Soap! Soap! Soap! I love fragrant soaps with names like: Karma Bar, Patchouli Love, Salty Mermaid, Spring Lilac, Rosemary Morning. The more heavenly the scent, the more intense the spiritual experience.

For a Mother’s Day gift, Hubby took me to Ocean City, NJ and bought a 5.5 oz bar of each of the above from A Place On Earth Inc. These were the most expensive soaps I’ve come across. The first two were $11.00 each, and the others were $8.50 each.

I chose which long cubed loaves of soap smelled the best. The owner of a place on earth cut one chunky 5.5 oz cake from each loaf, then shave off the rough edges. He was friendly, explaining how he prepares the soap. He added slivers of samples to my check-out bag. The soap slivers now tease me to become a returning customer every time I open a bureau drawer and get a whiff of one.

My daughter gave me a gift basket that included a 5.5 oz. handmade bar of goats milk soap. Its scent is to die for, it’s so heavenly. The ingredients are: olive oil, coconut oil, palm oil, goats milk, pigment powder, and fragrance oils. The wrapper also said Heritage Country Market www.heritagebees.com. The girth of these specialty soaps has forced me to punt Hubby’s Dial from the shower caddy to the edge of the tub. 

Family know they can’t go wrong with a soapy gift when shopping for me. Fancy soap isn’t something I usually buy for myself. So, having a large family pays off when it comes to pricey self-care.

Wegmans Food Markets has handmade soap in smaller bars. I like them too. But maybe it’s the specialty shops’ 5.5 oz. bars’ size that appeals to me more than Wegmans’ soaps. However, I never smell Wegmans soaps on my skin hours after showering, like I do with the specialty shops’ cakes.

‘Wegmans’ and ‘cakes’ remind me how many edible ingredients are in cakes of soap: goats milk, honey, cocoanut, olive oil, vanilla, herbs, fruits. Food for the skin? Ambrosia for the nose!

This obsession of mine might stem from mortal awareness. A body needs daily care. The heavenly-smelling soap may be my unconscious way of taking this reality to a lavish level by igniting spiritual appreciation. Odors trigger moods, so my soapy love affair is not just indulgence, it’s aromatherapy. Any excuse for a bar of sweet-smelling soap will do!

What about you? Do you have a favorite place where you get special soap? Leave your information below in the comments. Hubby and I may stop there on our travels. And supporting small businesses is more important than ever.