Ingredients You Can Understand
Do the ingredients in soap make a difference?
Absolutely!
The largest “organ” of your body is your skin. Yes, your skin is an organ! So logically, what goes on your skin can potentially be absorbed — and seriously affect — your health and welfare.
I’d always wondered how people made soap in the past. 100 years ago, 200 years ago — how did they stay clean?
This was back in the 70s and 80s – before the internet, so research then would have required trips to the library. And there just seemed to be so many other things that were more important. Making soap got put on the back burner for “someday”.
Then my mom developed breast cancer. Sadly, in those days, treatment was severe, and often unsuccessful. Mom died in 1977 at the age of 45.
But that started me to think. No one else in my family has had cancer. My uncle (my mom’s brother) is still alive at 89. No cancer. My grandmother (my mom’s mother) lived to 91. No cancer. MY grandfather died before I was even born (but not of cancer.) I got to wondering if there might be a connection with Mom’s environment. Who knows for sure?
But it got me interested again in soap. And after several years making soap, I’ve determined which ingredients I’m happy to have on my skin.
Here is the list of ingredients I regularly use, and why:
Olive Oil: This is most often the base oil we use. It’s a hydrating oil, rich in antioxidants and contributing to a stable lather. Olive oil is also highly conditioning.
Avocado Oil: This oil’s conditioning properties are similar to olive oil’s, moisturizing, and beneficial for sensitive skin types including those with drier skin.
Sweet Almond Oil: This is another oil that’s beneficial for sensitive skin because it’s rich in vitamins A and E. Sweet Almond Oil is also highly conditioning and contains anti-inflammatory properties, soothing irritated skin.
Lard: Lard creates a long-lasting, hard soap bar with hypoallergenic properties. The fatty acids in lard prevent the soap from turning into mush in the shower, and have cellular structure and pH that are similar to human skin oils. This means that the fatty acids in lard help to clean skin without stripping. Containing vitamins D and E, lard promotes skin repair and reduces inflammation.
Lard is also one of the most common soapmaking fats used in the 1800s, so Laura Ingalls Wilder and others from that era would have been very familiar with it!
Rice Bran Oil: Rice Bran Oil contains vitamin E and antioxidants, helping to nourish skin. It is particularly good for mature and sensitive skin.
Castor Oil: Castor oil mainly boosts lather, mildness, and moisture retention in cold process soap. It provides bigger, creamier lather with lots of bubbles. It’s also a humectant (retaining or preserving moisture). Castor oil helps skin feel less dry, attracting and holding water to the skin. This oil has documented anti‑inflammatory and antimicrobial activity, so castor-rich soaps can be beneficial for sensitive or blemish‑prone skin.
Coconut Oil: Coconut oil produces very bubbly, fluffy lather and strong cleansing. Its saturated fatty acids also harden the bar, helping it cure faster and last longer in the shower. Containing natural antibacterial and antifungal properties, coconut oil can support a “deep clean” feel and help reduce surface microbes on the skin. We intentionally use Cold-Pressed (heat-free and solvent-free extraction, preserving greater levels of vitamins and antioxidants) Coconut Oil in our soap.
Compared with highly processed RBD (Refined, Bleached, Deodorized) coconut oil, cold-pressed coconut oil also retains more natural aroma.
Shea Butter: Shea butter brings a high level of unsaponifiables (natural fats, phytosterols, and vitamins A and E), so more of it survives saponification. This means it will stay on your skin and boost softness, moisture, and barrier support in a finished bar. Shea butter creates a hard, long‑lasting bar with a dense, creamy, conditioning lather that is especially kind to dry or sensitive skin.
We use unrefined Shea Butter because it retains more natural nutrients and antioxidants, adding extra skin benefits as well as avoiding the chemicals involved in refinement.
Sodium Hydroxide (Lye): Lye is the common name for sodium hydroxide (NaOH). On its own, it’s highly caustic but an essential reactant in traditional soapmaking. In cold process soap, lye solution (lye and liquid) is mixed with oils and butters to trigger saponification (“soap-if-i-ca-tion”) – the chemical reaction that transforms these fats into soap molecules. During the saponification process, all the lye is consumed in the reaction, so no active lye remains in the cured bar, making it safe for skin.
Sodium Lactate: Sodium lactate is concentrated liquid salt, usually made by fermenting sugars from corn or beets. In cold process soap we use it to make the bars harder and longer‑lasting, and to help them unmold faster so we aren’t waiting days to get them out of the mold. As a nice bonus, it also acts as a strong humectant, so it can slightly boost moisture retention and lather.
Essential Oils: Essential oils are concentrated, aromatic liquids that are steam‑distilled or cold‑pressed from plants like lavender, citrus peels, or eucalyptus. These bring natural scents and some properties (from the original plants) to our soap. We typically stir them into the liquid soap at the end of the “mixing” process so that the fragrance is evenly dispersed and survives saponification.
Kaolin Clay: Kaolin clays are very fine, soft clays that gently clean the skin by soaking up extra oil and dirt without being harsh or scratchy. In our cold process soap, these clays make the lather feel silky and smooth, add a bit of “slip” that’s great for shaving, and can help the bar feel more luxurious overall. Kaolin clays also help soap hold onto scent better.
We use naturally occurring rose and white Kaolin clays in our soap.
French Green Clay: French green clay is a mineral-rich clay (often containing decomposed plant matter and iron oxides) that gives soap a natural green color and a more “spa-like” feel. It’s known for drawing out excess oil and impurities from the skin, which makes it popular in soaps for normal-to-oily or blemish-prone skin. In our soap, French green clay can gently exfoliate, tighten the feel of the skin, and add a firmer, more silky texture to the bar and its lather.
Annatto Seed: Ground annatto seed is a natural plant colorant that provides shades of warm yellow to deep orange in our soap, depending on how much you use and how it’s prepared. Typically we infuse the ground seed in oil or lye water and then strain it for smooth, even color. We enjoy using annatto seed because it’s food‑safe, plant‑based, and pairs well with “sunny” or citrus scent blends, adding a cheerful, handmade, natural vibe to the bar.
Cinnamon, Clove and Ginger: Ground cinnamon, clove, and ginger (and other ground spices) can give cold process soap a gentle-to-moderate exfoliating effect, helping to scrub away dead skin cells and leaving skin feeling smoother. These spices also add warm, spicy, “bakery” or chai‑like aromas that can complement essential oil blends such as orange, vanilla, or spice oils. In addition, these spices can bring a natural, speckled, handcrafted look and can slightly deepen or warm the soap’s colors.