For years, I’ve preferred to keep the amount of nasty chemicals in my body products to a minimum. I haven’t always succeeded, but I try. However, lubricants are one item I’m pretty picky about. Since the genitals are made up of fairly sensitive skin and mucous membranes, I always strive to eliminate parabens, phthalates, preservatives, and glycerin from my arsenal of sex toys and lubricants. What have I learned in my quest for the perfect lube? Finding a good, clean water-based lubricant can be tough. Sure, silicone-based lubricants are easy. All they requires is dimethicone, dimethiconol, and/or cyclopentasiloxane. But water-based…When I heard about Coconu lubricants, I was anxious to give it a shot. Their oil-based lubricant is a USDA certified organic lubricant. Water-based lubricants aren’t certified by the USDA because they’re not considered food-safe or made from food-quality ingredients. I’m unable to use oil-based lubricant at the moment so I jumped at the chance to review their water-based lubricant, hoping the water-based would share the same quality of ingredients boasted about in their oil-based. I’ve been searching for my holy grail water-based lubricant, but right now my go-to’s have been Sliquid Sassy and Pjur Nude.
Coconu water-based lubricant is a vegan lube that does not contain parabens, dyes, alcohol, petroleum, glycerin, or fragrances. The ingredients are fairly straightforward and contain little to no irritants. Coconu water-based lubricant contains organic coconut water, xanthan gum, cellulose gum, cyamposis tetragonoloba (guar) gum, potassium sorbate, and sodium benzoate. The coconut water is the only ingredient that is certified organic. Cellulose gum and guar gum are emulsifiers. Xanthan gum is added to increase the viscosity of the product. Sodium benzoate and potassium sorbate are added as preservatives. All of the ingredients are generally recognized as safe by the FDA. Overall, I’m not extremely impressed with the ingredients of Coconu. They’re all fairly common lubricant ingredients, with the exception of organic coconut water. Coconut water has a lot of benefits when it’s consumed. When it’s merely applied to the skin, it can provide a moisturizing effect. It’s also said to be anti-viral and anti-microbial. Coconu makes no such claims about these properties, however. I couldn’t detect any smells or taste in Coconu.
Pjur Nude, Sliquid Sassy, Coconu. Pjur Nude is the runniest out of the three (exposure adjusted to make the lube easier to see) The first thing I do with every new bottle of lube is shake it. I like thick, viscous lubes and shaking the bottle gives me an idea of the viscosity before I purchase/open the bottle. From my initial shake test, it was obvious that Coconu was a thin lube. It easily sloshed around the bottle, feeling slightly more viscous than water. I opened the bottle and gave it a slight squeeze to put a couple of drops on my hand. I was right. Coconu is thin. In fact, it’s the thinnest lube I own, a title previously held by System Jo Agape. They’re close in viscosity but Coconu has more of a slickness to it, making it feel thinner. Once I got over how thin of a lube it was, the first thing I could think of was how wet it feels. Some lubes feel slimy, some feel sticky, some feel cushy without feeling wet. Coconu is wet. It feels a lot like water, making it thinner and slicker than natural lubrication. Interestingly enough, even though it spreads out thin, it isn’t a runny lube.
Next, I did the finger friction test. I put a drop on my thumb and rubbed it around with my forefinger. It spread out easily and didn’t seem to want to stay under my forefinger, where the friction was focused. It also dried up alarmingly fast. Within two or three minutes, I was left with just a slightly sticky dry patch on my thumb. A couple minutes later, the residue had completely disappeared. The rate at which it dried up worried me. When I worked at a sex shop, I would test lubes in my down time. When I tested Pjur Nude, it lasted for over 15 minutes on my finger. It was still as slick as ever when I had to wipe my hands off to help a customer. While writing this review, I put three drops of lube on my arm. One of Coconu, one of Sliquid Sassy, and one of Pjur Nude. I spread them out evenly and left them alone on my skin to see which one dries first and which leaves a residue. Without any friction, Coconu lasted approximately 18 minutes, Sliquid lasted 15 minutes, and Pjur Nude was still slick when I finally wiped it off, an hour later. Coconu left my skin feeling tight and dry and I could see the patch of dried lube on my skin. It looked like glue that had dried.
Being a huge fan of thick lubes, I was really worried about how this would hold up in use. The first time I used it with my partner, he was massaging my breasts and I asked him to add some lube to lessen the friction. He applied some Coconu and it worked well to decrease the friction without decreasing sensation. Thick lubes can sometimes decrease sensation as they cut out a lot of friction. However, a few short minutes later, his hands were dragging over my skin, which had dried up completely and was feeling slightly sticky. On regular, dry skin, Coconu does not hold up well at all. It can’t be used for massages. This experience made my partner hesitant to use Coconu during intercourse and he reached for our old standbys. A couple days later, I reached for Coconu to use solo. I applied it to a silicone dildo and it spread out quickly and easily. A little bit goes a long way with this lube. Feeling a little hesitant myself, I kept a bottle of Pjur Nude within reach, just in case. Surprisingly, Coconu lasted the entire time I was using my silicone dildo. It didn’t dry up on the silicone at all and I didn’t have to reapply at all. To be fair though, I’m a quick masturbator. It couldn’t have been more than 10 minutes before I was finished. Those who prefer longer, drawn out sessions may find Coconu dries too fast for them. Coconu didn’t leave a sticky residue after use. Some lubes have me reaching for a washcloth right after use because they leave me feeling slimy or sticky. Coconu blended in with my natural lubrication and dried well.
It seems that Coconu stays wet in use as long as I’m producing some natural lubrication myself. Water-based lubes can always be reactivated with any liquid, so this makes complete and total sense to me. I was just shocked that the difference was that pronounced. I don’t have a big issue with vaginal dryness but I can’t imagine this lube would last as long for women who don’t produce much natural lubrication. Because it seems to need it’s own source of hydration, I would not recommend this for anal use at all. The anus is not self-lubricating and I can only imagine that Coconu would dry up as fast as it does on skin.
Coconu isn’t a bad lube, but it’s not a great one. The ingredients are decent and it has a nice texture if you’re a fan of thin lubes. I appreciate the fact that it’s vegan and cruelty free. It’s biggest downfall is how fast it seems to dry and the slight residue it leaves behind on dry skin. It’s still too thin and quick drying for me to use regularly. I’m still hoping for my holy grail lube with the thickness of Sliquid Sassy and the longevity of Pjur Nude. Coconu water-based just isn’t it. Maybe when my sex life no longer requires the use of condoms, I can give Coconu oil-based a try. Coconu is a lubricant I'll definitely keep around in my nightstand but once I run out, I doubt I'll buy another bottle of the water-based.
Thank you, Coconu, for providing me with this lubricant in exchange for an honest review!
Next, I did the finger friction test. I put a drop on my thumb and rubbed it around with my forefinger. It spread out easily and didn’t seem to want to stay under my forefinger, where the friction was focused. It also dried up alarmingly fast. Within two or three minutes, I was left with just a slightly sticky dry patch on my thumb. A couple minutes later, the residue had completely disappeared. The rate at which it dried up worried me. When I worked at a sex shop, I would test lubes in my down time. When I tested Pjur Nude, it lasted for over 15 minutes on my finger. It was still as slick as ever when I had to wipe my hands off to help a customer. While writing this review, I put three drops of lube on my arm. One of Coconu, one of Sliquid Sassy, and one of Pjur Nude. I spread them out evenly and left them alone on my skin to see which one dries first and which leaves a residue. Without any friction, Coconu lasted approximately 18 minutes, Sliquid lasted 15 minutes, and Pjur Nude was still slick when I finally wiped it off, an hour later. Coconu left my skin feeling tight and dry and I could see the patch of dried lube on my skin. It looked like glue that had dried.
Being a huge fan of thick lubes, I was really worried about how this would hold up in use. The first time I used it with my partner, he was massaging my breasts and I asked him to add some lube to lessen the friction. He applied some Coconu and it worked well to decrease the friction without decreasing sensation. Thick lubes can sometimes decrease sensation as they cut out a lot of friction. However, a few short minutes later, his hands were dragging over my skin, which had dried up completely and was feeling slightly sticky. On regular, dry skin, Coconu does not hold up well at all. It can’t be used for massages. This experience made my partner hesitant to use Coconu during intercourse and he reached for our old standbys. A couple days later, I reached for Coconu to use solo. I applied it to a silicone dildo and it spread out quickly and easily. A little bit goes a long way with this lube. Feeling a little hesitant myself, I kept a bottle of Pjur Nude within reach, just in case. Surprisingly, Coconu lasted the entire time I was using my silicone dildo. It didn’t dry up on the silicone at all and I didn’t have to reapply at all. To be fair though, I’m a quick masturbator. It couldn’t have been more than 10 minutes before I was finished. Those who prefer longer, drawn out sessions may find Coconu dries too fast for them. Coconu didn’t leave a sticky residue after use. Some lubes have me reaching for a washcloth right after use because they leave me feeling slimy or sticky. Coconu blended in with my natural lubrication and dried well.
It seems that Coconu stays wet in use as long as I’m producing some natural lubrication myself. Water-based lubes can always be reactivated with any liquid, so this makes complete and total sense to me. I was just shocked that the difference was that pronounced. I don’t have a big issue with vaginal dryness but I can’t imagine this lube would last as long for women who don’t produce much natural lubrication. Because it seems to need it’s own source of hydration, I would not recommend this for anal use at all. The anus is not self-lubricating and I can only imagine that Coconu would dry up as fast as it does on skin.
Coconu isn’t a bad lube, but it’s not a great one. The ingredients are decent and it has a nice texture if you’re a fan of thin lubes. I appreciate the fact that it’s vegan and cruelty free. It’s biggest downfall is how fast it seems to dry and the slight residue it leaves behind on dry skin. It’s still too thin and quick drying for me to use regularly. I’m still hoping for my holy grail lube with the thickness of Sliquid Sassy and the longevity of Pjur Nude. Coconu water-based just isn’t it. Maybe when my sex life no longer requires the use of condoms, I can give Coconu oil-based a try. Coconu is a lubricant I'll definitely keep around in my nightstand but once I run out, I doubt I'll buy another bottle of the water-based.
Thank you, Coconu, for providing me with this lubricant in exchange for an honest review!
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