[unpaid/sample] I know that many of us are fans of the traditional soap. Personally, although I do have liquid soaps, I can’t ever see myself giving up on them completely. There’s something just so solid and reassuring about a proper block of soap.
The English Soap Company is new to me although the brand is over twenty years old and they’re situated in Sussex. I asked them to send anything bright and beautiful and they’ve absolutely delivered. Rhubarb and Coconut soap will blow your mind, it’s so richly scented. It’s the bar that I’ve tested and I have it by my kitchen sink – I’m in my dining room office next door and I can smell it! To me, those two notes would not be natural bedfellows but it works. It’s always a good sign if you can smell the product before you take the wrappers off and I have to say, this has been one of the nicest parcels I’ve had in recent day because once the box was open it was just all about the fragrance.
Now, that’s a proper soap :-). Interestingly, the English Soap Company uses palm oil which I slightly twitched about but if you ever had any questions on palm oil in products, read their explanation HERE. All of their oil comes from The Round Table of Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). Sustainably grown palm oil is a force for good by helping the environment, communities, employees and wildlife – it’s unsustainable palm oil that can be so damaging and destructive. I’m using almost word for word from the RSPO website which is another enlightening read HERE. Aside from the absolute burst of fragrance (which may be too sweet for some), this soap gave up a good lather which I was expecting, but also a lovely, fruity waft. I’m also getting a delicious aroma from the Mango & Peach soap – I think I prefer it so far but haven’t actually used it yet.
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I lit the Oriental Spice & Cherry Blossom candle before I had looked up any of the details – I can’t believe that it’s £11.50 and yet it gives off such a lot of fragrance. I’ve burned it for about three hours and the aroma was very present all throughout the kitchen. I actually think, compared to the soaps, it looks a bit old fashioned and the use of the world ‘oriental’ is very much out of favour in fragrance world. The fragrance is floral and powdery – there’s no spice in it as far as I can tell which makes the title misleading – but lilac plays a strong part, as does jasmine. The base is musk and woods, with other notes including violet, orchid and carnations. The brand uses soy wax, cotton wicks and reusable glass jars.
If you’re a fan of candles, but don’t want the Dyptique prices, it’s definitely worth exploring this brand a bit more. They have a Cucumber & Watermelon soap, Bluebell & Jasmine and Jasmine & Wild Strawberry just for a start – there are literally so many. They’re £5.50 each which seems very reasonable to me HERE. Their paper wrap choices are stunning – there’s a collaboration with Kew Gardens which sends the illustrations more botanical but they’re really lovely to look at.
Transparency Disclosure
All products are sent to me as samples from brands and agencies unless otherwise stated. Affiliate links may be used. Posts are not affiliate driven.
7 comments
Hey Jane – on a side note about Palm Oil. The issue is that, currently, whilst on site ‘sustainable’ palm oil can be produced, there are no storage facilities in Europe to separately store ‘sustainable’ palm oil – it’s all mixed in together, so it”s worth querying with any company claiming that their palm oil is sustainable due to this. Not having a particular dig at the English Soap Company (all for promoting British brands – we as a country create so many excellent beauty products) – palm oil and palm oil derivatives are in so many cosmetic/beauty products (all that palmitate), but am raising a slight eyebrow. Rhubarb and Coconut sounds a lush combination though.
That’s a really interesting point Carrie, thank you – hope they come back to answer your questions.
Hi Carrie,
Thanks so much for asking this. As Jane mentioned in her blog post, we are members of the RSPO (Round Table of Sustainable Palm Oil). The RSPO is a global standard for sustainable production of palm oil and therefore we pride ourselves on working with growers that adhere to RSPO standards, in turn supporting local communities who depend on this for their livelihood. Our statement on our website provides a broader understanding on the use of palm oil and how it can and should be used in a sustainable way. You can find this https://theenglishsoapcompany.com/palm-oil-statement/. Similarly, if you head to the WWF website https://www.wwf.org.uk/updates/8-things-know-about-palm-oil you will see how palm oil supplies 40% of the world’s vegetable oil demand on just under 6% of the land used to produce all vegetable oils. To get the same amount of alternative oils like soybean, coconut, or sunflower oil you would need anything between 4 and 10 times more land, which would just shift the problem to other parts of the world and threaten other habitats, species and communities. Whilst we do ship in our palm oil, we do what we can to mitigate our global footprint by ensuring all our soap wraps are fully recyclable. Similarly, where possible we work with suppliers who provide us with our paper and card within a 50-mile radius. If you do have any further questions on this, feel free to contact us on info@theenglishsoapcompany.com. We hope in the meantime you check out our Rhubarb and Coconut Soap as it is one of our favourites.
Nice Jane. They look/sound lovely. This range would also make lovely ” wee mindings” (modest gifts).
exactly that!
Have you ever tried the Sedbergh Soap Company products? They make the most gorgeous lemongrass soap (along with others, but it’s the bestseller). I picked it up at Tebay services (as you do!) and the fragrance is amazing – the whole bathroom smells fantastic. It’s also online: https://www.sedbergh-soap.co.uk/ I don’t have sensitive skin but the lady who makes it apparently has severe eczema and needed something that didn’t aggravate it, so started making her own.
Thanks for the tip!