A Trip to the Seaside Spa...in my own shower

A few months back, I was tooling around Williamsburg, Brooklyn and came across a booth at a market where a woman was selling soaps.  I instantly started sniffing them and my companion told me to pick some out.  I think I got three or four bars total but one in particular really called out to me.

More on that in a moment.

I began talking to the lady at the booth and, as it turns out, they are her soaps.  I told her about my blog, we bonded a moment and I went along my merry way.

The name of the soap company is The Southampton Soap Company.  Made in the Hamptons, these are small batch soaps made with loving care and no animal products.  And you can tell that in everything from the soap maker's smile to the presentation.

I was beyond excited to give one bar a whirl.

The first one I tried was Seaside Spa.  It is made with water local to the Hamptons, sea clay, and sea vegetables. 

Embedded in it is what appear to be black sesame seeds.  I cut off a chunk and fired it up. 

And ended up using it until it was all gone.  I like this soap a bunch.  It took some adjustment at first as it doesn't get super slippery when wet (I know, I kno...bad reference).  But the moisturizing properties of the clay start to really work and you forgive the extra effort to rub the soap on your skin.

The seeds provide an exfoliant that isn't too abrasive but gets the job done nicely.  And the scent is great for those who like something light but that doesn't cling to the skin.

As I said, I used the sliver until it was gone...and it lasted awhile.

I have a few others to try, which I will totally review.  In the meantime, if you don't live in NY, you can order through Southampton Soaps' Etsy Store.

July 2012 - The Best in Soap Blogs

I'm not feeling so amazing, lovely readers.  I am doing a 9 day Isagenix Cleanse and, while I am sure it is doing my body worlds of good, the not eating much (which for me is REALLY not much, considering I don't eat much to begin with) I'm just run down.  It has been a hellacious week.

So, I amused myself by catching up on many of the blogs I follow.  ANd I found some awesome things to pay forward.  So, here you go folks...July's best soap blog information...gleaned from the vast expanse of the interwebs by yours truly.

Over at the blog for Aunt Nancy's Soap, she has shown some new soaps on the curing rack.  One of the new ones, Green Cactus looks amazing.  It isn't up on her site yet I will claim a bar as my own as soon as it is...I mean LOOK:

On another blog, I found mention of an Etsy shop that isn't soap but still has me obsessed!  Real Fruit Jewelry makes, you guessed it, jewelry out of real fruit.  For example, this pendant made from a tomato.

Coming soon to NYC's FiDi...The Clean Diva in this necklace.

I can easily think of three or four people who would love this stuff and, at $24 including the chain, so affordable.  I'm sold.

I haven't ordered from this next place but I've been meaning to do just that for quite some time.  Margarita Bloom is like a bath and body store MADE for me.  Since becoming a much thinner and healthier me, I find that embracing the curves given me by nature (not french fries) is important.  I don't want to be a skinny bitch and I am proud to be healthy.  And my natural shape has led me toward a very 1950's pin up girl style fancy.  Marilyn is my style icon with Bettie and Rita hot on her heels.  I also like to throw in a decent amount of June Cleaver for good measure.  So imagine my excitement at a home page thatincludes quotations from all of my favorites.




Sake Rose Blossom Soap anyone?  Yes, please!



A Lady in the Garden?  Only when I must be...

The soaps are made with ingredients I love such as coconut oil and goat milk.  Everything just looks so appropriate for my fantasies of being Ms. Monroe.

Brambleberry has a recipe for making candles out of actual lemons and I think they are just adorable. 

Doggy Soap is something I actually need right now.  I love my little pups and especially adore them when they smell clean.  Ta-da!  Sirona Springs has the perfect thing for my boys and I am stoked to try it out soon.  I'm no lover of liquid soaps and this will be perfect for my tiny guys.

Only sweet smelling pups en mi casa!

Next on my list is a blog written by The Nova Studio.  This awesome post talks about the different kinds of soap and why each of them have their place in our clean little community.  Read it, its worth it.

My new favorite soap selling Web site may be Amathia Soap Works only because the descriptions are so good.  I'm particularly coveting the Moxie Cucumber Jasmine (seen above) as I love jasmine and I think cucumber is a great summery refreshing fragrance.  (Have you tried Skinny Girl Cucumber Vodka...yum)  But what I love about the Web site is that they tell you everything you could ever want to know about the soap.  If you have allergies, personal issues with certain ingredients, or are just overly curious, this is your dream spot. 

Erin over at Naiad soaps did a month long soap a day project on her blog (you'll see I also ganked the real fruit Etsy store from her too) that can only be believed if seen.  My favorite was Day 20.



So sparkly and blue and I want it now!

 I like the soap options on the Bella Fresca site so much that I had to just pick one and this one made me laugh.:

This one has the scent of dirt in it...like Camp Snoopy in the summertime.  But if I put this in my shower, how will I be able to see it?

My final note from around the internetz is an article on The Natural Beauty Workshop blog.  It tells you about ingredients in things and how they can impact you.  Since I am always babbling about these things I thought it might be interesting to see someone put it more eloquently than I.

That's all I have.  Up soon when I have a chance to breathe, I have to tell you about my new digs as well as the hand soap I ordered...