**REVIEW** Piping Rock (Oils, Herbs & Supplements)

UPDATE 3/8/20

I ordered something from Piping Rock the other day. I had not been back over there in a while due to a lack of good customer service and standing behind their products. It's very hit and miss. I had that one really bad experience, then I had an okay experience, but I'm still not trusting their customer service. You just never know...

I peruse the site every now and then, but... Anyway, I noticed that the shipping on this latest order is by FedEx - not USPS - and it looks like it's going to take a while. I ordered on March 3rd and didn't get tracking info until the 7th. The package is estimated to arrive on the 13th (which is a day earlier than the first notice I got) - as far as I know, because at the time I am typing this, FedEx's tracking is temporarily down. I hate to say this but I really dread seeing that FedEx is the shipper when I order something. They are slow and careless. There is a problem almost every time I get a package from them.

Piping Rock often has cheaper prices than elsewhere but sometimes the quality reflects that.

I will let you know how this latest order turns out.



NOTE: I actually wrote this review a while back and it didn't publish for some reason. I have updated it a bit and am sharing it with you all now. My oops.

Piping Rock is a recent discovery for me. I needed a place to get some oils, moisturizing butters, and other hair and skin products at prices more affordable than those offered at my usual shopping sites. The thing is,  I want affordable prices,  not cheap quality. So far, I have been 90% pleased with Piping Rock. I will tell you later about that other 10%. For now, let me tell you about my overall experience with the items I've ordered.

Since I found this site back sometime during the deep of winter, I ordered some of the oils I use to moisturize my skin and hair. Among my most pleasant experience, I've ordered Pumpkin Seed, Watermelon, and Abyssinian oils along with some lip balms. The Iowa winter kicked my butt!!

The packaging was amazing. Everything was sealed and very well-cushioned to prevent any breakage or spillage. The only thing that was a bit frustrating to me was that it seemed to take forever to receive my order. I ordered the items on 4/11 and received them on 4/17. On the other hand, I have to stop being so critical because the shipping costs were very reasonable, and there was that awesome packing job they did. As far as the shipping time, I think it's just that Amazon Prime has me spoiled.

This is the packing material my items were protected by:

Thick cushioning!

Also, let's talk about how much I love the Pumpkin Seed and Abyssinian oils. I have used Pumpkin Seed oil before so I know what to expect from a good quality item. This one was wonderful and came in a larger bottle than I can usually afford when I order elsewhere. The Abyssinian oil is something new in my hair and skin care regime so I had to do a lot of reading up on the benefits before I tried it. After having used this for about 2 months, I can tell you that my skin adores this oil. It's touted to add shine and hydrate the scalp without clogging pores. It lived up to the hype for moisturizing, but I have to say that it did a better job of adding shine once I cut my hair and got rid of all those dead, split ends,

I have told you all more than once I believe Pumpkin Seed oil is like a miracle for dry skin and hair. I love having this larger bottle to refill my dropper bottle from time to time. I go through this oil like crazy. I got a 16-ounce bottle from Piping rock for less than what a 4-ounce bottle of the other brand was costing me.

Piping Rock is always having sales so unless I am totally out of and in dire need of an oil or supplement, I wait for one of the major price drops.

For the most part, P.R. has good products and prices, careful packaging, and reasonable shipping and handling costs. So, you might ask me what's not to love? Well...

The first (and so far, the only) bad experience I've had so far with a product's quality was with a Tonka Bean oil. Tonka Bean oil is best known for a lovely aroma that I describe as "warm and spicy vanilla".  It can put you in the mind of a decadent dessert or a type of perfume. As a matter of fact, Guerlain (which makes my beloved Shalimar) has a fragrance called Tonka Imperiale. Someone in my family needs to gift me some of that in a full-size!

When I ordered a bottle of Tonka Bean oil from Piping Rock, I couldn't wait to try it out as a personal fragrance and to add it to my oil warmer. What a huge disappointment! This oil smelled nothing like Tonka Bean and was actually a bit unpleasant. I wondered if I'd had gotten part of a bad batch. When I complained, Piping Rock responded that they checked and the batch was fine. They did tell me that I could return the bottle (at my own expense). Well, boo-hiss to them.

Where I had started out rating Piping Rock at 5 stars for products and prices, I had to drop them down a half star for the Tonka Bean oil and a half star for the nonchalant customer service. I will still order my usual oils from them, but I won't trust them with the more exotic things. By the way, I am still in search of some reasonably priced Tonka oil. The sellers on Amazon are too expensive or non-Prime.

In summary, if it's standard oils and supplements you want, Piping Rock is worth checking out. For the quirky stuff - like Tonka - maybe look elsewhere.

By the way, for those of you who hunt online for these types of ingredients to use in making your own concoctions (like I do), make sure to also check out MakingCosmetics. I've used them in the past and have reviewed them here before.

Peace
--Free

**REVIEW** 100% PureTea Tree Oil by Apothecary Extracts

This is the first time I have actually used a tea tree oil. Me. The person who has tried oils with names that I can't even pronounce correctly. This one was nothing like what I expected. It's a 100% pure therapeutic grade Tea Tree Oil by Apothecary Extracts.

Nice-looking bottle too.

 First, it doesn't stink. Matter of fact, I really like the smell of it. My regular blog readers know how I am about that.

 

 Also, I'm crazy about the packaging of this product. Not only is it pretty, but the label includes specific information about the oil itself and about the uses (and warnings). That's nice. I've seen lots of products that include a lot of hype and no real information. Check it out on Amazon.

Like I said, I've never tried tea tree oil before. I was a little nervous about trying it because most of what I've heard is how strong it is. When I gave this one the sniff test, I was really pleased with the scent. It's strong but not overwhelming.

Since I am cautious about what I use on my skin, I decided to start easy with this. After I checked out the package label and a few websites indicating all the ways it can be used, I tried it on my chapped lips. I combined a drop of it with a drop of some argan oil (which is heavier and richer than some of my other oils) and used the mixture as a balm. Results: very nice. There was a sensation much milder than when applying mentholated balms, but I got immediate softness. The best thing is that after my lips sucked up all that oil, they didn't dry out. The relief is lasting and I think I am going to have to make a mixture to keep in a tin for my purse.

I don't have problems with acne, so I don't want to test this on my already dry and moody skin. What I do have is a stubborn corn on my left foot. I read somewhere that I can use the tea tree oil to get rid of that problem. So... I tested it out tonight by wetting a Q-tip with some tea tree and some of the argan oil. I dabbed that on and, since my toe didn't fall off or burst into flames, I'm going to repeat the process every night and soak my foot in warm water every morning until I get rid of the corn. Where was this stuff when I needed to get rid of old boyfriends and ex-husbands?

To be honest, I'm still finding ways to use the oil, but here are some uses I've heard about:

• As an antiseptic and an alternative to chemical-based cleaners
• Treat Athlete's Foot, fungus, etc.
• Used in homemade toothpaste recipes (though not safe to ingest!)
• Various household uses as listed here
• To get rid of mold
• For making a natural household disinfectant
• Using in laundry care

A couple of warnings that stood out for me as I searched around were not to use on young children and not to ingest.

I think that there can be lots of ways to include this in your beauty routine. This is a list of a variety of ways to take care of your nails, hair and skin with it. This site is a bit more specific to beauty care using tea tree oil. The main thing I noticed when checking out ways to use tea tree oil is that diluting with a carrier oil is best until you know what your skin and hair can tolerate. 

This is one of the more expensive oils that I have tried, but I need to mention that the price works out to be cheaper than it looks. Because the oil is often meant to be diluted and used in combination with carrier oils and other ingredients (for instance, when making cleaning solutions), I think of the 4 ounces as being equal to 16 ounces of other oils. For instance, I use a lot of coconut oil but that's because I don't dilute it.

Since the brand offers a 100% "No questions asked, money-back" guarantee, you can feel secure in giving this tea tree oil a try.

For me, I have found a new staple to add to my oil collection for natural body and beauty care. By the way, I'd love to hear from anyone that knows of other uses for it.

Peace

--Free

DISCLOSURE: I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free in exchange for a fair and honest review using BrandBacker Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.