Follows Like A Sheep

You know how Telesilla said not to listen to her when I told you it's All Her Fault?

It is so totally all her fault.

I like stuff that smells good -- who doesn't? I used to associate particular scents with people; I had a pear lotion for my first boyfriend, which was discontinued not too long after the relationship was. (I miss Sparkling Pear. I don't miss the ex!) I think there was a peach lotion somewhere in there... or was it vanilla? And raspberry was for my high school sweetheart, but she and I parted on good terms, and I happily kept right on using it for twelve years until the crazy people at Bath and Body Works discontinued it.

Then I went through this horrible phase where strong scents, good or bad, caused instant migraines. Stuck on the bus with a guy wearing aftershave? Migraine. I made blueberry muffins one day... came downstairs to check on them... migraine. Taking out the trash, thank God, was never my job at home, but opening the trash can on a bad day? Migraine. Forget going to Starbucks, a perfume counter, or Bath and Body Works. Nope.

So I pretty much forgot about smelling like something pretty, and focused on smelling like as little as possible.

Fast forward a couple more years. The migraines had been more or less defeated (they still happen sometimes, but they're not triggered by smells anymore). And Telesilla started posting squeeful posts about BPAL.

See? See how this is all her fault? Totally. Forget the fact that I'd been interested in nifty soaps and lotions for years. Forget the fact that I had been scent-deprived for ages and was suddenly made aware of the fact that hey -- I too could smell nice stuff again! It's really all Telesilla's fault. No, really. Really!

As it turns out, though, my preferences run more toward soap than lotion or perfume oils or other sweetly scented things. Soap makes me happy. It gets me clean. It makes me smell nice. It comes in cute shapes. You can get handmade soap from e-tailers who are small-business craftspeople instead of big corporations. It's a neat way to take advantage of the opportunities made available by a worldwide network connecting people who can Make Cool Stuff with people who want to Buy Cool Stuff.

And hey, at least all my soap purchases fit under my sink (so far) and haven't taken up an entire room for the soap stash (yet), unlike the knitting. The soap obsession has gotten obvious, but luckily my adored and adoring husband is very understanding about it. (I mean, hell, it's not his cabinet that's full of soap.)

But let's get my cards on the table here. I am not a soap connoisseur; I know what I like, I know what I don't, and my tastes often run toward the simple. I have sensitive skin -- which not a single one of the handmade products I've tried has set off, by the way. (Score one for people making soap at home over major businesses who make soap on a huge processing line, full of additives and funky allergic-reaction-causing chemicals.) And I do try things other than soap at times!

But I have a cabinet full of soaps and I'm totally excited about getting to review them.

Like the sweetly scented lemming I am. :)

(Did I mention that it's All Telesilla's Fault?)

Here are a few of the criteria I use for evaluating soap:

* Lather. I know not all things need to lather up dramatically, and I sure don't need a shower full of suds, but is it comfortable to use? Does it glide nicely on the skin? How does it feel? And can you lather up a loofa or washcloth with it, or would that be more trouble than it's worth?
* Texture. Rough? Smooth? Silky? Creamy? What does it feel like? (Bearing in mind that salt soaps and scrubby soaps are meant to be rough.)
* Scent. What does it smell like? Does it seem like a natural scent, or does it have any kind of artificial smell? If it's not a "soap" scent, does it smell... well... soapy? How does it compare to other soaps in that flavor family that I've tried?
* Lasting scent. How much scent are you left with after a shower? Do people ask what that awesome scent you're wearing is? Can you smell yourself, and would you wanna?
* Ingredients. What's it made out of? Can we trust it? How does it work on people with sensitive skin? Is it vegan? Is it organic?
* Presentation. Could you give this to your boss or your minions? How about your mother-in-law? (My mother-in-law is made of awesome, and I'm not afraid she'll withhold her approval if I send her the wrong present, but I would definitely want to send her the best of the best in terms of handcrafted soaps, because she deserves them!)

And for sheer amusement factor:
* The husband. Does he like it? Does he nod and say, "Yep, that's soap, all right"? What does he make of the mold? Does it make him sniff me? What's his utterly-heterosexual take on the matter? (For reference, his review of almost every single BPAL scent I tried was "Hmm... smells like a candle." I think the closest we got to a more detailed review was "Hmm... smells like an almond candle!")


What I like: Soap that washes off clean and doesn't leave me feeling sticky. Food scents rather than floral scents. Anything that doesn't irritate my skin. Enough lather that I can use a back scrubber. Sheep and other cute things (I'm a sucker for cuteness). Chocolate. Citrus. Anything that really and truly smells like fresh fruit instead of like it's trying to smell like fresh fruit. I don't insist on vegan or organic ingredients by any stretch, but I'll make sure to mention it if the soaps use 'em.


So you're gonna get a biased set of reviews, but, well, life's short and there's a lot of soap out there. I'll gladly take links if you've found something insanely great!