Anniversary soaps!

Grant and I have a pretty awesome system for getting each other gifts. We make lists. ^_^ Or at least... I make lists! This year I gave him a list of a bunch of different soaps I was interested in, and he ended up putting together a gift box full of lovely fall-scented stuff.

It's an even more thoughtful gift than you'd think, actually! Grant and I are from the Midwest -- Indiana, to be specific -- where the seasons really turn. There's a definite spring, summer, fall, and winter. Fall was always my favorite season. My birthday is in fall (late September). My wedding was in the fall (October 21st), with the leaves changing color and looking absolutely gorgeous. Fall in Indiana is fantastic; the weather is beautiful, the scenery is as gorgeous as you can get in Indiana (Brown County is unbelievable), and it starts my own personal holiday season -- what could be better?

Well, when we moved to Seattle, we discovered that we get two seasons: the most amazing summer ever (okay, it's a little cold for Grant, but I love it), and what passes for our winter: six months of cloudy, overcast mist. It's not an awful kind of winter -- it beats snow -- but there's no definitive "fall" season. The leaves don't even always change colors or come off the trees; it just doesn't get cold enough here to shock the trees into hibernation. (Or whatever it is that causes leaves to change colors and fall off.) I mean, it's almost November, and the tree outside my bedroom window is lush, green, and leafy.

So a whole gift basket of autumn-themed soaps makes me really happy, and reminds me of fall without making me have to rake leaves. :) I'm quite pleased! Here's what I wound up with:



This is Atomic Cherry Amaretto Shaving Soap from Bunny Butt Apothecary. (Okay, okay, it's not a fall scent, but it was in the basket because both Grant and I love amaretto scents.) I may not like shaving my legs, but I sure hate it less now that I've discovered handmade shaving soaps! This one smells just divine and gave my razor a perfectly clean slide. \o/ Definitely recommended, and I'd buy shaving soap from Bunny Butt again in a hot minute.



This one is Hard Cider Soap by Balsam. It smells wonderful -- the shop description is "Cinnamon spice meets autumn apples. Just the soap for a hot bath on a cool, fall evening!" And it's definitely a spicy, apple-y scent that reminds me of a nice hot cider. The soap feels great, too, nice and smooth and clean. I used this one this morning, and paired it with JoJoElle's "Fall Love" Ultra Luxe Lotion. (And there's a whole post coming about JoJoElle. SO MUCH LOVE.)

These are the items I haven't yet tried out -- all of which I'm totally excited by --

Also by Balsam:



Pumpkin Spice Soap

And these are from Magic Hands Workshop:



Honeyed Peach soap (darn it, can't find a link)



Honey Oatmeal soap



Two kinds of Body Butter -- Honey Oatmeal (again, can't find a link) and Caspian Dancer!

And somehow he lucked into a sample of Magic Hands' Sugared Pumpkin Sea Salt bar, which I didn't even realize existed. But I'm thrilled -- Magic Hands makes awesome salt bars!

Happy anniversary, sweetie! :)