Pears – Pure and Gentle Bathing Bar

“Pears AF”

A nice, inexpensive, glycerin soap with a slightly inevitable and nostalgic fragrance—not real strong, but evocative—exactly what I think it should smell like—from some past situation. The box says “98% Pure Glycerin & Natural Oils”—does that mean the other 17 or so ingredients make up only 2% of the soap? Or that it’s mostly pure, but 2% impure? If so, it’s that 2% that worries me. Soap is from Unilever, India. I like the idea of a “bathing bar” as a place where you drink and bathe—though, maybe not the drinking part. What does “Pears” mean? An unusually satisfying question to look up and read about—it’s named after an Englishman, Andrew Pears, who invented transparent soap. A true classic, it’s been around a long time, since 1807! A lot of soap under London Bridge! I probably used this same soap, more or less, as a child, which wasn’t nearly so long ago, of course. I gotta say, this soap is really pleasant when it’s wet—so I’ll overlook the lies on the box (“Look Young/Stay Young”), the 2%, what I imagine as the Unilever factory, and the “Pears” font. I’ll visit that bathing bar, especially if Lillie Langtry is along.

Soap Review No. 204