Our Story

Life has given me somewhat of a career change. A trained medical doctor, I now create soaps using natural, locally sourced ingredients from my Yorkshire-based home.

As a doctor I was always interested in the medicinal properties of plants and vegetable oils, reading widely on their healing benefits and use, whilst also being an avid fan of handmade crafts, often found knitting and designing items from natural materials.

Frustrated by the unnecessary addition of harmful chemicals in skincare products I decided to combine my love of making things with my scientific knowledge to create soaps and oils that would benefit my own skin.

It was alchemy in the kitchen, a conventionally trained medical doctor let loose with nature’s raw ingredients. After several long months of exploring the right balance of ingredients and experimenting with wooden moulds to create bars that were just the right size, I finally produced my perfect soap: simple, long lasting, with a creamy lather that leaves the skin feeling clean, soft and not depleted of its own protective sebum.

My passion to create a range of traditional soaps, that avoided the use of unnecessary chemicals and needless plastic packaging, was now stronger than ever. With my recipe perfected I began sharing my soaps with friends and family.

At first it felt alien to me, but I began creating larger batches and suddenly found people asking how and where they could buy them. I was gently encouraged to take on a new challenge and set up my own small soap making business from home. Did I ever see myself making soaps, no, but then again every business has roots somewhere and looking back you can see Picobello was always a possibility. I hope you enjoy my soaps, whether for your own use or as a gift. Just remember, a soap is a soap, it has a simple job to do and all you have to do is find the right one for you.

Bettina

“I was looking for a nice facial soap to use. It is gorgeous and my partner commented yesterday how well my skin looks.” Fiona, Cornwall