Why does my soap do this? Deeanna?

[DeeAnna]

I agree, Obsidian -- nothing jumps out at me either. Sounds like you have a plan to find out more, however, and that's good! I am interested to learn your results.

 

[seven]

this is really interesting.....I have no input, just want to follow along the ride.....

me too it is really interesting. if there's a magic soap that can exfoliate skin, i am all for it!

 

[AustinStraight]

I would love a bar, too bad my sister has a peanut allergy...

 

[ilovesoap2]

My thinking is that it's probably the extra fat in the soap that is balling up like that, or a mix of certain oils that is lifting baked on dirt and oil. Our dead skin cells should not just lift off like that. We shed skin all the time, the process can be sped up with strong chemicals, especially acids but even then there should be some skin peeling in patches, so to speak.

I washed my face with my uncured, lye heavy olive oil soap. I expected at least redness but the next morning I also had dry scaly bits indicative of exfoliation. To lift dead skin cells in 20 minutes? I'm not sure how safe that is. I do plan to make a batch though and take a good look at what it does. Another soap experiment

 

[Susie]

My daughter would like a soap to help reduce scare tissue. I'll make a couple of bars in the next week. Bet this soap will work for her.

Exfoliating soap is not the answer for scars. The skin of the scar is not old dead skin. It is just where the body has remodeled the tissues to repair a wound. The skin is healthy, just not pretty.

There are several products on the shelf with the Band-Aids that will help reduce the appearance of scars, however. The ones that look like a wax Band-Aid are the ones that work the best. (they are not made of wax, they just have that appearance.) It is not a miracle over-night cure, however. It takes a LONG time to work. But I have personally seen a couple of scars almost disappear from a patient over the course of about 6 months.

 

[Obsidian]

My thinking is that it's probably the extra fat in the soap that is balling up like that, or a mix of certain oils that is lifting baked on dirt and oil. Our dead skin cells should not just lift off like that. We shed skin all the time, the process can be sped up with strong chemicals, especially acids but even then there should be some skin peeling in patches, so to speak.

I washed my face with my uncured, lye heavy olive oil soap. I expected at least redness but the next morning I also had dry scaly bits indicative of exfoliation. To lift dead skin cells in 20 minutes? I'm not sure how safe that is. I do plan to make a batch though and take a good look at what it does. Another soap experiment

Nah, its not from the SF. I have lots of soap with higher SF and it doesn't cause this kind of exfoliation. Also, it only take 20 seconds, not 20 minutes.
I don't agree that dry, scaly patches is indicative of exfoliation. When you exfoliate, it leaves your skin smooth and soft, not rough, dry or irritated.

I also don't agree that dead skin doesn't just lift off. Soak your feet for 20 minutes or so then rub them vigorously with a rough dry towel, you will see the same kind of balling up of the dead skin.
Thats not just dirt and oil, I shower daily and I don't get that dirty, nor do I have oily skin.

Yes, we shed skin constantly but as we age, it becomes more difficult for that dead skin to fall away. Thats why exfoliation and skin scrubs/polishes are so popular. What ever is in this soap, it seems to help either lift away the dead skin or break it down so it can be wiped away.

Originally Posted by Belinda02
My daughter would like a soap to help reduce scare tissue. I'll make a couple of bars in the next week. Bet this soap will work for her.

No soap will help with scars. It would be fantastic if it did but your daughter needs a product designed to fade scars. The soap won't hurt but don't expect miracles.

 

[ilovesoap2]

it only take 20 seconds, not 20 minutes.
I don't agree that dry, scaly patches is indicative of exfoliation. When you exfoliate, it leaves your skin smooth and soft, not rough, dry or irritated.

I also don't agree that dead skin doesn't just lift off. Soak your feet for 20 minutes or so then rub them vigorously with a rough dry towel, you will see the same kind of balling up of the dead skin.
Thats not just dirt and oil, I shower daily and I don't get that dirty, nor do I have oily skin.

Yes, we shed skin constantly but as we age, it becomes more difficult for that dead skin to fall away. Thats why exfoliation and skin scrubs/polishes are so popular. What ever is in this soap, it seems to help either lift away the dead skin or break it down so it can be wiped away.

oops! I saw 20 seconds and read in my head 20 minutes but even worst. The skin on our face is drastically different than on the bottom of our feet. How often and how long will you guys be using this soap? I really have no idea what to make of a soap that exfoliates to the point you can actually see it balled up after a 20 second contact. Needless to say I can hardly wait to make the soap myself to see exactly what we're talking about.

 

[Lin]

What type of scars does she have? Depending on the type she should see a dermatologist. Fading scars is incredibly difficult. I have issues with scarring due to my genetic connective tissue disorder. I tried all the over the counter things before and they did nothing. Only thing that's ever helped (other than time to fade and soften scars) was steroid shots for hypertrophic ones. And still there it took forever, but that's again probably my condition. I had a mole removed on my leg a couple years ago for testing, at first I was kind of happy because I'd always hated the mole and it was somewhat large. Well the resulting scar was about 3 tomes the size, and had issues such as pain and itching. The raised surface caught on things which was very painful. Took 3 sets of shots with 2_3 shots each 6 weeks apart to flatten and lighten it. It would come back between the sets, I think it's finally flat for good now.

 

[Obsidian]

Yeah, 20 minutes would be a bit much lol. I use my bar 2-3 times a week or so on just my face. I have used it daily for a week before but I prefer salt bars for daily use. I believe my mom only uses her bar a couple times a week too.
I only use my hands to lather the bar and wash with, I don't think I'd want to use a wash cloth or anything rough to scrub with.

 

[grayceworks]

Why are lard and coconut oil soaps the most recommended for making laundry or cleaning soaps?

I know coconut oil soap is very effective at breaking down grease. We use it on our dishes and to clean the stove and kitchen, as well as laundry. Hubby has had no more 'ring around the collar' since we started using it, and we even managed to get baked on grease out of the oven, which tells me it's very good at removing the grease, residues, oils, dirt, and dead skin that gets on things. Which makes me want to test it in the shower and see if I get the same effect as with my lard soaps. Hmm.

If lard soaps are used as cleaning soaps the way coconut oil soaps are -- I have not tried this yet either, still working on the CO bars I made a few months ago -- then it would seem to me that maybe they are good at breaking up the layer of mixed oils, skin cells, etc, that other soaps might just remove the surface layer of -- which is why we like scrubby soaps to get that layer of oils and skin loosened up to let the soap wash it away. If the lard soap is breaking that layer down better than other types, maybe that's what is happening?

And hair and scalp would have a thicker layer of buildup, which would account for the sticky gooey feeling you'd get when first using lard soap on your hair -- but the cleaner it gets, the less that should happen, if my theory is correct. I know any soap made my hair do that when I first switched from shampoo, but now it doesn't happen at all. And also if this idea is correct, it would make your skin irritated if used too often, because it would remove too much oil used daily.

This is the only explanation I can come up with while on nyquil. Plus, I'm a math person, not a chemistry person lol.

 

[Obsidian]

I can't imagine lard being that great of a laundry soap. The 100% lard soap I made was really gentle on the skin but never really left me feeling clean.
I never had the gooey hair syndrome when switching to shampoo bars. I've been using CP shampoo for about 5 months now and if I use lard or castile, its just nasty. Maybe a 0-1% SF would be better then the 5% SF I make my lard bars with.

I still need to make some 100% CO soap for laundry. Do you grate yours and use it as is or do you add washing soda and borax?

 

[AnnaMarie]

I'm still on the fence on lard as a laundry soap. I've made coconut laundry soap and lard/coconut laundry soap. My next move is to make an old fashioned laundry soap with lard, ammonia, and sugar. We will see...
Cheers!
Anna Marie

 

[grayceworks]

I can't imagine lard being that great of a laundry soap. The 100% lard soap I made was really gentle on the skin but never really left me feeling clean.
I never had the gooey hair syndrome when switching to shampoo bars. I've been using CP shampoo for about 5 months now and if I use lard or castile, its just nasty. Maybe a 0-1% SF would be better then the 5% SF I make my lard bars with.

I still need to make some 100% CO soap for laundry. Do you grate yours and use it as is or do you add washing soda and borax?

I have not tried 100% lard yet, so dunno how my skin will react, or how well it will act as a laundry soap. I know I have used both of the recipes above in my hair, and my hairdresser uses them on my hair when I go, and we never have to use conditioner, it's clean and soft and the comb runs right through it without tangling. I do have some recipes that make it feel kinda draggy though, like there's pomade or something in it.

I grate my 100% CO soap with the really fine grater side on the cheese grater, and then add 1 cup shreds to 1/2c each washing soda and borax (by volume not weight) then stir it up with a fork to break up the clumps in the borax. I use 2T per load of laundry in the large front-loading washers in our laundry room, or 1T per load in our small one in our apartment. I used some orange EO when I made the bars, and the powder is lightly scented, but it doesn't scent the clothes at all, just leaves them smelling like... well... nothing really, since I don't use softener. Just clean fabric. lol

 

[ilovesoap2]

@Obsidian
I'll have to order avocado and the flakes online but can you tell me if you used fresh or canned coconut milk and if canned what brand? How about the lard? I'ld just like to get as close to what you did as possible. TIA

 

[DeeAnna]

If you're looking for a premium laundry soap, stick with coconut. Or switch to PKO or babassu if you have deep pockets -- or even dairy butter. Soap made with these fats are more soluble in cool/cold water and are more aggressive cleaners.

There's no magic to lard in a laundry soap -- its use is all about economics and availability, not cleaning power. Lard was abundant and inexpensive or even free to most US farmers, at least here in the Midwestern US. We don't have too many coconut palms growing around here in Iowa. Tallow might have been used for soap by some folks who raised just cattle, but I suspect lard was the fat of choice for most. Even in town (at least back in my grandmother's day), a family hog could be fairly easily raised on an inexpensive diet in a backyard pen and butchered in less than a year.

 

[Obsidian]

I use canned coconut milk, it probably was sun luck in the red can. The lard is Amour brand and the palm flakes are from whole sale plus. The avocado oil is from costco, can't remember the brand.

 

[ilovesoap2]

^^^
Thank you.

 

[anani]

I'm a bit naive when it comes to soap making, but I'm wondering if the soap is possibly lye heavy? I'm curious how high the pH is.
The reason I ask, is...I'm an Esthetician and foot care specialist. In my practice, I use a professional gel product for callus removal. The active ingredient is either potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide (depending on the brand) usually put in at 4-5%. It's applied directly on dead callused skin for a few minutes and the dead skin just rolls off. (Most cuticle removers use lye at around 2-4% as well.)

The callus remover is a product I would never be without, but I definitely would never use it without gloves and I never allow it to touch my clients healthy skin.
Having worked in the Skin Care industry for many years, I've seen the damage that over-exfoliation can cause, whether it be chemical or manual (scrubby types) so I probably wouldn't recommend using this soap on your face, or at least no more than once per week.

 

[Obsidian]

No, its not lye heavy at all. In fact, it has quite a high level of superfat. I've used over the counter chemical peels before and this soap is much gentler then those. Its not burning or melting the skin at all, there is no irritation or pain involved.

 

[new12soap]

That looks like a really interesting recipe and it sounds like you are getting great results, whatever the reason! My guess is a combo of the high superfat, the milk, and the acid profile of your oils. Try the oil cleansing method using that combo of oils (well, the avocado sunflower and peanut) and see if your skin likes those. I know that when my skin is particularly dry and flaky just gently massaging in plain oil will slough off all the dead stuff and leave my skin soooooo much happier.

I do have to say I think it's a good idea to keep them in the freezer, I would be really worried about DOS but a good face soap may be worth it.

And just an aside, refined peanut oil has been stripped of its proteins and is not an allergen.