Product reviews.

[william k]

Hi all,
I recently wanted to branch out to try new products to see if there was one or two or more that would fit my needs better than what I am curently using and found this link very helpful.
http://www.massageplanet.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3519
I ordered (or tried to order) free samples from each of the sites listed on there, and I wanted to give some feedback about what I tried, liked, didn't like and why.

First the Biofreeze. I love Biofreeze. We used it in school, and I use it in my practice now. I was unaware that the company would give us sample packs with info brochures to give to the clients until I saw that link above. I ordered the sample kit and got the 36 brochures with 2 samples of biofreeze attached to it, a 4oz bottle of the spray, and the same size of the gel. I didn't ask for the roll on because of hygenic reasons.
My clients love the fact that they can sample the biofreeze in session (I use it on them) and they can sample it at home on their own. It helps encourage them to think about buying some for self care.
I like to use the biofreeze to calm areas of inflamation down after we work them durring the session. It soaks in great, it blends with any cream or oil (I use unscented fx cream and a blend of oils in session and apply biofreeze after), and I have not had anyone have a reaction from it.

Prosage Heat is a wonderful lubricant to use for very deep specific work. The Pain management with the Masters DVD was very informative, and helped me understand how to use the Prosage effectivly.
It does have a bit of a funky odor, kind of "medicated". But it is a very effective tool. I have used it on a few clients and it allowed me to warm the tissue with very little friction, therfore allowing me to access the deeper tissues with much less force. And a little goes quite a long way. You don't need much as it is not meant to use as a broad lubricant. It too mixes well with other lubricants with no adverse reactions.

Sombraman, thank you so much for such a quick response. I got the product within a few days of talking with you.
Sombra sent me 6 samples! More than any other co did. I recieved
2oz of the Cool Therapy pain relieving Gel,
2oz of the Natural pain relieving Gel (2 different products the first with a much higher concentration of menthol)
1oz of the natural massage creme,
1oz of the natural gel oil,
1oz of the therapeutic lotion
and 2oz of the instant antibacterial hand sanitizer.

I have not used ALL of the products yet, but here is some info on what I have used.
Natural Massage Creme: The cream is very light and does as it says on the bottle liquify very easily. It has a very faint hint of fragrence I can't put my finger on what it is exactly in the product but it smells lemony to me. Very lovley. It is very versital. I could see using it in swedish as well as other deeper methods. It does last quite a long time, but I feel it does leave some residue. I tried adjusting to see if less would give me the same glide, but for the techniques I use I needed a bit more, which left the client a lil greasy. Nothing more than an oil would, just not like some other creams I used. Overall I was quite satisfied with this product.

Natural Pain Relieving Gel: I made the mistake of using this as a broadly applied product on a client at first. oops! I think it is meant to be used as site specific. The client felt tingley all over his back, and my eyes were watering! I did use it again after that on a different client, with a more area specific use. It has a creamy texture, and soaks in nicley. The product is very fragrant! It reminds me of Vicks Vapo rub. The smell lingers a bit, but does subside after a while. Thumbs up again.

Cool Therapy: Again, very fragrant. It clears the sinuses very well LOL! The smell goes away similarly to the previous product. Again a very creamy texture, but it gets a little more watery when applied. It soaks in well, but leaves a slight tackiness to the skin. The effects are cool (pun intended) It leaves the skin feeling cold for quite a while after the product has soaked in. It mixes well with other sombra products. It does not mix well with other creams. Smells yucky. I enjoy this product.

Instant Anti-bacterial Hand Sanitizer: When I have used other hand sanitizers after working on a client, the mixture of cream and sanitizer created a bad smell. Not the case with this one. Plus it is not as drying as some I have used. A+ in my book!
I was glad that I did not have to ask for the list of ingredients for each product. Sombra sent a brochure with a discription of each product, what it is used for, and its ingredients along with the products. Very helpful.
I will update when I have tried the others by sombra.

Muse Massage sent me 3 products to test. Versatility (a cream), Liquidity (a lotion), and Inflammation Relif (a site specific oil). All were very small sample sizes, maybe .5oz.
Versatility: It is an unscented cream. It liquifies on contact with body heat, and it soaks in well. Almost too well. A couple of strokes and I felt like I needed to apply more. The sample size they sent was not enough for a full body massage. I ended up using the next product on the arms and hands.
Liquidity: This product is a lotion. Again it is unscented, and does not go a long way. It reminds me of hand lotion, it just soaks right in! I kept having to re-apply. These products may be better for smaller areas, or working in targeted areas rather than long broad all over strokes. It is not good for applying and the returning to an area a few minutes later to work on it.
These products also may be very versital with EO combos as neither of the two have any scent at all.
Inflammation Relif oil: I used this product on myself, and I enjoyed it a lot. The product is designed to reduce pain, swelling, and stiffness. The scent is citrusy, and very wonderful. It does give some pain relif, without smelling medicinal, or giving too much sensation of heat, or cold. Out of all of the 3 products, I would maybe order this one. I am also interested in their EO line, but there are no samples avaliable of them.
This company also sent a brochure with a list of ingredients.

Well That's all for now. I have other products to try from Sombra, and Soothing touch. I will let you know how that goes soon.
The rest of the product lines require you to pay some sort of fee for shipping, and I opted out of that for now, although I don't think paying 5 or 6 dollars is totally unreasonable.

 

[Nyx]

Thanks for your reviews, keep them coming!

 

[pjamies]

Versa Creme

Ok all,
Today I a product from Soothing Touch called Versa Creme. I really liked it! It is a VERY stiff, very light weight cream. It reminds me of whipped cream cheese with the density, but much more stiff (if that makes sense?). It has a very faint smell of Eucalyptus which I like, it's refreshing. It takes a little more manipulation to emulsify than other creams I have used, but the workability is wonderful. I applied the creme on the back in broad swedish strokes, and worked in focused areas with little re-application.
The product is paraben free, made in the USA, does not test on animals and bosts that it is "nonionic."
"Being nonionic the skin's own acid mantel is both preserved and encouraged to enhance youthful skin "respiratio.' Because the creme is nonionic it is an ideal carrier for desirable ingredients such as herbal extracts."
"A nonionic creme is neither acid nor alkaline. It is protectivly neutral. Therevore, pH sensitive additives are not compromised by aneforum.xxxonistic, hostile environments that negate the value and benifits for the skin."

Overall I really liked this product! This product came with some others I haven't had the chance to try yet, and a catalog with all of their other products as well. I only wish they had sent more samples!

 

[bookseller]

Anyone else???

I wanted to start this thread so that we can all be informed about different product lines. I know that all the reviews are subjective, but I think it can give us all a great advaneforum.xxxe to see what other therapists have experienced before we decide to purchase the product.

I got this idea from Breathe's great reviews on Accucups.
http://www.massageplanet.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=11021&highlight=cupping
I found them very informative, and eventhough I don't practice cupping, I would vote to stay away from that particular line because of the things she mentioned.

I would really love to see if there is anyone else out there that uses (or has used and didn't like) different products, and could give some really great discriptions on them. I am always looking for new and better products, and I would like to know what not to waste my money on.
I am sure there are more of you out there that feel the same as well, so please add your reviews here!

And if there are any product reviews that you have posted previously, put the link up in this so we can all view it!

 

[danielle w]

More reviews

I read PremoMT's post on Breathe's great review on Accucups and the "vote to stay away from that particular line because of the things she mentioned" - what I didn't see noted is the comparison she did between the Acucups line and a similar set from a company in Seattle called Earthspa.

About halfway down that page she reviews the Baguanfa Rubber set and she reports that these cups do not yield the same negative results as the Acucups. I have both of the sets as well, and concur with Breathe's findings - the Baguanfa Rubber cups are superior, easy to use and my clients adore them. She provides a thorough description of these cups and another wonderful set too.

Also the company that sells them (and other nifty cupping sets) also do Cupping Workshops that show you how to use the different cups to do Deep Tissue work, Myofascial Release, Trigger Point work, Biomagnetic Reflexology, Sports Injury Treatment, Abdominal Massage, and the best Lymphatic Drainage you can ever imagine, other treatments as well - but you can see more about that on their website. I took the workshop over a year ago and was highly impressed.

Best regards,

Renee

 

[Binkster]

Tank you! Great info!

 

[A Chap]

Thank you for chiming in rtallman! We appreciate the imput you have given us!

I have another review to dish out on another lubricant from Sombra. It's on their Natural Gel Oil. It's a "No drip oil for multiple modalities." And it's not my cup of tea.
The consistancy is very odd. It's exactly what it says a gel that doesn't drip. It doesn't take much work to liquify and it soaks in relitivly well for an "oil".
It has a very light fragrence. It's barley noticible, and not offensive.
I used it on the back (do you see a commonality here? LOL) and it innitally went on very niceley. I was conservative with the amount because usually oil goes a long way, but I did have to reapply after a short time. It seems like the consistancy became less slippery, and more sticky. Not sticky like "gummy your hand stays attached to their skin", but sticky like the kind of consistancy that would be good for deeper work. I could move the skin over the muscle tissue underneath very easily. I tried to use my forearm (which had no product on it) on an area that had product, and it was like I was working with no product at all. I went back to using my hands, and I could slide well. t102

In easier terms, it had more grip than slip. If I wanted more slip, I would have to apply more product. Too weird for my taste.

 

[Calamitty]

Sombramans response

Hi all, just wanted to post this from Sombraman (he just PM'd me)

Thank you for the reviews. We actually reformulated it [the gel oil] three times. It helps if it is heated-up, or if it combined with the creme. Have you tried the creme, yet? This I think is the best out of the three massage products, and a little bit does go a long way. It was tough formulating these products because we did it with all-natural ingredients with no preservatives. In terms of the analgesics, the original 'Warm therapy' is best for chronic conditions, especially arthritis and fibromyalgia, as well as types of neuropathy and basic aches and pains. It is best if used post-massage or point therapy. The 'Cool Therapy' is good for acute injuries, or injuries that have just occurred. I get regular massages and I always bring the 5 gram Sombra samples because the therapist likes to give it to her clients. If you like the analgesic and maybe want to have some for your clients to try, send me an email to jeff@sombrausa.com.

An FYI, if you want to test the sombra products I have listed (which I highley suggest you do even if you are satisfied with your current line of product) talk to Jeff ASAP! They are going to start charging for the samples. (a minimal 6 dollars, but free is always better!!!)
Enjoy!

 

[Alexia]

more products~

I got a few more product lines this week. (it was like it was my birthday! ) And I had the chance to try a few more in my treatments, and outside of treatments.
The first product line I got was Myo-Ther http://www.myo-ther.com. It's a product line out of Canada. I recieved large 4oz sample sizes of their massage lotion, myo-ther advaneforum.xxxe, myo-ther essential natural massage gel, myo-ther genie plus table cleaner, 2oz myo-ther n-zyme cleaning solution, and IC gel (a hand sanatizer).
So far I have tried the cleaning products and the essential natural massage gel.
The Natural massage gel I liked. Although it says it is a gel, it is a liquid. Oil consistancy, but thicker. It did not glide quite as well as oil, but it did absorb better. It gave me a good amount of workability too. It is unscented, contains no parabens and alcohols, and is good for sensitive skin. Thumbs up.
I was so excited when I got the Genie Plus, I used it immediatly on my chair and table and bolsters LOL! It works great to remove oily hand prints and dirt and makeup. But I have used thieves cleaner and that works just as well IMO. so t102 whichever is cheaper? I am not too sure about the ingredients in the genie plus either.
I used the N-zyme in 2 different loads of laundry, and it released a lot of built up oil out of my sheets. It has no real scent, and is just made to use as a booster to your detergent. It says it can be used multiple ways including as a surface cleaner or spot treatment. I think it is a good product as I have not found something else that releases oil well.
I have not yet tried the other Myo-ther products, but will post when I do.

The next product line I recieved was santa barbara massage creams. They can be found on the website http://www.realbodywork.com
I love these creams!!!! LOVE LOVE LOVE em. They sent me four 1oz jars of ylang ylang orange, eucalyptus, lavander, and clary sage lavender. They also have a unscented cream as well.
When I opened one up, I was surprised to see that it was not "creamy" at all. It was not white like other creams I know of. It is solid, and when manipulated it liquifies. It reminds me of chapstick. I think that because it is made from olive oil, bees wax, coconut oil and EO's.
When it liquifies it is the best consistancy, gives good slip and great grip. I used the lavander in a swedish session, and had no problem doing wonderful gliding strokes. I also did some TrP work and could access the deep muscle tissue with no problems. The scents are wonderful. Not overpowering or fake.
I have not used the other scents yet, but I intend to, and I hope I have the same great luck with them.

I want all of you to know that all of the samples I have mentioned I have gotten free. It has given me a great oppertunity to explore my methods, and modalities, and given me the oppertunity to find out what works for me without spending a bunch of money on products only to throw them away.
I have not really gotten into price or ingredient lists with these products, so that will be my next venture.

I just recieved some samples from Sacred Earth Botanicals and I cant wait to keep testing everything out. Anyone else have remarks on the Sacred Earth Botanicals? I know some of you use them here.

 

[Mummy N Daughter <3]

PremoMT, thanks for starting this thread! It's really great.

I would like to ask that you perhaps make your entries easier to read? Especially if this thread gets longer, which I hope it does, it will be useful to be able to single out the product names by using bold or underlining or something. I will demonstrate below, and maybe you could do something similar. ??

Sacred Earth Botanicals -- I recieved numerous samples from this company! After asking vaguely for "samples," I recieved in the mail 3 packs of samples, each containing 1oz of cream, 1 oz lotion, 1 oz oil, and a whole tube of lip balm. That's THREE lip balms. Woohoo!

SEB Cream - This is the product I was most satisfied with. It is unscented, but has a faint "foody" smell which is pleasant. It has the "workability of a cream, with the glide of an oil!" haha. It is something I could easily use for both swedish and deep tissue. I also use it as a moisturizer on my hands. I love the ingredients. This will be my cream of choice when my Soothing Touch Balancing Cream runs out.

SEB Lotion - I also like the lotion. But I don't see anything particularly necessary about it. Right now I do so much swedish and relaxation massage, that I don't think I need a whole bottle. I would probably only use it on the feet. If I got a lot more deep tissue clients (like real, connective tissue work) then I might get some more of this and use it for that. It absorbs pretty quickly and is not greasy..but does have a little glide. Also has a great "foody" neutral scent. I don't know how to describe it. Not like cookies or anything, just not completely scentless. It has Tamanu oil in it, which I have heard is really great.

SEB Oil - Out of all the products, this is the one I have the most mixed feelings about. It is a phenomenal oil blend. Not greasy, but VERY moisturizing. Maybe the olive oil? I've been using it on myself when I get out of the shower. BUT - I don't intend to use it on my clients because it has nothing in it to help it wash out of sheets. I know they are trying to be all organic and that would maybe take it out of the "Certified" category. But I cannot find any--even partially--organic oil anywhere that says it washes easily out of sheets, or has a water dispersant in it. I want to use organic oils on my clients, but I don't want to sacrifice my sheets to do it. Ruining the sheets creates a lot higher price than just the increased price of organic oils. I plan on writing them about this.

Currently, my favorite oil is Soothing Touch Fragrance Free Lite which can be purchased at bodyworkmall.com for about $36 with free shipping. The texture isn't as luxurious as the SEB oil, but it's still pretty good, the ingredients are decent, and it washes easily out of my sheets--even when I use a ton of it for an Ayurvedic Treatment.

Oh yeah, the Sacred Earth Botanicals Lip Balm - I wanted to love this, but I think it has too much beeswax in it. I like mushy, easy to apply lip balm. But when I put this on sometimes I need to smear it over my lips 3, 4, 5, 6 times. Ug. At a lunch or some public engagement, this can become weird. Also, I don't like the spearmint flavor they gave me. I still plan on trying the lavender/ora

 

[Captain Obvious]

PremoMT, thanks for starting this thread! It's really great.

I would like to ask that you perhaps make your entries easier to read? Especially if this thread gets longer, which I hope it does, it will be useful to be able to single out the product names by using bold or underlining or something. I will demonstrate below, and maybe you and others who follow could do something similar. ??

Sacred Earth Botanicals -- I recieved numerous samples from this company! After asking vaguely for "samples," I recieved in the mail 3 packs of samples, each containing 1oz of cream, 1 oz lotion, 1 oz oil, and a whole tube of lip balm. That's THREE lip balms. Woohoo!

SEB Cream - This is the product I was most satisfied with. It is unscented, but has a faint "foody" smell which is pleasant. It has the "workability of a cream, with the glide of an oil!" haha. It is something I could easily use for both swedish and deep tissue. I also use it as a moisturizer on my hands. I love the ingredients. This will be my cream of choice when my Soothing Touch Balancing Cream runs out.

SEB Lotion - I also like the lotion. But I don't see anything particularly necessary about it. Right now I do so much swedish and relaxation massage, that I don't think I need a whole bottle. I would probably only use it on the feet. If I got a lot more deep tissue clients (like real, connective tissue work) then I might get some more of this and use it for that. It absorbs pretty quickly and is not greasy..but does have a little glide. Also has a great "foody" neutral scent. I don't know how to describe it. Not like cookies or anything, just not completely scentless. It has Tamanu oil in it, which I have heard is really great.

SEB Oil - Out of all the products, this is the one I have the most mixed feelings about. It is a phenomenal oil blend. Not greasy, but VERY moisturizing. Maybe the olive oil? I've been using it on myself when I get out of the shower. BUT - I don't intend to use it on my clients because it has nothing in it to help it wash out of sheets. I know they are trying to be all organic and that would maybe take it out of the "Certified" category. But I cannot find any--even partially--organic oil anywhere that says it washes easily out of sheets, or has a water dispersant in it. I want to use organic oils on my clients, but I don't want to sacrifice my sheets to do it. Ruining the sheets creates a lot higher price than just the increased price of organic oils. I plan on writing them about this.

Currently, my favorite oil is Soothing Touch Fragrance Free Lite which can be purchased at bodyworkmall.com for about $36 for a gallon with free shipping. The texture isn't as luxurious as the SEB oil, but it's still pretty good, the ingredients are decent, and it washes easily out of my sheets--even when I use a ton of it for an Ayurvedic Treatment.

Oh yeah, the Sacred Earth Botanicals Lip Balm - I wanted to love this, but I think it has too much beeswax in it. I like mushy, easy to apply lip balm. But when I put this on sometimes I need to smear it over my lips 3, 4, 5, 6 times. Ug. At a lunch or some public engagement, this can become weird. Also, I don't like the spearmint flavor they gave me. I still plan on trying the lavender/orange to give it another shot, but not my favorite lip balm. Wanted to love it, though!

 

[Brian A]

Oh yeah, the Sacred Earth Botanicals Lip Balm - I wanted to love this, but I think it has too much beeswax in it. I like mushy, easy to apply lip balm. But when I put this on sometimes I need to smear it over my lips 3, 4, 5, 6 times. Ug. At a lunch or some public engagement, this can become weird. Also, I don't like the spearmint flavor they gave me. I still plan on trying the lavender/orange to give it another shot, but not my favorite lip balm. Wanted to love it, though!

We have a lip balm that had a similar problem, too hard to apply. We started to carry it in our pocket to keep it warm, goes on like a dream. You might want to try that. The lavender/orange sounds interesting.

 

[kylelovesrootbeer]

The SEB Lavander Orange is.... Interesting. I agree that keeping it somewhere close to the body helps. The flavor is.... well interesting. I am just not sure about the taste of lavander. Smells great, but on the mouth is not really where I would think to put it.
Thanks for the idea about making the post easier to read. I agree now that I have looked it over a few times. I will do so in the future!
Keep em comming!!!!!

 

[Alexandra M]

Well, I tried some more of the Sacred Earth Botanicals Products recently, and although they come with strong recomendations, I have to say I wasn't thrilled with them.

First, the SEB Vegan Massage Cream I think it was the scent that turned me off right away. It is not my cup of tea, it smells very floral, and forgive me, but old lady-ish. It didn't liquify quick enough, and when it did it soaked in too quickly.

The SEM Organic Massage Oil Blend was average. It gives a great glide, and I enjoy the fact that it is organic. Leaves no heavy residue, and doesn't have a scent.

The SEB Vegan Massage Lotion Again, it has a funky smell. It is better than other lotions I have used. It lasts a bit longer than most, but I don't think it would be apropriate to use in a full body treatment.