There are many soaps on the market today available to us, the consumer.

Many products claiming to be ‘soap’ are mass manufactured and are actually heavily processed synthetic detergents (or syndet bars) made from crude petroleum, ethylene oxide, and sulfuric acid, converting animal fats (beef tallow and pork lard) into alcohols. The final product is a chemical based foaming formula with SLS . that irritates the skin, causes acne, eczema, and other skin problems, far from being natural and it is not soap.

Other soaps, usually called “fresh&natural”, contain artificial perfumes, synthetic fillers and preservatives (parabens). There are some with natural and artificial scents combined, some with antibacterial properties through the use of chemicals and some have added “moisturizers” to replace the removed glycerine.

What is actually a real natural soap?

True soap is made from natural oils (such as olive, coconut and palm) and is a gentle cleansing product more appropriate for use on skin than the detergents.

Soaps, unlike detergents, are made by combining sodium hydroxide or lye, oils and water in a process known as “Saponification”. Some people may question the use of lye in handcrafted soap. The fact is that all soap is made with lye.

What needs to be made clear is that once the process of saponification is complete, the lye and oil molecules have combined and chemically changed into soap and glycerin. There is no lye present in the finished bars of soap.

The vegetable oils in natural soaps (just as LaSoy soaps are) are selectively chosen for a specific purpose. The coconut oil creates a wonderful lather, olive oil is used for a high quality, long lasting bar. Palm oil and Shea butter carry nutrients to the skin.

Glycerin is a skin soothing emollient that adds to the goodness of handmade soap. In commercial soaps the glycerin is removed for sale to the cosmetic industry to sell separately, sometimes at a higher price than the soap itself! Glycerin is important to skin care because it is a humectant.

Humectants draw moisture from the air, which in turn moisturize your skin. A whole 1/5 of a bar of our soap is glycerin.

The scents in natural soaps come from essential oils, which are steamed or pressed from plants. Essential oils are the fragrance emitting components – they smell good and have many beneficial effects on the body, mind and spirit.