All About Bela

Surprisingly enough, there is not a huge About Me section on the Bela Naturals website. There is usually an inspiring story of how the company came to be, but Bela Naturals just stated this:

At Bela, our goal has always been to offer high quality, value priced natural bath and beauty products made with only the finest ingredients. Our products are cruelty free and sustainably sourced; safe and responsible choices for your family.

This statement is short and to the point. Personally, I like more of a story when it comes to learning about a company and what they are all about, but maybe that’s just me.

First Impressions

I found Bela Naturals at trusty Walmart. I was looking for a bar soap that had minimal packaging, and natural (or as natural as it could be coming from Walmart).

When I saw the section of unpackaged bar soaps, I was very happy! I liked that the soap was big, to me this means long-lasting! 

I am not a big fan of fragrance, having worked in a fragrance-free workplace for many years I just got used to minimal scents, so I immediately liked the subtle scent of the Bela bar soap. It was not overwhelming or overpowering in any way. 

As well, the price was right at $5.97 Canadian. This may seem like a high price for hand bar soap, but the soap was HUGE, so I was OK paying that much for a single bar of soap.

Bela Naturals label

On the Label

The label is pretty minimal, with just one sticker on the back of the soap.

The label reads:

  • Pure Natural Soap
  • Essential Lavender
  • No SLS
  • No Petrochemicals
  • No Parabens
  • Made in Australia
  • 184g / 6.5 oz

Ingredients

Since there was no ingredients list on the soap itself, I went searching for it on Bela’s website and this is what I found:

Our Bela Pure Natural Soaps contain: Certified Sustainable Palm Oil, Organic Shea Butter, Aqua, Parfum (may contain essential oils), Sodium Gluconate, Salt, Vegetable Glycerin, Mineral Earth Pigments, Color Additives

Let’s give these ingredients a closer look:

  • Certified Sustainable Palm Oil: Sustainable palm oil is a product of the fruit grown on the oil palm tree. The certified plantations are environmentally friendly and do not infringe on the habitats of endangered wildlife. 
  • Organic Shea Butter: moisturizer
  • Aqua: water
  • Parfum (may contain essential oils): scent
  • Sodium Gluconate: prevents the growth of microbes in products to keep them safe for consumers; also works as a chelator which helps cleansing products to foam better in hard water
  • Salt: helps increase the hardness of the soap
  • Mineral Earth Pigments: colourant, natural
  • Color additives: colourant, likely synthetic

Used Bela soap

After over a month of use.

Likes

I like the fact that this bar of soap is huge and will last a long time. Knowing that I won’t have to go running back to the store next week to get more is a great feeling.

I have been using the soap for about a month in our bathroom and it is still quite large, even with 5 people using it! 

I honestly should have cut the soap in half and only used half at a time to help make the soap a little more manageable, especially in the small hands of children. Now I know for next time!

When I wash my hands, I notice a nice scent that is not too strong, just barely there. I also like the dried lavender that is in the soap, it adds a bit of an exfoliating effect to the soap. Makes me feel like my hands are getting even cleaner. Bela Naturals also lathers really well, again leading me to believe my hands are extra clean!

I also like the fact that there are minimal ingredients used. As well, according to the website, there is no tallow, no animal testing, no EDTA used and it is vegan. 

Another winner for me is that the palm oil used is sustainably sourced. I have not gone totally palm oil-free yet, but I am doing my best to make conscientious choices when it comes to palm oil in products I use, so I am very happy that Bela Naturals is taking the step to source sustainable palm oil.

Dislikes

My main dislikes for Bela bar soap comes from the ingredients, namely the parfum and color additive. These are most likely synthetic and I prefer natural ingredients. 

I would be perfectly happy with a soap that is lightly scented and less vibrant in colour if only natural ingredients were used. Having a bright purple soap is not a deal breaker for me! I will gladly take an ugly brown over a bright purple if the brown soap is made from natural ingredients and purple one has synthetic ingredients. 

Bela Naturals is probably trying to appeal to the mainstream so that I can understand, but I prefer ALL of the ingredients to be natural.

Alternatives

If Bela Naturals isn’t a fit for you, try one of these eco-friendly alternatives:

 

side view of bela naturals

My Opinion

Overall, I really like this soap. I like that it is readily available and easy to find at Walmart. It is not too expensive for the size of soap that you get. It also lathers really well and smells nice. As a bonus, Bela Natural bar soap will last a looong time! They also use minimal packaging and minimal ingredients which is pretty awesome.

So, if you’re at Walmart looking to buy some hand bar soap, definitely give Bela Naturals a try. Be sure to pick a scent you like because you will be smelling it for a long time! This bar soap lasts forever (at least it feels that way!)

What is your favourite hand soap? Let me know in the comments below.

Cheers, and have an awesome day!

 

 

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