Bacon soap? Coffee soap? Unicorn poop?
 
Yes, you read that right.
 
Outlaw Soaps of Oakland, CA is a small-but-rapidly-growing personal product company that is thinking out of the box when it comes to formulation and having tons of fun to boot. According to its co-founder Danielle Vincent, “We make life a little wild around the edges with products like campfire, whiskey or leather soaps and lotions, whiskey and cola flavored lip balms and some amazing travel lotions.”
 
For example, Fire in the Hole soap officially smells like gunpowder, campfire, whiskey, bacon, sage and dirt. But according to Vincent, it “unofficially smells like insanity, excitement and overwhelming joy. It looks like fire. It is, in my estimation, the most awesomest soap ever in the history of ever.”
 
And, in case you were wondering, this is the aforementioned Unicorn soap.

Outlaw Soaps also makes shaving kits and other giftable items. The soaps are all vegan and have never been tested on animals, except on Vincent’s dog, Roxy, for bath time. The packaging biodegrades in three to five years. 
 
At press time, Vincent noted that Outlaw’s most popular products are Hair of the Dog soap, which is whiskey and coffee scented; as well as Whiskey Business, a whiskey-and-cola flavored lip balm.
 
According to Vincent, “Before we decided to go into business, neither Russ (her husband and partner) nor I had made any personal care products aside from the occasional sugar scrub. We both had jobs that were really far removed from the industry, since I was a digital manager working at Oprah and he was a handyman.”
 
That all changed when the pair found a bar of soap in a small farm store off Highway 46 outside of Paso Robles.
 
“I'd sniff that bar every day to remind myself of our adventure. Even though I had used handmade products before, I never really had the same emotional connection with a soap, and this emotional connection was a testament to the power of scent,” she told Happi.
 
From there, the Vincents started thinking of scents that were important to them and friends on a personal and aspirational level: “What emotional reactions could we prompt by including the smell of a walk through a damp forest? A wild weekend camping? Old leather and sandalwood? Blackberries and fresh laundry?”
 
There’s certainly more to come, as Outlaw Soaps has been working with national distributors to expand its presence from the 20-odd brick and mortar stores and three online distributors, according to Vincent.
 
“Everyone uses personal products,” said Vincent. “But people don't think of them as a gateway to a new state of mind. But think of it—what a great opportunity to build a little escape into every day! If just for a minute, you could enjoy a wild camping trip, complete with campfire, whiskey and sage, even as you're about to head off to work.”
 
More info:www.outlawsoaps.com