Mary Ernst will never again buy a �detergent bar.� That�s the term she�s coined for the name-brand soaps that fill the aisles at your local supermarket or discount store.

An obstetrical nurse by trade, Ernst prefers nature-based soaps, which she says are better for skin of all types and all ages. And she�s so convinced that nature-based is the product of the future that she�s gone into business for herself, running Earth Maiden Soap and Sundries out of her James Island home.

�It�s a hobby gone out of control,� Ernst says.

Ernst started the business several years ago with the help of her husband, Ron, an attorney. Together, they grow herbs and flowers in their backyard garden, then at night and on weekends, craft handmade soaps and scrubs in their kitchen.

�Our soaps are all made with plant-based oils and natural ingredients, using lots of herbs and flowers from our garden,� Mary Ernst said. �I�d been a nurse for 28 years and had always been interested in baby and mother massage and aromatherapy. I really liked good soap products, but I found myself going into some stores and coming out with a headache�.the synthetic fragrances were offensive to me.�

Now the couple produces 25 varieties of soap, made with ingredients such as carrot-seed oil (�really good for replenishing skin cells�) and lavender (�always popular as a calming oil.�) And Mary Ernst says if people switch from a mass-produced �detergent bar� to a nature-based product --- any kind, not necessarily hers --- that they will never go back.

The desire for nature-based products is not new, but a return to the past, according to Amy Barone, writing in �Global Cosmetic Industry.�

�Botanicals, herbs, and other natural ingredients supplied health and beauty products for centuries. The advent of the Industrial Age replaced these with synthetically manufactured goods in developed countries. Now with the dawn of the Cyber Age, traditional beauty treatments are making a comeback,� Barone said.

Of course, the demand for nature-based products is not limited to beauty treatments and cosmetics; that�s only the beginning. From organic foods to hand-made furnishings, today�s consumers want everything �au naturel.� And they can find it all in South Carolina, a state blessed by rich natural resources and inhabited by people who love them. While it�s impossible to list every producer of nature-based products in South Carolina, here�s an overview to show the wide range of items that are available.

One must-see for anyone interested in natural products is EMERALD FARM, located in Greenwood. Here, owners Kathryn and Paul Zahn care for 25 Saanen goats on their farm, and those 25 goats are prolific, producing enough milk for cheese, yogurt, ice cream and hand-made soap. The Zahns also run a natural food store, with homegrown herbs, organic fruits and nuts, herbal teas, five flavors of goat-milk fudge, and goat-milk soap, which they ship internationally.

The Zahns got into the business accidentally when their son received a single goat as a gift. They eventually bought more goats to keep him company, and soon found out that the Saanen goat is a particularly productive milk machine sometimes turning out two quarts each day. The Zahns needed something to do with all that milk, so in 1987, they found a Swiss soap recipe and began producing it with goat�s milk. The venture has grown into a major business that attracts travelers from all over the Southeast and Internet orders from all over the world.

Not far away, Clemson University is best known for its academics and football team, but the school also is in the natural foods business with its UNIQUELY CLEMSON shop, an agricultural sales center on the Upstate campus. There, visitors can purchase the nationally renowned Clemson blue cheese, along with ice cream and other fresh dairy products.

The charming town of Easley is proud of its GOLDEN CREEK MILL, a piece of living history that demonstrates each day how 19th-century mills provided cornmeal, grits and flour for early American communities. A mill from 1825 has been restored and is fully operational, providing products for a country store that stocks natural Amish food products, as well. With an appointment, visitors can tour the mill and watch the cornmeal, grits and flour being made.

Pancake and waffle lovers will want to stock up on PURE OLD-FASHION SUGARCANE SYRUP produced in St. Matthews. Syrup has its American origins in the South, where Jesuit missionaries brought sugar cane to Louisiana, and plantations soon planted their own cane patches to provide both sugar and syrup for the households. The syrup today is made like it was then: by boiling and evaporating the water from pure cane junice, then skimming until it reaches the desired thickness and clarity. There are no added ingredients to the nature-made syrup.

In a home where nature-based products fill the bathroom cabinets and kitchen pantry, you�ll also want a variety of natural home furnishings and utensils. THE BROOM PLACE in Kershaw County sells handmade brooms and mops that are as beautiful as they are functional. Owner Susan Simpson has been making brooms for 30 years and runs her shop in a former slave cabin that is on the National Register of Historic Places. While brooms are the majority of Simpson�s business, she also carries handmade wooden toys and crafts. The famous sweetgrass baskets of the South Carolina Lowcountry are another natural home furnishing that are as useful as they are beautiful. From the Market in downtown Charleston to roadside stands in suburban Mount Pleasant, African-American women weave intricate baskets from marsh grass and Palmetto fronds. The baskets are lovely enough to be displayed as art, but functional, too --- they can be used to hold fruit, food or knicknacks, and because they are made of marsh grass, they can be safely washed in water.

Sweetgrass basketry is one of the oldest crafts of African origin in America, dating back to the time of slavery. The baskets can take days or even weeks to weave, depending on the size and intricacy, and prices vary accordingly. They are available for sale in the Charleston area at specialty shops and at roadside stands; on the Internet, at www.charleston.net., or in Columbia, at the South Carolina State Museum gift shop.

Finally, what�s more natural than the famous Pawley�s Island Hammock, which has been poorly replicated all across the nation, but thankfully is still available in its classic, enduring style at THE ORIGINAL HAMMOCK SHOP on Pawley�s Island and at other specialty shops across South Carolina. The hammock of woven white rope is said to have been created by Joshua John Ward, a South Carolina riverboat captain who braided rope to create a comfortable napping spot on his boat.

HOW TO REACH THEM:

Earth Maiden Soap and Sundries, Mary and Ron Ernst. Products available at the South Carolina Artisans Center in Walterboro, at the Charleston Farmers Market and over the Internet at www.earthmaidenonline.com.

Emerald Farm, 409 Emerald Farm Road, Greenwood. (864) 223-2247 or www.emeraldfarm.com.

Golden Creek Mills, 201 Enon Church Road, Easley. (864) 859-1958.

The Broom Place, 82 Boykin Mill Road, Rembert. (803) 425-0933.

The Original Hammock Shop, 10880 Ocean Hwy., Pawleys Island, (843) 237-9122; www.hammockshop.com

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Melissa Williams +1 803-734-0193 mwilliams@scprt.com