Hand made bath and body products

The Story of "Real" Soap

A commonly accepted story for how soap was discovered comes from a Roman legend according to which rain would wash down through the ashes and animal fat of the burnt animal sacrifice area of Mount Sapo into the clay banks of the Tiber River where the local women washed their clothing, and they noticed that this clay mixture made their wash cleaner. It is most likely, however, that the process of making soap was discovered independently in many places around the world, as news did not travel quickly in the early eras of mankind.

Much of what is called “soap” today is not really soap at all, but harsh, petroleum-based detergents that dry and irritate our skin and can cause inflammation, itching, and burning.

Soap is made by combining fats and oils, which contain fatty acids, with lye, which is alkaline. The strong alkali splits the fats/oils into fatty acids and glycerin. Then the sodium (or potassium) part of the alkali joins with the fatty acid part of the fat or oils, forming a salt that we call "soap." Technically, soaps are sodium or potassium fatty-acid salts, produced from the hydrolysis of fats in a chemical reaction called (supposedly after Mt. Sapo) saponification.

No doubt WAY more information than you cared to read!!

My Handmade Bar Soaps

What can I say, I love to make soap and when you put that much love into making a product it has to be wonderful!

My predominant bar soap making oil is Olive oil. I prefer this oil for it's gentleness, adding small quantities of coconut and palm oil to enhance lather and body adding Castor oil before just pouring for extra moisturizing.

Olive oil is one of the more expensive soap making oils but it's worth the cost for it's amazing beneficial qualities.

All my soaps are made in small batches using the Hot Process method so I can assure you they are gentle, my family and I use my soaps exclusively.

My soap is cooked until it is a completely neutral Ph and I test every batch before it is molded.

Handmade Liquid Soaps:

Nexara Canola is the primary oil used in my liquid soaps not only for it's skin softening properties but also because it makes a nice thick gelled soap for pumps and thick creamy foam for foaming hand soap. I add Olive and Coconut oil for their additional moisturizing properties and lather. Liquid soap is made using the same hot process method as my bar soaps with the alkalai being Potassium Hydroxide rather than Sodium Hydroxide.

Lotions and Creams:

Made fresh with high quality oils, emollients and waxes to produce a superior moisturizing product without leaving you feeling greasy. A must for our dry winters or those who have their hands in water or soil often. No more cracked skin or chafing.

I make 2 different variations:

Gardeners Hemp Oil hand cream

Anti-wrinkle Face cream formulated Alpha Hydroxy Acid to reduce the look of tiny lines and wrinkles