AsiaLIFE

Angkor Soaps are lush. As soon as you step through the door to the small shop the aroma of various essential oils and other ingredients engulfs you. Once you get a bar of soap in your hand you can’t help but keep sniffing at it. As the bars look like fudge you may find yourself thinking about eating them too.

Though Malaysian-born director Shirley Wong started her business a bit more than a year ago, she has been producing and selling handmade soaps and various lotions to friends for a number of years. Her interest in natural beauty products stems from personal skin problems, for which she found relief through aromatherapy. What started off as a hobby, producing her own lotions and potions hobby, has slowly transformed itself into a business.

Unlike commercial soaps, Shirley uses the traditional cold-process production method. This retains the all-important glycerine that locks moisture into the skin. In the production of commercial soaps, the valuable liquid is generally removed and sold at a high price for other purposes. The difference is noticeable. Lathering up with Angkor Soap really leaves your skin feeling more supple and moisturised. Unfortunately the glycerine also makes the soap softer than commercial counterparts, meaning that they might not last quite as long. To extend the life of your soap, Shirley advises you place it on a well-drained soap dish.

While most base ingredients for the soaps are imported, Shirley is keen to use Cambodian botanical products to create a variety of bars that according to her hold hidden therapeutic properties. Thus there is beer, silk, wild honey, and traditional herbs soaps, plus eight other types, including one made using Cambodian red wine. Most soaps can be used for both the face and the body, except for lemongrass and ginger, which should not be applied to the face. Mondulkiri coffee and the organic rice soaps are said to be excellent exfoliators. Without fail, they all smell and look gorgeous.

Each bar, handmade by Shirley, costs US$7.80, and can be purchased either in the shop – where they are also produced – at Living Room Café and a few other souvenir shops in town. In her shop, Shirley also sells facial creams on demand, but you had better call ahead for a consultation to get the right combination of essential oils. These cost US$15 for 70g. You also have to wait three days. Products for babies and expecting mothers are also available on demand.


Angkor Soaps, 16C Street 374, Tel: 015 888 666, is open from 8am to 5pm – Nora Lindstrom