Do you have a favorite band? A favorite food? A favorite flavor of ice cream? I can confidently tell you mine. The Beatles. Cheese. Pistachio. Favorites are favorites for a reason. They’re winners. They’re totally awesome. And they deserve recognition. Which is why I decided to dedicate this week’s blog to my top three favorite AVNS products. I picked a natural soap, a natural body polish, and a naturally flavored lip balm that I will order over and over again…probably for the rest of my life. And yeah, I’m about to seriously fan girl over all three.

How Did You Pick Just Three?

I know right? How did I pick just three when AVNS has soooooo many amazing products? It wasn’t easy. I thought long and hard about this list and there are many worthy products that could’ve easily placed on this list, but these are my 2020 picks.

Black Licorice Hand, Foot, and Body Bar

This bar is one incredible experience and it starts with the knock-you-off-your-feet smell of black licorice. After getting a sample with an order, I immediately ordered three full-sized bars. Now, let me tell you why this is significant. I’m on a quest to try every single AVNS product (okay, maybe not the beard oil) and to speed up this process, I have a strict rule that I only ever  order sample bars. In fact, before the Black Licorice Bar came into my life I’d only ever ordered one full-sized bar since I started blogging for AVNS last January (say it with me: Honey, Carrot and Tangerine*). As soon as I smelled that sweet sliver of black licorice natural soap I was like, “WHOA. My search for the perfect soap is over. This is the soap I want to grow old with!” So I ordered not one, not two, but three full-sized natural soap bars…on scent alone. You guys, I hadn’t even used the soap yet. I gave the sample to my mom because she loves black licorice too and she immediately fell in love with it. She told me she couldn’t even wash her hands with it because she wants it to last forever. My dad also loved it, maybe too much. When he got home from work the next day I asked him if he’d smelled it yet and he said, “It smelled so good I thought it was black licorice and I ate a little piece…it was terrible!” Lesson learned: if it smells good enough to eat…make sure it isn’t soap before eating it!

My second favorite thing about this bar is the black walnut shell. Marianne is a genius. Use it in the shower and it will scratch all the itches you didn’t even know you had!

Also, I totally just texted Marianne to see if our Jojoba Oil can be custom made to smell like this bar.**

Sweet Rosehips Body Polish

I love the Bella Rose Shampoo Bar and I’d read the descriptions of the Sweet Rosehips Body Polish, but I was still skeptical about its greatness. I actually ordered some as a gift, but I ordered too late and it didn’t arrive in time so I had to keep it (oops…although I secretly think I might have placed the order late on purpose). Yes, my arms and legs were super dee-duper smooth after using this scrub. And yes, it was so luxuriously moisturizing that I didn’t even need lotion afterwards. But THE SMELL. OH MY GOODNESS. HEAVEN. It smells like a Georgian Garden and the beautiful scent lingers on your skin even after you’re out of the shower. This scrub is made with organic sugar which I prefer over a salt scrub. Yes, salt is an effective antibacterial and I love our salt bars, but when it comes to intense exfoliation sugar is a gentler option for my sensitive skin.

Vanilla Latte Lip Balm

Call me sentimental, but this was the first AVNS product I fell in love with. I think lip balms/chapsticks are so under-appreciated until you realize you need, like, a gazillion of them. If you’re like me you need a gazillion of them because you’re constantly misplacing them. I need a car lip balm. A back-up car lip balm. A purse lip balm. And emergency purse lip balm. An emergency purse tinted lip balm. A bathroom lip balm. A pocket lip balm. A desk lip balm…the list goes on. I love the Vanilla Latte Lip Balm so much that I’ve had it since January and I still haven’t lost it. I use it all the time and I still haven’t run out AND it makes my lips smell sweet and delicious. I wish there was a cookie recipe to go with it. Sometimes I think about the fact that AVNS makes other lip balm flavors that I haven’t even tried yet but could potentially smell just as good, if not better than the Vanilla Latte flavor and I get so overwhelmed I need to slather on a fresh coat of balm and inhale deeply. 

*Honorable mentions: The Honey Carrot and Tangerine Face and Body Bar has a fresh, glowing smell and would totally be my number one for a list of summer favorites. Charcoal Detox Face and Body Bar smells fantastic and was only bumped down because the Black Licorice Bar is back in town. Our Moroccan Argan Oil has a very soft scent, but it works WONDERS and in my opinion is one of our most effective products.

**She said it totally can. YES!

Stay tuned for next week’s blog on our best smelling body soap bars!

Much Love,

Nora