lavender essential oil benefits

French Soaps with a Scent of Courage

When thinking of soaps from Provence, South of France, a field of purple lavender comes to mind followed by an almost intoxicating scent that seems to transport us to a time before time, a time of stillness, tranquility, and quietude.

 

Jennifer Revello, founder and owner of Averal, has a story that started out as far from the lavender fields of South of France as possible, yet somehow it was the scent of those fields and the French soaps that in a way gave her the courage to write a new story for herself and her son.

 

Born in New Jersey to Uruguayan parents, Jennifer lived most of her childhood in Montevideo, before moving back to the US at 18. She had no idea her return to the US would eventually lead her to open a French soap business. Jennifer focused on hard work and succeeding in the corporate world until 2007 when she met a French man, who not only became the father of her child, but also gave her the encouragement that she had what it takes to open her own business.

 

When visiting France, she got to meet his family, who is in the soap business, fell in love with the scents and the products and decided she was going to bring to the US, not just the amazing soaps, but also the entire South of France lifestyle. She realized there was something special about the Triple Milled Soaps from France, which are still made in the same traditional way since the 1800s. With that, soaps became more than just a cleaning tool, they became an instrument of self-care, of self-love, of slowing down and enjoying a moment of pampering and bliss. This triple milled process renders the purest form of soap available by extracting any excess moisture and air from the bar, making it higher quality as well as gentler on the skin and a perfect option for anyone with sensitive skin.

 

The name of the company came from the South of France as well, specifically from a dialect spoken in Occitania, a region that spread over the South of France and part of Spain. The soaps were to be called Averal, meaning authentic, genuine, natural, original, real, true - all values she wanted to instill in the brand.

 

It’s been 12 years since that trip to France that changed everything. La Savonnerie (the original name of her company) has definitely had ups and downs. From shipment delays to learning how to build a website herself, the birth of her son, learning to build a business from the ground up. For all those years, Jennifer has been part of the famous New York Holiday Markets at Columbus Circle and Union Square and has established a loyal clientele that seeks her triple milled soaps year after year. The highs and the lows of the past years have made her stronger and allowed her to appreciate the rush of building and managing her own company, while simultaneously taking a moment to slow down each day and enjoy the soothing quality of the triple milled French soaps, and most importantly, they have prepared her for 2020 - the year that everything changed.

 

2020 was the hardest year for Jennifer, not only because of the pandemic that swept the globe leaving every single person somehow stranded whether physically or emotionally. After ending her relationship with the father of her child, Jennifer fell in love again and got married in 2019, yet things quickly turned for the worse when he started abusing her. Living in a pandemic while trying to build a business was stressful enough, but now she also had to find a way to get out of a domestic violence situation. Once again, her son and her love for French soaps provided the courage and the inspiration to move forward. She wanted her son to see her as a strong woman, a mom who would do anything to protect herself and to protect him, and she wanted to use her love for French soaps to do it.

 

Averal is the product of the courage, vulnerability, and strength it took her to overcome this year. Instead of crumbling under the pain of having someone she loved dearly hurt her in an unimaginable way, she found strength in every scent she decided to put in her soaps, she found power in her vulnerability and in those small moments of self-care that were elevated just by using a high quality French soap that is not only soothing for the skin, but also has a beautiful scent that heightens the senses and allows for a time of tranquility and serenity.

 

The Averal soaps are made using the finest ingredients in the tradition of triple milled Marseille soaps. Olive oil and shea butter are two of the main ingredients in every soap, allowing for a moisturizing and hydrating experience with every bath. The classic aromas such as lavender, honey, or lemon verbena and the unique fragrances like Monoi, a unique blend of coconut oil and the natural essence of gardenias petals from Tahiti, make Averal soaps the perfect way to start every day or decompress at night.

 

As the world recovers from the pandemic with a renewed hope for the new year, Averal is not just a company of high quality French soaps, but a story of survival in the face of adversity, of staying strong, remembering your values, a story of self-care, of rising from the ashes and empowering not only yourself, but everyone around.

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