[A gift pack of all-natural, handcrafted soaps, body butters and lip balm for you--and YOU choose the soaps you want!]
I’m really excited to be sharing this giveaway with you all today! As a rule, the giveaways on this blog have tended to involve food of one sort or another. In fact, even though today’s giveaway is a gift pack of beautiful soaps, body butters and lip balms, they’re all made with real food ingredients. So, you could almost eat them (almost).
I first tried out Bell Soaps nearly a year ago, when Karen Bell, the owner and relative of a friend, dropped by to deliver a sample pack. I had actually contacted Karen first and asked if I could try them, since I knew that she used all-natural organic ingredients. I also knew that each and every bar of soap was lovingly handcrafted by Karen herself, right here in Ontario. Plus, almost every type was also 100% vegan! Well, how could I resist, when I already have a penchant for highlighting local, Canadian, and “green” companies (not to mention very delicate and dry skin)?
The company’s slogan is “Treat your skin the way nature intended!” and after reading Karen’s story, I can see how that’s entirely true with these soaps.
[Gorgeous stack of Bell Soap. You can see from the slightly irregular edges that each bar has been individually hand-cut.]
I’ll let you read the entire history of the company here, but in a nutshell, Karen (who was already an environmentally conscious consumer) fell in love with soap making after looking for a way to create something from real ingredients. She realized how many artificial ingredients and chemicals were in most body products, and decided to make something better. What started out as a hobby and a project to create gifts for family and friends quickly evolved into a sustainable business.
But what are the products like? Honestly, I was crazy about these soaps (but I guess you knew that–otherwise I wouldn’t be writing about them on this blog!). In fact, I hadn’t realized how spoiled I was as I worked my way through the different varieties that Karen had supplied until I finished the last bar and moved back to my previous “all natural” brand. The old soap suddenly felt almost as if it were leaving a tacky residue on my skin! They’re also available in customized varieties for each skin type so you can be sure that the soap you use is the right one for you. I absolutely adored the Avocado soap, the Carrot Complexion bar, the Himalayan Pink Salt bar and the Coffee Scrub (for getting out blueberry stains under my nails!)–but really, they are all wonderful.
I also loved the fact that the soaps contain only natural colorants as well–NO dyes or artificial anything. In other words, the Carrot Complexion Bar is orange because of turmeric, the Pink Himalayan Salt Bar is pink because of madder root, the Coffee Bar is earthy because of cocoa powder and ground coffee beans (a great exfoliant, as Karen explains), the Calendula Soap contains calendula petals, and so on. Check out the entire list of ingredients in the products here.
The body butters are made from pure shea butter and cocoa butter (and what a glorious scent they confer! Just like raw cacao butter. . . oh, right, because that’s what it’s made of!). I should note that they are not like your standard store-bought lotions that disappear instantly into the skin, leaving a heavy scent. These go on like butter (literally), and are absorbed as you rub them in. They leave your skin feeling soft and smooth, with a light sheen (they are made of natural oil, after all). So, while I wouldn’t use the shea butter or cocoa butter on my face, they are the perfect body moisturizer after a shower or at night.
And now. . . . THE GIVEAWAY!
One RH reader will receive a full pack of EIGHT Organic Bell Bar Soaps, TWO Organic Body Butters, and TWO Organic Lip Balms. The winner can choose which eight varieties s/he wishes to have.
And guess what? Karen has generously offered to send this prize ANYWHERE, worldwide!! Wahoo!!
Just use the Rafflecopter form below to enter. You will need to leave a comment below as part of the first entry. Answer the question in the form (once you click on “leave a comment”) in your comment.
The giveaway will close at midnight my time (EST) on Sunday, October 27, 2013. I’ll announce the winner on this page.
Good luck, everyone!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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