Major revisions to the website are in the works. New categories, new listings, a lot of confusing things gone. I hope it gives a cleaner, easier user experience. Please give us feedback so we know how we are doing. We want to make it easy for you to use the site and enjoy our products. Thanks for your loyalty through the years. Bob and Bonnie

Summer season is just around the corner.  We are stocking up and filling the drying racks with our beautiful handmade soap.  New for this year: Coconut! Yes, the smell of the tropics in our luxurious bath and body bar.  You will love it.  Strawberry Kiwi is back for a limited summer engagement.  Fresh fruit enhances its appeal, so be sure to get a bar.  Creamy Calendula combines Shea Butter, Avocado and Olive oils in a no-fragrance bar that you will love.  Stop by the shop and take a look.

A new dermatology clinic appeared in our backyard not too long ago. We often hear about dermatologists at our Farm Market stall where we well soap all summer. People with dry, itchy skin, red rashes and the like often ask if our soap might help them. Then the wife will turn to her husband and say,

“John! You know the dermatologist said we should only use (factory made soap, rhymes with Love).”

So now we were going to have one in the neighborhood.

Well, last summer Bonnie’s cousin, Barbara, stopped in and showed us a white, scaly rash she had suffered with for many years. She wears support hose and this rash was underneath the hosiery. We gave her a bar of soap and said “Try it, see what happens”. Well, she came back in a month with a big smile on her face and said

“Look, (showing a bare leg) It’s almost all gone.”

The rash that is. Well, guess which dermatologist she goes to? Yep, right in our backyard. So last week, she went in for her annual checkup and the doctor took one look and said

“What have you been doing for your leg? It looks amazing.”
“Using my cousin’s good soap, that’s what.”
“Does your cousin have a soap business on the other side of the block from me?”
“Yep, that’s the one.”

So a couple weeks ago the Doctor appeared at our soap stall, stood around observing customers, asking questions and then bought a bar of soap. Several days ago, her assistant called :

“The Doctor is doing a seminar on skin care and would like sixty samples of your soap and any literature you can provide.  Would you do that for us?”

“Yes we can”   And so we did.

Annie showed me her hands. They were cracked, red, dry and deeply fissured in the palms. “Would your soap help my hands? They have been like this since I left school. They really hurt.” Blonde hair, light blue eyes, fair skin. She was a prime candidate for chemical sensitivity.

“Have you seen a Dermatologist about this?” I asked.

“Yes, and she says I have sensitive skin. I have been using some special soap, but it doesn’t seem to help. Anything I use is irritating.”

“Your problem may be the chemicals in commercial soap,”. “Try this,” I said, handing her bar of natural soap. “No synthetic detergents, no preservatives, nothing to irritate. Even your ‘soap for sensitive skin’ can have those things in it. Use just this for a week or two and see what happens. Then come back and let me know.” She bought a bar and promised to try it.

Annie is not alone. I have been making and selling natural soap for ten years. In that time, I have talked to many people with the same problem. Now it is true, there are skin diseases and conditions that need professional help. If you have skin problems, check them out. However, you might want to try a good natural soap first.

Why try natural soap?

Two of the most common chemicals used in commercial soap making are Sodium Laurel Sulfate (SLS) and Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES). You will find them in soap, shower gels, shampoo, garage floor cleaner, car wash detergent and other industrial cleaners. SLS and SLES are corrosive chemicals. They are also potent skin irritants.

They are like a school of molecular piranhas that love to eat grease, oil and fat. For degreasing things like dirty engines, garage floors and oil tankers, they are marvelous. Great for greasy stuff, but not so great for your skin.

How is natural soap different?

Natural soap made with vegetable oils is a very different product. Instead of aggressive oil eating behavior, it is gentle.

The molecules of natural soap are unique. Sort of like a baton with a knob on each end. One end attracts water; the other end attracts greasy dirt. When we scrub our hands with natural soap two things happen. First, scrubbing dislodges dirt. Second, the soap molecules attach one end to the greasy dirt, and the other is attracted to water. When you rinse off, the soap and dirt wash away with the water.

What is wrong with SLS and SLES?-

The problem with them is they are too good at what they do. Remember the ‘school of piranhas’ idea? The theory is that if you just use a few piranhas and wash those off right away, not much harm is done.

What do you mean by ‘a few’?

The Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) Alert of 1983 determined that if a product contains more than 2% SLS or SLES, it is an irritation hazard. Most commercial products contain 10 times that much.

The result? Your skin gets red and dry. Fingertips crack, your scalp itches and gets flaky. With continuous use, deeper layers of skin are affected. Scaly patches form and itch. With each use, the ‘piranhas’ eat up more fatty tissue.

The same CIR alert stated that products with SLS and SLES should not be used continuously. Nevertheless, they are in products intended for daily use.
Teachers, health-care workers and others may wash many times a day. Like Annie, many of them suffer from severe skin irritation. What about you?

And Annie? She came back the next week. She had a big smile of her face. “I can’t believe the difference”, she said showing me her hands. “They don’t itch anymore. See how the cracks are healing? My husband even wants to hold hands again.”

I told her, “You didn’t have skin problems; you just used the wrong soap.”