Whether you’re a down-to-earth camper or an upscale glamper, summer’s official arrival brings with it equal parts excitement and dread—excitement for the hot, sunny days ahead and dread of the beating your skin will inevitably suffer from insect bites, cuts, bruises, and UV rays. Adventures have their risks, after all. But many products used to protect skin during the summer months—insect repellent, first aid creams, soaps—also contain harmful chemicals that, in the long run, can do more damage than good.
Enter the all-natural essential oil and aromatherapy retailer Escents. For 23 years, the Vancouver-based company has been manufacturing biodegradable and paraben- and artificial colouring-free wellness products that include a range of lotions, cosmetics, cleansers, shampoos, and home scents that are derived from 100 per cent therapeutic grade essential oils. Customers with sensitive noses can even mix their own aromas and products by visiting one of the company’s in-store Blending Bars.
While the Escents line of wellness products is certainly pleasing to the skin (and the nose) any time of year, the company has created a 100 per cent natural and DEET-free Outdoor Survival Kit, perfect for those hot summer months. The kit—which company spokesperson Silvia Enescu says is for literally “anyone who loves being outside and anyone on the go”, even if not necessarily setting up camp in the wilderness—includes four items meant to aid in any outdoor scenario: a multipurpose soap, a body balm, a body spray that acts as a bug repellent, and an aroma blend. Each item features a basic mix of lavender and lemongrass essential oils that smell nice, but also function practically outside. “Lemongrass acts as a natural insect repellent,” says Enescu. “And lavender is really amazing in terms of its healing and soothing properties. It’s antiseptic.”
Of the four items, Enescu’s favourite is the bar of soap, which can be used as a body cleanser, or in place of shaving cream and shampoo. “It’s biodegradable, so it’s really easy to use on any kind of campsite and not be worried about leaving anything behind that you wouldn’t want to leave in nature,” she says. The aroma blend is also multipurpose, as it can be used indoors as a home scent or on the patio in place of a citronella candle.
This is a kit for survival, indeed, whether heading to the beach, the park, the forest, or, simply, the backyard.
