Confessions of a Bathaholic: Stash Report
Okay, so I can't exactly remember what I have and haven't used, stash-wise, since I did my last product review thingy, so I figured I'd change my tack and do a company-by-company thing and see what comes of that.
So, um, perspective: This is my stash...
Arcana
Where you can find them: The Soap Box Company, Scent Addict, Pretty Indulgent, a couple of other places listed on their website,
arcanasoapslove.
What I've Tried: Sugar Scrubs, perfumes, soaps.
Favorite Products: Marshmallow Scrub, Sleepy Hollow-scented anything (pictured is the LE scrub I have been hoarding FOREVER), Herne soap, Jason loves the Tinderbox scent.
Pros: Consistently good products, available through retailers with great TAT and CS.
Cons: Scrubs are decadently moisturizing but not particularly scrubby. Individual products can be hard to find when they're out of stock. But that's it. They're great. (The puckered label is totally my fault.)
Black Phoenix Trading Post
Where you can find them: Their website. For updates, check out the forum orbpal_excathedra.
What I've Tried: various soaps, atmosphere sprays, and bath oils. Some of the BPTP-exclusive scents. I also have a few of the tees and yoga pants.
Favorite Products: Snow White bath oil and soap (LE), Snake Oil soap. Comfiest yoga pants ever.
Pros: The soaps are made by Brooke of Villainess, and are superb. Very strongly scented products. The quality of the products is high, and the labels are lovely.
Cons: The turnaround time is not for the faint-hearted. In stock items routinely take 3 - 5 weeks to ship.
Fantasy Bath
Where you can find them: Their website.
What I've Tried: Most of their bath bombs, their lotion bars.
Favorite Products: Snow Wonder, Cinderella, Queen of Tarts bath bombs.
Pros: BEST BATH BOMBS EVER, HANDS DOWN. HANDS. DOWN.
Cons: I have found the bags of powder to be less-scented than the individual bombs, but others disagree. Shipping prices can be a bit much because of the weight of the bombs. If you can combine shipping with a friend and get free shipping, you're good.
Flourish Bath & Body
Where you can find them: Their Etsy shop, a limited amount of products at the Soap Box Company.
What I've Tried: Roll-on perfume, soap, lip balms.
marinatempest raved about their sugar scrub cubes this morning.
Favorite Products: Lemon sugar lip balm, Woodsmoke and Vanilla scented anything.
Pros: Local Baltimore company, yay. Best lip balm ever, even better than Burt's Bees.
Cons: Their soaps, while well-scented, melt really quickly.
Haunt
Where you can find them:They run periodic sales either on their Etsy or Big Cartel shops, so best to follow their blog for info. Sometimes some of their stuff even makes it to the Soap Box Company or Scent Addict.
What I've Tried: scrubs, soaps, sprayable oils, perfumes.
Favorite Products:Winter House is a wonder scent. Rasa has been out of stock for a long time, but if I ever see it again, I'm stockpiling.
Pros: The soaps are creamy and moisturizing. The scents are complex. The packaging is amazing. The new whipped soap sample I just received has a fantastic texture.
Cons: Sugar scrubs are not actually very scrubby, though they are very moisturizing. Good luck getting ahold of any goodies. Much like MoonaLisa, Haunt products are highly coveted and disappear immediately. Erin, who runs Haunt, only does this part-time due to family comittments, so if you're a Haunt devotee, you best be sharpening your paypal trigger finger. TAT is also about two months!
Haus of Gloi
Where you can find them: Their website, some products at The Soap Box Company.
What I've Tried:Soaps, emulsifying scrubs, bubbling scrubs.
Favorite Products: PEPPERMINT COCOA WHIPPED SOAP. FOREVER. Alas, it was LE. I also loved Aduwa, which was discontinued. I more or less missed out on Insalata Nocturna, but I will buy a ton if it returns next year.
Pros:I am loving their whipped soaps. Great texture. The bubbling scrubs are great in warmer weather, and the emulsifying scrubs are fantabulous in the winter. Fast shipping, good CS. All vegan.
Cons: The bar soaps are really hit or miss for me. I think I'll stick to the whipped soaps once I finish the ones I have. And waaaah, my favorite scent is discontinued, waaaaaah.
Intentions
Where you can find them: Their Etsy shop.
What I've Tried: Just soaps.
Favorite Products: So far, I don't have one.
Pros: I was lured in by how pretty everything is, and indeed, the soaps look like that in real life. Excellent craftmanship. A very mild lather, superfatted and emollient. They also sent me a very nice freebie.
Cons: I like intensely-scented stuff, and the scents here are nice but not as strong as some of my favorite companies. It's making an excellent hand-soap, though.
Lathers N Lights
Where you can find them: Their website.
What I've Tried: Soft n Shine shampoo and conditioner, olive and honey shampoo, sheer moisture conditioner, lustress moisture mist, lotion, body butter, bath and shower mousse, bath and shower creme.
Favorite Products: Sheer moisture conditioner, bath and shower mousse (for shaving), their body butter (for days where I need intense moisture).
Pros: Enormous scent list, products blended when you order them, reliable TAT, LOTS of samples with each order. Haircare is SLS-free, and they have both protein and silicone free products. Your hair will smell yummy.
Cons: TAT is three weeks, scents are stock (as in not artisan-blended).
Paintbox Soapworks
Where you can find them: Their Etsy.
What I've Tried: Soaps, lotion. Sorbetto is on my list.
Favorite Products: GINGERMILK. GINGERMILK, SERIOUSLY.
Pros: Exceptionally well-made glycerine soaps. Usually I don't do glycerine, but seriously, these last. The lotion is lighter than other lotions I have, but well-scented and a good option for when I don't need a body butter (ie, summer).
Cons: None I can think of. I look forward to seeing this company grow.
Villainess
Where you can find them: Their website, the Soap Box Company, Scent Addict, Pretty Indulgent, a couple of other places on their website.
What I've Tried: You name it, I've tried it. Except the facial smooches.
Favorite Products: GingerSnapped soap and smooch, Trauma (LE) soap, Asphyxiate soap, Jai Mahal Whipped. Pretty much everything Brooke has ever done for BPTP.
Pros: Exceptional products. Brooke's soaps are the ones most likely to be in my shower. There are two in my shower right now, actually. Fast TAT, too. Free samples with every order that make for excellent hand soaps. Consciously cruelty-free and vegan-friendly.
Cons: The perfumes tend not to stick around on me very long, but that's all I can think of. Brooke still isn't offering massage oils. There, that's a con, right?
Alrighty then. That was a pleasant diversion. BACK TO WORK!
So, um, perspective: This is my stash...
Arcana
Where you can find them: The Soap Box Company, Scent Addict, Pretty Indulgent, a couple of other places listed on their website,
arcanasoapslove.What I've Tried: Sugar Scrubs, perfumes, soaps.
Favorite Products: Marshmallow Scrub, Sleepy Hollow-scented anything (pictured is the LE scrub I have been hoarding FOREVER), Herne soap, Jason loves the Tinderbox scent.
Pros: Consistently good products, available through retailers with great TAT and CS.
Cons: Scrubs are decadently moisturizing but not particularly scrubby. Individual products can be hard to find when they're out of stock. But that's it. They're great. (The puckered label is totally my fault.)
Black Phoenix Trading Post
Where you can find them: Their website. For updates, check out the forum or
bpal_excathedra.What I've Tried: various soaps, atmosphere sprays, and bath oils. Some of the BPTP-exclusive scents. I also have a few of the tees and yoga pants.
Favorite Products: Snow White bath oil and soap (LE), Snake Oil soap. Comfiest yoga pants ever.
Pros: The soaps are made by Brooke of Villainess, and are superb. Very strongly scented products. The quality of the products is high, and the labels are lovely.
Cons: The turnaround time is not for the faint-hearted. In stock items routinely take 3 - 5 weeks to ship.
Fantasy Bath
Where you can find them: Their website.
What I've Tried: Most of their bath bombs, their lotion bars.
Favorite Products: Snow Wonder, Cinderella, Queen of Tarts bath bombs.
Pros: BEST BATH BOMBS EVER, HANDS DOWN. HANDS. DOWN.
Cons: I have found the bags of powder to be less-scented than the individual bombs, but others disagree. Shipping prices can be a bit much because of the weight of the bombs. If you can combine shipping with a friend and get free shipping, you're good.
Flourish Bath & Body
Where you can find them: Their Etsy shop, a limited amount of products at the Soap Box Company.
What I've Tried: Roll-on perfume, soap, lip balms.
marinatempest raved about their sugar scrub cubes this morning.Favorite Products: Lemon sugar lip balm, Woodsmoke and Vanilla scented anything.
Pros: Local Baltimore company, yay. Best lip balm ever, even better than Burt's Bees.
Cons: Their soaps, while well-scented, melt really quickly.
Haunt
Where you can find them:They run periodic sales either on their Etsy or Big Cartel shops, so best to follow their blog for info. Sometimes some of their stuff even makes it to the Soap Box Company or Scent Addict.
What I've Tried: scrubs, soaps, sprayable oils, perfumes.
Favorite Products:Winter House is a wonder scent. Rasa has been out of stock for a long time, but if I ever see it again, I'm stockpiling.
Pros: The soaps are creamy and moisturizing. The scents are complex. The packaging is amazing. The new whipped soap sample I just received has a fantastic texture.
Cons: Sugar scrubs are not actually very scrubby, though they are very moisturizing. Good luck getting ahold of any goodies. Much like MoonaLisa, Haunt products are highly coveted and disappear immediately. Erin, who runs Haunt, only does this part-time due to family comittments, so if you're a Haunt devotee, you best be sharpening your paypal trigger finger. TAT is also about two months!
Haus of Gloi
Where you can find them: Their website, some products at The Soap Box Company.
What I've Tried:Soaps, emulsifying scrubs, bubbling scrubs.
Favorite Products: PEPPERMINT COCOA WHIPPED SOAP. FOREVER. Alas, it was LE. I also loved Aduwa, which was discontinued. I more or less missed out on Insalata Nocturna, but I will buy a ton if it returns next year.
Pros:I am loving their whipped soaps. Great texture. The bubbling scrubs are great in warmer weather, and the emulsifying scrubs are fantabulous in the winter. Fast shipping, good CS. All vegan.
Cons: The bar soaps are really hit or miss for me. I think I'll stick to the whipped soaps once I finish the ones I have. And waaaah, my favorite scent is discontinued, waaaaaah.
Intentions
Where you can find them: Their Etsy shop.
What I've Tried: Just soaps.
Favorite Products: So far, I don't have one.
Pros: I was lured in by how pretty everything is, and indeed, the soaps look like that in real life. Excellent craftmanship. A very mild lather, superfatted and emollient. They also sent me a very nice freebie.
Cons: I like intensely-scented stuff, and the scents here are nice but not as strong as some of my favorite companies. It's making an excellent hand-soap, though.
Lathers N Lights
Where you can find them: Their website.
What I've Tried: Soft n Shine shampoo and conditioner, olive and honey shampoo, sheer moisture conditioner, lustress moisture mist, lotion, body butter, bath and shower mousse, bath and shower creme.
Favorite Products: Sheer moisture conditioner, bath and shower mousse (for shaving), their body butter (for days where I need intense moisture).
Pros: Enormous scent list, products blended when you order them, reliable TAT, LOTS of samples with each order. Haircare is SLS-free, and they have both protein and silicone free products. Your hair will smell yummy.
Cons: TAT is three weeks, scents are stock (as in not artisan-blended).
Paintbox Soapworks
Where you can find them: Their Etsy.
What I've Tried: Soaps, lotion. Sorbetto is on my list.
Favorite Products: GINGERMILK. GINGERMILK, SERIOUSLY.
Pros: Exceptionally well-made glycerine soaps. Usually I don't do glycerine, but seriously, these last. The lotion is lighter than other lotions I have, but well-scented and a good option for when I don't need a body butter (ie, summer).
Cons: None I can think of. I look forward to seeing this company grow.
Villainess
Where you can find them: Their website, the Soap Box Company, Scent Addict, Pretty Indulgent, a couple of other places on their website.
What I've Tried: You name it, I've tried it. Except the facial smooches.
Favorite Products: GingerSnapped soap and smooch, Trauma (LE) soap, Asphyxiate soap, Jai Mahal Whipped. Pretty much everything Brooke has ever done for BPTP.
Pros: Exceptional products. Brooke's soaps are the ones most likely to be in my shower. There are two in my shower right now, actually. Fast TAT, too. Free samples with every order that make for excellent hand soaps. Consciously cruelty-free and vegan-friendly.
Cons: The perfumes tend not to stick around on me very long, but that's all I can think of. Brooke still isn't offering massage oils. There, that's a con, right?
Alrighty then. That was a pleasant diversion. BACK TO WORK!