Were the previous incarnations of C&E soaps tallow?

[Kevan]

I just made my first vintage soap purchase, an apparently new in box version of the original C&E Extract of Mysore Sandalwood soap, and I'm REALLLLLY hoping it's tallow.

[DSB]

I just made my first vintage soap purchase, an apparently new in box version of the original C&E Extract of Mysore Sandalwood soap, and I'm REALLLLLY hoping it's tallow.

Sorry to ask the obvious, but do you see an igredients list anywhere on the box?

[Kevan]

Nope. Ebay purchase. And with my track record of asking sellers questions and them not answering back, and the last time I hesitated about a vintage item I missed out on it and it really bothered me....suffice it to say it was a blind buy. All I know is that this was the pre-2004 version of C&E's sandalwood. Original-style logo, label, and box. Puck still sealed in the bowl. C&E soaps are on Jim's tallow compendium under NOS but I don't know exactly when they were reformulated.

[beginish]

If you see tallowate or toilet soap base in the ingredients list, you're in luck. Fingers crossed!

[Kevan]

I hope! I'm a fan of their new sandalwood scent but everything I've read says that the pre-2004 version of the scent, called Extract of Mysore Sandalwood, was something special. First thing I'll check is the ingredients and then hope that it still has some aroma left. From the picture and description of "new in box", it looks like the puck is wrapped inside the bowl.

[Vlad]

How do you people get this stuff? So jealous.

[Kevan]

I literally stumbled on it on Ebay, because I wanted a bowl of C&E's current Sandalwood which hadn't been on the website for awhile. I watched it for a few days and no one bit (probably because the BIN price was $44.95, which I thought was high) but the more I thought about it, my SSAD-influenced logic (like a devil on my shoulder) said:

"Y'know, this is the old C&E sandalwood, when it was reputed to be a glorious Mysore sandal scent. It's new in the box and unused and the soap puck looks to still have paper or plastic on it. It's just a bit more than a new bowl of AOS or T&H soap goes for! And remember that time when you hesitated and lost out on that neat vintage tin sign for Godrej toilet soap? You may never see one of these again. C'mon, get it before someone else does! I bet it has tallow too...."



We've all been there, right?

[FL shaver]

Interested to see what you get! I love the C&E Sandalwood. As I was just getting into the myriad of soaps and creams available around the time the new formulation was being discontinued, I only got one puck with the bowl. Hope they come up with something new before I run out (2013?)! I'll have a go with the Sandalwood later today!

[Kevan]

Well, it's not tallow. It smells the same as the current sandalwood body soap and cologne, but it must've been produced prior to the change to the current packaging. It has the older box and labels and the "Crabtree and Evelyn" stamp in the soap is different than the current one.

But it's not tallow. First few ingredients are sodium palmate, potassium palmate, sodium kernelate, water and glycerin.

I have no idea if these ingredients are the same as the current formula, but oh well. *sigh*

[Kevan]

One more thing....the box says "Distributed by (c) 1978 Crabtree and Evelyn, Ltd."

Wait.....1978? It can't be. The box doesn't look that old. I compared this to my current Sandalwood cologne box and it lists the website under the manufacturing/distribution info. This doesn't have the website listed. I would think that even if it was prior to 2004 it would.

But it can't be that old. The soap still has fragrance. Hmmmmm.

[Paul12644]

Yes, but unless you have the box, you'll never know when they changed the formulation.