Hinoki Hand Soap

I’ve been using Aēsop’s hand wash and soap for years, including their low-foaming Rose body wash recommended for frequent hand washers like myself. Sure, it wasn’t as drying as their regular hand soap. But it also didn’t have much of a scent. Then I saw THIS GEM! I adore Le Labo’s scents and use many of their body products, candles, and parfum. I had to give this a try! Omg. Where has this been all my life? The Hinoki scent is gender neutral and the scent has lovely woodsy and beach notes. In fact, the scent is so incredible I find myself smelling my hands! It also fills my bathrooms with the scent which is a major bonus. The soap is also moisturizing! Most hand soaps leave my hands feeling tight and dry. Not Le Labo’s. So long, Aēsop. Le Labo is taking over even more of my bathroom.

Using this hand soap makes me feel slightly sick because the smell is absolutely overpowering. I try my best to use just a tiny drop in my own home restroom because the smell is like a smoky men’s fragrance more than a pleasant, light soap smell. The smell lingers on the hands for a very long time making me feel like I need to wash my hands from washing my hands. It’s especially tough to eat after washing my hands with this soap because it overwhelms everything. I also purchased the hand cream and just feel sick using it which is a shame. I’m considering “watering” it down with a neutral hand soap that doesn’t have a scent so I can stand to use this.

First, I would like to say that I am obsessed with how this hand soap smells. For those that have never smelled hinoki, this description I found from a quick Google search describes it quite well— “the aroma is dry, fine woody, and has light terpenic nuances with soft herbal/lemony overtones and a peculiar warm, sweet, somewhat spicy undertone”. I lean towards liking citrusy, fig, geranium, and jasmine scents—but I find the scent of this soap to be a really refreshing change of pace. It’s earthy yet interesting and just a really beautiful scent…even for those with sensitive noses. That being said: it is ungodly drying. I assumed all of the reviews here that mentioned how drying it is were from people using it *a lot* throughout the day. But even using it once, it turned my hands incredibly tight and dry. I keep my hands well-moisturized and it’s still no match for the moisture-sucking properties of this hand soap. I’ve never experienced anything like it. It’s actually painful to use this soap. Le Labo, PLEASE fix this! I absolutely love how this hand soap smells but due to how drying it is with even a single use, I unfortunately don’t see myself repurchasing. Back to Aesop I go…