Sunday, 30 October 2011

Visionary Soap Company Lip Balm and Soap Review

I like to use great quality products that are produced by companies who have strong values about how their products are produced and the ingredients that go into them. I have only recently heard of the Visionary Soap Company, having heard about their marvellous values for producing Fairtrade products and their belief regarding social responsibility I was pleased at having the opportunity to test their products.

Visionary Soap Company produce a variety of Fairtrade soap and body care products and their entire range carries the Fairtrade mark. Established in May 2005 they were among the first companies selling body care products using Fairtrade certified ingredients and they are currently the UK’s leading company in this industry to use Fairtrade ingredients in all of their products. Their range of products are handcrafted here in the UK and abroad with ingredients from Fairtrade producers in Palestine, India, Ghana, Nicaragua, The Dominican Republic, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and South Africa. All of their products have been created to contain a very high percentage of Fairtrade ingredients, all products being well above the minimum set requirement for certification. As Visionary Soap Company state “when others do the bare minimum, we strive instead for the maximum.”

As well as being dedicated to producing products that include Fairtrade ingredients their products are also organic and Vegan. Visionary Soap Company is fully certified by The Vegan Society as well as being safety assessed and complies with current EU regulations and it is a cruelty-free company. Their products are made with the finest vegetables oils, essential oils, butters and botanicals. In addition all of the products are free from GMO, gluten, palm oil, synthetic dyes, parabens, synthetic fragrances, petroleum-based ingredients, alcohol, sodium laureth sulphate and animal products. Visionary Soap Company endeavour to be eco-friendly, being plastic free and have packaging that is recyclable, compostable or reusable.

The visionary soap company sent me one of their lip balms, 3 mini soaps and a larger soap to test and review.


I was sent 4 different soaps to test, even before opening the parcel I could smell the soap through the packaging.


I was sent the Cinnamon Orange Clove Soap (100g) which ingredients are Fairtrade certified coconut oil from India, Fairtrade certified olive oil from Palestine, sunflower oil, pure water, sodium hydroxide, Fairtrade certified cocoa butter from the Dominican republic, Sweet Orange essential oil, WFTO clove bud essential oil from Madagascar and Fairtrade certified cinnamon from India and/or Sri Lanka.


I was sent the mini version of the Geranium Rose Soap which ingredients are Fairtrade certified coconut oil from India, Fairtrade certified olive oil from Palestine, sunflower oil, pure water, sodium hydroxide, Fairtrade certified cocoa butter from the Dominican Republic, Geranium essential oil and pink rose petals.


I also had the mini version of Lavender Soap which ingredients are Fairtrade certified coconut oil from India, Fairtrade certified olive oil from Palestine, sunflower oil, pure water, sodium hydroxide, Fairtrade certified Shea butter from Ghana, Lavender essential oil and Lavender buds.


And the mini version of Lemongrass Soap which ingredients are Fairtrade certified coconut oil from India, Fairtrade certified olive oil from Palestine, sunflower oil, pure water, sodium hydroxide, Fairtrade cerified Shea butter from Ghana, Lemongrass essential oil, Lemongrass flakes and Fairtrade certified Turmeric from Sri Lanka and/or India.

The minimum requirement for soap to be certified as Fairtrade is just 2% of the ingredients. All of the varieties of soap I was sent from the Visionary Soap Company contain 60% Fairtrade ingredients (all of their soaps contain a minimum of 60%)….which is a great deal more than the minimum requirement for certification! This makes their soaps a great choice if you want to use Fairtrade products and help people in developing countries all over the world.

All of the soaps have a lovely fresh natural smell to them and it is not difficult to describe the scent, each are distinctive and smell of the particular scent. The scents are strong but not sickly overpowering, my bathroom smells amazing. They all lather up well and I have found that they leave my skin feeling clean and nourished. I have sensitive skin and my hands have a touch of eczema and sometimes dry out with certain soaps and products but to my surprise these soaps did not dry my skin out at all instead they made them feel softer. I have been using the soaps since I received them to test and they are lasting really well. I love the fact that not only do these soaps delight the nose but they also delight the eyes too, these cold-pressed hand trimmed soaps are beautiful especially the mini soaps. I think that they look lovely. I like all of these soaps but my favourites are the Lavender and the Geranium Rose, stunning scents! Lee also likes these soaps his favourite being the Lemongrass, which he said was a subtle scent and not girly. The Cinnamon Orange Clove soap is my least favourite, it doesn’t look as appealing and is a stronger scent that personally I don’t find as nice as the others but I do think it is a very apt scent for this time of year with Christmas nearing.

The 100g sized soaps can be purchased for £3.25 and there are eight scents to choose from as well as an unscented version. You can purchase the Mini Soap Gift Box which comes with eight hand-cut and hand-wrapped mini soaps representing their best selling varieties for £11.20. I would recommend Visionary Soap Company’s soaps as they are extremely high quality and great value for money as you are getting lovely soaps made from Fairtrade certified oils and butters (relevant to the particular soap variety) along with essential oils that give the soaps a powerful and beautiful scent.


Visionary Soap Company is not just about soap, as well as other products they also make lip balms. I was sent their Lemon lip balm to test. Their Lemon lip balm is made with sunflower oil, Fairtrade certified olive oil from Palestine, Fairtrade certified Shea butter from Ghana, candelilla wax, vitamin E (as a natural preservative) and flavoured with lemon essential oil. Visionary Soap Company state that this product contains 34% Fairtrade certified ingredients (when minimum requirement for certification is 5%).


I don’t wear make up often, only when I go for a nice day out or for a special occasion but I do use lip balm everyday so I was looking forward to testing this out. I love the little glass jar, which is yellow to match the Lemon flavour. I was pleasantly surprised with how lovely this lip balm is; sometimes lip balms can be greasy or gooey but this lip balm is definitely neither. I found this lip balm to be very moisturising and it made my lips feel soft and smooth. It has a lovely scent to it, smelling light and fruity with a pleasant texture and it tastes lovely on my lips…..you can definitely tell it is lemon flavour and reminds me of lemon curd (not that I was eating it!). With the weather getting colder and harsher my lips have been a bit dry of late, since using this lip balm my lips feel nourished and are no longer dry but silky and supple. It is easy and not messy to apply with your fingers from the pot and I found that the balm absorbs well conditioning my lips but lasting well too providing a nourishing sheen of protection. The pot is a great size and is handy to keep in your handbag.

I am very impressed and would recommend this lip balm as it is lovely and effective. I think it is great value for money, the 5ml jar is available to buy for £3.25 and there are four different flavours available each with matching coloured glass jar; Grapefruit with a pink jar, Lemon with a lemon jar, Peppermint with a green jar and Orange with of course an orange jar. I think they would make cute little gifts in a beauty hamper.

I am impressed with Visionary Soap Company’s products which I believe are extremely high quality products for people to enjoy and experience a hint of luxury and I love that they incorporate their values of social responsibility, environmental sustainability, empowering communities and local economies through Fairtrade and using premium quality ingredients into producing their fabulous products. All of their products can be bought on their website where standard delivery on all orders is £3.49 or for purchases over £50 delivery is free. As well as the products I have tested other products in the range include Body Butters, Body Oils, Butter Bath Melts and their offers on soaps include Bag of Soap, Set of Three Soaps, Mini Soap Gift Box and Soap of the Month Club. To keep up-to-date with Visionary Soap Company’s products and offers follow them on twitter @visionarysoap and join them on their facebook page.

* Visionary Soap Company kindly gave us these products to review for free, despite this I have written an honest review that contains my own words and opinions and is 100% my own *

16 comments:

  1. I love the sound of the lemongrass soap - will definitely sample a few things from this review!

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  2. All these products look lovely, especially the Cinammon, Orange and Clove soap.

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  3. I've heard alot  about this company, and keep meaning to try their products. Thank you for a very well balanced, and informative review.

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  4. Great review and I completely agree - the soaps are gorgeous!  My favourite is the Cinnamon Orange Clove Soap, especially around Christmas!!!!  I recently ordered a 
    Geranium Rose Soap for my auntie who is a keen gardener and especially loves geraniums!!! Great gift ideas!!!

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  5. I love their soaps and the company ethos.

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  6. All of these products sound gorgeous. I've never heard of this company before but I'll definitely be looking at their pages now! 

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  7. Many thanks for this review. I may just have found my new lip balm

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  8. Shelley Jessup22 July 2012 at 22:58

    Brilliant review, I've heard of this brand but didn't know what type of products & scents they made and I have to say I am going to purchase a soap to try. Thanks.

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  9. awesome review, will have to try their products myself

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  10. Brilliant review, I have been using their lip balms for a few months now as I think they look lovely popping in my hand bag and I love the texture and flavours too. I haven't tried the lemon flavour though - wish they would bring out a coffee flavour!

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  11. These soaps look gorgeous! Bet they smell divine x

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  12. I really admire the ethics of this company, one of the two qualities I look for in companies, the other being, made in the UK. I'm a bit of a lip balm junkie, the lemon flavour sounds lovely.

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  13. great review im gunna have to go and get some to try :)

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  14. Lovely review,I l love the sound of the Lemon Lip Balm

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  15. Love the idea of a good Lip Balm, and Lemon is my favourite flavour!

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