloe plant leaf on the front

The other fragrances are:-

Cool Cotton - this combines delicate flowers and sandalwood
Aqua Cool - this is orange flowers and jasmine
Soft Vanilla - this mixes vanilla with ylang-ylang and violet
Pure Linen - this combines mandarin and bergamot

***My Experiences***

For the daytime I use the Soft Jasmine fragrance which blends jasmine with cedarwood. This is a lovely fresh scent ideal for daytime use and as I don't really have a big sweating problem I find this generally lasts me all day. Now this again is something personal so I'm not sure how effective these sticks would be if you were a heavy sweater. I know that if I have been working in the garden on a hot day then I feel a little bit sticky after an hour or so (sorry to disappoint anyone but this is the only way I get dirty during the day).

The After Hours variety has a mixture of rose, vanilla and oriental spices and I particularly like to use this if I am going out as it has a more muskier evening smell. I've found this to be very effective even after a night clubbing and although I did tend to get a little bit sweaty there was no horrible smell to go with it.

The price is pretty reasonable for this type of product as they do last a lot longer than sprays which I seemed to go through very quickly. The only disadvantages I would say with a stick is not being able to feel that instant cool refreshing spray on a hot day although it has it's advantages in the winter and the scent doesn't linger as much as the sprays. Great though if you just want a subtle fragrance though. It's small enough to pop into a bag - yes even a small one on a night out, which has got to be a plus too - great for freshening up before dragging your bloke home.

This product looks modern and I know I can get on during the day on the whole without having to worry about sweat patches or nasty smells. Just what I need as a busy mum.

***Price and Availability***

They are around £1.70 each for a 45g stick. You can get them in all the chemists and in most supermarkets too although different shops do seem to only sell a couple of the fragrances so you may have to shop around if you're after one in particular.

Summary: Good product at a reasonable price.