A Drop Of Hope Soap

While I have been privy to very little from the Japanese Kitchen, I have always appreciated the quality of the products that I have been privileged enough to try. There is something so fresh and clean about their releases, which is odd given that they shouldn't be any different from the releases you get all over the globe.

When I noticed that a brand new soap called A Drop Of Hope had made itself available on the website, I couldn't wait to give it a whirl, and was lucky enough to know members of the Lush community who were willing to pick me up a couple of pieces to enjoy.

What is great about purchasing from other countries is that their culture and preferences are very different from the UK, which often means that the sort of product they release are not always ones that would ever make an appearance  in other places. Hanami Scrub is one such product, and this particular soap is another.

There were three things that first attracted me to A Drop Of Hope. Firstly, when cut open, the soap looked like a fresh slice of sponge cake to me. Immediately my senses were alive with the possibility that the fragrance would match. Although I quickly recognised that the above statement wasn't going to be true based on the ingredients list, my interest continued to focus on what this strange looking soap was going to smell like.

Finally, and easily the most important aspect, was that the whole purpose of its release was to raise awareness of the Fukushima tsunami and preceding nuclear disaster that occurred back in 2011.

Featuring mushroom, tofu and orange flower extract as key ingredients, this is a soap with quite a gentle aroma - yet one that is quite unique in its simplicity. When I first gave my chunk a sniff, my initial impression was that it 'smelled of soap'. Now that is going to sound pretty obvious for most people reading this, and some of you may already be wondering what exactly soap smells like, given how many different variations Lush themselves offer.

However, my first thought when sniffing this, was that it was almost a savoury smell. There was a starchy element to the scent, which is most likely from the inclusion of the tofu, and then a very light but unfruity orange blossom smell that lifts and carries most of the other components. It's a soap that smells clean and isn't particularly offensive, but it's not one that I'd describe as being a nice smell either. 

Not only does this combination of ingredients make for an interesting fragrance, but they also play their part in creating quite a moisturising and rather softening soap. Tofu is known for its high volume of protein, which helps to repair the skin. It is also a rich source of antioxidants, as well as minerals iron, copper and manganese - all of which work towards strengthen the skin and giving it a much clearer, more radiant glow. 

A Drop Of Hope also features mushroom - an ingredient known for offering the skin various vitamins, as well as zinc and potassium - all of which help to cleanse and clear the body - removing unwanted debris and yet again bringing some life back into your skin. While it didn't revitalise my skin fully, it did leave it looking a little more vibrant after multiple uses, and wasn't as drying as some of the other Lush soaps can be.

While I didn't find that the soap lathered up particularly well, and it did take quite a bit of effort to produce a thin, creamy foam, what it did produce was easy to spread across the skin. The lather was fairly sticky in consistency, and left a gentle fragrance on the skin, which not only made me feel clean, but was gentle enough to not to completely dry out my hands. The surplus amount of rapeseed oil definitely helps to make this soap very moisturising indeed. 

This would definitely be better used as a hand soap, as I don't really think it makes a great fragrance for the whole body. However, those who appreciate the more simplistic fragrances, may find this refreshing and far less potent than a lot of Lush's regular offerings.

Quantitative Ingredients: Stone Ken foundation, Water, Glycerin, Sucrose, Perfume, Tequila Leaf Extract, Rapeseed Oil, Mushroom, Tofu, Orange Flower Extract, Titanium Oxide.

Vegan?: Yes

2016 Price: ?

Year Of Original Release: 2016.