Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps {#GreenChristmas Grand Prize Sponsor Review}

Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps is well known for their simple, castile-based soaps and body care products made from natural, organic, and fair-trade ingredients. It turns out that the Bronner family's soap-making traditions can be traced back over 150 years ago in southern Germany. With delicious organic coconut, olive, peppermint, hemp and palm oils sourced using fair trade practices and incredible transparency and integrity, Dr. Bronner's continues to be an iconic leader in natural soap-making in North America today.

Many of Dr. Bronner's body care products have now been relabeled to include the USDA Certified Organic seal and classic Dr. Bronner's "look". All Dr. Bronner's products are certified fair trade, meaning fair labor practices are used for sourcing and production, and most products are fully USDA Certified Organic also. Dr. Bronner's in a family-run business, with many Bronner's family members running the business to this day. As a result, the small family feel of this company continues to make a huge impact in the natural world with their amazing collection of safe body care products. 

Dr. Bronner's is also a firm supporter of labeling GMO's and helped fight for a Yes on Prop 37 in California earlier this month. Although we didn't succeed (this time), I love supporting a company that stands up for what they believe in, and practices what they preach. It's companies like Dr. Bronner's that deserve all the praise they receive because they really do have wonderful products.

 I've had the pleasure of trying a few products from Dr. Bronner's over the years, but having the opportunity to try so much from their line at once has been a blast! I'm absolutely blown away by the pure, fair trade, organic ingredients in their products, and also the effectiveness. Dr. Bronner's doesn't include any junk, parabens, artificial ingredients or colors, or GMO's. Just real, safe ingredients.

I've been wanting a new hair cleaning routine since I can't seem to find an actual shampoo and conditioner combo that is free of all the nasty chemicals, artificial fragrances and junk. I can't quite go with no-poo since I have eczema on the back of my neck and I'm just a bit scared to go that far. The Pure Castile Liquid Soap in baby unscented, the Organic Shikakai Conditioning Hair Rinse in citrus and the Organic Hair Creme in lavender coconut is what I would call the perfect 3-step system for truly clean hair and a great compromise to no-pooing or harmful, chemical-filled shampoos and conditioners. The castile liquid soap literally makes your hair squeaky clean but a bit unmanageable. So, the hair rinse (highly concentrated so you mix with water) is the answer to tangles and leaves my hair feeling great and brush-able. I only use the hair creme occasionally and just a tiny, tiny bit when I do. It definitely takes a bit of practice to learn to not overdo and grease your hair up. Not even a full pump is needed so this will last me at least a year! The scents are scrumptious too. The citrus hair rinse and lavender coconut together is subtle after done drying the hair, but it's lovely and a great combination actually. These three products replaced my shampoo and conditioner!

I'm definitely liking the lavender scented products from Dr. Bronner's, even though I'm usually not a big lavender fan! The Organic Shaving Gel is fabulous for shaving my legs and really allows for a smooth, close shave without razor burn (which I'm so prone to). It comes out of the tube as a gel and really moisturizes well. The Pure Castile Bar Soap also came in lavender. I'm not usually a bar soap person either, but I said "what the heck!" and use it sometimes in the shower. It's still not my favorite way to soap up, but it serves the purpose of cleaning in an effective, squeaky clean manner. If you are a bar soap person, you'll really love these but I prefer my liquid soaps. I also received the Organic Fair Trade Hand Sanitizing Spray in lavender, which is a great handy size for my purse.

The Organic Hand & Body Shikakai Pump Soap in baby unscented is awesome because it can be used for hands or as a body wash in the shower. Depends on what you're out of first I guess! :) As with all Dr. Bronner's products, this is gentle enough for babies and especially since there is no scent (even though all scents are completely natural anyway). The Organic Baby Balm in baby-mild is practically unscented and is intended for use on dry baby skin. With a similar oily texture to a lip balm, this is actually a great option to use with a soothing baby massage. It's great as a lip balm for me too! It's small compact size is also great for the diaper bag or purse, just be careful of hot weather in the summer. 

I also received the Organic Body Balm in patchouli lime, which is essentially the same as the Organic Baby Balm, just scented and marketed for adults. I found that I liked the unscented better since the patchouli lime scent comes out very strong to me. It's a little floral, and a bit citrus, but with a big, vibrant punch. The same goes for the For Hands & Body Organic Lotion in patchouli lime I received that I also think is a bit strong. However, the texture of the lotion is great, and it goes on silky smooth. A little went a long way, and the greasy feeling went away in less than a minute. I'd love this body lotion in another scent!

 I also received a bunch of samples of the Organic Hand & Body Shikakai Liquid Soap in spearmint peppermint, and Pure Castile Liquid Soap in peppermint. Okay, I'm diggin' the peppermint! It's refreshing and has a cooling effect on the skin. Of course it smells amazing too. 

The last body product I received in the Organic Lip Balm in lemon lime. I love lip balms and I seem to have a billion around the house. This one definitely takes the cake with it's silky smooth finish, lovely scent, and lasting effect. My lips feel moisturized but without all the yucky chemicals so they won't dry out later or get addicted to needing lip balm (oh yes, it's happened to me before!). 

I'd also like to share about this video, "Dr. Bronner's Fair Trade Palm Oil: Animated". In short, Dr. Bronner's has put together a crowdfunding campaign to fight Malaria in Eastern Ghana where their fair trade and organic palm oil is sourced. The video highlights how the palm oil is sourced in socially and environmentally responsible ways, and also how this current project will provide bed nets for families through donations and  a new limited edition commemorative bar of soap. {You can donate here: http://www.indiegogo.com/drbronners} Buying fair trade is incredibly important to me because I feel that it's important to treat others as I would like to be treated. I can't even begin to fathom how unfair most production practices are that take place around the world. Fair trade gives communities a chance to thrive, improve, and live better. We need to break the cycle and implement fair trade practices everywhere for the sake of our future.

Dr. Bronner's is now on my "safe" list when I need to stock up on body care products. They're definitely a brand I can trust for healthy, pure ingredients and also for fair trade, responsible business practices. I also love that each product's surface is covered in thorough product and ingredient information for complete transparency. Full disclosure means they have nothing to hide, and that they're proud of their products, just like they should be. This Christmas, give organic, give fair trade, give Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps.

Connect with Dr. Bronner's
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Win It: During the Green Christmas Gift Giveaway Hop (Nov. 28 - Dec. 7), a lucky Grand Prize winner will receive the following Dr. Bronner's body care prize package valued at $96!

• (1) Castile Liquid Soap 32oz  MSRP $16.99
• (1) Castile Bar Soap MSRP $4.49
• (1) Organic Shikakai Hand & Body Pump Soap 12oz MSRP $9.99
• (1) Citrus Hair Conditioning Rinse MSRP $9.99
• (1) Hair Conditioning Creme MSRP $7.99
• (1) Lotion MSRP $9.99
• (1) Shave Gel MSRP $8.99
• (2) Body Balm MSRP $4.99
• (1) Lip Balm MSRP $2.99
• (1) Dr. Bronner's Magic Soapbox Documentary DVD MSRP $18.99

 

Disclosure: I received the above mentioned product(s) to facilitate this review for free. No other compensation was received. This is my completely honest opinion above and may be different from yours. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook.