No they do not, for two reasons. First, petroleum - based ingredients adversely affect my soap recipes. Second, I have found that people with sensitive skin are sensitive to petroleum- based products, perfumes and dyes. Since my goal is to make soap soothing for sensitive skin, I will not use any of those ingredients.
I try to create a new scent at least once a year, but it really happens whenever I'm inspired.
Have you found your soaps to be helpful with scalp conditions? I am already using the most powerful prescription dermasmooth oil, shampoo and antifungal moose that is available on the market. Do you think your soap could help me? I am willing to try anyth
My soaps will, indeed, help your scalp condition. You use it just like soap. Wet your hair, lather with the bar, rinse, repeat.
My brochure has complete instructions and recommendations for use as shampoo, as well as suggestions for rinses.
I recommend Prairie Sage or Fresh Meadow soap for your condition.
I truly believe that you can use my soaps, feel much better and forgo the medicines that you are currently using. Try it!
In the 20+ years that I have been making soap, I have not received a single complaint. The reason I make soap is to help people with extremely sensitive skin. My customers with distressed skin find relief with my soap.
If what you are using works for you, and you are happy with it, you shouldn't change. I make soap for people who are not happy with what they are using. Many of my customers have serious skin problems. They have tried many other soaps, creams, or ointments to no avail, but find that my soap alleviates their skin problems.
No. The scent and color will fade with age, but this does not affect the quality of the soap. In fact, the soap will last longer if allowed to age (dry and harden). The scent will return when the bar is wetted for use.
That all depends upon how old it is at the time of purchase. A fresh bar of soap is soft enough that you can make a dent in it with your finger. At that time it contains more water than if it is allowed to age, dry and harden. The longer you allow my soap to dry before initial use, the longer it will last. However, that also makes the scent less apparent. The scent will return when the bar is wetted for use. If you allow the soap to dry, a complexion bar can last up to a year! Of course, soap used in the shower by multiple people will consume faster.
To increase the life of your soap, never allow soap to sit in a soap dish where shower water can hit it. Use a soap dish with ridges so the soap is not in contact with the water and can dry between showers.
My soap will last longest if it is allowed to age, dry, and become hard. Never store soap in plastic or airtight containers- it cannot dry this way. Store soap in a box, in brown paper, or on a shelf with your towels to make them smell nice. Direct sunlight will fade the color of the soap, but will not affect its quality.
My bath salts are a mixture of scent, baking soda, cornstarch, and citric acid. They are used to scent and soften hard bath water. Soft water dissolves soap better; keeping your skin from feeling dried out, and creates better lather. The baking soda helps prevent itchy skin. Bath salts scent the room, your bath and you! They also prevent bathtub ring.
I produce soap in three sizes: a three and a half-ounce bar, a four-ounce heart, and a half-ounce mini heart. Since my bars are hand cut, their size varies individually and with age. The image below gives approximate dimensions of my soaps.
Most commercial soap is actually detergent. If you wash with a detergent bar of soap your natural body oils are removed. This is why when you use a commercial soap you leave the shower or bath feeling dry, your skin is tight, and you feel the need for lotion. Detergent soaps are made from synthetic chemicals produced in a lab, usually from petroleum products. Non-detergent soaps are made from naturally- occurring ingredients such as animal fats, vegetable fats and lye.
Non-detergent soaps like mine leave your natural body oils in place while removing daily soil and odor. Your body produces oils to shield you from invading bacteria. When you wash with a true soap, these oils remain in place to keep your skin healthy and supple.
Commercial soap from the store is often detergent, not true soap. See the question: "What's the difference between soap and detergent?" for an explanation of the difference between soap and detergent.
Glycerine is a natural byproduct of good soap making. When saponification ( the name for the chemical reaction that takes place when soap is made ) occurs, glycerine and crude soap are formed in the bowl. If the soap is kept warm for at least three days, the glycerine remains a part of the soap. If soap is allowed to cool quickly, the glycerine separates and floats to the top.
When I make my soaps, I keep it warm for three days, before allowing it to cool and then cure for a period of three weeks, before cutting it. Glycerine is therefore an integral part of my soaps, making it very good for your skin. True soaps do not remove your natural body oils when you use them. They will leave your skin feeling moist and supple, healthy.
Most commercial soaps are not true soaps, but detergents. They remove your natural body oils, leaving you feel dry and itchy, and the need for lotions.
Lye is used to make soap, but soaps do not contain active lye. All soap requires an alkali (such as sodium hydroxide, aka lye) to chemically react with a fat (I use both olive oil and beef tallow) to produce soap and glycerine. This chemical reaction is called saponification. Potassium hydroxide (potash) is another alkali used to make soap. However, potassium hydroxide will yield liquid soap rather than solid soap (bars).
It is a popular misconception that soap contains lye. During saponification, lye molecules (sodium hydroxide, or NaOH) break apart into sodium (NA) ions and hydroxide (OH) ions. The sodium becomes part of the soap molecule and the hydroxide ions become part of the glycerine once saponification is complete.
All of my soaps contain the following saponified oils and natural ingredients:
Olive oil, an emollient
Coconut oil for lather (except castle soap)
Beef tallow as a base
Organic oils for scent (no perfumes)
Vitamin E, Nature's deodorant
Castor oil, to help prevent bathtub ring
Food coloring (no dyes)
