Soap Smith
soapsmith.com
If you’re looking for a cool soap brand, then Soap Smith has it in spades. Inspired by and made in London, each scent is inspired by a different iconic location – think the spices of Brick Lane to the heady British blooms of the garden squares of Bloomsbury. Vegan friendly, organic ingredients and 100 per cent recyclable packaging: the credentials are just as good as the scents. Explore the collection here. £10 a bar.
The Soap Co.
thesoapco.org
Based in east London, The Soap Co. is a brilliant brand, creating life-changing job opportunities for people who are blind, disabled or otherwise disadvantaged. Using consciously sourced botanical extracts, nourishing vitamins and pure essential oils, its cold-pressed bar soaps are handmade in the UK from skin-nourishing olive oil, cocoa and Shea butter as well as bee-friendly borage and Calendula botanicals – all wrapped up in eco-conscious packaging, too. Check out more on its website here. £9 a bar.
Tanaka
tanaka.store
Tanaka is a Zimbabwean Shona name meaning ‘we are good’. And its soaps certainly are. Each bar is hand-crafted from scratch using the traditional cold process method and left to cure for four to six weeks. They’re worth the wait, offering a range of skincare benefits, from detoxifying to healing. Try the superfoods bar with moisturising avocado and toning spirulina. From £9 a bar.
Nesti Dante
www.libertylondon.com
If you can’t make it to Italy this summer, an inexpensive bar of Nesti Dante triple-milled soap will transport you there in one lather. Founded by Dante Nesti at the age of just 12 in 1945, he began making soap by hand from all-natural ingredients at home and little has changed for the brand since. Wrapped in beautiful 100 per cent biodegradable paper, choose the ‘Capri’ bar for a trio of orange blossom, frosted mandarine and basil – the perfect wake up blend for your morning shower. £5.95 a bar.
Santa Maria Novella
smnovella.eu
The world-famous Florentine pharmacy was founded in the 13th-century by Dominican monks who used the medicinal herbs in their gardens to prepare balms and ointments. It has a beautifully skin-softening milk soap that now scents the limbs of discerning 21st-century Tuscans. The formula has reassuringly changed little over the centuries and the packaging is exquisite, too. A beautiful, chic gift – and definitely not just for your granny. €39 for a box of three.
Senteurs D’Orient
libertylondon.com
If floral scents aren’t your thing and you’re looking for a bar to stand out on your sink-side, then the beautifully carved black bar of Hammam style Amber Ma’Amoul soap from Senteurs D’Orient is it. Handmade in Lebanon, using a heady blend of precious essential oils including amber, musk and spices, it is evocative, wholly transportive – and it lathers like no other. Plus, profits from the sale of the soaps go to support the education of women in partnership with the United National Development Programme. £12 a bar.
Miller Harris
millerharris.com
Soap on a rope just got a serious upgrade from luxury British Perfume house, Miller Harris. The Rhubarb and Peony bar is summer in a scent – fragrant, tart and heady – while the ‘Nettles’ fragrance is green and lush, with a hint of zesty grapefruit. Grown-up scents in a satisfying, retro slab. Explore the collection here. £20 a bar.
By Lydia Mansi
July 2020
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