The Original Vanilla Bug Spray (VBS) – Review

I think we just might get to enjoy the outdoors yet. At last, a product that does not contain Deet or other harsh chemicals and it actually works and is safe for the whole family.

It’s called VBS Bug Spray. It started with The Original Vanilla Bug Spray. Then they made a few additional formula’s and scents and all three smell really good. 

A lady came up with this as a way to help with biting gnats for her granddaughters and it turned out to work for repelling all biting insects as well !  Now that’s a good accident. One thing led to another, and a wonderful product was born in Pekin, IL. 

We have been using these 3 for several weeks. They have really been working well for general activities that we do…ballgames, sitting on our porch in the evening, fireworks, parks and picnics, cookouts. We are outside a lot. But one thing we do frequently is camp.

We tried it out fishing and staying within the camping area. But I knew the true test would be the trails. We can get eaten alive in them, and have before. One time went 50′ in and came running out real fast.

When spraying the VBS, it’s more of a mist. So it doesn’t shoot, sputter or spit the product out. I found the mist better covered my body rather than the air around me. Which is precisely the whole point. At first I thought it was a touch greasy, but it just looks that way for a second. Then whether you rub it in or let it sit briefly, it just goes away and your skin is not greasy or sticky which was a dislike in other sprays I’ve used. It also does not stain your clothes.

The original Vanilla was the first created and works well as an overall repellent. Then came Cedar Wood for a more manly man woodsy scent. Cedar is a natural tick repellent so there’s a huge added bonus for this one. Then came Eucalyptus which is good for when the mosquito’s are really bad.

We purposely wore tanks and shorts for this experiment. One, it was very hot. Two, I’d usually wear pants and long sleeves to help with bugs. But I really wanted to see how it worked, so we threw ourselves in like raw meat to those little buggers. But first Ashlyn had to play in the water, since that’s where she is 99% of the time.

So we applied Vanilla first. The smell is A-Ma-ZING. It doesn’t hang around and it’s not overpowering, just smells really good.

Here we go, we are going in. At first, we kept swatting at the skeeters. We stopped for a second to adjust the backpack or take a photo and it dawned on me….I’m swatting them because they are close to me but….they are not actually landing on me. I think it’s just natural to swat.

Many times, you never stop moving, just keep walking because they are so bad you can’t stand it. But it was very tolerable to stop mid-trail. Keep in mind, I have seen the skeeters much worse than on this day, I’d say they were a medium peskiness on this particular day. Do you ever really call it a ‘good skeeter day’ in the woods. So although they were flying close, they were not on us and biting. Half way through, we did stop and apply the Eucalyptus one for bad mosquito’s and because we were sweating like crazy we wanted to reapply.

Trailing is one of our favorite things to do. We come up with fun treasure hunts. We walk them, jog them, take the dogs on them. Have a slight obstacle here from last weeks storm.

This is one of my most absolute favorite trails with these awesome tall tree’s.

Lake break in our afternoon journey. Since we were in wooded area’s, we did use the Cedar Wood spray to repel some of the wood related bugs like ticks and possibly spiders.

It must work, because when I used it in the last several weeks, we’ve not found any ticks on us or the dogs.

Also worth mentioning, after using these for a couple of weeks, the level of liquid is still at the top part of the bottle. So it doesn’t go fast. I can’t tell you how long it lasts since that will vary so much from person to person and their usage. But it does appear that it’s long lasting, which also means more bang for your buck.

More water, she loves everything to do with it. Loves fishing and playing in it.

Anyone who fishes knows how much bugs love a person sitting still. Oh they can be bad.

Do you want to know what one of my most favorite things about this product is? You can use it on your pets too !!!!  The same product for all of us is simply genius. Dogs are always laying in the grass and when we camp the bugs and gnats can be bad for them too. Sometimes they even want to go in the camper to get away from them.

I just love that they can enjoy outside more too when we spray them. (And then they smell good too). And the fine mist is an easier way to spray them.

I spray their body with it, then I will spray some in my hands, rub them together and sort of pet them around their face on their head, neck and ears.

Well, we made it out alive and lived to tell about it. Yay! We were in the trails for 1 1/2 hours and we each came out with 1 single skeeter bite. One !!  Instead of 52 !!  And mine was on my shoulder blade which was probably a spot that didn’t get sprayed well anyway.

After a very hot afternoon on the trails, we came home and jumped in the pool, clothes and all. This pool has been one of our smarter purchases.

Around us, the mosquito’s can be down right vicious in the evening. Between a fire, the VBS and hopefully a slight breeze, we can better enjoy our campfires and friends. And the kids can fully enjoy catching lightening bugs without getting eaten alive.

I highly recommend you give this stuff a try and enjoy your camping and outdoor activities bug free as well.

The 4 oz. size fits in your hand perfectly. Easy to bring with you anywhere in your purse, bag or pocket. I’ve tossed this in our backpack many times and I’ve not once had it leak. So that’s always a good thing.

These contain No Deet or harsh chemicals. Phthalate and paraben free. For those that know me, you know that I am the Queen of skin sensitivity. None of these bothered my skin at all.

So here’s the low down on how to get your hands on this stuff. 

Vanilla Bug Spray website. You can read about the company, contact them if you wish, find retail locations for purchasing, and it is also available online through their website. 

Make sure you follow their facebook page too !

Trust me, you definitely want to try this for your summer activities. Thank you to my friend who told me about this product, you know who you are.

Enjoy the outdoors bug and chemical free friends !!