Plaque Sabbath Toothpaste Jelly

Whilst the modern Jen dresses rather tamely nowadays, the teenage me was certainly a bit of a mess. Black makeup smeared everywhere; self-made holes in nearly all of clothing: just like all of my friends at the time, I wanted to be 'different'. Listening to heavy metal music was the reason I did anything back during my school days, and if there is but one element of my personality that has stayed with me, it would be my love of all things heavy.

You can imagine my excitement then to learn about Plaque Sabbath: one of ten brand new toothpaste jellies that have just moved themselves in the large Liverpool store. Not only does the black attire make it feel almost as if I'm

rebelling against something when I brush my teeth, but the smell and taste of this product is equally as alluring.

Containing a liquorice root infusion as the main ingredient, there is definitely something about the scent of this that brings the sultry, very sickly sweet and resinous components of liquorice to the forefront. Although I will say that it doesn't smell like what you'd probably envisage it would do, there is definitely a strong element of this aniseed-like note, and consumers who dislike this ingredient will want to avoid it like the plague.

Alongside the root infusion, there is also a combination of both orange and tangerine oils. Both of these remove some of the potency of the liquorice and offer warming and rather fruity layers alongside this. In fact, it is these very ingredients that I think will save a lot of negative reactions from consumers because I can imagine the aroma of this would be far less nicer without these components there.

Finally, the inclusion of both the clove bud oil and the menthol also help to add delicate notes of both ingredients into the aroma, which only serves to make Plaque Sabbath one of the strangest collaborations I have come across in a while. This is one of those fragrances that are very difficult to describe well and you either love it or dislike it. I happen to think the former.

Just like the fragrance, the taste of this toothpaste jelly is equally as strange and unique, and I can imagine many consumers buying this for its flavour alone, even when they're not particularly keen on the scent to begin with. Luckily, the fruity oils make the biggest impression on the tastebuds overall but the gentle herbal taste of the liquorice is still present in your mouth during brushing and when you rinse your mouth out afterwards.

As with all of Lush's new toothpaste jellies, the idea is that you simply scoop your toothbrush across the top of the surface of the product and a small amount (or however much you wish to use) will rub off onto the bristles, and this is what you use to brush your teeth with. With all ten of these new jellies, I found that it was very easy to apply only the smallest of amount to my brush: I barely dented the surface at all to begin with, so these little 60g pots will last you a very long time. In fact, I would even say that they may outlast that of a regular-sized 200g tube of toothpaste.

Once I began brushing, I found that it 'lathered up' exactly like a regular toothpaste and at no point did I feel or experience any jelly pieces still in my mouth. The product dissolved very quickly and then worked exactly as you would hope a tooth paste would do so. Furthermore, I was able to spit the paste out multiple times and never once ran out of foam on my toothbrush. These jellies are super generous when it comes to how much foam they produce in your mouth, despite how little product you need to use. Whereas I would normally use a pea-sized amount of toothpaste, I was able to use a piece the size of a grain of rice and yet heed the same results.

What I would say is that as the product is self preserving, it's important to keep your toothbrush fairly dry when you run it across the product. Adding moisture of any kind to these naked cosmetics could reduce the shelf life of the jelly and may open up the possibility of bacteria multiplying over time. For this reason, it's also essential that the lid is left on so as not to attract any unwanted germs. Given that I can imagine one of these pots lasting me a good 3-4 months as a minimum, I certainly wouldn't want the paste exposed to any bacteria, if I can help it.

Much like Purple Banana, I was expecting this jelly to leave an odd taste in my mouth. Instead, I was left feeling rather impressed when the toothpaste jelly replicated a flavour that reminded me a little of fruity chewing gum. What I really enjoyed about this product was that the liquorice root infusion acted as more of an after-thought whilst I was brushing, and instead I experienced and more of a fresh, clean herbal note after I had rinsed my mouth out, which kept my mouth and teeth feeling really refreshed. Furthermore, I was actually really impressed with how squeaky clean my teeth felt afterwards and I think this is due to inclusion of carrageenan in the ingredients list.

Despite the delicate (and perhaps slightly odd) taste of Plaque Sabbath, this toothpaste jelly did exactly what I'd expect any toothpaste to do and left my mouth with a moderate taste that stayed around for a good hour after I had finished brushing.

As I will say in all of my toothpaste jelly reviews, it was nice not to have to worry about any annoying lumps that some of Lush's toothy tabs can leave in your mouth during brushing. This little gem simply dissolved as soon as I started brushing and there wasn't any wastage from bits getting stuck in my teeth or falling out when I spat into the sink.

As with most of Lush's new toothpaste jellies, this one contains many key ingredients to actually help this product to act like a toothpaste. Hydrated silica works well as a whitening and teeth cleaning agent: helping to remove the stains from the surface of your teeth without damaging the enamel. Then there is xylitol, which is a natural sweetener that doesn't contain any fructose, so will help to protect your teeth from damage, and will hopefully help to reduce your risk of cavities over time.

Sometimes it is the weird and wacky that win your heart over more than the nondescript and Plaque Sabbath has definitely done this. This toothpaste jelly has a wonderful, complex aroma with a playful edge that will win many hearts over as well. This is definitely a product that I will buy again and I am thoroughly impressed with the results.

Quantitative Ingredients: Liquorice Root Infusion (Glycyrrhiza glabra), Sorbitol, Glycerine, Silica, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Xylitol, Clove Bud Oil (Eugenia caryophyllus), Brazilian Orange Oil (Citrus sinensis), Tangerine Oil (Citrus reticulata), Activated Charcoal, Stevia (Stevia Rebaudiana), Agar Agar (Gelidium cartilagineum), Carrageenan Extract (Chondrus crispus), Menthol crystals (Menthol), Cinnamal, Cinnamyl Alcohol, Citral, *Eugenol, *Limonene, *Linalool, Flavour.

Vegan?: Yes. 

2019 Price: £ each.

Year Of Original Release: 2019.