What you need to know
Is the soap fully cured when I get it?
Yes. The soap is fully cured before we ship it and it ready to be used upon receipt. The freshest of soaps will still retain some moisture for several weeks and may feel soft as it continues to harden.
What does it mean to be GMO free?
GMO stands for Genetically Modified Organism. They are commonly plants that have been genetically modified to have certain traits such as drought or chemical resistance. We do not use any GMO ingredients in any of our products.
Natural Soap
Natural Soap is defined many ways by many different companies/individuals. We differentiate our soaps as "all natural" when they contain no synthetic (man-made) materials. Example: most soaps contain "fragrance" which is a synthetic/man-made chemical. However, Essential Oils are the natural version of fragrance, in that, they are highly aromatic fluids taken from nature (plant leaf, flower petals, tree bark, etc.). We try to stay as natural as possible even when synthetic fragrances are used. For example, even though we add synthetic fragrances to the soap doesn't mean that we throw in a bunch of preservatives and dyes as well . We still try to use herbs/clays first, and if we cannot achieve a satisfactory color with these, we use water based pigments.
Handmade Soap
This is a term used to suggest the soap is processed by hand, usually in small batches. Handmade soap is not necessarily "all natural" (by our definition). Some companies may use this term loosely and may simply use "melt and pour soap" (commonly called glycerin soap) and call it handmade soap because they mixed a bit of color and fragrance into it by hand. All of our soap is truly handmade.
Best Oils for Soap
We are biased in answering this question since we use the oils we use because we think they make a great soap. First things first, any soap with coconut oil and/or palm kernel oil in the top two oils will probably lather very well, but will be harsh and irritating. Sure, it will be a very hard bar, but who cares if your or (even worse) your customer's skin is left raw and the product is deemed "undesirable". Olive, sunflower, or similar "liquid oil" should be one of the top two oils. Palm is ok too, but if it is "Palm, Coconut..." that means that palm and coconut are the major oils and this is not good if you have sensitive skin (majority of population). So, we usually make the perfect blend of hard oils for lather, soft oils for sensitivity and softening effect, and usually shea butter for that "extra something". Aloe and other botanicals help for those in need of a "bonus". Many soapers have turned to exotic oils that sound really cool, but in the end have little benefit considering the cost of the oil. It would be better to use these directly on the skin then in soap.
Saponification Explanation- How is Soap Made?
The chemical reaction of making soap, called saponification, is a complete process. During this reaction the sodium hydroxide and oil molecules combine on a molecular level and are chemically changed into soap and glycerin. Properly done this reaction results in the sodium hydroxide being used up in the saponification process to turn the oil into soap. Here at Bathphoria we make sure that our ratios are done properly to not only ensure a proper soap bar but one that is of the highest quality. It is important to note that the act of sodium hydroxide and oil turning into soap is not something unique to us solely, but is the case with all natural cold process soaps. We chose to list our ingredients by their names prior to reaction. Similar to how ingredients are listed on food items. Other soap companies may chose to list the ingredients after being soaponified as it "removes" the name of sodium hydroxide. Examples might be "soaponified vegetable oils" or "sodium olivate"(olive oil soap). These are just ways that different companies say the same thing. We feel that our customers would better understand the ingredients by making them familiar names rather than something more foreign.