If you take a look at commercial products sold in stores, it’s likely you won’t find the term “soap” on the package. Commercial soap sold in stores is often made with chemical detergents, hardeners and synthetic lathering agents. Some of these ingredients can be drying or irritating on the skin. On the other hand, handmade soap created with oils, liquid and lye does not contain these harsh ingredients and qualifies as ‘soap.’
The ingredients in some commercial bars on the market make them ineligible to be called and advertised as soap. According to the FDA, a product is defined as soap when:
Cold or hot process soap is made with skin-loving oils, such as coconut oil, olive oil, avocado oil, castor oil or palm oil. This combination of oils is what makes each bar completely unique.
Now we often get the question, “Isn’t handmade soap made with lye? I don’t want to put lye on my skin.” Completely agree! We certainly don’t want to put lye on our skin either. =) When calculated correctly, there is no lye leftover in handmade soap. Once the lye and oils emulsify and combine, the saponification process begins. This process turns the lye and oil into soap.
In the final bar, no lye actually comes into contact with your skin because there is no lye in the bar – it’s now soap!
The ingredients in some commercial bars on the market make them ineligible to be called and advertised as soap. According to the FDA, a product is defined as soap when:
- the bulk of the nonvolatile matter in the product consists of an alkali salt of fatty acids and the product’s detergent properties are due to the alkali-fatty acid compounds, and
- the product is labeled, sold, and represented solely as soap [21 CFR 701.20].
Cold or hot process soap is made with skin-loving oils, such as coconut oil, olive oil, avocado oil, castor oil or palm oil. This combination of oils is what makes each bar completely unique.
Now we often get the question, “Isn’t handmade soap made with lye? I don’t want to put lye on my skin.” Completely agree! We certainly don’t want to put lye on our skin either. =) When calculated correctly, there is no lye leftover in handmade soap. Once the lye and oils emulsify and combine, the saponification process begins. This process turns the lye and oil into soap.
In the final bar, no lye actually comes into contact with your skin because there is no lye in the bar – it’s now soap!
