V Water Based Gel - lubricant discontinued by Icon Brands - review by Bleu

V is a gel-lubricant that can be used like many lubricants can. It's water-based making it good for use with toys and intercourse. While it doesn't contain parabens, it does contain glycerin, which is a villain for the vagina, for most people. The bottle says it's dermatologically tested, gentle on sensitive skin, and hypo-allergenic. Those three key things are important enough to me, who has sensitive skin and terrible allergies.

To compare it to a popular product, it is a bit thicker than Sliquid H2O but not by much. The only time I noticed the difference in the thickness was when I applied one to one hand and one to the other and rubbed them in a bit over the area of the back of my hand.

Initially, they don't feel much different from each other after I spread them. Sliquid did absorb into the skin much faster (after about 6-8 minutes, I couldn't see it anymore on my skin) while V absorbed more slowly. V never fully absorbed (after 15 minutes of letting it sit on my skin). Instead, it got sticky and tacky like half-way dried white glue but it didn't stick to my other finger. I added roughly two drops of water to it and it returned to it's normal out-of-the-bottle state! From this, I could tell that it would mix with the natural-lubricants well. I added a drop to the hand with sliquid on it, but it didn't come back as amazingly as V's did.

With the bottle it comes in, it makes it easy to pour and you could hold the bottle open in it's natural standing position and it wouldn't come out, which is nice.

The taste shocked me. I feel like a child every time I just dab my finger and taste it, but this is for science! V wasn't that great tasting. It was a mixture of bitter and sweet. A lot more bitter than sweet. It had a chemical taste like lotion with a hint of perfume. You know when you accidentally taste your lotion or spray perfume in your mouth? Yea, it did that to me and I spit it out. The taste was not as strong as either of those, but it did give me the feeling of that. I would not recommend it for oral just because of the taste, but if you like the taste of lotion then you will love this.

There is no smell to it. I've tried to find one and it came up empty.

I told you about the hand test which came up okay. If you're masturbating or giving a hand job with it, keeping a spray bottle around might be good because a little water brings it back fabulously. It washes off fine. I have found that if I'm slightly lazy with Sliquid H2O, washing it off isn't a must but with V, it is. It leaves behind a slight residue, which isn't great at all. I shower each time I use it because it will get on my hands too. Plus, having my vagina and clitoris sticky doesn't feel great.

I did use this product 5 times. Side note: my self foreplay is watching porn, fantasizing, teasing the rest of my body, and edging.

1. During Masturbation (friction test, fingers, clitoris, and V gel): Performed okay. Not my first choice for a lube, I would rather use Sliquid or my own natural-lubricant if I can.
2. Dildo (Vixskin Mustang, condom, and V gel): I did this test without any self foreplay. I didn't like it. After a while it didn't last and I could feel it going away a bit. I gave up on the effort and just finished myself off with my Salsa because I was being a bit impatient.
3. Dildo (Mustang, condom, V gel, and about 20 minutes of self foreplay): I was about half wet at this point, but not as fully turned on as I can be. It was much better. I did end up having my orgasm and I was very pleased with the gel and how it held up. This session lasted around 45 minutes.
4. Dildo (Mustang, condom, V gel, and about 40 minutes of self foreplay): Fully wet and ready to go! Why would I even need lube? I dry up kinda fast after my foreplay because my body is like "seriously, you've been doing this for an hour, get over yourself." This session was quicker and lasted 30 minutes(ish).

Now, I do get wet easily after the juices are flowing and I hardly ever dry up, but when I did, it got bad and slow. It does last longer than Sliquid. Great thing about V is that if you can manage to bring in moisture (a few drops of water or your own natural lube) it's back to where it started. If I were as dry as a bone, this lube didn't last long at all (maybe 5 minutes) then it would get sticky and rough and my condom would feel like rough plastic and would resist me moving a bit (drag).

I would not recommend this lubricant for anal. I have no experience with anal, but because of the feel and how it begins to feel once all the water is gone, it seems like it would do more harm than good.

The product came in a nice squeeze-bottle inside of a plastic bag (to keep from leaking), and is pretty basic. There isn't really anything special about it. I do find it annoying that the bottle has almost everything written in white ink, which makes taking pictures of it hard. Oh yes, and half the writing on the bottle is written in French. While I'm not here to judge, I do think the French thing is a little funny because the French are usually associated with fancy and finer things. People would see it and go "Oh! written in French! They must know what they're talking about."

This gel's packaging is kinda discreet. If it is among other products like lotions and stuff, it would blend in, but on its own, the fact that it says "Lubricant" on the front gives it away.




Here's the back, but you can't see much of the writing.

From top to bottom the writing says:

-Dermatologically formulated
-Gentle on sensitive skin
-Hypoallergenic
-Paraben-free

Directions: remove seal before use; do not use if seal is broken. Apply a small amount where additional lubrication is desired. Close cap after use.

CAUTION: If irritation or discomfort occurs, discontinue use and consult a physician. Not a spermicide or contraceptive. For topical use only. Store at room temperature

INGREDIENTS: Purified Water (eau purifee), Propylene Glycol, Glycerin (vegetable/legume), Hydroxyethylcellulose, Linocera Caprifolium and Linocera Japonica Extracts (Honeysuckle/chevrefeuille)

MADE IN USA by Vie Products, Inc. Beverly Hills, CA 90210
vieproducts.com

The name for the honeysuckle is spelled wrong on the bottle. It should be Lonicera but Linocera.

The ingredients can turn some away, namely the glycerin, but I'll tell you what each ingredient does.

Purified Water: Self explanatory
Propylene Glycol: a humectant (helps product retain water), preservative, and solvent. Since it's a solvent it dissolves in water and makes it wash off the skin easier.
Glycerin: also known as glycerol. Is a humectant derived from vegetables (in this case). Look below for more on glycerin.
Hydroxyethlycellulose: Gelling and thickening agent derived from cellulose.
Linocera Caprifolium Extract: Skin-conditioning agent derived from the Italian Honeysuckle
Linocera Japonica Extract: Skin-conditioning agent derived from the Japanese Honeysuckle
Both the extracts have recently come under fire for being essentially the same as parabens! I found this out by Googling and it completely shocked me. But others say that's a bunch of bull. Here is a nice article I found. I'm not a professional on plants and extracts, so I will let you be the judge. Frankly, I trust the extracts. At least I know where they come from as opposed to many other parabens with hard-to-pronounce names.

Glycerin is one of those misunderstood ingredients that no one knows which side to take. Does it cause yeast infections? Does it not? I'm not sure, but the Vie website's FAQ's say that their glycerin is body-safe and amazing. They actually say that some of the products used to treat yeast infections contain glycerin. I did some research, and found that this is true. A good amount of products that are used in/around the vagina contain glycerin (I found mostly wipes, some pH stuff, washes, etc. contain glycerin). They also add that glycerin might not be the cause of yeast infections, and I do think this is true. We take a certain risk by inserting foreign things into our vagina and yeast infections and UTI's are one of them.

Sugars tend to have a chemical reation between carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen of 1:2:1. That being said, the basic formula for sugar is C6H12O6. 6 Carbon, 12 Hydrogen, and 6 Oxygen. One or more sugars can be combined to make a super-sugar but it only changes to C12H22O11. 12 Carbon, 22 Hydrogen, 11 Oxygen. It still keeps the 1:2:1 ratio but a little rougher this time. Glycerin, not a sugar, has the formula C3H8O3. 3 Carbon, 8 Hydrogen, and 3 oxygen. It is not a simple sugar, or a super sugar, but it is an organic molecule (specifically an alcohol). Sugar? No. But I'm not saying it doesn't specifically cause yeast infections, just there may be many other things that factor whether or not a yeast infection is in your future. There isn't any medical evidence that supports that glycerin is a cause of the infections.

It does come sealed with a foil-like seal on it which is awesome! It makes it nearly leak proof and it's very easy take off. The hole in the top of the squeeze bottle (without the lid on) is very small and is the same size as the one on the lid. Even without the lid on, the gel doesn't leak out when held it the pour position.





Here is it compared to the Sliquid H2O:



This V bottle is 5 ounces which makes it not safe for travel by around 2oz. The TSA would toss it in a heartbeat.

Things I didn't like:
-Questionable Extracts
-Sticky feel once water is gone
-Taste
-Must wash off
-Cannot be used in place of body-made lubricants all together if there will be friction (using a toy) but is good for initial insertion.

Things I liked:
-Can be regenerated with a few drops of water
-The more body-made lubricant, the better it performs.
-Made in the USA
-(Might) Work best when used in vaginal intercourse
-Thicker than Sliquid H2O and longer lasting.

For me, the likes out-weigh the dislikes. I think that this lube will be fantastic once I use to use it with my boyfriend and it works great with my body-made lubricants. While I don't think this will be my go-to, I still think it's my #2. I could definitely see myself purchasing another bottle (or Ultra Sensitive) when this runs out.

Also, I have read that other V products get a little information booklet, but I did not receive one with my lube. I'm not sure if it was because they forgot to send me one or that this lube simply doesn't come with one. It would have been nice to get some background information on Vie.