Vanilla Mint will finish its run in August, and then the next one will probably be October, and then a special one for December!!
Renn – you know the answer is that you should have at least one of every scent!! :lol:
Libby (Still waiting to see who won!)
I’m WAY late posting my review on the soap and conditioner – I got called to Europe for work right after my special order conditioner arrived and had to put off my tack cleaning projects for several weeks. How nice it is to have fun new leather care products to ease the burden of getting caught up on chores!
The soap (Rosemary Mint scent) is delightful – I think mine is from the same batch that some have found too strongly scented, but I love it. It’s a very clean scent, so I don’t mind it a bit strong. During the month+ that I was away nobody bothered to clean my tack, so I had a royally filthy bridle to test the soap out on. Crusties around the bit ends, grime on the noseband, evaporated sweat at the crown – yuck! The Higher Standards soap cleaned it up in no time – I didn’t even have to get out the old toothbrush I sometimes use on noseband grime. The texture of the soap is perfect for getting just the right amount on your sponge – not too hard, not so soft it completely dissolves upon contact with a wet sponge.
The conditioner was nice and soft when it arrived and I opened it in my 90-degree car at the post office, but after a month+ in my 70-degree home it had gotten pretty firm. It took a fair amount of rubbing for the warmth of my hands to soften it up and make it easier to smooth onto my tack. It feels really great on the tack and smoothed right into my own hands when I was done – usually I can’t wait to wash leather conditioners off my hands, but this one is light and pleasant and not heavily greasy or ointment-like. The brand new bridle I ordered before my work travel softened up with a little working of the balm into it with my hands – I applied it and let it sit, and pretty much all of the balm was absorbed by the new leather. A quick wipe-down shined everything up and I’m very pleased! The old bridle also looks a more saturated black after conditioning, and seems to have been well rejuvenated by these products after many weeks of neglect.
I have to admit that while I was intrigued by all the reviews, I really didn’t expect these products to be all that much better than the familiar mass-produced leather care products I’ve used for years. I just figured there was only so much room for improvement in this arena. However, I humbly confess that both the soap and the balm are not just marginally better than what I’ve been using – they feel quite luxurious in comparison. I’m a bit of a neatnick germaphobe, and I really hate feeling like I have chemical residues on my hands – a sensation that just about every other tack cleaning products I’ve used have created. But Higher Standards really does feel cleaner and at the same time does a great job getting leather clean and soft. I want the other soap scents as well! With such nice soap I may be incentivized to clean my tack more often so I can try one of the other scents soon!
[QUOTE=Bensmom;7136512]
Vanilla Mint will finish its run in August, and then the next one will probably be October, and then a special one for December!!
Renn – you know the answer is that you should have at least one of every scent!! :lol:
Libby (Still waiting to see who won!)[/QUOTE]
Thanks! Another Citrus Ginger for me. 
VANILLA CITRUS VANILLA CITRUS VANILLA CITRUS!!!
Or Pumpkin Pie or Apple Pie for October!
Hey Bensmom, I just placed my first official order (been using your wonderful samples). Why is the shipping for one scent more than the other? Does mint weight more than ginger? :lol:
Yikes! It shouldn’t be!
(off to check Etsy site now . . . )
Ok, I checked and they are all at $6 for the first item and $2 for every one added after that.
Where did you see it set up differently? I don’t want it to be confusing!
Got the vanilla mint…Lovely:)
We are well stocked up at my farm now…although my barn manager does think someone is eating it as we went through it rather fast 
She’s kidding of course…we just have a lot of tack and clean a lot too!
Plus, you know I have a special addition to the formula that makes it disappear quickly . . .
I love the vanilla mint too! I was skeptical when it was first suggested, but it is lovely! 
Hey Bensmom, I was so happy when my order arrived today, just in time for my tack cleaning in preparation for a mini event tomorrow! I had a lot of tack to clean, and the soap is so good and nicely scented that I added some old nasty bridles to the pile even though I don’t use them anymore. Thank you for the very quick delivery, now I see why so many people rave about it!
Is it possible to get a sample of the conditioner? I’ve been using Effax Leatherbalm for years with really good results, so I didn’t want to switch to another conditioner without trying it first.
Good question!!
I may have the sample sizes available for sale in the next month or so. Right now we are working on the packaging. I will be sure to let y’all know when they are ready!!
Libby
Bensmom’s is WAY better than Effax, and that is coming from a die-hard Effax fan (I literally own the whole line of products…which I have not used once since I got the Higher Standards soap & balm!). The Effax balm is sticky/tacky, and HS is not sticky/tacky AT ALL–you can rub it in with your hands and then not even wash your hands afterwards.
[QUOTE=Bensmom;7137899]
Yikes! It shouldn’t be!
(off to check Etsy site now . . . )
Ok, I checked and they are all at $6 for the first item and $2 for every one added after that.
Where did you see it set up differently? I don’t want it to be confusing![/QUOTE]
Ohhhh, got it now. I couldn’t figure out why one was $6 and one was $2. I really am the smartest airhead I know, sometimes!
Bensmom’s soap also removes blue dye from saddles, should you happen to ride in brand new jeans that you’ve never washed before, and your jeans bleed all over your saddle and give you a heart attack.
Libby, I’m going to call you by your real name cuz I have now adopted you into my family, your balm is beyond words. Period.
Can I just say that I love your soap. I have been raving about it to any horseman I run across (which kinda makes me look like a weirdo). I have told my farrier twice now… Lol
but, as much as I love your soap it doesn’t hold a candle in my eyes to your balm! I LOVE IT!!!
My balm is the perfect texture, not too hard or too soft. If I wasn’t so absolutely shamed by the appearance of some of my older tack I would have taken before and after photos.
As an example, I have my mothers 45 year old hunt bridle that I have never used because I was afraid that the leather would snap. Now, it is stunning! After I cleaned it and applied the balm it became a whole new bridle! I think I secretly kept it because I knew deep down there was quality there, but I didn’t realize how incredibly NICE it would become after it was conditioned properly!
LoveLoveLove!
thank you!
I’m sold…I used this stuff on my nasty crustified leathers that I was sure were garbage bound…and voila…buttah. Next stop, my moldy olds breastcollar from my rodeo days!
Exactly what sort of leather-lovin’ witchcraft is IN here, anyway? I actually WANT to go clean tack now, instead oh yeah, I need to do XYZ grumblegrumblebitchbitch.
And it smells like awesomesauce too. Totally impressed.
[QUOTE=Eklecktika;7147133]
Exactly what sort of leather-lovin’ witchcraft is IN here, anyway?[/QUOTE]
She’d tell you, but then she’d have to kill you :winkgrin:. I mentally refer to it as “magic saddle soap”. Not out loud, though, because people might think I’m crazy(er).
hahaha!
You guys are great!!
I’m so glad that it is working so well for everyone! yeah, can’t reveal my secret ingredients But, let’s just say there are some tail-less newts around here . . . :lol: (or are they supposed to donate eyes? I can’t remember my Macbeth quote at the moment . . . :lol: )
HorseKrazy – I’m excited to join the family! Do we have any family money?!!
Maybe Macbeth’s witches got it wrong using eye of newt instead.
Libby, have you amped up the scent at all in more recent batches? I got my first batch in April and thought the scent was pretty mild. I just got in another one (same scent) and the scent was way more powerful- and that is a very good thing, because it smells fantastic! I’ve had a cold for the last week, and that was the first thing I could actually smell.
Hahaha, bensmon! There’s tons and tons!
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