The dirty truth behind store brand soaps and what you're really lathering up with. 

Is there a difference between commercial brand soap and all-natural soap? The truth is YES and it may surprise you.

A large majority of people have never used handmade soap before. In fact, most people have never used soap before. Wait…what??? 

Many commercial soaps aren’t soap… they are synthetic detergents.

Commercial bar soaps generally are produced on a large scale with harsh chemicals, synthetic ingredients, and cheap perfumes / fragrances which all can cause irritation to your skin. These detergents (often petroleum-based) cleansers that strip your skin of their natural oils. Furthermore, commercial soap manufacturers typically extract the glycerin from their soap and sell it to you as lotion / cream that's filled with more chemicals. Nice, huh?! 

Let's take a look at some of the ingredients found in commercial soap: sodium cocoyl isethionate (synthetic detergent), stearic acid (hardener), sodium tallowate (sodium salt of cow fat), water sodium isethionate (detergent/emulsifying agent), coconut acid (the sodium salt of coconut oil), sodium stearate  (emulsifier, also used as a cheap stabilizer in plastics), sodium dodecylbenzonesulfonate (synthetic detergent), fragrance (synthetic scent), sodium chloride (table salt), titanium dioxide (whitener), trisodium EDTA (stabilizer, used in industrial cleaning products to decrease hard water), trisodium etidronate  (preservative, a chemical that is used in soaps to prevent soap scum), BHT (preservative) 

On the other hand, handmade soap created with oils, liquid and lye. These all natural ingredients don't contain these harsh ingredients and it qualifies as ‘soap.’ Handmade soap also, isn't stripped of glycerin. Glycerin is a naturally occurring byproduct of the saponification process (that’s the chemical reaction that we call soap making). Glycerine is a humectant—meaning it draws moisture from the air to your skin—leaving your skin soft and moisturized. Oh la la, that's why when you wash with handmade soap for the first time, you're shocked at how soft your skin feels!

Let's take a look at the ingredients used in Hippie Candy soap: olive oil, coconut oil, water, sodium hydroxide (none remains after saponification), shea butter, castor oil, avocado oil and essential oils.

NO DETERGENTS, NO SODIUM LAURYL SULFATE, NO PHTHALATES, NO PARABENS, NO FRAGRANCES & NO DYES - Just say no to these icky ingredients, your skin will thank you.

Now you decide which is better to lather up with?!