Review: The Natural Lip Scrub

As I was driving home on Friday (more like sitting as there was tons of traffic), I decided to stop in a small store called Beauty First. I go in there every so often and you can sometimes snag great deals. After talking to the sales associate about how awful Maryland drivers are, I went looking around the store. They are having a "pre holiday" sale and there were lots of products 50% and 75% off. I happened upon this cute little box on the 75% off rack and picked it up.

It didn't seem to be a brand, or at least a brand I had heard of before, but for $3.74 after the discount, I happily picked it up. I have been meaning to try the LUSH version, but for the price it seems a little ridiculous. Granted the original price of this (sticker price is $14.95) is even more ridiculous than the $9 or so for LUSH.

I did a little research on the company when I came home. Apparently, it is a fairly small woman owned company based in Colorado. The company name is simply "The Natural Lip Scrub" and this is their only product which comes in several flavors. I'm kicking myself for not picking up the cute little orange box now as they are all different flavors.

It all started one day when two product junkies from Colorado were experimenting with a well-known lip scrub - very intriguing, except when they noticed the ingredients... Petroleum - Parabens - Sucrose!  Yuck!! 
So, The Natural Lip Scrub was conceived, and after months of trial and error, the formula was perfected and launched to retailers and consumers in October 2008!
We are very proud of our achievments - now selling The Natural Lip Scrub nationwide at independent boutiques, spas and salons!

This retail for $20 (I guess Beauty First got a wholesale deal) which is a bit ridiculous, but I admit, the company nailed the packaging. How cute is this?

Each scrub comes in a little box adorned with a ribbon and tissue paper inside. The box itself is very sturdy and has a nice texture to it. The jar itself is solid heavy plastic with a silver lid.

Inside, the scrub is very firm and has an grainy texture, though it isn't rough on the lips. The one I got is (I believe) the lemon version though the specific flavors don't appear to be labeled (if they were, I would have picked up the other one for sure). This scent and taste of this is really delicious. It reminds me of those Sunkist Fruit Gems which I threw and got thrown at me at my parent's synagogue (can be pelted, individually wrapped and not dairy!) at celebratory events.

The ingredients are: organic sugar, organic flavor oils, coconut oil, hydrogenated castor oil, vitamin E, castor seed oil, safflower oil and beeswax.
I'm not sure I'd repurchase at the $15 or full price, but for just under $4 dollars it's nice for myself. I may repurchase at full price if it were a gift though since it is packaged beautifully!

Have you tried or found this anywhere?

*edit*
Hillary from http://www.byhillary.com/ reminded me that I didn't actually write how well the scrub actually worked and isn't that the real reason for a review?! Anyway, as I responded to her, the scrub did a good job of exfoliating my lips and left them moisturized. My only qualm with the product is the sugar granules are quite large and a little unruly and they got under my nails which is a little annoying. However, I was able to rub them over my lips, though a slightly damp finger is probably easier. The sugar does eventually dissolve and leaves a nice layer of moisture. All natural ingredients so you can easily leave this alone and a little can get in your mouth (even the website leaves that as an option).