I was recently recruited by my wife to be the guinea pig for LUSHs’ new “Dirty” line for men. We picked up a sampler pack that came with everything for $20 so I could see what I like. We were told that each item in the package contains one part of the overall “scent” that the others don’t have so that you don’t smell like a teenager who’s doused himself in AXE body spray before a hot date. (I’ve done it, so I know that musk.) I was hesitant about most of it, other than the body wash but was pleasantly surprised that not only did I like most of it, but that I’ll probably continue to use it. The body wash itself is like any other gel soap you can get really. It’s nothing outstanding and does what it’s supposed to do but it also doubles as a shampoo, and for my dry scalp it does wonders. Any generic or “brand name” soap/shampoo always dries out my skin and makes me itch like a dog with fleas.
The shaving cream threw me off a bit as when I applied it on in the shower, I could barely tell that it was there. It worked as good as any other “sensitive skin” gel or foam I’ve ever used but it left a residue on my blade that was a pain to scrub off. I actually had to use my nails to scrape it off to keep my hair from sticking to it. It did however, leave me cutless and without any need for a post shave moisturizer. Whether or not that’s worth the annoyance of having to hose down my blade afterwards remains to be seen. I keep my hair short so I really had no need for the styling gel, but decided to try it out on my mustache (which is actually longer than the hair on my head.) It holds well without being overly “sticky” like most product usually is. The cologne that comes with it was nice and not overly strong. I hate being able to “smell myself” whether it’s a good thing or bad thing. My only real big negative was the tooth tabs. You bite into these little tabs and when you add water they foam up. Aside from tasting like straight baking soda, they didn’t dissolve very fast so I was standing there looking like a tool for a few minutes just to get enough foam to brush with. Other than that, half the pieces didn’t dissolve and I wound up spitting them out anyway. I’ll stick to regular tooth paste, thanks Lush.
Overall, if you’re a guy or want your guy to smell nice and be clean then the Dirty products (other than the tooth tabs) are worth it. Not overpowering in the smell area, they keep you clean, and other than having to clean your razor well after usage there was no real issues with any of it. So check it out next time you swing by your local LUSH or order online.
Peter
(check out Pete's blog BigDamnGeeks)
