"Not Soap, Radio's" line of "Bubbles and Shower Gel" is intended to be used for precisely that - bubble baths and showers. The instructions on the bottle states that "a generous dollop" in "warm running water" should produce the desired bath. Three large dollops later, my tub had a decent layer of suds in it, but they unfortunately didn't last more than a minute or so before dissipating. The instructions also say you can lather the gel directly onto the skin, but I was still unable to get it to lather very well. When used in conjunction with a mesh shower sponge, however, it lathers well and does its job.

The ingredients listed on the bottle are as follows:

Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Deionized Water, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Cocamide MEA, Fragrance, Phenoxyethanol Glycol Distearate, Methylparaben, Cucumis sativus (Cucumber) Fruit Extract, Aloe barbadensis Leaf Extract, Yellow 5, Blue 1.

As you can see, the gel does contain parabens and glycols, so anyone with allergies and sensitivities should stay far away. Also, since the as the aroma is very strong and perfume-like (as I spell out in detail in a moment), anyone who is sensitive to scents (or lives with someone who is) should likewise take a pass on these products. That being said, if you or someone you know is a fan of scented bath products, these seem just as scented and nice as anything one might find at Bath & Body Works, making this a good choice for a gift idea for those without allergies.

The gel itself is fairly thick and viscous, and it's a bit greasy to the touch. Its consistency reminds me a bit of dish or laundry detergent. I tried applying some of this directly to the skin for lathering (as per the bottle's instructions), and it formed into a large glop and promptly slid right off my arm. It's very easy to dispense either with the lid completely off or through the tiny hole in the cap, but for lathering purposes I suggest you apply this to a rag, sponge, shower pad, etc. It lathered well for me when applied to a mesh shower sponge, and one small dollop was enough for a thorough shower.

For this assignment, I received a bottle whose scent is entitled "Awash in a field of four-leaf clover (when you need good things to happen yesterday)". The aroma of the gel out of the bottle is VERY strong and perfume-like. Once diluted in a tub of water or lathered onto the skin, the initial strong spike of perfumed aroma mellows out slightly after a few minutes. The overall fragrance smells somewhat botanical and reminds me of a forest or a meadow. After my short soak in the tub and a brief shower, I went to the other end of our apartment (three rooms away) where my wife was sitting on the couch watching a movie. I was going to ask her to come to the bathroom and see if it smelled stronger than it does after I shower with my usual body wash. Before I even made it into the room, however, she looked at me with a scrunched-up nose, letting me know she could smell it pretty plainly from that far away, and it was already giving her a headache.

With the bathroom fan running, the scent had mostly dissipated by about an hour later. The fragrance still lingered on my skin, but the "forest-y, botanical" aroma was gone, and all that remained was a seriously strong and perfume-like fragrance. While some of "Not Soap, Radio's" fragrances may be unisex, this one definitely is not, so guys should take a pass on this particular scent.

As a bubble bath, "Not Soap, Radio's" product falls woefully short. As stated earlier, I tried squeezing three "generous dollops" into the tub as the water was running, but only got minimal suds that dissipated almost as soon as I climbed into the tub. As a shower gel, however, this product really delivered. I used only a small bit on my mesh sponge, and it was enough for a thorough shower. After I was done, I checked my skin a couple of hours later, and the perfumed scent as still going strong!

I briefly rinsed my arms off with water, and I checked again a few minutes later - the scent had not changed. Finally, I used a little bit of genereic Cetaphil skin cleanser on my arms, and that cut through the perfume until it was only barely discernible.

As I was thinking back over my experience with this shower gel, I was reminded of an old episode of The Andy Griffith Show where Aunt Bea gets snookered by a traveling salesman named Colonel Harvey. The Colonel peddles an "Indian Elixir" that promises health, vitality, and an easing of all worldly aches and pains. Long story short, Andy and Barney discover (after the Ladies' Church Auxiliary gets wasted) that the Colonel is actually peddling booze - good, strong booze, to be sure, but booze all the same. Similarly, "Not Soap, Radio's" bath products promise, in a tongue-in-cheek way, to ease your cares with products that may almost lead you to think they're magical (at least, that's what they say if you read the packaging). In reality, what you get is an olfactory-overloading dose of aromatic shower gel - decent and functional gel, to be sure, but typical strongly-scented gel all the same.

I'm a fan of strongly-scented bath products, and I usually use those shower gels that are marketed so as to make the buyer think that you'll instantly turn into a babe magnet if you use their product, so I totally get the vibe that "Not Soap, Radio" is going for. I can honestly say, however, that this particular scent isn't for me. In the future I might be curious to try some of the other scents if they were on sale, or if a friend were to give me a bottle as a gift. But, again, it would all depend on whether the other varieties suffer from "perfume overkill" like this one did.