Liquid silk - lubricant discontinued by Bodywise Limited - review by timelady

Use
I am just beginning to understand the importance of using lubricant when playing with a vibrator- it can make SUCH a huge difference in the overall experience! Having used another brand of water-based lube for a while, I was looking forward to seeing how the Liquid Silk would measure up.

I used this lube exclusively by myself with a toy, so I cannot speak to its effectiveness during couple's sex of any variety (oral, anal, etc.), but I see no reason (aside from the drawbacks I will mention below) why it could not be used for all of them.

Texture / Consistency / Thickness / Viscosity
I found the appearance of the lube to be a bit strange: white and gooey, it looked like a combination of icing, liquidy snot, and other, erm, bodily projections. It is semi-transparent on skin, but has a definite white sheen (which did not discolor my vibrator at all). It felt cool to the skin, though not tingly, which I found to be a nice sensation. My skin did feel a bit sticky after use. The lube is slightly gloppy (again, rather like thin icing or liquidy snot) but a benefit to this was that it made the lube easier to apply as it stuck to my skin rather than dripping off. Like the other water-based lube I've used, this was easy to wash off with just a tiny amount of water.

Taste / Aroma
The first turnoff for me was the smell. I'm not sure what exactly it smells like (the nasty chemicals it contains, perhaps?) but it made me wrinkle my nose in disgust. The smell is not extraordinarily strong (I do have a sensitive nose) but definitely noticeable. The closest that I can come to describing it is that it reminded me of the cleaner/soap you encounter in hospitals or other sterile areas. For the sake of this review, I tasted the lube briefly but found it to be as gross to my sense of taste as it was to my sense of smell- it tasted like I imagine soap would taste: bitter and utterly unappealing.

Performance
The lube definitely does its job. It made inserting my favorite vibrator easy and smooth, and it kept me moist during my solo session. I experienced no burning, tingling, or any weird sensation after use.
That being said, while this lube might boast Highly Purified Water as its primary ingredient, it is also composed of some less savory materials, including Methyl Paraben, Butyl Paraben, Ethyl Paraben, and Propyl Paraben. In other words, pretty nasty stuff!

I had heard of parabens being chemicals to avoid but I wasn't sure why until I decided to look it up after seeing them in the ingredients. Besides having the potential to cause allergic reactions, parabens have been linked to breast cancer and skin damage! Actually, I'm surprised that I didn't have a reaction, because I have very sensitive skin, but I don't like to tempt fate and I immediately threw the lube out after this discovery!

Packaging
Despite the problems with the lube itself, it sure dresses up nicely. The bottle is simply labelled and very clear (but not very discreet - it advertises that it is a SENSUAL LUBRICANT). The push-down dispenser is much more convenient than a twist-top or squeeze-bottle. At 8.25 oz, this bottle would have lasted me personally quite a while (which it should have done, for the price) but I would have felt less cheated with half as much for half the price. I had no problems with the bottle leaking but, as I said, I didn't have it very long or try to travel with it! I suppose you could present it to someone as a gift, but I would not want to give this to someone without first alerting them to its potentially dangerous properties.

Ultimately, I was not impressed by this lubricant and somewhat dismayed that a product with so many dangerous chemicals would be sold for intimate use. In my book, a lube should be discreet and unobtrusive, making insertion easier, but not interfering with your other senses or having a potentially adverse effect on your health. The smoothness Liquid Silk added to my experience was just not enough to make up for the weird smell and appearance. And finding out after the fact that I had put something in my body that could potentially harm it was upsetting- next time I will read much more carefully! The allergy prone or those with sensitive skin in particular should avoid this.

Having tried a few more lubes since I reviewed this, I am more convinced than ever that this is one to avoid! The parabens and the disgusting taste/odd smell just are not worth the silkiness. You can get just as good lubrication from other, less dangerous, more pleasant products.