I love a good massage and sometimes I don't feel like deep heat or anti-flam and massage bars are the preferred option. I love Lush's wiccy Magic muscles, as it was nearing its end I decided to order Percup because I love coffee, a coffee smelling massage yes please... Or so I thought.....
The bar is a big oval shape about the length of your hand and about 1cm thick, as you rub the bar over your body the oils melt onto the skin making it easy to massage. I can see a few whole coffee beans imbedded into the bar and I think this is going to smell amazing eeek sorry Lush but I don't know where you think it smells like coffee but it doesn't. I cannot for the life of me find the coffee scent and if it wasn't for the coffee beans I would have never known it was suppose to be coffee scented and being a bit of a lushaholic I was expecting big things because 99% of the time I love their products this however slots into that other 1%. And I can't even describe the scent mud and oil mixed? Is that even a scent?
The scent was so bad I couldn't wait to have a shower and wash it off but that was easier said than done since it's so waxy and oily. Yeah it wakens the senses... In a bad way. I really dislike this and won't be using it again let alone repurchasing. I hate doing this especially to a company I love so much, but I can't stomach this bar, and trust me I have looked for something positive!
I didn't know much about massage bars until I came across Lush massage bars. I was intrigued and obviously needed to jump on the band wagon to see if they were as good as they looked and seemed. Of course I had to have a massage bar with coffee in it and one that promised to lift my mood and awaken my senses. This seemed like some aromatherapy sort of voodoo but nonetheless I was determined to give it a go. $18.50 for the bar and $6.90 for a tin to protect it, I can deal with that. I would pay the same for massage oil or lotion anyway.
When I received it I was surprised by how slim it was because it looks quite thick on the website. The smell is what knocked me over first. I expected a scent of coffee, but what I got was a full on nostrils full of ashtray and stale smoke butts YUCK!!!! I some how managed to look past the smell because I was determined to experience this bar in it's entirety despite the sickening smell.
I had my partner massage this in to my back before a shower just in case I couldn't stand the smell. The bar itself melts quite easily in to the skin and has a warming effect as it goes on. At the time I was anxious and feeling rather blue so was hoping that this would help shift my mood in to a better place. What I noticed first is that I felt more awake and alert which was great but probably not the best time at 10pm to get that feeling. The thing that my husband disliked the most is the melting in the hand makes it hard to hold on to without it slipping out.
I could feel the coffee beans that are set in to the massage bar which felt like a mini massage. I found it to be very soothing but awakening my senses at the same time. As the massage goes on the smell actually disappears a bit and makes way for the smell I was looking for which was coffee bean. Afterward my skin felt very smooth but had a waxy feeling to it. I can tell you it's not a feeling I like so had to have a shower afterward. Did it shift my mood to be better? No I don't think so! I feel the same after each time it's massaged in to me with the exception of feeling awake. After continuous use I can't honestly say that I love it. I would even go as far as saying I hate it. The cons far outweigh the pros so for that reason it gets a one star for wanting to use again. Needless to say I would rather drink coffee to feel awake rather than have this rubbed on me.
Tips: It melts with the warm contact from skin. Make sure you buy the protective tin that you can get.