it is summer and i am somehow not a sweaty mess.

This is what dreams are made of.

I sweat like a pig. I don't know why, I assume it has something to do with being such a hot-blooded person that even in coat-appropriate weather I'll get home and strip and lay on the couch and moan, "It's so waaarrrmmm." People usually stop me and ask me if I'm cold with genuine concern, but I rarely am. It seems I have the heat-producing capabilities of a large dog.

And sadly yes, tmi but I have the smell to match when I sweat.

I have been trying out several different "natural" deodorants in hopes of getting rid of the stink, at least, if not the sweat too. And Finally!, I have the miracle answer.

Scenter Square's trial size Finally! deo in Vanilla Mint.

A user had posted a review of Scenter Square's products they'd gotten at the Bristol Renaissance Faire (which I have been to back in the States--twice, even!) and mentioned their Finally! deodorant as being incredible. I Googled it, and as soon as I read the process of formulating it involving using an actual chemistry degree, I was sold. (Seriously. I appreciate natural and stripped-down products where appropriate, but baking soda and coconut oil a good deodorant does not make. I've actually had a bad pit-peeling reaction to a deodorant cream I tried off Etsy back before I was really into the "indie scene". Don't do it guys. Love your pits.)

Despite it being summer, it somehow hasn't been so miserably hot this year that I've been sweating the flesh off my bones, but I've still be sweating an average enough amount to say this stuff really, truly works. It goes on slightly white and can clump up in the folds of your armpit skin if you apply too much, and will leave white marks on clothes, so not overly revolutionary there. But as for power? Yeah, this stuff is tops.

It stays pretty dry, which surprised me. When I started trying this out I had a cute little forest of underarm hair and it managed to keep me dry even with that challenge. It also keeps me from smelling hideous. Even with standard deodorants I tend to find I get that "sweat-covered-by-flowers" smell. With this it doesn't smell amazing, but it tends to smell just a lot closer to "barely anything". The large patchouli version I have of this isn't my favorite scent, as patchouli can end up smelling a bit musty or moldy, but overall the scents of these tend to be fairly subtle and the formula does a good job of neutralizing odor and not just covering it. I've also tried Honeycakes, which is much sweeter and more pleasant to me in terms of residual fragrance.

Scenter Square Lip Butter in Vanilla Bean Tangerine

Scenter Square also makes Lip Butters, which I initially had thrown in my first order as a, "Meh, it makes shipping worth it and I always need lip balm because I will die without it" sort of thing.

That dumb reasoning changed my life, really. I had thought maybe these would be decent, since they're coconut oil free and use mango butter, which I love, but these are like...oh. Oh ho man. They are the silkiest smoothest lip balm I have ever felt in my entire existence. They're soft but not oily, firm enough on the lips without being too waxy, and they leave your lips so, so incredibly soft. I have not exfoliated my lips in months really due to laziness, and thanks to these I don't need to. I only tend to now have flaky lips when I forget to pocket one of these (which is rarely) or when I use something else. These leave my lips so soft and moisturized that I have actually spent time accidentally touching my lips because I now have tiny pillows on my face.

Occasionally you get a funky pour, but I have found it does not affect the actual quality of the balm itself.

If you like TenThree's Salve Sticks (which I do!) but have found them a tad too slick or oily for you, I feel you will probably love these. In fact I can't think of someone who wouldn't love these, unless you prefer really stiff waxy balms or ones that melt into oil at the touch. These also have no coconut oil or beeswax or lanolin for people who prefer to avoid any of those. They also come in quite a few flavors, I personally have tried:

 Pumpkin Chai Spice (very good, very pumpkin spice latte-esque, but incredibly weird to put on at the height of summer because it smells so much like mid-October to me), Wintermint (basic spearmint with a slight sweetness), Vanilla Bean Tangerine (smells like a delicious creamsicle but tastes/smells a bit like very nice laundry soap on my lips, but without the soapy part, so I am so confused), and Passionfruit Rose (fruity and tangy, but also heavy on the fresh rose without too powdery). All very decent flavors, none of them smelled too fake or generic, which I always appreciate in a product.

Overall Scenter Square has a lot of offerings I haven't even delved into trying yet either, but if these are anything to judge by, I would believe their quality must be fantastic. For those itching to be part of the process, they even sell DIY kits for making shampoo and conditioner bars! (I'd totally nab one if international shipping wasn't so...internationally priced.) They have a lot to offer, I also bought their cuticle balm and didn't include it in this review, but it's worth looking into if you don't mind your cuticle balms ointment-y and non-vegan.

Maybe if you're lucky instead of hitting up their online shop you can even run into them at a Midwest Renfair (like Bristol, the best Renfair ever) this summer!

Where to buy: Here at ScenterSquare.com* or here at their Etsy.

*Note that if you are international and buying from their website the shipping doesn't like to calculate properly and Paypal tries to error when you pay, so you're better off emailing them or ordering from their Etsy, which has less options but calculates shipping correctly. I'm unsure if they're working on fixing this or not, but they were very friendly and helpful when I emailed and allowed me to place an order via an alternative method.