Why should I buy handmade soaps?

My handmade soaps are pure and natural and do not contain any preservatives or man-made products.

I make my bar soaps using a cold-process method, so all of the natural glycerin (which comes from the original fats and oils... coconut, palm, olive, etc.) is still intact after the soapmaking process. The glycerin is the reason cold process soaps are so gentle and moisturizing to all skin types. It doesn't dry skin out and leaves a bit of emollient behind when you use it. It can often help clear skin conditions on people who have problems with commercial products.

Glycerin is a by-product of heat processed soap, and in commercial products, they usually draw most of it out. This is why commercial soaps are more drying to the skin than the natural handmade kind. The average bar of handmade soap is approximately 75% soap compound and 25% glycerin. Your skin won't feel tight and drawn after using handmade soap... just clean and nice.

Many "soaps" you buy over the counter are not truly soap at all, but detergent bars (synthetic detergents). Real soap will be made from fats and oils such as palm, coconut, olive, etc. and sodium hydroxide (lye). The chemical process that occurs when you mix oils with a sodium hydroxide/water solution is what ultimately makes soap. Lye + oils = soap + glycerin.

Lye is necessary to make soap because a catalyst is required to convert the oil molecules to soap molecules. This process is called saponification. During the saponification reaction, the lye (a base) is neutralized as it converts the oil molecules (fatty acids) to soap molecules and glycerin. Only lye is strong enough to cleave the oil molecules into soap molecules. Even melt and pour soap was originally made using lye, although now it is generally made with synthetic degergents plus glycerin. My soap recipes use less lye than is required to convert all of the oil molecules. This ensures that the lye is completely consumed by the oils at the end of the process, leaving a nice solid bar of soap that is gentle and cleansing.