Although it doesn't happen very often, there are moments when my mind goes completely blank when it comes to a familiar scent or taste. Especially when I know that a particular aroma comes from a product outside of Lush, it's near on impossible to narrow down where exactly I might have experienced it before. When it comes to Khoomei Mouthwash Tabs, I have spent near on a month trying to hunt the smell down, but to no avail as of yet...
What I will tell you about these Liverpool exclusives is that the smell they offer is near on identical to that of a regular chewing gum that you can purchase in licensed shops and supermarkets across the UK. They both smell and taste super delicious and are easily one of my favourite flavours from the extensive solid mouthwash range.
Containing lemongrass, cucumber, tea tree and spearmint, these tabs are super crisp and refreshing without being too potent, or indeed too overly minty. From the bottle, you get a sweet combination of lemongrass and spearmint, with the cucumber resting underneath, offering it's fresh and rather cooling aroma alongside the other notes. Interestingly, the lemongrass has lost quite a bit of its 'grassiness' in this format, so the smell of these tabs is a little more fruity than you might initially expect.
Alongside these notes, the inclusion of the coconut oil rounds off the smell with a delicate powdery note - which I think is what makes the fragrance of these mouthwash tabs so wonderful. You cannot actually taste the coconut at all here but its presence is definitely welcomed, and if you get a chance to try them you'll be able to recognise how this ingredient makes an impact.
Unlike many of Lush's minty oral products, Khoomei is not as potent on the senses and doesn't leave your mouth feeling at all scorched. However, what it does do is leave you with clean, fresh breath; wonderful shiny teeth; and a sweet, lemon-esque note that resides in your mouth for a good while after using one of these tabs.
As soon as you grind one of these between your teeth and add the water to rinse and swish, the wonderfully sweet, fruity and delicately minty taste fills your mouth and begins to work immediately. While all of the components I described above come out in the taste of the tab, there is nothing overwhelming about the taste of this mouthwash at all. In fact, there is something rather delicious about these little beauties that will leave you salivating (and perhaps a little hungry) afterwards.
For those who have never used a mouthwash tab before, you simply crunch the tab between your teeth (I prefer to do this with my front teeth), take a slurp of water and begin swishing as you would a bottled mouthwash. Once you've finished, you spit the water into the sink and you're ready to brace the rest of the day without worrying about smelly breath, or the food from your lunch remaining stuck between your teeth. Lush recommend that you keep the mouthwash swishing around your mouth for a good minute before spitting it out, as this allows the ingredients to get to work at cleaning the mouth and deodorising the tongue so you get the maximum results possible.
As you would expect from Lush, the ingredients that have gone into making Khoomei have also been carefully crafted and serve a purpose. Firstly, they contain sodium bicarbonate, which is a natural softening ingredient that is also known for its ability to clean and deodorise at the same time. This is a key component that will help to clean your tongue, gums and teeth when you're swishing, and will help to rid your mouth of any strong odours that might be present at the time, freshening your breath in the process.
Each of the mouthwashes also contains xylitol, a natural substance that is found in certain fruits and vegetables and is used in foods and cosmetics as a refined sweetener. This ingredient has been proven to cause none of the harmful effects that sugar can have on the teeth; is perfect for diabetics as it doesn't effect blood sugar levels at all; yet offers the sweetness to help give these tabs their interesting but enjoyable flavours.
Whether you're popping out for a day at the beach; making a weekend trip to see the family; or jet-setting off to somewhere exciting, these 45g bottles can be tucked away with the assurance that you wont arrive at your destination with either soggy luggage, or with the lingering smells of your breakfast still festering on your tongue. Furthermore, they're also alcohol-free so these beauties wont cause you any issues when you're going through customs. No matter the length of your journey, these are handy to use at any time of the day: before you head out on your adventure; after a meal; or anytime you feel you need a little freshen up.
Ultimately, Khoomei Mouthwash Tabs are one of my favourites from the Lush range so far, and they are definitely a product that I will continue to use on an almost daily basis. These exclusives offer the perfect balance of taste and freshness and they're a genuine pleasure to use. Despite the rather boring demeanour that they offer, Khoomei are easily one of the most vibrant smelling and tasting oral care options from Lush. They step outside the box enough to bring something new to the table, without taking us too far from what we're looking for from a mouthwash.
Quantitative Ingredients: Dicalcium Phosphate Anhydrous, Sodium Bicarbonate, Silica, Citric Acid, Glycerine, Sorbitol, Malic Acid, Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, Stevia, Xylitol, Menthol Crystals, Fine Sea Salt, Tea Tree Oil, Cucumber Extract, Lemongrass Oil, Spearmint Oil, Citral, Geraniol, Limonene, Linalool, Flavour.
Vegan?: Yes.
2019 Price: £6.50 for 45g.
Year Of Original Release: 2019.
There are times when I find that Lush can be really predictable; they go through phases with certain product types or scents, and you find yourself already knowing what a product is going to smell like even before you've had a chance to give it a sniff for yourself. Yet there are also times when the company completely blow your expectations out of the water, and produce something that leaves you wondering just what exactly inspired such a creation to come about.
Kappa Bath Bomb is one of those love or hate products: one that will leave fans very divided as to whether it's a really great invention, or a really terrible concept. For a long while after I used this bath bomb for the first time, I found myself sitting on the fence, unable to decipher how exactly I was feeling about what I had just experienced. However, I believe that I have come to accept the fact that I think I actually enjoyed the experience of this bath bomb in my tub, although there is a small part of me that feels that I may change my mind at some point.
As far as design goes, this Japan exclusive is super cute and beautifully decorated. Painted a vibrant blue, with a green crown around the top and two huge googly eyes embedded into the surface, Kappa no doubt draws a lot of attention when sitting on the shop floor. Yet, I can imagine a lot of people wouldn't go as far as putting one in their basket, if only for the fragrance it offers alongside this.
Given that the key ingredient is cucumber powder, you probably won't be surprised to here that the main sent that this bath bomb gives off is one of cucumber as well. Yet while there is something crisp, fresh and rather light about the smell - as you would expect from the vegetable itself - there is also an underlying note of oakmoss and lemon which adds a little something extra.
To my nose, it almost smells like cucumber has been mixed with an alluring floral aroma. This adds a natural sweetness to the mix whilst also padding out the overall smell so it's not quite as two-dimensional as you would imagine. To be fair, there is something a little odd about the smell of this bath bomb, but I definitely wouldn't describe it as being anywhere near disgusting.
What is great about Kappa Bath Bomb is the colour that it turns the water. After fizzing away quite quickly - and unfortunately sinking to the bottom of the tub in my case - the water becomes a rich, turquoise colour, unlike anything I've seen another bath bomb produce. The colour is so beautiful to look at that the bath bomb is worth buying just for that alone.
Also impressive is the fact that while the scent is not overpowering, it's strong enough to stay with you throughout the whole experience, even when you use other strong-smelling products alongside it. Furthermore, the aroma stays on your skin, and indeed the bathroom, for a good thirty minutes after you have towelled yourself down.
Ultimately, this bath bomb took me a while to warm to, but only because the smell is something that some consumers may need to adjust to first. It not only leaves your skin feeling super moisturised and baby-soft afterwards, but it refreshes your senses at the same time, which is especially good before a long day at work.
I would definitely recommend that you give Kappa as least one chance to shine in your tub, before you write him off as being an odd sock. Even if you use another product alongside the bath bomb to cancel out the smell a little bit, you'l find that this brand new bomb can definitely hold its own in the bath, and will leave you wondering what strange new scents Lush may decide to release next.
Quantitative Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Citric Acid, Cucumber Powder, Cistus Oil, Sicilian Lemon Oil, Oakmoss Absolute, Water (Aqua), Dipropylene Glycol, Methyl 2-Octynoate, Perfume, Colour 42090, Colour 47005, Colour 19140, Candy Eyes.
Vegan?: Yes.
2019 Price: £5.95 each.
Year Of Original Release: 2019.
coming soon!
For those of you who watch my weekly videos about the Kitchen menu, you'll know that I was stuck between a rock and a hard place when it came to Spring Cleanser Facial Cleanser. Near enough every review I was able to find online convinced me that I was going to hate the product - that I was going to be left with a greasy face and rocking a smell that wouldn't exactly help me to make any new friends.
In situations such as this, a normal consumer would no doubt turn their nose up at purchasing any of the product in question, and opt to save their money for something that sounded more promising. Given that I'm neither normal, nor would I be considered a 'normal consumer', I chose to invest in a couple of bottles, and in hindsight I wish I'd ordered more.
This golden oldie, which has been hidden from the public for a good number of years, is definitely an acquired taste, and I can understand why so many people have slated it for its smell. While it's in no way disgusting, it did take me a few mornings to get used to the fact that I was using something so foodie-smelling, instead of my usual 9 To 5 that I have been using for years.
With the key ingredient being a cucumber infusion, and also featuring fresh cucumber juice in the mix, it's no wonder that the cleanser has a strong but equally refreshing cucumber aroma. It's easily the strongest element to the fragrance, and while the salad vegetable is not known for having an overly potent scent to begin with, its crisp and very clean aroma is definitely at the forefront of this limited edition lotion.
Imagine blending together an entire cucumber and adding in a spoonful of chamomile oil to give the mixture a delicate floral aroma, and you may just get a sense of what this cleanser smells like. It reminds me slightly of the fragrant cucumber facial wipes you can purchase in any regular supermarket, yet this has a more impressive longevity, is better for the environment and features less nasty chemicals.
As with 9 To 5, I use this in one of two ways. Most days, I collect a small grape-size amount on my fingers and massage the lotion across my face - using a flat cotton pad to remove any make-up present before applying my toner spray and moisturiser. However, at times when I am heavily made up, I tend to squirt an amount directly onto the cotton pad, which saturates the material and offers me a little more product to work with.
With Spring Cleanser, I found that it took a little more pressure to remove any stubborn make up around my eyes, and I found myself using a little more of the product to achieve the same results as my aforementioned favourite cleanser. Consistency wise, this lotion is very slightly thicker than 9 To 5 but thinner than Starcraft, and very easy to apply to the skin.
In its favour, it leaves your skin feeling really cool and crisp afterwards, and made my face feel like it had a light layer of oils across the surface for protection throughout the day. My complexion definitely seemed a little more radiant than usual after using this, and my skin seemed plumper, smoother and slightly suppler.
While the foodie smell does remain for a short time after application, I noticed that the fragrance faded dramatically after I had applied my facial moisturiser, and within an hour of being at work, I could no longer detect the cucumber at all. However, the impact of the cleanser remained with me for the most part of the day, and after using this product every day for a good many weeks, I found that the condition of my face began to improve a little and become more naturally radiant.
With ingredients to cleanse, soften and brighten the skin, Spring Cleanser made a much better impression on me than I was initially expecting it to. Not only did it clean out my pores and clear traces of any make-up that was still attached at the end of the day, the inclusion of chamomile offered a soothing respite to go to bed with. Although I would not choose this product over my normal staple cleanser, it's definitely far from the awful product I was expecting it to be, and it'll make a welcome difference to my routine for the next six months.
Quantitative Ingredients: Fresh Cucumber Infusion, Fresh Spring Water, Almond Oil, Stearic Acid, Fresh Cucumber juice, Violet Leaf Absolute, Fennel Oil, Oakmoss Absolute, Chamomile Blue Oil, Triethanolamine Cetearyl Alcohol, Oakmoss Extract, *Linalool, Perfume, Methylparaben Propylparaben.
Vegan?: Yes.
2016 Price: £10.25 for 20g.
Year Of Original Release: ?
UP
What I will tell you about these Liverpool exclusives is that the smell they offer is near on identical to that of a regular chewing gum that you can purchase in licensed shops and supermarkets across the UK. They both smell and taste super delicious and are easily one of my favourite flavours from the extensive solid mouthwash range.
For those who have never used a mouthwash tab before, you simply crunch the tab between your teeth (I prefer to do this with my front teeth), take a slurp of water and begin swishing as you would a bottled mouthwash. Once you've finished, you spit the water into the sink and you're ready to brace the rest of the day without worrying about smelly breath, or the food from your lunch remaining stuck between your teeth. Lush recommend that you keep the mouthwash swishing around your mouth for a good minute before spitting it out, as this allows the ingredients to get to work at cleaning the mouth and deodorising the tongue so you get the maximum results possible.
