Review: Virginia Soaps and Scents

As part of the Old Schoolhouse Crew for this year I have been privileged to review some really neat products. I believe that last year the Crew asked if they could review some more personal products and I believe their prayers were answered. Sometimes it is nice to try out some new things especially those with oils in and no nasty additives. Those of you who know how adamant I am about additives and not using them in foods or beauty products please take note of the products I will tell you about below.

The company who sent me the small guesthouse packet of different soaps and laundry detergent is called Virginia Soaps & Scents. Their story is somewhat unique to most of you but not to me. Their new adventure into the soap business started as a result of the loss of something precious to their family. Their youngest granddaughter passed away suddenly as a result of a tragic car accident. They spent a long period of time mourning and grieving whilst ministering to their daughter and grieving themselves. To get back into the homeschooling way of things they started a unit study on Life in the Colonial era in the state of Virginia. During the study they experimented in making lavender soap. They were amazed at what they had done and then experimented some more, and it finally evolved into a home business.

This is an amazing story to me as I continue to work on my feelings of grief over the loss of my son Brendon from cancer. I have not found a way yet that definitely I can use to glorify God and honor our son at the same time. I am still searching for ways to use Brendon's legacy and helping people and our family at the same time.

Anyway in the small packet came 3 soaps Oatmeal Milk and Honey, Coconut Lemongrass, and Fresh Orange. An additional soap called "Shampoo Bar" and a small sandwich bag of "Laundry Soap Kit." I have tried out the Lemongrass and the Fresh Orange soap on a daily basis in the last few weeks and find they are smooth to the touch with a pleasant smell and enough bubbles to get me clean. The Oatmeal and Honey Bar I am waiting to try later when the other two are finished. I have noticed that these soaps do not dissolve into pieces as soon as they get wet which is a plus.

I gave the Shampoo bar to my husband to try first. He used it two or three times, went back to his shampoo, then a few more times and then told me he was done with it. That is because it caused his head to itch and flake. My 8 year old son liked the bar but he said he did not like the feel of it in his hands. Go figure on that one! I guess change is hard for him. I used the bar on my 2 year old and he was fine with putting it on his wet hair and then rubbing with mommy to get his hair nice and clean. He smells fantastic and has had no problems with his skin itching at all. I have tried the Shampoo bar at least 5 times and it seems to work best when I do not put conditioner in my hair afterwards. I have tried to do it both ways and even after 3 days it still feels good and clean. I guess for two of us it is a winner.

Last but not least is my adventure into using the Laundry Soap Kit. Our small sample kit made a half gallon of soap which is being kept in a re-used 1 gallon tub I had. This soap does not have any suds so you can not see any bubbles in the washing machine but the laundry (and diapers) come out clean and smell great. I did have doubts about this but am happy with the results. The overall cost of using this laundry soap is between 4-7 cents per load. That is inexpensive in this day and age. I am currently using an organic laundry soap powder to do everything so saving some dollars would make sense in this area of our home!

Virgina Soaps and Scents carries regular sized 4.5 oz bars of soap and the Shampoo bar is 5.5 oz and can last for as long as you would normally use a 32oz bottle of shampoo. Most of the soaps are made from Coconut oils, olive oils, and essential oils. The one thing I did notice was a lack of specific ingredients listed for the bar soaps and shampoo soap. I would like to see that listed on the website or the packaging. The reason being that I have family and friends with allergies to products and I am unable to purchase things for them without knowing what the product contains. I know tha tI can call or email the company but it is easier to be able to look at the site and decide if this product is able to meet our needs. I would also like to know where the ingredients are from as do now wish to support a country or business that is not taking care of our environment at the same time as making money off of it.

The price of the soaps ranges from $4.50 per bar to buying 3 for $12.00 or buying 4 and getting the 5th one for free. The Shampoo Bar costs $5.50 or 2 for $10.00. Shipping and handling is reasonable too. I did notice they have a Shampoo, body and shave or All-in-One Bars for $4.50 too. This is useful for those children going away to camp or for college students, or a husband travelling on business.

I better finish this up and go catch some beauty sleep for another homeschooling, cleaning and fun day tomorrow. I do think you ought to check out these products and maybe even order the Sampler basket and see for yourself how you like these soaps or give some away for Christmas too.

I am a reviewer for the TOS Crew and so what I have said above is my opinion. Please do the research for yourself and some more reviews can be found at the TOS Crew blog at http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/HomeschoolCrew/735619/.

Thanks for reading and keep reading and learning every day.