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.

So much to blog and never ever enough time

I know I've said it before but I really really neglect this blog.  I'm still obsessed with soap and have so many to try.  I also have so much to share.  I've bought soap in Montana, Wyoming, and Brooklyn lately.

I bought Etsy soap for the man in my life that smells epic.  I've joined GlossyBox, BirchBox, and MyGlam...and I promise to tell you all about my adventures in subscription sample boxes.  (So far, awesome).  I will also send you some reviews on the soaps I have been trying.  I've met some soapers who deserve props (and business).

But, before I get to all of that...I wanted to tell you about a very nice surprise gift I got.  This is subtitled "QVC honestly does rock!"

After coming back from an awesome trip to the Wild West, T and I went to visit his family in PA.  When we arrived, there was a lovely lovely gift waiting for me from his mother.  Have I mentioned on this blog yet how much I adore his family?  I hear people complain about "in laws" and the family of their significant others and laugh.  I am the luckiest girl in the world.

Along with a very nice note, I received three Soap Rockettes from T's mom.  These are really really neat.  She gave me the Balance set of three (which I really needed as I have been so off kilter lately).  There are three rockettes in Green Garnet, Red Garnet, and Tanzanite.   I LOVE tanzanite.  I cannot get enough of it.  Now I have soap that looks like it.

I was so excited to get home and try these!

Here is the set, along with the informational brochure that came with them.

Soap and Gems?  I die!

Naturally, I went for the tanzanite first.  I even took some pictures before I used it.  That's unusual for me lately.  Not only am I a terrible photographer, I am a neglectful one.

It looks like a giant tanzanite.  Again, I DIE!

These are glycerine soaps and the ingredient list isn't alarming long.  The scents are clean and strong.  Some reviewers have complained that the scent is overpowering but I really like a strongly scented soap.  I find that they deliver a wonderful shower experience without clinging to the skin so as to overpower a perfume.  The scent of tanzanite is called "starry night" and is floral and wonderful.

There is a great lather on this soap, it is substantial enough to hold onto and I can even use it for shaving.

All up, I liked these and can think of several people who would enjoy them as gifts.

I will let you know how the garnets work out but I know I won't be disappointed.

Soap as gifts rule.  Wait until you hear what I got for my birthday!

Finally, a freaking review

Hi all,

I am a champion soap slacker.  I have been so involved over at the FOOD blog that I didn't get myself together very quickly on this one.  I've been eyeing my new Angelic Soaps daily and not mustering the photo taking time to make a bath possible.

Well, last night I did.  .

The packaging

I adore the packaging.  The soaps are in individual little gold net bags and cards identifying them inside.  It must be a high touch process and its worth it, in my opinion.  Getting these soaps felt extravagant.

Up close of the packaging and the soap inside

The soaps themselves (and I will talk about them in two separate blog posts) are gorgeous.  Much care obviously goes into the work and it shows.

I love the shop name stamped into the soap.  A small detail that goes a long way

The bad photography doesn't do this soap justice.  It is a deep pink/almost red color and has gold sparkles throughout.  I am hesitant to show you this next photo as my skills are seriously bad here but it illustrates the top of the bar, which may be my favorite part.

Ignore the shadows, look at the GOLD

And it smells divine.  Like jasmine but NOT like jasmine perfume, if that makes sense.  The scent is incredibly strong when sniffing the soap and in the shower but, when it dries on your skin, there is just enough scent to remind you of the awesome shower you took that morning.

The texture on this one is definitely different that what I am used to using.  I realize that this is probably due to the massive amounts of shea butter in it.  You have to get this soap really wet to get it working against your skin and the lather is think and not conventionally "soapy" at all.  But it rinses cleanly and smells so amazing during the shower.

I love jasmine and this is no exception and I just think the work is so artistically gorgeous.  I'm excited to try the other bar...

I Guessed I Missed it When Etsy Got an iPhone App....And Soap Arrived!

Today I discovered that Etsy now has an iPhone app. 

Dear Bank Account,

It was nice having money in you.

Now I don't. 

Blame Etsy.

*le. sigh*

At any rate, in other happy news, two recent soap purchase have arrived in my humble abode...Cedarwood and Cypress Handsoap from Solstice Botanicals and the two soaps I ordered from Angelic Soap.

In other news, I am also the first purchaser of Bacon Bits the soap from Happy Goat Soap which is exciting for so many reasons.  One is that I read the shop's blog, The Maa of Pricilla, religiously (its refreshing and funny and delightful) and another is that I have been watching the progress of this little soap for awhile.  So to order it first is SO exciting.  But more on that later.

Teresa over at Angelic Soap was nice enough to send me some samples with my purchase (which I bought on epic sale so she is just so generous).  I didn't take a picture of the first one I used, which was Black Raspberry Shea, so I am borrowing one from her Etsy shop.  Take a look.

Its like art...real art that smells amazing...

I literally used the whole sample in one shower.  It went something like this...

Wet and lather left arm, rinse, sniff, repeat on right arm.
Decide left arm needs another washing (so I can sniff it)

Repeat process.

I swear the stuff even moisturized my horrible Hobbit feet.  I smelled like raspberries all day but not cloyingly so.  And the texture was simply divine.  The only reason I haven't tried the two I bought yet is that Miss Lazy Pants (yours truly) needs to take some photos of the epic packaging before getting said soap wet.  Tomorrow morning, I swear.

Also, while borrowing the picture above, I noticed that some of the soaps in Angelic Soaps shop are named Black Temple Incense and Grimoire (Book of Shadows).  The description of the latter contains this:

"Grimoire will leave your skin silky and smelling faintly of the rare treasures of antiquity."

 I CLEARLY need to smell like the rare treasures of antiquity.  And so do you.

So much excitement to come!

Soap for Dinner

Last night I was having dinner with two incredible friends at Olla Wine Bar in Bay Ridge Brooklyn.  This place is amazing in its own right and I do love it.  Even if Olla isn't three blocks from your house, you should go there is you are ever in Brooklyn.  But that's a bit off topic.

One of my dining companions, while outside getting some air, ran into a soap maker.  After making friends with her, he brought her in to meet me.  She showed me two things.  One, a beautiful bar of soap she gave me to try.  (Please note that she was informed about this blog and the possibility of a review).  Two, she showed me some gift boxes she has put together for sale.  I don't have pictures of these but I can honestly say that this is some of the loveliest hand crafted soap I have seen.  She clearly takes great pride in her artistry.  I am trying to get some pics so I can share them with you all.  My honest statement was "well, I know what I will be getting many of the women in my life for Christmas."

Alex, the soap maker, explained that these are currently handcrafted in her home, the result of a period of listlessness and ennui in her life.  She puts argan oil in each bar.  This is great news to me as I am a huge fan or argan oil.  Found only in Morocco, lovers of this oil claim it is nearly miraculous.  I am not sure I would go that far but I can say that I have been putting it in my hair daily for the better part of a year and, in spite of constant coloring, washing, and heat processing, my hair is undamaged and silky.  So I at least believe in the moisturizing properties of argan oil.

Another thing that is amazingly cool about argan oil is that it is largely cultivated and processed by Berber women in Morocco.  And it is one industry that operates almost exclusively under fair trade practices.  There are increasing initiatives in Morocco to allow these women to have lives and families while also earning money for their work in the extraction of oil from argan trees.  How cool is that?

These are ladies hard at work extracted oil for my soap...thanks ladies!  Read more about argan oil here and here.

The soap Alex gave me also contains oatmeal in the top part of the bar.  This I also love as oatmeal is both nourishing and a great exfoliant.  I was so excited I am shocked I waited until this morning to try the soap.  Here are some pics.  These were taken a bit as an after thought as I cut the soap in half before contemplating photos...I was just so excited.

Above is the soap from the top.  It is a light brown colored glyceriney layer which holds that oatmeal I mentioned.

And there is the soap from the side.  It's not the best photo I ever took but you can see the layers and the white creamy layer on the bottom.

So I know you are wondering when I will get to the damned point and tell you what it was like?

Oh man oh man oh man.

This soap may have made me fall passionately in love with soap again.

First of all, it doesn't take a tremendous amount of water to get it working.  I like that as I have been dealing lately with commercial bars that dry out, lose their scent, and require so much water to get them going that they disintegrate sooner.  Hate that so much.

But not this soap.  I don't know if it was the much loved argan oil or something else but the lather was just so creamy.  I used it to shave my legs and it was thick and moisturizing enough for that project.  I got a great shave from it (win).  The oatmeal side provided just enough grit for me to get a good foot washing out of it.  The soap doesn't have a super strong scent.  For me, this isn't my favorite since I like to reek of scent all day but it occurs to me that this would make an amazing soap for a unisex shower, as I have yet to meet a man who likes to leave behind a cloud of roses.  (With the exception of Ronny, but that's another story).

All up, this was one of the better shower experiences I have had in quite some time.  I really want to try more from Alex.  I hope she puts up an Etsy store or the like very soon.  Stay tuned as I think I may have found the next great thing in Bay Ridge.

The First Shower at the Fella's Place

It's interesting.  The first time you take a shower in someone's place has weight if you intend to do it often.  Last night, I found myself packing a bag of toiletries to take over.  I'll concentrate on the decisions as nobody wants me to yammer on about love.

So, the question is "what bath products are appropriate to take to your signficant other's apartment when you are trying to take up as little space as possible?"  Or...how to get clean without toting 12 products.

I turned to my old stand by Lush for inspiration as I have a literal train case of Lush products.  For soap, I decided to pick the classic Alkmaar as it always makes me feel very soft and sexy.  Truthfully, my skin is suffering this winter from being bare legged in the cold and probably a bit from the nutritional changes due to surgery.  The greatest thing about Alkmaar, other than the fact that it smells like jasmine, is that it goes delightfully with two of my other favorite products Silky Underwear Dusting Powder and Potion.  I can't link to Potion as it appears to have gone the way of the Dodo, so take my word for it.  It's a jasmine extravaganza that makes me feel clean, dry in all the right places and moisturized in all the right places. 

I suppose all I am missing is Lovely Jubblies.  Has anyone tried this?  Do I need super special cream for my breasts.  Will it make them bigger?  I'm kidding on the last bit...mostly.  I would, however, be interested in someone's review of the product if you use it.

So the big question is regarding hair products.  Shampoo bottles are cumbersome and those tiny hotel room bottles aren't cost effective.  Luckily, one of Lush's last great remaining products is the solid shampoo bar.  I'm typically into Godiva because it smells like jasmine (sensing a theme here?) but today I broke out the Karma Komba.  It works beautifully.  I don't know how that much lather comes from solid shampoo and, in spite of the SLS in the shampoo bar, I like it.  I think I'll go easy lest the suflates turn my red hair pink but I did enjoy the time I spent with the Lush today.

It was a good shower and relatively groundbreaking for me.  But what are some good, compact ways to pack an overnight toiletry bag?  Does anyone have fave products that travel easily, are handmade and make you smell like something incredible? 

Or does anyone have a favorite jasmine soap they'd like to share?

Happy Friday, ya'll.

Pornography of the Soap Variety

I know, I know...two blogs in one day.  Truthfully, I have been perusing soap listings on Etsy all afternoon and simply couldn't resist sharing some things I covet right now.

I have so much soap that I could not possibly use more...right?

Sigh.  Check these out:

My roommate, says she is allergic to polka dots.  And I love coconut.  In fact, I often smell like coconut due to my obsessive use of sulfate free organic coconut shampoo...but I digress.

Etsian Pink Dotted Owl sells THIS little bit of goodness.

The smell is of black cherries and coconut.  To me, that seems like an excuse to hang out in the shower for awhile.  I also like the shape and pattern of this soap.  It is lovely enough for me to want to use it and manly enough to satisfy those of you who may live with a manly type person (yes, I'm looking at you, Heather).

But moving on to something COMPLETELY different...

Although you should check out the store here.  There's some good stuff.

Sooooo...I'm kind of a princess.  It's ok to laugh.  I know it, you know, people in space know it.  And I love champagne.  And sparkly things...so, when I saw this I giggled and then I got excited.  It's called Gold Digger which I don't love because real princesses make their own money.  But it is pretty...observe:

It's not pink, which I like because pink would be so obvious for a strawberries and champagne soap.  instead, it looks a bit like a ghetto fabulous pair of glittery goal pleather pants exploded into a bar of soap.

Bad analogy?  Forgive me, I'm rusty here.

Should I comment on fairies or pixies?  Nah.

Should I buy this soap?  Probably?



And now for my favorite of the day...I could explain this but I won't.  I'll just say that someone I love very much will understand the humor and those who have heard the story will get it too.

I'm sorry my mom is so offensive, baby.  Should we buy her this?

It's soap.  Made from Polish beer...by Etsian The Soap Magician.  In addition to amusing me with Polish beer soap, this soaper also makes the extraordinarily intriguing Aloe and White Lilac soap.
And that's enough soap porn for the day. 

That's what she said...

Where is the soap at Lush

Got another new hair color today...

I also popped into Lush, which is right around the corner from my salon, as I wanted to see what they had that is new.  This is a typically a massive money spending time for me as I find a million things I want to buy and end up walking out with a bag chock full of stuff I don't need.

Backing up a few weeks, my friend Heather sent me a BBM note stating that she had been to Lush and didn't find much she liked.  At the time, I was totally confused.  Now, I get it.

Lush seems to have no soap anymore.  Weird, right?

They have some old staples, like Honey, I Washed the Kids; Demon in the Dark; Bohemian; etc....but nothing really new and nothing really good.

Is Lush moving away from soaps and more in the direction of skin care?  Does anyone know?

I hope not!

So, here's what happened

It all happened when I went to Saks.  Well, not exactly.

The truth is, in January I had lap band surgery so I have been busy healing.  Plus, there is 40 lbs less of me to lather up...not that I am complaining.  Maybe when I reach my goal weight I will tell the sad, sad story that led me to start "Confessions of a Soap Obsessed New Yorker."  But, in the meantime, I am back for good this time, I PROMISE!!!!!

But I did go to Saks in February and belly up to the Bulgari counter.

BIG. MISTAKE.

I needed a new bottle of Jasmin Noir.  We all know how I feel about Jasmin Noir.  And somehow the guy convinced me to buy the body lotion and the new soap...which, BTW is SLS free.

OMG.  Love love love

So I have been worshipping the Bulgari. 

But it is time to get back into the swing of things.  Summer is coming and I need my soap time.

At a Loss

Winter is strange.  I want to enjoy the Christmas Season.  Hell, I work half a block from Rockefeller Center and I should delight in the joyous lights, etc.

But I am so tired.  So very very tired.

And there is no good reason.  I am sleeping at night.  Life could be less stressful but it could definitely be more stressful too. 

Something about this season, as we head toward the darknest night of the year saps my strength completely.  Getting out of bed in the morning hurts.  Going to bed at night, I read about a paragraph before falling into a dead sleep.  Boy howdy does it blow.

And, to make matters worse, I have a soap that I have been using.  I picked it up at a shop in Savannah last February and it looks like wood.  And it smells amazing.  Trouble is, I threw out the packaging and cannot find it anywhere online.  So I can't even share it with you. 

I don't know what to buy my brother for Christmas and I am more dreading the 12 hour drive than contemplating time with family.

You know what I am?

That's right...the Grinch.  And his little dog is my poor poor Simon trying to navigate the Christmas season with his extremely cranky mother. 

I need a nap.

I used the same soap two days in a row.

Last holiday season, the Romeo Mike (aka Room mate) got a gift certificate to Bath and Body Works for Christmas from somebody at her work.  She used it to buy stuff but, most notable, Yuletide Pear Vanilla Body Cream.  Because she has this amazing ability to make things last that I don't have (I use or lose things incessantly.  It's how I roll).

This stuff smells pretty rockin'.  And what's grooviest about it is that she tends to waft that scent everywhere she goes.  And when she hugs my pups, they start to smell like it and that's cool.  Because I love pears.  If you need to know more about that click here or here or even here.

Anywhoodles, when I was picking out soaps over at Lippincott, I came across Vanilla Pear (no link because they don't have it up right now.) 

I tried it yesterday and was like...meh...but COME ON it's pear.  So I tried it again.  And this morning I really really liked it.  It smells just like the lotion. 

Maybe I should buy the Romeo Mike a bar for Christmas.

Anyway, I know that's a tiny little review but I am pretty brain dead.

Happy Friday!

The Best Absinthe Episode I've Had in Some Time

Good morning all!  I used a soap yesterday that made me think of a story. 

Back in the Spring of 2008, I was spending some time in a hotel room with my favorite German, Ronny and some other friends.  It was 4am and we decided to do some additional drinking.  We called room service and had them bring up spoons.  And then we proceeded to consume two bottles of German absinthe.  Oy.

I had a meeting at 7:30am during which I had to sit in front of a whole bunch of complaining people.  I looked over at the person running the meeting and she said "Hey, I would like to field most of the questions this morning if you don't mind." I replied "I think that's a great idea because I am fairly sure I am still drunk."

It was not my proudest moment. 

That was the last time I imbibed Absinthe, even though I still have some in my house. 

Shockingly enough, I still love the smell.  So when I was cruising Etsy looking for some soap to purchase and I saw this picture...I had to stop.

I had to have it.  Plus, I have been eyeing Naiad Soap Arts for some time!  So order it I did and waited.

When I received the package in the mail, it had been way too long since I got new soap because it felt like Christmas.  The first thing I noticed is how professional this soaper's packaging is:

Now, my photography skills are sincerely lacking but use your imagination.  It's nice.  And I swear I could smell the soap through the packaging...num.my.

Here is the box once I opened it. It's kind of hard to see what with the bad light, but I adore the stamp in the soap.

So...the big story.  How was it?  The answer is pretty good.  This is a really hefty bar and, even after cutting it up into hand sized strips, I still barely wore down my strip in one long shower.  The soap foams nicely and certainly gets the job done.  I didn't feel pinched or dry after.  So, all in all, a really great soap.,

I only have one complaint,  As soon as the soap got wet it stopped smelling.  As I have mentioned in previous posts, this is not my favorite thing.  But gosh my bathroom smells good from having it in the soap dish.

And now for a gratuitous puppy with soap picture:



I got so excited I forgot to take a picture!

I had a fantastic shower this morning.  Alyssa, one of my wonderful blog readers, recommended that I purchase Pumpkin Apple Butter Soap from Lippincott Soap Co. And OH MY GOD am I glad I did.  Before I launch into a total love fest analysis of my morning shower, a little about Lippincott.

My newest favorite soaper is based in Bucks County, Pennsylvania (interestingly, home of some of my favorite clients) and they use food grade oils in making soap.  It's cold process and they are moving toward using only organic palm oil.  No yucky SLS to be found. 

No, onto Pumpkin Apple Butter Soap.  I took it out of the plastic and sniffed.  It smelled nice but nothing to write home about.  Then I got it wet.  Seriously, the entire shower was a cloud of warm, spicy yumminess.  I tried to ignore it while I washed my hair but kept picking up my little sliver of soap sniffing it.

When the time came to finally lather up I lathered and lathered and lathered because this soap just smells so good.  Maybe my nose wasn't sensitive enough to differentiate between the many many scents described by the soap maker but I can describe Pumpkin Apple Butter as fruity, like a warm pie or cobbler without the bread smell...so I guess like the filling of the aforementioned.  And the fruit is heavy on the cinnamon. 

The lather on this soap is like a dream.  Abundant, creamy and silky.  I used it to shave my legs and it worked like a charm.  There is also something in the soap that is softly abrasive and served to gently exfoliate, which I appreciate.

Post shower, the scent doesn't linger much, which is fine because that prevents a mix with my perfume.  However, my skin is soft and feels hydrated. 

This soap is definitely on my top 10 favorites list and that is saying something.  Thanks for the recommendation, Alyssa.

When soap smells like...well, soap

Lately, I have been going through my soap collection and cleaning house.  I'm getting rid of stuff with SLS and soaps I don't like.  It's a shame you cannot donate soap to a shelter or something.  I always cut my soap into chunks because I like to preserve and because I like the soap to fit in the palm of my hand so it is fresh.  This means I have a hundred little (meticulously labeled, in most cases) baggies of soap. 

At any rate, between the past their prime soaps, the soaps I don't like and the soaps that have fallen victim to either the bathroom humidity or NYC bug problems, I am throwing out massive amounts of soap.

Of course, I am also discovering some never used/never reviewed bars of soap.  That part is cool. 

At any rate, I came upon an unmarked bar of soap in my stash.  It is brown and white and looks like it should have some sort of chocolate scent.  I suspect I know where this came from: some odds and ends I ordered not thinking that, due to the fact that they are odds and ends, they aren't labeled.  I sent most of these to soap loving people who don't take "tasting" notes but this one must be a left over.

I won't announce where I suspect it came from because I don't know for certain.

But this soap...well, it sucked.

It was pretty enough but it smelled like nothing.  Like detergent.  It reminded me of the soap smell in the showers in my cabin at summer camp.  Just plain clean the dirt away soap.  I suppose, in theory, there is nothing wrong with soap that smells like soap but I am the girl who prefers her dish soap to have a unique scent (like lavender and lemon grass is that so wrong?) so for me it was like a wasted shower.

I get that some people have allergies (I do too) but why would one want a detergenty smelling soap?  I don't get it.  But a peruse of my old stand by Etsy shows me that many soapers have a scent free soap.  Does scent free mean "smells like soap" or something different?  I COULD order one and find out but that would be a waste of money for me. 

I tossed this soap out immediately.  It was too pretty to smell of nothing. 

I must be some kind of aromatherapy addict because it just started my day off wrong.

*Happy Dance* *Happy Dance*

I just bought SOAP!

I won't spoil you too much by telling you exactly what I bought but I bought from two stores I have been eyeing for some time and who have highly covetable soaps!

Lippincott Soap Co. (thanks for the recommendation Alyssa)

AND

Naiad Soap Arts 

Can't wait!

Gardenias again, I must be homesick

Today I did it!  I actually got out my back of not yet tried soapies and tried one.  I stuck my hand in the back and pulled out...

Gardenia by Mistral

At first I couldn't remember where on Earth I picked this up...but then I recalled.  It was November of *ahem* 2008 SoHo NY with my BFF Viv and the Amazing John who had come to visit from Chicago.  Good times.

I have previously blogged about how much I love gardenias...second only to Jasmine, they remind me of Savannah and early feminine and wonderful about soap.

And Mistral delivers.  The soap is obviously manufactured and I am a sucker for home made but it's nice.  The bar is hefty (it should be at $8) and the scent is heavy.  Plus, it says Provence on the bar.  Since I will be in Provence in about a month, I was stoked to see that and it helped me temporarily forget that I have to actually work during that month.

The lather is good enough for even the biggest lather lover and it left my skin soft and smelling of flowers. 

I'd recommend it, and I may even use it again. 

When Depressing Things Happen to Soap Loving People

So, a few weeks ago I went to Vegas.  We won't discuss the trips because it was frankly dreadful (nothing nice to say...say nothing at all...blah blah) but something TRAGIC happened while I was away.

The neighbors upstairs improperly installed a bidet and, when the hot water pipe melted, the result was an indoor rainforest in my apartment.  Everything was basically fine in the end but alas, my favorite soaps in my favorite soap dish were destroyed.

RIP Nectar, RIP Jasmine Jubilee, RIP Wasabi, RIP McCarren Park, RIP I Heart Bacon and...RIP Tiny Bubbles.  I think that's all. 

As you can see from the pictures above, I have a big blob of used-to-be soap in my favorite dish purchased for me by my favorite mother.  It makes me SO ANGRY because I typically don't buy soaps twice because I like to try new ones.

These were my feel good soaps, my go to soaps MY FAVES. 

Ugh.

Stupid neighbors.  Who puts a bidet in their bathroom in Brooklyn anyway?  I could have given them some amazing heinie washing soap for the shower if they had only asked.

I'm singing in the shower again!

For someone who dedicated most of her young life (and according to her family, should currently dedicate more) to singing, I almost never sing in the shower.

It could be because I am concentrating on the finer details of whichever soap I am using, but whatever...

So, with my many many soaps to try, I know just shove my hand into my wicker basket of unused soaps and pick one. One (way too early for its good) morning I stuck in my hand, fished around a bit and pulled out...

Coconut Lemongrass by Sea Sprite Soaps.

I'll confess that I was pretty stoked for a number of reasons.

The first reason is that I have been wanting to try out one of these soaps for some time. I dig, the soapmaker's blog (she links to Book Slut, hello?) and her banner and packaging is among my favorite on Etsy. It caught my eye from day one. At any rate, it took me far too long to try one of the soaps.

Sooooo...take one is a blend of two GREAT scents: lemongrass and coconut!

As a side note, I once made a soup with lemongrass in it and it completely overwhelmed the other flavors. So there was a small part of me that was afraid that all I would smell is lemongrass.

But I was wrong.

Ok, so I love love love this soap. The scent is nicely layered. It actually blooms! At first you smell the lemongrass but it mellows out to the soothing scent of the coconut that dries on your skin just enough to make you feel as though you are heading to the beach as opposed to Wall Street (although I suppose both have sharks).

This soap has been chilling in my soap dish and, I must admit, I have to force myself not to reach for it in the morning. There is something so cheerful and sunny about it. The soap is downright optimistic.

In fact, this is my new favorite good morning summer scent. The only thing that would make it better is if I could get up at 10am to shower then and if my piña coladas didn't get watered down in the shower.

But I'm singing that darned Harry Nilsson song again!

And the first soap I tried...

Ugh. What a week. I know I say this a bunch but ever since I became the Executive Babysitter.....erm, Director, of the Miss New York Organization my weeks just gets more and more exhausting.

So I started the great soap test with black raspberry vanilla from Burnt Mill

And of course I have some random musings:

So my first random musing is about black raspberries themselves. How are they different from the blackberries that grow on the side of the road in Georgia? Is there a difference?

Second not-so-random musing is that you MUST go to Etsy and buy this from Burnt Mill. It is less than $10 and CHOCK FULL of soap samples.

But now on to the good stuff. How did I like it?

Well, first of all, Burnt Mill cuts all of their soap samples like chunky crinkle cut french fries, which makes me immediately smile.

The soap is this amazing swirl of color and smells lightly of juicy black raspberries and fresh vanilla. Now, I am not a big fan of the smell of vanilla. In fact, I find it to be particularly cloying. But this is not like that at all, in fact the scent is nice enough to scent the shower in a wonderful way but it doesn't cling to the skin after the shower.

Also, the lather is really nice. I find this to be a good night time soap because the scent is quite relaxing.

And, on another note, this is the first soap I have used with activated charcoal in it. All of my research shows that this stuff is GREAT for drawing out toxins in the skin. I know it is often used to clear out the gastric tract and can even be used in the case of poisoning.

Neat, right?

In soap, it is a gentle exfoliant and absorbs excess oil and other stuff you don't need from the skin.

So far, I like it.

A Bittersweet Post

So as I was doing what I do best (cruising the ever increasing number of blogs I read) I came across a post by the proprietor of Gothic Creations.

She was announcing that she was no longer going to be making and selling soaps. Me being, well me, I decided I HAD to buy some of the remaining soap because it was my last opportunity on Earth the try these soaps.

Ok, so I might be a little unhealthy in my soap acquisition but I own my issues so stop laughing at me.

I bought three scents of the soap Italian Spiced Chocolate, Apricot and Cherry Swirl. All three smell fantastic but my favorite is definitely the Cherry Swirl. I am not normally a big fan of cherries or things that smell of cherries but this is very nice. The soap is heavy, seemingly heavier than most soaps and I got a generous block of it.

On a side note, getting a big block of soap is super awesome because it means I can cut it into pieces and it lasts longer.

So now I am mourning the fact that when the cherry swirl soap is gone, I will be all out of the only cherry soap I ever liked.

So that's sad, right?