Before the pandemic, I would have sworn I was a shower person. But our new, swish bathroom (inspired by ones in five-star English hotels) and the stress-busting effect of a good soak have converted me. Now, I am not only a serious bather, but also a connoisseur of bath potions – the lovelier and more natural, the better.
Bathorium is my latest discovery and I am obsessed with their Crush Bath Soaks – sea-salt mixtures that melt into the water making it soft and creamy; the Northern Sage Recovery, enriched with essential oils of sage, coriander and pine, is my current favourite.
The Canadian brand was founded in Toronto in 2014 by Greg Macdonald (it’s now based in Ottawa). I spoke with Greg who talked about how hard it was to find products that were nice, without the chemical nasties. “I’ve been a bath lover since I can remember,” he says. “Before discovering what a natural, decadent bath could be, I used drug store salts and commercial bath bombs. I just accepted that dry skin and a stained tub were part of the experience.”
Greg was inspired to start the company after staying at an Airbnb in Italy where the hostess made her own all-natural bath oil for guests. “It was a revelation! She used a local pink grapefruit essential oil and coriander seed and you’ll see both of these woven throughout our lines.”
Committed to Canada, Bathorium uses Canadian wherever possible – the fir needle oil, Abyssinian flower botanicals and chamomile are just a few of the brand’s many native ingredients. All products are made in Canada, along with most of the packaging, and the feel-good factors – vegan, ethically produced, phthalate- and paraben-free – are augmented by the brand’s charitable perspective: Bathorium actively supports the Ottawa Foodbank Services and has donated over $15,000 to the city’s Main Street Services, a non-profit that helps kids and adults with disabilities.
The Canadian start-up is garnering international attention (CNN, US Weekly and Good Morning America have featured them as one-to-watch) and that kind of press is very much in keeping with their global mission to #BringBacktheBath.
As my lonely shower can attest, they did it for me.
