Fighting Animal Testing Soap

You can usually rely on Lush to bring out at least one charital product a year - whether it be the reappearance of the popular World Piece Bath Bomb, the fleeting Mrs Fox Bubble Bar or the strange but rather fantastic Bugsplat Ballistic. While I still don't forgive Lush for not giving British fans the chance to buy some Shark Fin Soap, I was rather excited when I noticed this little beauty pop up unannounced on their website earlier this week. 

Fighting Animal Testing Soap is pretty self explanatory in every sense of the word - epitomising the very heart and soul of what the company stand for as well as what I strongly agree with as well. Sporting the brand's own iconic image of the boxing hare, this soap is a limited release, released to raise money for international organisation, InterNICHE. 

As Lush state, 'InterNICHE is an international organisation that works with teachers, students and campaigners to replace animal experiments in education and training. InterNICHE helps implement innovative and humane alternative methods - from training mannekins and simulators to software and virtual reality. And following this replacement in education and training, there's a knock-on effect in research and testing: students who use alternatives are much more likely to choose careers in humane science.'

As a practicing teacher and avid fan of most anti-animal testing campaigns, this cause really stole my heart and I couldn't help but buy a rather hefty amount of these bars to show my support. 

Sharing it's scent with the popular Grass Shower Gel, this uplifting soap is packed full of essential ingredients to give you a refreshing and very natural green smell - one that will follow you around all day and leave you feeling invigorated and clean. The combination of sandalwood, bergamot and neroli oil gives this soap an aroma that smells like a combination of fresh grass on a rainy day, intertwined with fresh lemon juice. However, the sandalwood gives it a deep and rather powerful musky base note as well - one that elevates the overall scent and gives it a richer, slightly woody finished smell. 

While I am a fan of the shower gel format, I actually think that this smell suits the soap format better, and I was surprised by how much stronger and more complex the fragrance came across - both in the wrapper as well as when in use. 

What can be seen as a positive or a negative aspect about this soap, is that it's incredibly soft; cutting a piece in half was like cutting through a block of ice cream, it was that delicate. This meant that in the shower it produced an abundance of thick, creamy soap suds that coated the skin, leaving me feeling really smooth and squeaky clean all over. 

Although the consistency makes this soap really gentle on the skin, I also found that Fighting Animal Testing tends to shrink very quickly when in contact with water and I can see a 100g chunk disappearing a lot quicker than your regular soap. While there is only so much you can do to prevent this from happening when in the shower, I would definitely recommend that you store this somewhere dry in-between showers and pat it down after each and every use. Otherwise, you might find that your block will vanish a lot quicker than usual.

I would highly recommend that you grab yourself a couple of these soaps before they disappear into the Lush vault, perhaps never to be seen again. While I dislike the colder weather, I'm looking forward to using this product during my crisp, early morning wake-up calls. And let's not forget about the fact that money raised from the sale of this soap goes towards an excellent cause - two perfect reasons to reach into your pocket and find that loose change before it's too late.  

Quantitative Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Propylene Glycol, Rapeseed Oil and Coconut Oil, Kaolin, Perfume, Sandalwood Oil, Bergamot Oil, Neroli Oil, Glycerine, Powdered Charcoal, Sodium Chloride, EDTA, Sodium Hydroxide,Tetrasodium,  Etidronate, Coumarin, Geraniol, Limonene, Linalool, Methyl Ionone.

Vegan?: Yes.

2014 Price: £5 for 100g.

Scent Family:
Against Animal Testing Soap
Autumn Leaf Bath Ballistic
Grass Body Lotion

Grass Bubble Bar

Grass Shower Gel

Grass Solid Perfume