Oats & Honey soap with Hemp Soap Saver

Hey all, just a quick blog post here. Looked at the calendar and realized… Mother’s Day is coming! Soon! So let’s have a special sale.

There’s still time to get mom some beautiful soaps… and luxury soap is a wonderful way to pamper mom (or wife/mom). We ship Priority Mail, and we can ship direct to mom if you wish.

For some ideas, check out our gift sets (most are build your own, something you don’t find everywhere)… and we also offer some nice accessories too!  (and there are more coming soon…)

So, visit the Sarva website, enter coupon code MOMLOVE at checkout, and enjoy 15% savings on your entire order, no minimum required. Sale ends at midnight on Saturday, May 8. Feel free to tell your friends!

And, wishing a very happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there!

Meet Revive, an upcoming Sarva soap - watch this space!

Hi everyone!  Hope you had a fabulous Easter.  Spring is all around us, and on the days I should have been writing a blog post (!), I was out digging in the dirt and enjoying the sunshine!

Today, I want to share with you the most amazing product review we’ve ever received at Sarva.   I’m so excited!

Sarva Soaps Review and Special Offer – from the Sterling Minerals blog

Now, my excitement is really saying something, considering we’ve been featured by our local media, a writer for the New York Times, many wonderful bloggers, and even selected to represent the Handcrafted Soapmaker’s Guild in national publications. (read more here).

Katherine Corkill of Sterling Minerals knows her stuff.  She’s the founder of an amazing skincare and mineral cosmetics company herself.  Check out her website and blog – it’s a wealth of information.  If you want to know about your skincare or makeup, ask Katherine.  You’ll get the facts and honest, intelligent, meticulously considered feedback.

Recently, I had the pleasure of connecting with Katherine when she placed her first order with us.  (Boy was I nervous!)  Little did I know that just a few days later, after she’d had a chance to try out her soaps, she would write such a glowing review.  Wow!

We gave Katherine a special Sarva discount code for her blog readers to use, and she’s also offering special savings on Sterling Minerals’ Grecian Secret Body Souffle (doesn’t that sound divine?).   So I’d like to pass on the savings to you as well!  The Sarva soaps discount is good only until April 15, so be sure to get it while it lasts!

Of course, after perusing the Sterling Minerals website, I simply had to try some of their products, and I’m hooked.  If you’re a person who doesn’t like to use bar soap on your face (remember, you need to maintain the acid mantle of your facial skin, and many people prefer a special cleanser to do that)… Sterling Minerals offers some fabulous facial cleansers.

If you like what you read, check out Katherine’s recent interview with another personal fave bath and body company owner, Lisa over at Cactus and Ivy.

So!  Visit the Sterling Minerals blog, bask with me in the afterglow of Katherine’s review, and grab some savings on awesome goodies to pamper yourself!

Suds Beer Soap

Gah! It’s been way too serious around here.

Spring’s around the corner; the crocuses are popping up in my garden and the snow is melting! And we have another holiday coming our way. You know, the one where everyone’s Irish.

In honor of St. Patty’s Day, we have a special batch of Suds Beer Soap for you, made with Conway’s Irish Ale from Great Lakes Brewing Company.

AND it’s on sale on our website for $7.50 through Sunday March 14, nearly 20% off!

Now, I made absolutely sure this beer was up to par for our fine soaps by testing it out the old-fashioned way first (oh, the hardships I must endure for you). Not that I was concerned! We’re major fans of Great Lakes Brewing Company, and they have so many great beers. But they do more than make great, award-winning beer.  They are one of the most eco-friendly businesses in Cleveland.  We’re proud to have Suds soap featured in the Great Lakes Brewing Company gift shop.

As for the soap… it smells great, it feels great, and it lives up to its name! There’s an ounce of beer in every bar, and I’m no scientist, but I’m pretty sure that Suds’ amped-up lather is a beer thing.  Those of you who are soap-as-shampoo aficionados might want to give this one a try; you know what they say about beer being great for hair.  I still haven’t found a way to describe the scent other than awesome.  Sure, it smells like beer.  But not beery.  It’s fresh, full, spicy, fruity… well, you just have to try it and find out.  Plus, this batch looks way cooler than the photo above.

So, if you’ve been dying to try Suds, here’s your chance, and at a great price!

Today, I and many others in my industry listended live to over 5 hours of testimony on the Colorado Safe Personal Care Products Act (PDF document).   Many great points were made by parties against AND for the bill.

In the end, however, the Act FAILED, voted down 7-4 in committee after all discussion was presented.  The main issues were as follows:

• The Act attempted to ban any level of a substance in question, even the naturally occurring trace that may be present in something as benign as cocoa butter.  Even our bodies make toxins (our bodies manufacture formaldehyde, for example), and our drinking water has more toxins than would have been permitted by this Act.  Simply put, NOAELs were not taken into account.
• The Act attempted to ban substances that the European Union allows present in trace amounts: substances that exist naturally in shea butter, olive oil, essential oils, fruit extracts, and more.
• The Act would have given the EU regulatory power “by proxy” over Colorado’s personal care products, as it relied on the EU’s list of banned substances, with one notable exception: as above, the EU permits trace amounts of naturally-occurring toxins in products.
• The Act offered a cap on the damages that could be pursued, but this cap was still too high for small businesses, and the cost of defending ourselves in court would shut us down.
• The Act only seemed to take anecdotal evidence into account; none of its proponents could cite scientific data leading to the bill’s creation.  In other words, a very disconcerting “precautionary principle” was proposed, where legislation might have been enacted before science could even justify its existence.
• Insufficient evidence exists to indicate cosmetics are more damaging and toxic than airborne or ingested substances.
• Constitutionality of the Act was questioned:  A company could be sued simply for using an ingredient, even if no harm could be directly attributed to their products.

To give a real-world example, one cited in testimony: in order for a consumer to reach toxic lead exposure through lipstick consumption, that consumer would have to eat 4 tubes of lipstick a day for 70 years before reaching toxicity. While we all use many personal care products, and a cumulative effect is a valid concern, hopefully you can see how extreme your exposure would have to be.

Please read my previous post for more information about the bill and industry opinion.

We at Sarva sympathize deeply with cancer survivors and victims, having known many ourselves, including close friends and family.  We recognize the sensitive nature of this topic.  I lost my own grandmother, a woman whom I loved deeply and who helped raise me, to cancer.  I have seen the fear firsthand, and I can’t imagine what it must be like to live in the shadow of cancer every day.  This bill also aimed to address reproductive toxicity issues as well, and for those affected by such, we extend our most heartfelt sympathies.

However, we look forward to good dialogue with good research protecting everyone… not only for our cosmetics, but also for our food, water, and air.  And we look forward to research–not hype–driving our legislation.

We use no synthetic ingredients in Sarva Soaps.  That doesn’t mean that everything natural is safe:  we research all ingredients with great care and we tell you exactly what’s in our products.  You will find all of our ingredients listed on our website.  Where you see “essential oils” (rather than a detailed list of them) in our online ingredient list, we’ve chosen to protect our proprietary, custom essential oil blends from the competitive eyes of the Internet.  However, all of our packaging fully lists our formulations including all essential oils.  Our labeling is fully FDA compliant, even though true soap is not regulated by the FDA.  We follow closely with Cropwatch to monitor endangered or at-risk natural resources.  And I personally undertake extensive, demanding training on a regular basis to continually increase my knowledge of what I bring to you.  If you ever have any questions about our products or what’s in them, please contact us.

At Sarva, we believe in the power of nature and working in harmony with its inherent intelligence.  We work hard to bring you a beautiful, safe product, and we love what we do.

Please visit the Personal Care Products Council for assistance in choosing safe cosmetics for you and your loved ones.

Thank you for your support!

I’m in the awkward position of needing to inform you about a recent development in my industry that has left me speechless.  So I’m going to let noted industry leaders speak instead.  I’ve assembled a collection of links and quotes on the topic, with a few thoughts of my own, so you can decide for yourself.  (Edit: I’m tremendously honored; Kayla Fioravanti at Essential Wholesale has listed my blog post as “Recommended Reading” on her most recent post. I consider all of her posts recommended reading!)

But it’s important you do, because if this passes on Monday, it sets a dangerous nationwide precedent for the entire cosmetics industry.

This coming Monday, March 1, the state of Colorado will attempt to enact a “zero-tolerance” bill regarding carcinogenic substances in cosmetics. Sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?

But wait.

The state of Colorado hopes to be able to give its citizens the right to directly sue any company that makes a product containing certain ingredients. What ingredients?  Not what the FDA or cancer researchers decide are carcinogens at normal usage levels… rather, what a group called the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics deems carcinogenic.  The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics (CFSC) is a consumer group, not an association of cosmetic chemists or scientists. Is this a result of lobbying? You decide.

The CFSC has been alienating its own industry for a while now. Some manufacturers, even though they work incredibly hard to bring you safe products, have even revoked their CFSC membership.  Those of you who remember the FDA Globalization Act of 2008 may recall the CFSC’s role; they drafted a petition signature in favor of the Globalization Act–an Act which, had it passed, would have threatened the very survival of every company who had voluntarily signed on to the CFSC.

Kayla Fioravanti, certified aromatherapist and owner of raw materials supplier Essential Wholesale, summarizes the bill here. And here is the actual bill (PDF format).

The matter at hand is not a question of inaccurate data… rather, it’s a question of how the data are interpreted.

As Kayla astutely points out, there needs to be differentiation between carcinogenic at normal usage levels and carcinogenic at 100% concentration.   Consider: If an essential oil contains a trace of a chemical which is proven carcinogenic at 100% concentration, from what I understand, the essential oil itself may be banned.   If an essential oil comprises 0.05% of a product’s total formulation (a common level for soaps), how much, then, of that trace carcinogen is present in the product?

Every substance–even a toxin–has a No Observable Adverse Effect Level (NOAEL), a level of weak concentration at which the substance is no longer toxic.  Did you know that strawberries contain a carcinogen called acetaldehyde?  That’s a great example of a NOAEL… more on acetaldehyde below.

If I understand correctly, Colorado would allow its citizens to sue Sarva for selling our soaps in Colorado if we use ANY ingredient that shows ANY trace of a carcinogen, even if it is used at NOAEL.  Gosh, what if we add mashed strawberries to a soap?

So, what kinds of ingredients are on the list? A great example (though not a natural substance), and a great post well worth reading from Kayla Fioravanti:

“in Colorado you will not be allowed to buy green eye shadow, because the EPA has the main ingredient listed as “likely to be a carcinogenic to humans.”   Of course the EPA was talking about Chromic acid in a mist, but it is on the list so it is banned.  The ingredient is completely safe in cosmetics.  As a matter of fact, eye lid cancer is extremely rare and is more common in men (19.6 cases per every 100,000 men) than in women (13.3 cases per every 100,000 women) and is attributed to the sun and not green eye shadow.”

As Ms. Fioravanti points out in her above blog post, many manufacturers who signed on and remain with the CFSC are going to be very surprised to find that even their products are going to be banned in Colorado.  Explain that.

And let’s not forget essential oils! From aromatherapist and author Robert Tisserand:

“…goodbye to rose otto and rose absolute. It was nice knowing you. And so long to nutmeg oil, mace oil, myrtle oil, basil oil, holy basil oil, citronella oil, ho leaf oil (linalool ct), elemi oil, and many other less common essential oils. Not because they contain acetaldehyde, but because they contain methyleugenol (ME). ME is occasionally found in traces in rosemary oil, clove oil, hyssop oil, teatree oil, cananga oil, mastic oil, cassia oil, cinnamon leaf oil, savory oil, black pepper oil and, again, many others. Have you eaten any fresh basil or pesto lately? Then you have been consuming ME. But, neither fresh basil nor pesto is carcinogenic, because they also contain antimutagens and anticarcinogens that counteract any toxic effect of ME. I’m not just saying this, it has been demonstrated. The same goes for holy basil oil, to take one example – not only is it non-carcinogenic, but it is actually anticarcinogenic. The high content of geraniol in rose otto is almost certainly protective because of its anticarcinogenic action.”

I get it; I really do.  Colorado wants to give power to its citizens and protect their health at the same time.  But who’s the authority, and who should have the power to enforce consumer safety? A cosmetic chemist? A state government? A consumer coalition? Or the actual consumer, who may know nothing at all about cosmetic chemistry?

This Act will allow any citizen in the state of Colorado to sue any manufacturer–even if that citizen is unharmed by their products—simply because any of their products contains a substance that is believed to be a carcinogen at any concentration, even if that concentration is NOT present in the product (see NOAEL above).  Olive oil contains phytoestrogens.  Have we now eliminated olive oil from personal care products in Colorado?

We have to be careful with our raw materials, and this includes natural substances such as essential oils. They are concentrated chemicals.  Fresh basil herb and basil essential oil are two very different substances containing different balances of chemicals. It’s the reponsibility of companies like Sarva to know that difference, to do our homework, and follow safe usage guidelines. There are essential oils or other additives we would never use in soapmaking, and others that we use at low levels, so that we create a safe product for you. But we base our choices on science, research, and reason… not imprecise propaganda.

After all, you can die from salt, too.

Want to help stop this act from passing?  Call these people and tell them to stop the Colorado Safe Personal Care Products Act:

Dennis Apuan (El Paso County): 303-866-3069
Betty Boyd (Jefferson County): 303-866-4857
Dianne Primavera (House sponsor): 303-866-4667
Karen Middleton (Arapahoe County): 303-866-3911
Joe Miklosi (Arapahoe County): 303-866-2910

The email addresses for the above individuals may be found in this directory.

I don’t want to prevent legislation designed to create safe personal care products.   What I do want to prevent is misinformed legislation based on bad science.   It limits good choices for all of us.

_______________________________

UPDATE, Tuesday March 2:  The act has been voted down in committee 7-4.  Please read this blog post for a synopsis.

UPDATE, Friday February 26:  Donna Maria Coles Johnson, founder of the Indie Beauty Network, has made it easy to fight back.  She’s drafted a letter for you to send. All you have to do is fill in the blanks!  She’s even included email, phone, AND fax numbers of all representatives.   D-Day is Monday March 1… this coming Monday!  I’m drafting my letters NOW.  Won’t you join me?

The Handcrafted Soap Makers Guild, in conjunction with Clean the World, has called soapmakers to action in the Haitian relief efforts.  Clean the World accepts soap donations, melts them down and turn them into new soap, and distributes this rebatched soap to people in need.

While we at Sarva focus on creating beautiful, artistic soaps for you, we believe soap is a basic necessity.  Scientists have recently confirmed  that overuse of antibiotics is causing dangerous pathogens to mutate — and actually thrive — and become drug-resistant.  Soap attacks problems at the source:  Sanitation is the best, most basic way to prevent the spread of bacteria and viruses. Bar soap, including handcrafted soap, is indeed antibacterial, even without potentially harmful antibacterial chemicals added… and what’s more, regular bar soap doesn’t kill the beneficial bacteria that live on our skin.

Sarva usually donates soap to a local homeless shelter, but in these circumstances, we have chosen to divert the majority of our routine donation to Clean the World.  Sarva has donated 40 pounds of soap to the cause.

Right now, soap is greatly needed in Haiti. It will directly help prevent the spread of disease and, thus, further loss of life and devastation.  Clean the World already has stores of soap ready to go to Haiti, and needs your financial support to make this happen.

This is a unique, practical, and directly implementable way to get help where it’s needed right now.  Please consider donating to Clean the World so they can continue their invaluable work.

Thank you so much.

Oops.

In the mad rush to restock the web site after our holiday rush and fill some wholesale orders, we goofed.  We have a small batch of Grace soap that is… shall we say… cosmetically challenged.  There’s nothing wrong with the soap aside from its appearance.  Air bubbles here and there, slightly underweight (4.2 oz as opposed to 4.5 oz), and just not up to snuff.  Customers who have already purchased these are surprised we’re not selling them at full price, but we have very high standards around here.

So, I thought this might make a great win-win situation.   You get to try incredible soap at an incredible price, and these poor bars of Grace get a loving home.

Grace normally sells for $9.00 (yes, it’s worth it).   I’m offering these “slightly imperfect” bars to you for $6.50.   Nearly 30% off!

Grace is one of Sarva’s Premium Series soaps and was the first to sell out at Christmas.  People were clamoring for this soap!   You’ll be the first to get it in the new year, and at a discount too!  Lavender, Geranium, Rosewood (sustainably harvested Rosewood leaf), topped with organic rosebuds… all in a decadent Castille base, the same as our all-time top-seller, Purity.

Based on my own experience, if you have a cold, snowy winter like we do here in Ohio… accompanied by dry, itchy skin… this is the soap for you.  Creamy and mild.  And it smells incredible — elegant, heady, sweetly floral.  When I use this soap, I feel loved and special.

Want some? Go to  the product page. Note that you can  choose to receive your Slightly Imperfect bars unboxed and unlabeled (choose “unboxed” in the dropdown menu) and save another 25 cents per bar.  If you choose that option, we’ll bag your soaps in biodegradable waxed bags, no label.

…oh, and always remember to relax and take your time, even under pressure… I sure will from now on!