Paintbox Soapworks review - Soap, Sorbetto scrub and Slip body lotion

The Curator of Worship at the House of Blues has become a bit of a partner in crime in the pursuit of interesting bath and body stuff. We'll send each other links to Etsy shops and generally egg each other on to buy things that smell of dirt and rain and interestingness.

Paintbox Soapworks was one of her finds. I quite quickly placed an order for a Sorbetto Scrub in Dead Leaves on the Dirty Ground. (I do like the quirky references to indie music in the names: This Charming Man is on my list just for the name, luckily I like the sound of the notes in it too).

The Sorbetto is a thick, unwhipped, foaming scrub. It has various oils and mango butter in it, but the texture is moisturising without being oily: it's a uniform semi-solid texture in the pot that melts on the skin into a creamy soft lather. The sugar particles are slightly scrubbier than those in Haus of Gloi's Bubbling Scrubs.

Dead Leaves on the Dirty Ground is smoky, earthy and woodsy, with a bit of clean patchouli. It's exactly the kind of scent I like. The Sorbetto leaves a subtle but detectable veil of the scent on my skin after scrubbing in the shower.

After receiving and loving the Sorbetto, I also went on to buy the Slip body lotion in The Queen is Dead.

The Queen is Dead is sweet and smoky, a honey/leather/smoke blend. It sounds weird, and it is, but it is also very good. It's definitely a honey based scent, so only for those who like sweet/honey scents, although the smoky/leather notes stop it being too sweet for my taste.

Slip is a lightweight hand and body lotion. It absorbs almost instantly, leaving no residue at all and feels refreshing on the skin. It's nice for the summer, but would not be rich enough for my drier skin in the winter.

I also bought the soap sample kit pictured at the top of this post, although I haven't tried any of the soaps in it yet. This is a nice way to try a few scents, and you get to chose the fragrances in it.

Big in Japan Soap - I received a sample size of this as an extra, and I definitely want it in a Sorbetto at some point. It is an almost bitter green citrus, a blend of green matcha tea and yuzu.

The only negative point I'm going to make in this review is a bit of an odd one. Paintbox Soaps undercharges for international shipping. I don't mind when it's by two or three dollars, but the charge for the shipping on the Sorbetto was only $6, when it actually cost $13 to send to the UK (it's a 10oz pot). That would mean instead of receiving $10 for the product, after paying for the shipping, Paintbox Soaps only received $3 - for that 10oz of excellent scrub. My conscience wouldn't let me live with that, so I paypal-ed over the other $7. The cost of international mail on bath and body products is a bit of a pain, but I'm either willing to pay it or I'm not, and I'd rather pay a fair price than it become unsustainable for a seller to ship to the UK. I wish Paintbox Soaps would raise the shipping charges on the Sorbettos so I can buy them (and recommend to other UK people) with a clear conscience. In the meantime, I'll continue to buy and then send the difference.

Edited to add: If you want to find out a bit more about Hayley, the lady behind Paintbox Soaps, there is an interview with her here on Scentbase.com: interview with Paintbox Soaps.