A SCENTSational product with a SCENTSational cause

Sarah Torrance and her son, Chad, at a crafts show selling their SCENTSational Soaps and Skincare products

SCENTSational Soaps: A SCENTSational product with a SCENTSational cause

What began as a therapeutic bonding experience between mother and son has become a successful handmade soap and beauty products company called SCENTSational Soaps.

 
Sarah Torrance, owner of the Florida-based business, started making the soaps as part of her son’s homeschooling projects. “It all started as a hands-on homeschool project for my special needs son, Chad,” Sarah explained.

 
“Chad also has eczema and in finding that commercial soaps only made his eczema worse, we thought that making glycerin soaps together without any sulfates, phthalates, parabens, etc. would be beneficial to his skin,” Sarah said, adding that the soaps did help ease his eczema. 

   
Before long she and her son were crafting the soaps together, giving them out as presents to friends and family, and then attending craft shows. “We had so much fun making soaps together that we started doing craft shows and giving away a lot of our soaps to family and friends,” Sarah added.

 
By October 2007 the company was born and Sarah and Chad started making other beauty products, such as body butters , lip balms, and bath salts. SCENTSational Soaps was even approached by a local bed-and-breakfast, the Stanford Inn, to make an exclusive soap for them.

 
“We thought that making a tea-infused soap would be a great soap to make.  We used their [the Stanford Inn’s] strawberry signature blend tea,” Sarah said. “We also made them a strawberry honey lip balm, and strawberry honey lip exfoliator. We also added this to our lip balms for sweetness and into our soap for extra healing properties.  We use the strawberry tea infused honey in our Strawberry Honey Whipped Parfait Soap.”

 
(I sampled both the Strawberry Honey lip balm and the Strawberry Honey soap and they smell delicious and work wonders. The lip balm is some of the best I’ve tried, and I’m a nut for lip balms!)

 
All of the products SCENTSational Soaps offers are handmade, with organic, natural ingredients – including tea! “Using tea in our products gives them extra added natural ingredients that are beneficial to the skin,” Sarah explained. “Strawberries are rich in alpha hydroxyl acid and helps clear acne and reduce oil.  Green Tea reduces inflammations in the skin and promotes collagen and maintains a firm and elastic skin.”

 
SCENTSational Soaps offers a green tea body butter – which uses green tea extract. Sarah said the body butter is a favorite of hers and Chad’s, as well as their customers. But along with the Strawberry Honey tea-infused soap, the green tea body butter isn’t the only tea-infused product SCENTSational offers.

 
“We make a Beauty Bar that has Rooibos Tea in it, and our body butters have Japanese Green Tea Extract in them,” Sarah said.”We have a Green Tea deodorant, Chai Tea Soap, Midnight Safari soap is made using Black Tea.”

 
(I sampled the Chai Tea Soap as well and it’s officially a beauty supply staple!)

 
Sarah’s a tea drinker, and looked to add tea to her products for their numerous health benefits. “We decide to use certain teas in certain products because of its uses and benefits on the skin.  For example, our Beauty Bar has African Red Tea in it because it is very soothing to the skin, making it an excellent soap for the face.”
 

She added that her company is always looking to incorporate more tea ingredients in their products.
 

In fact, within the next few weeks there will be a new soap for sale: Cranberry Apple Tea. Sarah explained that this favorite scent of fall has tea-infused honey and bits of ground tea for exfoliation. (I added this one to my wish list today!)

 
SCENTSational Soaps also has a charitable heart. “We make a BELIEVE soap bar in Lavender and Blueberry.  BELIEVE is the word that IDEAS (Isodcentric 15, exchange, advocacy and support) uses as their logo,” Sarah said.

 
Why this organization? Because it helps benefit children like her son, Chad, who have Chromosome 15q duplication syndrome, which is a developmentally-disabling disease. Some children who suffer from Chromosome 15q duplication syndrome have symptoms of autism, while others may have varying levels of mental retardation. “We decided to make a BELIEVE soap bar to represent the mind set of all parents with disabled children, to "BELIEVE" in what is possible and "BELIEVE" in a positive future.”

 
For every soap bar sold, SCENTSational donates $1 to IDEAS to further research.

 
Many of their soaps are $5 and right now there is a special sale, three for $12 on all six ounce soaps. 
“IDEAS sends us a letter each month thanking us for the donations,” Sarah explained proudly. “We have put this letter up on our youtube channel:  SCENTSationalSoaps1.  You can see Chad and I making soaps together.” 

SCENTSational Soaps doesn’t limit themselves to just one charity, though. “We make gift baskets to give away to a charity. We recently made one for our local Warrior Walk.  We also gave money to American Red Cross to the communities affected by the earthquake in Japan and tsunami throughout the Pacific,” Sarah added.

But best of all, her soap company helps her bond with her son.

 
“Chad and I enjoy making soaps together, it is very therapeutic for us both and our business together teaches Chad money skills, social skills,” Sarah said, explaining that while Chad is 17 he is global-developmentally delayed. He is homeschooled and being taught second grade work, and has progressed well in reaching many of his goals. He receives Speech Therapy, Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy outside the home to help him in his needs. 

“Chad is a happy and loving young man,” mom Sarah said. “We are very proud of Chad.”

Quick notes
Web site: http://scentsationalsoapsskincare.com
Twitter: ssoapsskincare
Facebook: SCENTSational Soaps
Blog URL: http://scentsationalsoapsskincare.blogspot.com/
YouTube Channel: SCENTSationalSoaps1

Strawberry Honey Lip Balm

Strawberry Honey Whipped Parfait Soap

 Photos are copyrighted by Sarah Torrance/SCENTSational Soaps. Used with permission.

RealiTEA - Homemade Beauty Products

Lots of places sell tea-infused and inspired products for a variety of prices. But what if you have some tea leftover at home? (Come on, we all do, don't deny it.) Are there any recipes out there on how to whip up your own tea-infused beauty products?

Sure! For one thing, you can use tea leaves in soap making - the melt-and-pour kind. These kits are available at most craft stores. You basically chop off a few blocks from the sheet and melt them in the microwave, then add color and fragrance quickly, before the soap starts to harden. Pour the soap into a mold and voila! About.com recommends steeping the leaves BEFORE you add them to the mix, that way there is no "bleeding" and changing of the soap's color. Make sure you dry the leaves as well as you can before adding them to the mixture.

There's an old recipe I read years ago for a hair treatment using tea. Brew up one cup of chamomile tea (about 6-8 oz), using loose tea for the best results. Allow the tea to cool completely. Pour the tea into a reusable bottle, like those sold for travel purposes. Add high quality extra virgin olive oil, 1/4 cup per each cup of tea. Shake it up vigorously and store in your shower/tub. Then, before you wash your hair, apply a small amount (about the size of a quarter for medium-length hair) of the chamomile concoction to your hair. Leave on for about five minutes and rinse thoroughly. Then shampoo and condition as normal. Do this about once a week depending on hair type - if you have oily hair opt for twice a month, dry hair; try it twice a week. The bottle should last at least a month or so, depending on how often you use it. You can change it up with other teas too, of course: peppermint, or ginger peach, or whatever you prefer. 

You can make a green tea face treatment too just by using green tea, fullers' earth and honey. That site also offers alternative for those of you with sensitive skin.

Here's a fun one: Cinnamon Tea for a Healthy Glow. The author uses tea and real cinnamon sticks, but I'm sure you could swap out the cinnamon tea for peppermint...and peppermint leaves if that's your preference.

And here's a recipe I found on Lipgloss Love Affair - the author is a huge fan of green tea and beauty products so this one is sure to be perfect for us tea fiends:

What you'll need
1 green tea bag or loose tea leaves
1/2 cup boiling water
1/4 cup Rose Water (available at Wholefoods or you can make your own by following these instructions)
Vitamin E Oil
Mini Spray Bottle 

What to do:
1) Steep the tea in 1/2 cup boiling water.  
2) Let the tea cool to room temperature.
3) Add the rose water.  Rose water helps keep skin moisturized, fresh, and balances the pH.
4) Add a couple drops of Vitamin E Oil.   Vitamin E Oil acts as an antioxidant which prevents the formation of free radicals on the skin and also has anti-inflammatory properties. In addition it prevents water loss from the skin and helps to retain its natural moisture.
5) Pour into spray bottle.  Keep it in the fridge or carry it around in your purse!
6) Spray as needed for a refreshing mist!

Got any others? Submit your recipe for a tea-infused beauty product by emailing me, or post below.

RealiTEA - BeaTEAful products

Tea is becoming more popular than ever, as people turn to tea for more than just drinking. Tea is being used as an essential ingredient in everything from cookies to marinades, and everything in between.

Even beauty products are getting in on the buzz, adding tea in a variety of ways. Tea is added to facial products like Ole Henriksen's African Red Tea Facial Mist; Way of the Bath - Matcha Tea body soak and body lotion from Origins;  

Green Tea by Elizabeth Arden has been around since 1999 and is fairly popular, as it is intended to smell like green tea - a blend of peppermint, musk, amber and other notes - but the product doesn't actually list green tea, or any tea for that matter, as an ingredient. Bvlgari's Eau Parfumee Green Tea does list green tea leaves as one of the ingredients, but as with other prestigious beauty products, there's a higher price tag to match. Hey, if you want to treat yourself, be my guest. But for others - like me! - on a beauty budget, there must be some less expensive products using our favorite ingredient: tea.

One of my favorite brands, Demeter, does offer a variety of tea-infused flavors, er, fragrances including Chai Tea, Earl Grey Tea, Green Tea and Chamomile Tea at more wallet-friendly prices. Try a frag out for $10 or splurge on a 4 oz version for $39.50. Plus Demeter sells matching body lotion and shower gels so you can layer accordingly.

Check out the  ingredient list and you'll see black tea listed. Perfect!

Perfume is one thing but what about every day beauty products - for women and men? Like soap? And lotion?

I did a little research online and found some surprising results.

Kiehl's, a prestigious beauty company, sells a Yerba Mate Tea Toner, which is comprised of several natural ingredients including yerba mate extract. I couldn't find it on the regular Kiehl's site but you can get it on Amazon...for about $70. Yikes, I know! 

Fresh sells a Black Tea Age-Delay Eye Cream for about $65. I've tried some Fresh products and I've been impressed, especially with how long their products last. (A sample of this I had lasted about a month, applying daily.) Sephora sells a great set of all the Fresh Black Tea Eye creams too. 

A more budget-friendly solution is Korres, which happens to be one of my favorite beauty lines as well. Korres uses all natural ingredients and offers some vegan-friendly beauty options too. Korres sells a White Tea Facial Fluid Gel Cleanser for just over $20. 

Check out this tea haven called Tracy Stern SalonTea. She sells tea, tea accessories, and an entire line of tea-infused beauty and bath products, all at salon - but reasonable - prices. Check out her travel kit to get a sampling of what wonders she works with tea. Tracy also offers a brick-and-mortar locale in NYC, and hosts afternoon teas and tea parties. Add that to your NYC To Visit List pronto!

There's another "scentsational" shop online for tea-infused beauty products including Strawberry Honey Tea Lip Balm and even Chai Tea soap: SCENTSational Soaps. This eco-friendly company offers vegan alternatives too. 

You can also make your own tea-inspired beauty products. There's a wealth of ideas, recipes, tips and suggestions on making your own beauty products at home. Click here for more info, including a chance to submit your own recipes.

Got any other tea-infused and/or tea-inspired beauty products? Drop me a line or leave a comment below and I'll add 'em.