Patchouli Beer Bars: What’s the Big Deal?
Patchouli Beer Bars by Great Cakes Soapworks
When I heard about other soapmakers using it, I thought it was just a great way to market your soap to the guys, so I added some earthy patchouli essential oil and a dash of clove. Turns out beer is actually a great conditioner for your skin – and gals love patchouli almost as much as the guys!
Patchouli? What’s that? I was as naive as you not so long ago. Patchouli (puh-choo’-lee) oil and incense underwent a surge in popularity in the 1960s and 1970s in the US and Europe, mainly due to the hippie movement of those decades. It has also been used as a hair conditioner for dreadlocks.* The benefits to the skin are numerous as well: it is a superb tissue regenerator, stimulating the growth of new skin cells (one of the reasons I also use it in the Dead Sea Mud Facial Masks), promotes healing, and reduces scarring, and has also been used to treat acne.**
The first time I ordered some to make soap, I was none too fond of the scent. But, like lavender, it’s starting to grow on me a bit. I’ve found that most people either love it or hate it. If you love the scent, it can help balance your emotions, and even increase libido!
One of my customers won’t let her stash of Patchouli Beer Bars run out. She buys it for her husband. Last time I saw her, she told me that her husband had just returned from a business trip where he had been using hotel soaps. She told him he didn’t smell like himself, so he took a shower with his Patchouli Beer Bar and all was well with the world again.
It’s a good thing I made more Patchouli Beer Bars this morning. Inventory is just starting to get low, and once the farmer’s market starts up again in May, they will sell pretty quickly.
What about you? Are you a patchouli lover or hater – or have you ever smelled it before?
*Information about patchouli from wikipedia
**Information about patchouli’s benefit to the skin and overall well-being from Esoteric Oils. I have never ordered from this company, so cannot comment on the quality of their products.
April 7th, 2010 at 12:28 pm
I am pretty much a patchouli ‘hater’ but I’m starting to come around.
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April 7th, 2010 at 1:01 pm
How funny! I just opened this soap this last week. I ordered it when my bestest bud Rena suggested I try it. I like the smell although it does seem a little more manly than my other favs. And I’m seeing an improvement in dryness problems on my arms. I was getting rather “ashy” looking. So thanks for the info – I always like to know the “whys” behind a product!
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April 7th, 2010 at 2:28 pm
My mom loved Patchouli and one of my step-brothers does too. I never could stand the smell of it at all but as I get older, it’s becoming a little more tolerable. I’ve never made beer bars. Does the fragrance of the beer stick any in the CP soap?
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April 7th, 2010 at 4:30 pm
No, there is no smell of beer after the soap is made. The lye solution is pretty stinky though!!!
April 7th, 2010 at 5:57 pm
That is so interesting! I don’t mind patchouli in small doses (I knew too many neo-hippies in my 20s who doused it on..yuk!) and I think it sounds great with beer.
April 7th, 2010 at 8:46 pm
Hmmm, I had never thought of that scent in soap…
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April 8th, 2010 at 2:14 pm
I don’t remember seeing this one at the market before, I want to smell/try it!
April 16th, 2010 at 10:31 am
I just found your blog, and as a fellow Christian Soaper, I’m really excited! Would you mind telling me how you use the beer? Do you just replace the water in your recipe with the beer, and if so, does anything weird happen when you add the lye?
Thanks so much!
April 16th, 2010 at 12:05 pm
@ Soap Sister: Welcome to my blog! Here is the link to my tutorial on how to make beer soap: http://www.greatcakessoapworks.com/handmade-soap-blog/index.php/how-to-make-beer-soap/
April 16th, 2010 at 2:42 pm
Thank you so much, I’m really excited to try something new! I just placed an EO order, and I’ve ordered a few that I haven’t worked with before: Ylang-ylang and Cornmint. Now I’ll be like a little kid, waiting impatiently for them to arrive…my lower lip will stick out
every afternoon until it gets here.
The ylang-ylang was not as expensive as I remember it being when I’ve checked before, but it’s certainly more than the other EOs I use.
Thanks again for the link for beer soap!