Pumpkin Soap (by Silk Road Trading Company)

[Babylon]

Oh! - fruit loved of boyhood! - the old days recalling,
When wood-grapes were purpling and brown nuts were falling!
When wild, ugly faces we carved in its skin,
Glaring out through the dark with a candle within!

Water, saponified organic fair-trade palm kernal oil, coconut oil, soybean oil, organic fair-trade shea butter, castor bean oil, jojoba oil, red moroccan clay, and Pumpkin Guts fragrance.

The wrapper, as pictured on the Trading Post's site, is covered with jack-o-lanterns. The soap itself is a warm somewhat pumpkiny brown color with what I assume is the red clay adding little speckles of red throughout. The soap bar smells strongly, even through the wrapper.

And the scent? Ahhhh, now here is autumn! This seems to be the Lab's pumpkin single note, encased in soap. It's the fresh-out-of-the-bottle pumpkin smell, so it may seem buttery or foody to some. It's heavily scented, but doesn't linger more than a few minutes on your skin.

I used this on my face as well in the shower, and there was absolutely no skin-tightening when I dried off, like there always is when you wash your face with soap. This is a really high quality moisturizing bar, and it smells so good that I'm seriously tempted to stock up. It layers well with any of the Halloween scents. Edited September 13, 2007 by Babylon

[ivyandpeony]

Seriously... if there's any of these left (or of any TP Halloween LE soaps ) go get them now! This is the first of the four that I have actually tried but ooh lah lah. It's quintessential autumn. My entire upstairs (1000+ square feet) smells of Pumpkin Guts now because half of a bar is sitting unwrapped on my dresser and the other is in the shower, where it delighted me to no end - soft, super-fragrant lather, kind of pink from that red clay in it and I like pink. =)

 

Babylon's description of the scent as a pumpkin single note is pretty smart - it's very pumpkinny, without the buttery component of Jack. But I do get a hint of burnt leaves & spice too, kind of a shadowy scent reminiscent of BPAL Samhain. It could be described as Pumpkin Queen when she was just a baby princess, mostly just a pumpkin with a tiny hint of all the autumn splendor to come.

 

I am a huge fan of the soaps Silk Road Trading Co. produces for BPAL and for their own label, and Pumpkin doesn't let me down - it shares all the qualities I love with its brethren of the soapy variety. It lathers very nicely, has lots of fragrance but isn't overwhelming (I like my scented soaps to be of medium intensity in general, Pumpkin is actually pretty strong for my taste but I still love it) and leaves me feeling clean but soft, not dry.

 

Yummy yummy!

[naeelah]

The smell is strong, but not overwhelmingly so. (I like to have a strong scent in the shower, to scent the whole room.) I was expecting something sort of light, watery, a touch fruity, much like the scent of pumpkin guts.

 

The bar has a strong nutty quality that I didn't expect, but it does smell quite like a slice of fresh pumpkin. Perhaps it smells more true to the scent of fresh pumpkin than what I had in mind! Either way, this is a fantastic scent, and I might have to buy another few bars before it sells out.

 

The scent is strong enough to notice in the shower, and it leaves a very light trace on your skin. The soap itself has a lovely, creamy texture in your hand, perhaps from the clay. It makes a nice lather, and even with the clay in it, it leaves my skin feeling incredibly soft and moist. (Clay is supposed to absorb moisture, so it's not always great for dry skin.) I always have dry skin after showering, but not with this soap.

 

And for me, it lasts forEVER. I cut a quarter of a bar. I don't store it on a special dish, I just set it on a little sample tub in a corner that is out of the way of the water. That quarter lasted me for about 2 weeks, possibly longer. I was using it for bathing AND shaving, so I really rubbed it on. Macha's soaps are surprisingly great for shaving!

Edited December 7, 2007 by naeelah

[jolarocknrolla]

The previous poster that mentioned this soap as reminding her of Pumpkin Queen was spot on! It's very much the pumpkin scent but it has a sort of nutty/spicy edge to it. My husband thought it smelled slightly of either ginger or hazelnut, but i smell more of a generic "spice" layered with the pumpkin. This is one of those soaps that you should leave out to make the bathroom fragrant, it's really lovely. can't wait to layer some of the new pumpkin scents after washing up w/ this

[CiCi]

I tried my Pumpkin Soap today and it smells like a freshly baked pie! It is heavy on the pumpkin with a slight nutty smell that my husband swears is pecan! Maybe that's because that's his favorite nut. It smells very warm like cloves and ginger mixed with the pumpkin. I purchased all the soaps and couldn't decide which to use first, this or Samhain. My husband chose this one! This lathers up nicely and doesn't leave me dry. I usually only use one bar at a time but I think I will add Samhain to the shower tomorrow-I just can't wait until I use this one up!!! Guess I better order more before they sell out!

[shelldoo]

love love love this one, it is a spot on pumpkin scent, fall personified, gorgeous, almost edible. soft and doesn't dry my skin too much. did i mention i love it?

[tarotbydiana]

I've had trouble with some of the pumpkin scents of the past because the butter note has been too prevalent for my chemistry to handle. I was interested in trying the BPTP pumpkin soap mainly to find a usuable form of the lab's pumpkin for my skin.

 

I find this particular pumpkin to have a strong buttery top note when dry. When the soap meets water, the butter seems to subside and the smell of a carved jack-o'lantern emerges. It's the true fresh pumpkin smell I have been craving. While I love the soap in the tub, the smell of it dry is too strongly buttery for me. I combat this by keeping it in a drawer between uses. I wonder if the nuttiness the other reviewers are reporting is a hint of the shea in the soaps components.

 

I used my bar of Pumpkin Soap in the bath. The red clay colors my skin in a pinkish terracotta for a moment and then it dissipates into the water. Washing with the soap feels like a spa beauty treatment.

[CrazyPretzel]

SueDonym generously put in a sample of this soap along with my decants in her Haunted House decanting circle

 

It's soft and moisturising, lathers wonderfully and has a really nice fragrance: almost pure pumpkin with just a teeny-tiny suggestion of spice. Makes me think of raw pumpkin cookie batter. I'm glad I have a whole bar of this on the way!

[Eemia]

First of all, the wrapper is beautiful. It feels like a present to open these soaps.

 

Sometimes pumpkin and I don't always get along, so I was relieved when I opened this and found it to be a mixture of scents, rather than straight up pumpkin. The pumpkin that I do smell actually reminds me more of a raw, fresh cut pumpkin than one that has been cooked. This soap has the depth of any BPAL oil....it's foody but not extremely sweet, and has a nice light spiciness. And I agree with some of the other reviewers who mentioned this: it does have a silky butter fragrance throughout.

 

The clay is amazing...I've never had a soap with so much beautiful red clay in it before. It feels wonderful and detoxifying on my skin. Plus it is like an extra bit of attention in the mornings when I'm in a hurry and don't have time for a lot of steps. And I really love seeing all the russet orange lather on my skin. That radiant color combined with the spicy fragrance just feels so warm, which is perfect for colder weather showers.

 

Another happy point to add in its favor: no scrubby bits. I can add this to a more frequent rotation.

[alicia_stardust]

Pumpkin Soap is an amazing little guy. It is the quintessential autumn scent and I find it to be right on the line between foody and non-foody. It definitely seems to be almost straight pumpkin; not buttery, not complex, but possibly with a touch a spice to round it out. I also love the texture and weight of this soap. I think it might be the clay. It still lathers really well but it's a different kind of lather.

 

I am so glad I got more than one bar of this!!

[oakmoss]

Every BPAL pumpkin scent has been way too buttery or heavy on me, heavy in the sense of a sort of murky sludginess that is (obviously) hard to describe. But hope springs eternal, and I'm also a sucker for anything that says "there aren't many of these, so get them now!" Hence, I got some Pumpkin soap, and I'm delighted I did. This is the most pumpkin-pie-like of the pumpkins I've tried, but it's like a store-bought pumpkin pie -- you know, those ones that aren't slathered with spices like the pie you make for yourself, but that have just a touch of spice so it doesn't offend the pie wimps. In a perfumed soap, that's just about perfect. Just a hint of spiciness in a creamy rich lather of warm pumpkin goodness. Like all the Silk Road soaps, it does melt away all too quickly, for me anyway, no matter how careful I try to be with drainage and such. But I don't care. If a bar of soap lasts only two weeks or so, that's still well worth the cost. Every BPAL soap I've tried so far has been wonderful.

[puck_nc]

I only just got my bar of Pumpkin Soap today and haven't had a chance to try it, but I'm already in love with just smelling it through the paper. Rich pumpkin with a good layer of spice to it. When I open the paper, the soap itself is silky to the touch. I'm in the middle of a bar of soap from a meet&sniff swap, but I will definitely be trying this next!

 

I think I'm going to have to judge how much of this to cut off and set aside to scent up my bathroom or bedroom (and hope my husband doesn't complain too much--he already hates the pumpkin sachets in my dresser drawers).

[Medici]

Pumpkin was pure pumpkin pie with gooey filling and cripsy crust. (I say was, because I went through my bar in five days.) It was my favourite from this series, and let me tell you, that one bar scented my bathroom with spiced pumpkin guts like whoa before I broke into it and brought it into my shower.

[QueenFae]

Oh this is just gorgeous, quite possibly my favorite BPAL soap yet!!

 

I love the pumpkin label, and underneath the soap is smooth and deep orange, like the color of pumpkin pie. This smells like the lab's lovely pumpkin note, like the one in Jack. It is nicely complimented by gorgeous, spicy, cinnamony undertones, like something fresh out of the bakery. This is very much like Pumpkin Queen in soap form.

 

In the shower, the smell is strong and lovely. This is a very, very silky smooth bar; it has an amazing texture. This seems to be a little bit of a harder bar than some of the others, and it seems to last a little longer.

 

I love this! I should go order 3 more bars before they run out!!

[SueDonym]

I just have to share that what made me most happy about this soap is that when I lathered, the clay in it briefly and occasionally turned the foam ORANGE, and I felt pure pumpkin Halloween happiness. YAY ORANGE!

 

Oh sure, it wasn't a lot and it was only briefly but I'll take my happiness anywhere I can find it.

[ACVail24]

Pumpkin Soap

 

I could smell this in the mailbox!

And it was fantastic!

 

Once I opened the box my room smelled like freshly cut jack-o-lanterns.

I didn't use my bars right away because I was so in love with how they scented my room...ah, nostalgia.

 

I have since opened 1 bar and decided to cut it into smaller pieces for use.

I used my small cutting for a wonderfully decandent bath the other day and my goodness - did it smell like pumpkin!

 

My skin emerged a little on the dry side (not unsual for me + soap of any kind)

and I smelled very much like the season of fall - pumkin with hints of creaminess and spice.

 

Verdict:

I will probably use this more as a hand soap than for my showers & baths.

If the bar had a touch more spice & moisture to it, then it would be a different matter...

 

7 of 10 Ranking in use...

9 of 10 Ranking in scent!