Normally when you think of reviewing homeschool products, soap does not come to mind. Right? I guess unless it is for a Home EC or Science project. Well guess again! This time I was pleasantly surprised to find that I had received a package of bar soaps and a laundry soap kit to try out from Virginia Soaps and Scents. This again was another complimentary product for those of us on the TOS Homeschool Crew to review.
I received a sample size package of them much like you would see in a Bed and Breakfast or at a hotel. Not often does a homeschool family get to pamper themselves as we have through this particular review.

Here is a picture of what mine looked like from out of the shipping box.

First, let me introduce you to the company, Virginia Soaps and Scents.

The Spargur family is a homeschool family living in rural Virginia. They have a picture of themselves on their website and I counted 13 people. Wow! I guess that qualifies them as a company not only in commerce but just as a family. For them, what started as a history lesson eventually turned into an artistic pursuit and into the business it is today. You can read more about them directly on their Virginia Soaps and Scents website. From that page you can also view the stories about their soap from the menu bar.

Out family was sent samples of three different bars of soaps, Fresh Orange, Oatmeal Milk and Honey, and Coconut Lemongrass. Bear in mind that the samples we received were samples of the soaps themselves so they are a smaller bar size than you receive when you place an order. However so far my girls and I have just finished the Fresh Orange sample and had started using the Oatmeal Milk and Honey bar. The soaps themselves are true “soap” not like the ones many of us are accustomed to thinking of as “soap.” You can read more about that under the stories menu item on their web page as I mentioned earlier in my review. My girls and I were delighted at what we have tried so far. For now, our favorite is the Fresh Orange. We have used that to shower with and feel much cleaner and fresher after using it. I have also not noticed that it melts as much as other soaps I have used in the past. These bars come as 4.5 ounce bars and are sold for $4.50 per bar, 3 for $12 or buy 4 and get one free.

The next item we received was a Ginger Lime shampoo bar. Ok. When I looked at what it was from the package I had never heard of a shampoo bar. I was a bit skeptical about it. I mean how exactly would this clean my hair and would it leave a coating on it? Would it suds up enough to feel like it was cleaning my hair? How long would it last? I can say everyone in our family including my husband has used it. My youngest, my husband and I all love the shampoo bar. It is very easy to use and convenient. My husband wants his own bar since he frequently goes out of town for work. The bar would be much easier to take than dealing with a bottle of shampoo. Also he is very finicky about shampoos. Most of them do not seem to clean his hair. Don’t tell him I told you but he has even been upset when his favorite brand switched formulas and he had to search for another brand. He was happy to find that this one was his new favorite shampoo. The only one of us it did not seem to work well for was my oldest who has very very very very thick hair that is difficult to get clean. However we plan on buying the other formula of shampoo bar that Virginia Soaps and Scents sells, Oily Hair/Clarifying Formula Tangerine Grapefruit. They claim to “use it weekly as a clarifying shampoo to strip other products out of your hair or daily for oily hair. ”

Both shampoo bars are 5.5 ounce bars and can be purchased for $5.50 per bar or 2 for $10.00.

Lastly we were given a laundry soap kit to try. This I was familiar with since I already make my own laundry soap from scratch. It is similar to what I already do except they already have pre-measured the ingredients for you as well as provided soap shavings. Complete with directions and what you need to make the soap minus the bowls, spoons and stuff that you already have at home to use. I personally keep those plastic ice cream buckets that we often get from our grocery store and use that to hold my laundry soap I make. The one thing to be aware of is that though it does not make loads of suds that it does clean your clothes well in the washer. The upside of the low suds is that it is ideal for use in a front loader. Also, the suds come better out of your clothes so that they are actually cleaner when they are finished. The soap kit contains a grated bar of their unscented cleaning soap, a pre-measured amount of borax and washing soda.
You can buy their laundry soap kits for $4.95 each or 6 for $25.00. Each kit makes 2 gallons of laundry soap that can last for between 64-72 loads of laundry. They also include a recipe for the laundry soap on their website so that you can buy their cleaning bar for $3.95 and purchase the other ingredients locally.

Virginia Soaps and Scents have many other items for sale on their website. I recommend you check out their product listings and specials out for yourself. I have only covered a few of their items and prices for their products. Hopefully this will give you a sense of this company and its wonderful products. I intend to purchase items from them for our family and to use for Christmas gifts this coming season. Check out Virginia Soaps and Scents for yourself at http://www.va-soaps.com/. I honestly think you will be pleased with their products.

Filed under: Home, TOS Crew by Barbara
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