For the past few weeks I’ve been trying out a bunch of Olieve & Olie products. Olieve & Olie are a boutique Australian brand who make gorgeous handmade skincare products based on real olive oil. 95% of their products’ ingredients are locally sourced from regional Victoria, and they’ve incorporated many sustainable practices into their production.
My first reaction to these – massive formulation envy! As you might know, I’ve dabbled in a little bit of DIY skincare myself, and if I could make products like these, I’d go into business myself. They look, smell and feel luxurious. One of my biggest issues with handmade natural products is that their quality can be a bit spotty – however, the three I tried from Olieve & Olie were of impressively fine consistency. The pretty packaging is also a hoarder’s dream, and I am definitely going to reuse ALL of it.
My favourite is the In Like Flynn With Mr Mandarin Massage Bar (75 g, $24). This is a lovely melty massage bar scented with mandarin, patchouli and ylang ylang essential oils, and it’s beautifully blended to be as smooth as butter. I’ve reviewed Lush’s Friends With Benefits massage bar before and found that a tad too dry to use on its own – In Like Flynn melts easily with a higher percentage of oil (olive and sweet almond) in addition to the solids (beeswax, cocoa and shea butters). If you don’t manage to con someone into giving you a massage, it also makes a really nice, rich post-shower moisturiser.
In the box it’s pretty pungent, but even after I had a third of the bar slathered on my back, the scent wasn’t overpowering. It’s a unisex sort of scent that starts off strongly citrus but ends up gently woody and creamy. I found it ridiculously addictive, and I’m tempted to buy the essential oils and try to mix myself up a longer-lasting custom perfume…
Olive Oil Lip Balm (15 mL, $10) has very similar ingredients to the massage bar – olive oil, beeswax, cocoa and shea butters, with the addition of lip-loving honey, jojoba oil and glycerine, and a bit of vanilla oil for scent. It’s rich and nourishing without being too shiny and oily, and it sinks into the lips and softens dry skin quickly. It comes in a sturdy glass jar, which feels gorgeously luxe, though not very purse-friendly.
Olieve Body Wash in Fresh Lime (250 mL, $19.95; 500 mL refill, $25) is made from liquefied soap, and is scented with lime and lavender essential oils. It bubbles up on my shower pouf very nicely, but doesn’t dry out my skin at all. The pump bottle is aluminium, which is a great choice for slippery showers.
Overall, I was incredibly impressed with these products – they’re some of the nicest natural handmade products I’ve ever tried. I love that they cater to both men and women, with a range of products in man-friendly packaging (black) and scents. These would make excellent gifts for special occasions!
If you’re in Victoria, you might also be interested in attending one of Olieve & Olie’s soap making workshops, where you learn to make traditional handmade soaps and get to take a heap home with you.
Olieve & Olie products can be purchased online here. A list of stockists can be found here.
These products were provided for editorial consideration, which did not affect my opinion. For more information, see Disclosure Policy.
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