Guest Author - Justine Crane

Bidwell Botanicals, at first glance, may seem a bit reserved, kind of shy (if a business can be described this way) -- don’t be fooled. Bidwell’s understated approach masks a vibrancy which merits appreciation by even the most particular of skincare aficionados.

Cranberry Fig, Sugar ‘n Spice, Blackberry Sage, Chocolate Truffle, Cucumber Aloe, Peppermint Silk, French Green Clay, Spa Bar -- soaps, soaps and more soaps! Made the old-fashioned way, Bidwell produces some nicely blended cold process soaps -- they add herbs, butters, essential oils and the very best fragrance oils.

One of the characteristics I liked best about Bidwell’s soaps was their longevity. Some handmade soaps just don’t last very long. Not so with Bidwell’s -- the smaller sample bars actually made it though several showers, retaining all their wonderful fragrance and silky smooth texture, while the larger full-sized bar, Cucumber Aloe, survived just over a week. With five people in the house, each taking a minimum of one shower per day, that’s a lot of soap getting used and Bidwell’s soaps were up to the task.

Another characteristic I appreciated about their soap was the texture -- silky smooth with loads of lather. And of course I had favorites -- French Green Clay and Peppermint Silk. I don’t know what it was about these soaps that made me so crazy about them, but I was sad to see the last little sliver sliding down the drain. Most clay soaps I’ve tried have been drying, but Bidwell’s French Green Clay wasn’t -- nice and moisturizing and -- well, it was just darned pleasant to use! The Peppermint Silk was dreamy -- lightly scented with peppermint with a pretty little pink swirl throughout.

They also sent a sample of their Crème d’Olive -- yowee! I love the fact that it’s made with extra virgin olive oil and organic honey -- what a super moisturizing combination. They make these splendid little creams in four scents: Lavender, Milk’n Honey, Green Tea and White Tea -- they also offer an unscented version if you’re not into the scented stuff. I still have quite a lot of this moisturizer left due to its intense moisturizing qualities -- a little dab’ll do ya and for a long time, too.

The Botanical Salt Soak they provided was a doozie -- Coconut Rose -- yum! It was lightly scented with rose geranium essential oil and included beautiful organic rose petals and powdered coconut milk. I actually used it as a foot scrub and soak and I have to tell you, it was marvelous.

By far and away my favorite product in all of the wonderful botanicals Bidwell sent was the Cranberry Fig Sugar Scrub -- oh, mama! The texture of this scrub is out of this world -- I’m at a loss as to how to describe it. How can a thing be both soft and soothing and scrubby and exfoliating at once? Made with a base of sugar, shea butter, jojoba and multi-fruit extracts, this scrub is a definite winner. The instructions caution against using this on facial skin, but I did anyway, and I have to say that the results were phenomenal. Normally when a person exfoliates, a certain amount of dryness is expected -- with Bidwell’s Sugar Scrub that’s not the case, and the opposite doesn’t occur either -- there’s none of that slimy, greasy feeling you sometimes get with any type of oil based scrub. Cranberry Fig Sugar Scrub is perfection. And the word is out they’re making their Sugar Scrubs in other scents as well.

Be Beautiful!