Tuesday Grace Notes – the Delicate Scent of Clean

I remember the first whiff. The inhale that felt like the cleanest breath I’d take in ages. It fit the shop of course; all delicately decked out like an English garden. All soft lighting and pale wood. An abundance of white. Beautiful, painted graphics like something from a John Constable landscape.

The Crabtree & Evelyn store I walked into blended florals, woods, and delicate spices into an attractive, inviting welcome into another world. That world originated in the early 70s as a small family business focused one man’s passion for travel and well-turned products into one of the world’s most respected luxury brands.  Long before health and wellness became buzzwords, Crabtree & Evelyn blended botanicals with rich, natural products to create beautiful soaps, lotions, and even edibles.

Of all the products Crabtree & Evelyn have produced, my all-time favourite will always be their triple-milled Goat Milk Soap. Originally packed in white, then upgraded to a classic blue, this soap was a luxury indeed at about $25 for a box of three. But it was very much worth it.

Milk proteins blend with just a hint of alpine lavender for one of the cleanest, sweetest smelling soaps you could ever hope to use. I can’t remember who discovered it first, my mother or I, but we have both been head over heels for this soap for decades. In fact, after learning that she had nowhere to buy this soap locally, I bought out the stock at a downtown store in my neighborhood for her Christmas gift last year.

This is one of those items I save for special occasions – I know my mother does too. This is the kind of soap you want to put in a special dish to make it last as long as possible.

And now we have even more reason to hang out to our stash. In one of our conversations last week, my mother broke the bad news. Crabtree & Evelyn are no longer carrying this product line. I have to admit, I was more broken up about this than I should be over mere soap.

Now, I am grateful for my tendency to hang on to things – I still have a few bars tucked away. And they still smell amazing. I’m astonished at the asking price for these little blue boxes on eBay and Etsy, but know that for some buyers out there, it will be worth every penny.

Tuesday Grace Notes are an opportunity for me to share a small bit of harmony amidst the other things I write about. Truly, they are meant to be shorter than my usual pieces (laugh with me here), and just a little something to add a touch of beauty to my life and yours. One week it might be a
wonderful book I’ve read and can’t put down. Maybe it will be one of the movies I love (or its soundtrack). You might find a favourite recipe here. Or the new soap I’ve just discovered. You’ll find that many of them are inspired by my mother and the things she taught me about living a gentle, elegant life. I hope you’ll join me as more things are shared.

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