Please, allow me to introduce...

[MJB]

Pacific Coast Soap Works--

Just returned from vacation to Victoria British Columbia in Canada--guys great great place to vacation in summer--e-mail me and I'd be happy to tell you all about it. There I saw a gentleman at a street market. His name is Kerry and he makes his own soaps--he described the process intricately. I purchased and herbal bar shampoo which smells great and worked fine for my short hair. He also makes two flavors of shaving soaps--Lime and Bay Rum. I purchased the lime and count me as impressed--clearly on par with the other superfine handmade soaps of the Charles and the Sues.

The lather was very good. Lubrication was good too--no burn at all especially since I used terrible face wetting technique this AM and still did great. No irritation at all even with the poor technique and the second application of lather. The aroma was very nice--very real and neither too overpowering nor overly subtle.

Here's Kerry's website for shaving:

http://www.islandnet.com/~keah/shave.htm

I will tell you that in person, he is very nice. He is passionate about soapmaking and seems amazingly knowledgable. He adds bentonite clay to this soap and he feels that he gets a more lubricating shave using his hands rather than a brush because he wonders if this lubricating clay clings to the brush--I used a brush with very nice results mind you. The concept of lubricating clay seemed foreign to me and I intend to research it a bit more; anyone who has more knowledge please chime in.

He makes a few comments about glycerin soaps and essential oils that may or may not be valid--I don't know but you can find them on his website and wonder if anyone knowledgable about soap production could educate me further.

http://www.pacificcoastsoapworks.com/more.htm

He also has other products that I will leave to anyone else to discover.

[TraderJoe]

MJB - do you often vacation on Vancouver Island? That area is incredible, I was there a couple years ago and enjoyed very much.

thanks for the info on Pacific Coast Soapworks

[MJB]

My wife and I went tto Victoria for our honeymoon. One night we ate dinner at a resort called the Aerie which is about 25 minutes North of Victoria at about 1200' in a region called Malahat. At that time we promised ourselves that we would return to Vancouver Island and not just eat but also stay at the Aerie for our 10th anniversary--so we kept our promise to ourselves.

Its a bit of a trip from Missouri to there. We flew to Seattle and drove and did fairies to Vancouver Island--that amounted to 2 days of travel sandwiching 2 days of vacation but the travel was part of the experience--not too many ferries in Missouri. Beautiful beyond beautiful is an understatement when it comes to the Aerie. The food was almost too pretty to eat--the taste was top shelf too. The room was extremely comfortable and from every place on the grounds was a view to die for with tree, waters, mountains, flowers--just unbelieveable. I worked out in a nicely equipped room with soft music piped in and the killer view. Since the resort has on 35 rooms and a workout room sufficient to serve the needs for hundreds, privacy was assured--I worked out alone--just me, the music, the breeze, and the view. My wife and I had a fabulous time with food, and wine, and views, and music and, well, we'll stop there I think you get the picture.

The Aerie is not a great place for children (we left ours for the first time with family) and it's not cheap (nor is it the most obscenely expensive place out there) but for a romantic getaway--I doubt there is a more perfect spot on the planet. Vancouver Island with its restaurants, parks, waterfront, museums, culture, and gardens is terrific. We are now deciding wheather this may be an annual or semi-annual late summer pilgrimage for us.

http://www.aerie.bc.ca/