The Soap Opera Bath Shop Consumer Review
By
Eunice Estipona
We had a heavy snow storm the night before and the next winter morning, I was happily approaching the front desk of the hotel where I was working that time as a spa manager with my hair all wet from my usual daily bathing routine before going to work. In the Philippines, it’s common to see Filipinas walking around the streets with our hair still wet or should I say damp. Anyway, it was around 10:00 o’clock in the morning and the receptionist on duty that time looked at me with a querying eye and as I approached her, without hesitation she asked “Eunice, why is your hair wet?” to which I answered abruptly “Ohhh, everyday we Filipinas used to take a bath morning and evening before going to bed” and I think I shocked her because she covered her pretty red lips (which were now widely open) with her hand and replied with an endearing tone, “Ohh crazy Filipina!” The conversations that followed were: “No, bathing is already a part of our culture, why? how often do you take a bath?” to which the concierge replied that “we take a bath only twice a week depending on the climate”. I was pretty stunned I can feel my eyes widen and my jaw dropped but soon realized that bathing in itself is also a cultural thing. Filipinos are known to take a bath everyday and shower by night (At least in general). Americans are known to take a shower everyday before going to work. When Americans say they took a shower, it means they took a bath. Bathing and showering for them is the same while for Filipinos bathing and showering are two different things. For Filipinos, bathing means whole body cleaning, including shampoo, conditioner and scrubbing (hilod) while if a Filipino says “to shower” it means whole body cleaning EXCLUDING the hair. Again, we have to accept our diversities. But suffice to say, Filipinos love bathing and water. Kaya nga hit na hit sa atin yung maligo sa ulan kasi we love water, usong uso rin yung mga spa eh kasi it offers water therapies and we are blessed to have plenty of those surrounding our 7,100 ++ wonderfully crafted islands. So in this regard, I will start blogging about my bathing experience using soaps that I bought from Soap Opera in comparison with other soaps that I have used na.
The first product that I am going to blog about was the one I bought last July 2009 at their SM Fairview branch 2/F right in front of the Watson’s Personal Care store was just accidental. I was really looking for a soap that will effectively remove my blemish on my arms (if there is one) kasi nga a few months ago I scratched my arms but unfortunately whenever I itch from insect bites and scratch myself hay naku…..I do not stop until it bleeds. Hehehe… According to the sales personnel the Power Whitening Glutathione, which smells like their body scrub is good for blemishes daw. She demonstrated pa nga how the body scrub affects my skin by trying it on my hand. Unfortunately, I am still using another brand that I bought from Rustan’s. Maybe next time, I said to her. I was there just to try out if there is really a soap that can take away these small spots. According to the soap’s label, the power whitening contains Glutathione and Arbutin bath soap, a powerful and healthy skin lightener with age reducing agents. Cost is one hundred and fifty pesos (Php 150.00 or approximately $3.00) for a 110 grams sabi ng label (according to the label). It’s color white and it smells really refreshing eh pag ako pa naman naliligo at gusto kong mag bleach, I spend no less than 10 minutes of “affair” with my Loofah and soap. I cannot compare or describe how it smells but it smells nice like a combination of flowers. You see, bathing is a luxurious treat for me too! It’s kinda like a therapy kasi nga sa smell pa lang very refreshing na. I always look for a soap that smells good like an Aromacology or aromatherapy. Something that would tickle my nasal sensitivities. Yung para bang as if nasa spa ka. Hay sarap! Come to think of it, the Lord has given us the sense of smell and touch to be enjoyed altogether. We are refreshed and rejuvenated by the sense of smell but we also get sick pag hindi maganda yung naaamoy natin na puro chemicals di ba? Or mabahong amoy. I love trying different types of products in the market especially the natural soaps. But I do not buy (rarely if ever) yung mga soaps na walang amoy kasi nga ang prinsipiyo ko is that dapat you smell nice (but not too strong) once you get out of the shower. Unlike the natural soaps that I tried sa Lush! Which I buy from Greenbelt in Makati I noticed, that Lush’s soaps are very soft soaps especially when wet and therefore mas madaling matunaw. The last time I bought from them was several months ago kasi nga malayo at hindi naman ako madalas sa Makati area. But whenever I go within the Makati district especially Greenbelt, I would drop by the Lush! Branch in Greenbelt. But I noticed that although I both like the soaps of Soap Opera and Lush, Soap Opera’s soaps are harder and less expensive. Therefore, if you are looking for a lower-priced item and alternative Soap Opera will give you more value for your money. As a critic sometimes I cannot help but compare. But do not get me wrong, Lush soaps although more expensive are also okay if you have the budget for it.
According to their website http://www.soapoperabathshop.com/ , this Glutathione and Arbutin pure ingredient Bath Soap, gives a safe and double-powered whitening action. Enriched with super powerful & widely acclaimed whitening ingredients for a smoother and younger looking skin. Naturally takes out age spots. My question is how many days or months do I need to use the soap for me to see the effects? And how long per bath? As Science reveals that Glutathione tablets are effective only when taken for more than 30 days consecutively depending on your skin tone. So the darker your skin is, the longer you have to wait for the Glutathione to take effect. Hindi puwede yung pag inom mo ng Glutathione tablets for a week eh gusto mo maputi ka na. Pero siyempre iba na rin ngayon may injectable Glutathione na. So sa mga soaps do not expect din na pag natapos ka na sa isang bar eh Maputo ka na. It takes time and maraming babaran sa banyo.
Based on my experience with this soap, it has really lightened my scratches but you need to spend 15 minutes a day scratching the suds of the soap using a Loofa. What I normally do is cut the soap in two equal portions and use one half at a time. I already finished the whole soap which lasted for approximately 10 days of consecutive daily twice a day bathing. To compute to your monthly expenses using Soap Opera’s soaps, you will be consuming three bars of 110 grams of soap (their regular size) a month and it will cost you 450 pesos (approximately $9.00) for the thirty days. Take note that this will vary widely on how often you use it, for how long per bath and how many people would use it in the household. Siyempre mas marami kayong gagamit mas madaling maubos.
Then I also bought the soap called The Bomb but have just used it today. This soap is a clear soap with light green color, it also weighs approximately 110 grams and contains Glutathione, Vitamin C, Calamansi Placenta and Collagen. According to the label, this soap, The Bomb has strong skin whitening agents which smoothens skin and erases blemishes. It has effective anti-aging effects. It costs Php 150.00 pesos (approximately $3.00). It smells like one of the Skittles candies. Feels like mint. Very soothing to the senses. I will certainly buy another bar of this soap kasi very minty yung feeling and smell niya. You might want to taste it (but don’t). Hahaha…. Come to think of it are there any edible soaps out there? I heard that there are, shoot me an email or send me a note where I can buy edible soaps. I want to try it out. Please…….
I also bought the soap called Bedazzled containing Glutathione, Hyaluronic Acid and Oxygen (puwede na pala na ilagay sa soap ang oxygen in what form kaya, kasi ang alam ko ang Oxygen is in its gaseous state, is it possible to mix gas and solid? Hummm….I wonder if their claim is really true.). It’s another clear soap, flesh in color, approximately 110 grams and costs 150.00 (approximately $3.00) pesos. It says in its label that it combats the visible signs of aging by nourishing your skin and takes away fine lines and wrinkles through its advance age-defying action. Brightens your skin tone (?). Itong claim na ito, I placed a question mark after it because is there such thing as brightening a skin tone or in Tagalog language pagpapa-tingkad ng kulay ng balat? So kung brown ka mas lalong titingkad ang pagka kulay brown mo? Or pag white ka lalong titingkad ang pagka-puti mo? Hum…..I think they should start editing what they print on their labels as I noticed halos pareho lang ingredients ng lahat ng nabili kong soaps, Anyway, I will not be able to say something other than it smells like a toilet fragrance and when its wet and applied all over the body nawawala na yung amoy.
Important tip: You have to ask which soaps are offered on sale and try them out first. Instead of 150.00 Pesos ($3.00) they just sell it for 100 pesos each (approximately $2.00). Still way more expensive than the usual Dove soaps in the supermarket. Speaking of Dove soap, what I don’t like about Dove is the greasy after feel when I use them but then again it’s my personal preference I like the squeaky clean feeling after a bath. I do not like to feel oily after bathing that is why I was glad when they came out with several Dove variants like the Fresh energizing beauty bar with lemon grass where only light moisturizing lotion were added with beads and a sparkling scent of grapefruit and lemongrass. I am using it from time to time and it doesn’t feel greasy or too oily. But then again, Dove soaps are good for those skin types which need to be moisturized and for people who would like a lotion after-feel without having to apply lotion. It’s also a soft soap so don’t let it stay soaked.
Bath Shops of Soap Opera are located in a few SM malls in Metro Manila including SM Fairview, Megamall, SM North EDSA, SM Marikina and Market! Market!.
Overall rating for Soap Opera 89%, Lush! 85% and Dove 83%.
Before I end this consumer review some words of wisdom regarding bathing: Bathing experts reveal that the right way to take a bath is for at least 20 (twenty) minutes (minimum), you must either soak or read in the bathroom, but should not begin the rinsing process until that period of time has elapsed. Slow baths are definitely advised, hurried baths will leave you soar and irritable. But be careful not to stay in the bath past the point at which you become noticeably pruney or otherwise known as water-aging (ito yung nag kukulubot na yung skin ng fingers mo parang pasas hindi ubas), this diminishes the experience. And last but not the least, do not let anything interrupt your bathing experience.
Happy bathing!
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http://yunesa.blogspot.com/2009/07/consumer-and-spa-enthusiasts-review.html
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