Himalayan Blends – Lemon Sunrise

“Fun Marigold”

This was an intriguing soap, smuggled back from India by friends taking a great personal risk—maybe I'm blowing that out of proportion, but I do appreciate it! It's not as easy or cheap to bring things back from other countries anymore. That reminds me of when (pre-9/11) a friend brought me a set of bongo drums from India that I believe were fashioned out of hardened hashish and masked with a sparkle gold finish. I don't have them anymore as they were stolen! I hope whoever took them realized their composition and had fun smoking them up, or smoking them out, or whatever the kids say.

Anyway, the first intriguing thing about this soap is the box—a kind of plastic coated cardboard, virtually indestructible, that reminds me of something you'd buy at an Army Navy store—as it's a kind of a flat green gray—incidentally, the exact same color as the shirt I'm wearing right now, which I bought just last week. Besides the name, the box says: “Handmade in India,” and “Energizing lemongrass, skin polishing turmeric and fun marigold petals in a nourishing vitamin E base.” The box also says: “Himalayan Blends soap is rich in glycerin and Vitamin E. Its natural ingredients exfoliate and moisturize skin so you will feel fresh and rejuvenated.” Under that is a list of ingredients: “LEMON GRASS ESSENTIAL OIL, MARIGOLD PETALS, TURMERIC, SAPONIFIED RICE BRAN OIL, COCONUT & PALM OILS, FRESH SPRING WATER.” And finally, “Mfd. by A.S. Self Help Group.” There's an address, in India, and a Hotmail email address.

The soap is a pleasant light orange brown with uneven orange-brown specks throughout—which the box leads me to believe are the marigold petals. Are they fun? You bet! Well, that might be a little over-enthusiastic, but anyway, it was a very pleasing soap to use, as the color and texture varied a bit over time and decomposition. The scent is very mild—almost no scent, but a natural, soapy one. Obviously no artificial fragrances. It's down to a nub, now, and I'm saying goodbye to it while looking out at the “lemon sunrise” of another day. If you're an adventurer, you may be able to find some of this soap—who knows, at a local store—or you might have to travel to India—or maybe online, if you're adventurous with your credit card. I'm left with this very substantial box that I feel like I should use for something, though I'm not sure what, yet.

Soap Review No. 35