Luxury Green Beauty: Azara Beautique Oat, Sidr Honey & Madina Rose Soap review #PlasticFreeJuly

One of the easiest ways to join in with #PlasticFreeJuly this month is to embrace the original multi-purpose beauty product; the humble bar of soap! You'll always find at least one bar of soap in my bathroom, and if you're in the mood for some serious luxury, why not try this one from Azara Beautique?

The days when soaps were seen as old-fashioned and always smelt like something your Grandmother would use are thankfully long gone, as the traditional bar of soap is undergoing a fashionable revival thanks to changing consumer attitudes that are linked to reducing the amount of plastic that we consume. In fact, if there's only ONE thing that you do to cut down on your plastic waste, ditching your regular bottle of handwash for a solid, zero-waste bar of soap is an easy step in the right direction.

I've been using soaps for years and I love discovering new brands that use interesting natural ingredients in their formulas. One such brand that has recently caught my attention is Azara Beautique who have a whole range of fascinating Arab-inspired/Middle Eastern soaps that come wrapped in the most beautiful paper packaging. The unique recipes for these soaps have been passed down over the generations, from mothers to daughters, and all of Azara's products are free of parabens, sodium and ammonium sulfate, palm oils, alcohol, formaldehyde, harsh preservatives, lanolin, glycol, gluten, mineral oils, petrochemicals, and microbeads.

Instead, they use natural, eco-friendly, vegetable based preservatives and olive oil based emulsifying agents to create luxurious soaps that feature key ingredients which are carefully sourced throughout the Arab world. For example, their Extra Virgin Olive Oil comes from Palestine and Syria, whilst fragrant Pink Roses are picked in Saudi Arabia’s second holy city of Madina. The soaps are then handmade with love here in the UK.

Azara have a luxury soap for every skin type and concern, and I decided to try out their Oat, Sidr Honey & Madina Rose Soap which you can see below.

Specially formulated for sensitive skin, and suitable to use on babies and children, Azara's Oat, Sidr Honey & Madina Rose Soap is a sheer delight to use and such a pampering treat for dry, eczema-prone skin like mine! Made from an exquisite blend that features Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Extra Virgin Sweet Almond Oil, Organic Shea Butter, Pure Madina Flower Water, Extra Virgin Castor Oil, Organic Oats, Sidr Honey and Organic Cinnamon Powder, this soap is incredibly moisturising and has a delicate sweet and floral honey-ish scent.

Packed with natural anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial agents, it will instantly soothe and hydrate even the most irritated and dry, cracked skin, and high content of lipids, fats and reparative proteins help to protect and regenerate the skin’s protective barrier. I've been using this soap all over my body in the shower (it's also gentle enough to use on the face) and I feel like I can skip using a body moisturiser afterwards because it leaves my skin so soft. The oats in the soap also give it a slightly grainy texture which offers a little gentle exfoliation for even smoother skin.

It's rare that I'd dedicate a whole blog post to just one bar of soap, but this really is something special! It is on the pricey side but if you're feeling spendy, this would be a lovely luxury treat for anyone who has dry and sensitive skin.

Azara Beautique Oat, Sidr Honey & Madina Rose Soap* (100g, £22, link)

Do you use bars of soap?

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