Holiday Buyer's Guide 2005

Shower Soap

While no soap can correct poor hygiene all by itself - you actually have to use the soap to get clean! - Shower Shock Caffeinated Soap aims to add some interest and stimulation to typical cleansing routines. The former explains why the soap is nicely peppermint-scented, the later explains why it's infused with caffeine, intended to perk its users up upon topical application.

To some extent, all soaps contain glycerin, which is a natural byproduct of the soap-making process. Those dubbed glycerin-based contain greater amounts of glycerin than normal bars, but tend to break down more quickly by comparison.

Shower Shock is a vegetable-based glycerin soap, so it doesn't rely on the animal fats (such as tallow) used in some other soap bars. As a result, Shower Shock produces lots of creamy lather, even if it's not as thick or rich as tallow-based soaps. Because it's vegetable-based, however, it also lacks harsh ingredients that may contain impurities, or that could be potentially harmful to the skin; it's hypoallergenic as well. At an MSRP of $6.99 per bar, Shower Shock costs more than Dove or Lava, but less than a lot of designer or high-end fragrance bars.

While there may be mixed reactions to or beliefs about the effectiveness of Shower Shock's caffeination, it's undeniably a pick-me-up, if only because of its pepperminty zest. Our in-house test shower demonstrated its effectiveness as a skin cleanser, and everybody who tried it out left the shower smiling.

Whether Santa decides to bestow this bar as an interesting joke or as a serious comment on hygiene is up to him to decide. For our part, we decided it was a nice departure from our more usual showering routine. Find this product, along with tons of other interesting uses you never imagined for caffeine, at Thinkgeek.com - where else, in the Caffeine Accessories section!