Real handmade soap does not dry your skin, as it retains moisturising (removed and sold to industry, with most commercial bars of soap).
All the soaps below are handmade (not ‘handcrafted fruity glycerine bars) and also vegan, with no palm oil. Neat essential oils are harmful to aquatic life, so only use unscented or mild formulations in soaps.
Alter/native by Suma Soap Bars are made with natural ingredients, then packed in recycled paper. Containing olive and coconut oils, with shea butter and essential oils.
Use unscented soaps for pregnancy/nursing and affected medical conditions. Avoid shea butter for latex allergies.
Never use human soaps on pets, due to different PH and unsafe ingredients like cocoa butter, macadamia and citrus oils. Read how to give your dog a bath, naturally.
Handmade soap may seem more expensive. But it’s better for the planet and your skin. And it’s likely you won’t need many other skincare products, so it works out more affordable long-term. And there’s nothing to dispose of (just the wrapper, which you can compost).
Choose from:
- Fragrance-free (aloe vera)
- Cinnamon & orange
- Lemongrass & chamomile
- Rosemary & lavender
- Rose & geranium
These soaps are made by a health food wholesaler, where everyone is paid the same wage and share jobs, from admin to cooking to working in the factory.
Olive Oil Soaps (packed in recycled paper)
This handmade strawberry mint soap is made with hand-picked strawberries and freshly-harvested peppermint.
The carob fig soap is made with fig juice and carob syrup.
Olive oil is good for sensitive skin. One woman went to a dermatologist for her ‘incurable itchy skin’ even though she was using the brand leading soap.
After he couldn’t help, she popped to Holland & Barratt and bought a cheap plain bar of Oliva soap (just olive oil, salt and water). And her skin began to heal in an hour.
Gentle Soaps for Very Dry Sensitive Skin
Coraline Skincare’s Nettle Soap was created by the parents of a baby with Down Syndrome, who could not tolerate ‘sensitive skin’ soaps. This is also gentle enough for dry skin. The other scent-free soap is made with chamomile which has anti-inflammatory ingredients and compounds to relieve dry itchy skin.
For 3 months and up only. Check for nut allergies before use.
Coraline Skincare has a page on how to help people with eczema and similar skin conditions.
How to Stop Handmade Soap Going Mushy
As handmade soap retains the glycerine, they are more moisturising. So this means that if they are left steeped in water, they will go mushy and disintegrate.
So just as important as buying a bar of handmade soap, is to know how to store it. Away from water, and on a dry facecloth. Suma’s travel soap tin is ideal for when you’re on the go, to help soap to last longer.
This upcycled coconut husk soap rest is also good to store handmade soap. The large rest can store two bars side-by-side. Due to natural fibres, some minor shedding may occur when you first use them. Or use a slatted soap dish to drain water away, so your soap lasts longer.
