Watering down liquid soap to make it last longer

Today I am going to write about a topic that has brought me angst for ages. I have finally decided to speak up on this. All too often I will be at someone's house and need to wash my hands and spy a soap dispenser at the edge of the sink and go squirting away with the soap only to discover that it has been watered down beyond belief (like seriously.....it's not even soap sometimes!). Well I typically stand there and try to decide if I want to wash my hands with what is most likely bacteria laden bubble water or if I just give up and feel like a dirtball until I get home. Sometimes I reflect upon a third option.....which is to rub my hands really hard on the towel that is usually nearby, as if that will accomplish anything.

Ok let's talk about liquid hand soap that you would buy in the grocery store. I am specifically talking about the commercially made stuff which sometimes has additional ingredients to make it anti-bacterial and sometimes just cleans and moisturizes. Ultimately they all accomplish the goal of cleaning in some capacity. These products are typically created from lab made synthetics and are a balanced formula including their preservative when they go into the bottle. SOOOOOO.....when you add water to this formula you are diluting out everything including the preservation system thereby making it ineffective. 

Why does this matter? You are subjecting the thing that you bought to clean your hands to microbial growth, yes, you are effectively going to end up washing your hands with bacteria, fungus and yeast (YUCK!) Why use the soap at all I ask? This also goes for a hand made liquid soap, if you purchase it from someone and it's ready to be used then guess what.....it's a balanced formula too and will become unbalanced if you start tinkering with it. 

Well what about those nifty little soap foamer things? The soap that goes in to them is formulated to be thinner and has the appropriate amount of preservative so they can do their job and not be subject to microbial growth. Taking regular soap and adding water will still get you a bacterial filled foamer which as we now know is just gross.


What about concentrated products that say specifically to add water to them? Good question, follow the instructions on the bottle and you should end up with a safe and effective product. OR if you must over dilute it for whatever reason make sure you finish it up in one use.

The two most common argument I hear for watering down liquid soap is that it's either too expensive and this helps the pocketbook or that you will be at the store in a few days and just need to stretch it until then. Look, I hear both arguments and acknowledge that life is tough both on the pocketbook and on the freetime-o-meter. If it's too expensive, switch to bar soap, I promise you that it WILL clean your hands. If you need to stretch your soap for a few days just remember that microbial growth can start in as little as 24 hours. 

This, my smart and savvy friends is my PSA on watering down liquid soap. If you ever see me standing at a sink twitching you can pretty much assume that I am standing there wondering what to do about my dirty hands and why on earth someone else has gone and watered down a perfectly balanced product.

All the best to you in perfectly formulated bubbles
~Your Soapsmith

The pH of hair, skin and products (and why it matters!)

Good morning Soapsmith Nation! I have been thinking a lot about pH lately (I think about it all the time really). At a recent market I was chatting with a customer and he asked if I made any bar soaps that were anti-bacterial. "Of course I do, actually all handmade bar soap is anti-bacterial," I explained to him, "but I don't need to add anything to make them that way." He looked puzzled until I explained that the natural pH of handmade soap is typically around 10 and in that type of alkaline environment bacteria, mold, yeast, fungus etc. do not survive. He seemed grateful for the simple explanation and told me that of all the soap vendors there that night (I was 1 of 4) not one of them had been able to articulate that information to him. I felt flattered and super nerdy (which I wear like a badge of honor) to have been able to help him out.

Let's back up a second. What is pH and why do I think about it non-stop? Simply put pH, or potential hydrogen, is a scale of acidity from 0 to 14. It tells how acidic or alkaline a substance is. More acidic solutions have lower pH of between 1-6.9. More alkaline (aka basic) solutions have higher pH at 7.1-14. Substances that aren't acidic or alkaline (that is, neutral solutions) usually have a pH of 7 (pure water has this pH). Why do I think about it non-stop? I take pH into consideration when creating products and need to decide if it is appropriate for the skin which it will be used on. Some products have a pH which may not match the pH of skin exactly so then I must further ponder if it will throw the pH too far out of balance and if I need to adjust the product to be more compatible, (see....super nerd here, ha). One last note about pH is that between 2 whole numbers are 10 fractions of a number. Example between pH 5 and pH 6 are all the fractions of 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, and so on. So when I say your skins pH is 5.5 that is 5 fractions away from pH 6 instead of a half of a fraction. pH 5 to pH 6 is 10 times the difference from one to the next and pH 4 to pH 6 is 100 times different (10 x 10)! Long story short, the distance between one whole number and the next is much longer than it appears on the surface.

The pH of our skin is 5.5 and the pH of hair is between 4.5-5.5 with virgin hair being even lower at 3.67. As we now know, the pH of handmade soap is around 10. Is this a bad thing? Well let's consider a couple of things first. The layer that we are affecting by washing, scrubbing, exfoliating and later moisturizing with lotion is called the "acid mantle" it can take anywhere from 15 minutes to 14+ hours to repair itself depending on the level of damage incurred. If your skin is feeling tight your acid mantle may have been negatively impacted by something. We want this to be balanced and functioning properly because it keeps bad things like bacteria, yeast and fungi out and good things like fluids in. Some skin is thicker than other skin on the body, this is good to know when deciding what to use on your body. The skin on your face is very thin (0.5mm on your eye lids) to thicker (4mm on the soles of your feet). The different parts of your body can handle different amounts of stressors and reset faster keeping your acid mantle in check. With that being said, I will be the first person to tell you that I no longer use my handmade soap to wash my face. As I have aged I noticed more frequently that my face skin felt tight and that's not how it should feel. When I went to get a facial the esthetician told me that my skin on my face had been stripped of its natural oils and was in need of repair. I knew what that meant, it was time to switch to a pH appropriate gentle facial cleanser. My face skin is clear, bright and no longer tight (although it hurt my heart to have to stop using my own soap to wash my face.) I still use my soap on the rest of my body and don't have issues with dryness or tightness so the thicker skin seems to be able to reset in a reasonable amount of time and to keep the bad things out and good things in for me:).

While the skin can reset itself in due time the hair cannot. I NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, recommend handmade soap be used on hair. Many people claim that it works great and their hair feels good and a simple apple cider vinegar rinse is all their hair needs and that's fantastic for them but what they don't realize is that when they use handmade soap on their hair it causes the hair shaft to swell exponentially and the cuticle to lift. If you have colored hair this is even worse because it will cause your color to fade faster. Even if you do not have colored hair all those little cuticles get tangled together and can cause breakage and a frizzy appearance. Some soapmakers claim they have a special and gentle formula for hair, I am not here to debate or knock another maker but I will say that scientifically there is no way to bring the pH of handmade soap down low enough to be appropriate for hair without destabilizing the formula which in the end makes a puddle of ingredients as opposed to making a bar of soap. Even liquid soap made with KoH is alkaline and inappropriate for hair care.

I have been fascinated by shampoo and conditioner bars lately I love that they help to reduce plastic waste, they are great for travel and last for quite awhile. I have been exploring ingredients which have a more appropriate pH for the skin and hair, bring in the LAB CREATED INGREDIENTS (imagine trumpets here). Look, just because something is "natural" doesn't automatically make it safer than something made in a lab. Snake venom is natural but deadly. Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate is a coconut derived gentle surfactant with a pH of 4.5-6.5. Lab made ingredients are stable and consistent which is a huge benefit to them, also they do not deplete natural resources as some naturally derived ingredients do.

Shampoo Bars by Soapsmiths

Over the past 6 months I have developed a formula for a shampoo bar that is pH appropriate for hair and skin. I have been lovingly calling it "The everything bar" because it can be used on, well, everything! I wash my hair with it and sometimes my body, it's actually fabulous for shaving too! It leaves me feeling silky and my hair is not frizzy or tangled either. I used lab made ingredients and have been checking in with cosmetic chemists that I am familiar with to ensure that my formula is correct and appropriate. My faithful group of testers have had really positive feedback on these bars and one tester even went ahead and bought an additional 2 so she would have them! I am currently working on a conditioner bar, and hope to get it into my testers hands soon so that I can then share it with you all.

So this is the long and short of pH and why it is important. In researching this information for the post I have decided to create a post on the skin where we will dive deeper into the various layers and what they do so stay tuned for more science-y fun.

Until then, stay bubbly my friends
~Your Soapsmith

Acne- you spotted devil!

Hi All,
Long time no post, I know! Since I am way overdue I wanted to go a little off topic of my normal posting about ingredients and things that go into the products here at Soapsmiths and talk a little bit about why some products are better than others for different skin care applications.

I was recently on a forum I frequent and contributed some information to another member regarding battling adult acne. It is something that many adults deal with and it can be annoying, embarrassing, painful or all three. There are different types of acne and different reasons that people have it. Some may be easier to treat than others and some do need a medical professional to intervene and help them resolve the problem.

Let's start from the beginning. What is Acne? This is a loaded question because acne is sometimes a  product of genetics, environment (external) medications (internal), bacteria and other triggers such as hormones, stress, cosmetics and food. The exact definition as stated in Milady's Standard Esthetics Fundamentals is this: a chronic inflammatory skin disorder of the sebaceous glands that is characterized by comedones and blemishes.

As defined by the book listed above there are 4 grades of acne, these range from minor to major with the 4th category being cystic acne which does need to be treated by a dermatologist. If you are not sure, please seek the help of a physician in order to get the proper treatment.

Great, how do we fix this? Well it depends. First you have to know what is triggering your acne, not always the simplest task, I know. You can start by eliminating external triggers such as foods and cosmetics. For example, do you notice that you break out after eating or drinking something specific? Try eliminating processed foods, alcohol, over-the-counter medications, perhaps even dairy, grains and other foods that are known for causing allergic reactions. Sometimes a breakout is your body's way of telling you that it does not agree with what you are putting into it. For example, every time I get a cold and take cough medicine I completely break out all over my jaw line, literally all over, it's embarrassing. It took me awhile to figure this out but I finally put A and B together, nixed the cough medicine and no more breakouts (at least cough syrup related).

As for cosmetics, are you sanitizing your brushes after each use or better yet using disposable applicators? Are you double dipping your applicators into your cosmetics (a big culprit of bacteria related acne). Are you following the hardest rule of all and tossing those cosmetics that are past it's due date? I KNOW! It seems like throwing your hard earned money away, but your skin will thank you because you are saving it from the bacteria breeding ground that cosmetics tend to become. And really, isn't that sometimes why we buy cover-up? To cover blemishes? Less blemishes could equal less cover-up needed and more savings in the end!

Here's another one that I hear about commonly, do you wash and scrub the heck out of your face and still have acne? Well STOP! Our face skin differs from other skin on our bodies in that it is more sensitive and in some spots very thin, over rubbing, over exfoliating, and whatever else is all too much for this part of our body. There is actually a term for this, it's called acne mechanica. This type of acne can be totally avoided with a change in your skin care routine. In addition to rubbing your skin right off your face you are also rubbing all of your sebum away and most likely causing micro-tears in your skin, this presents new problems to your skin. 1- many times people exfoliate to remove dirt, grime and bacteria from their skin but OVER exfoliating also effects the sebum balance in your glands (found mainly on your jawline) causing it to produce more and faster, which leads to "oily" skin, stop rubbing start nourishing and your sebum glands will calm down. 2- Micro-tears are a by-product of using exfoliants which are not meant for your face such as a sugar scrub or something that has very sharp granules (salt, ground walnut shells etc.) If it hurts your face stop using it, your skin is telling you that it's no good! You are causing micro-tears, aggravating your skin and opening yourself up to possible bacterial infections (from those dirty make-up applicators perhaps?).

Alright so this information is great but what should I use? Well the options are endless and the type of acne and skin that you have will dictate what it the best skin care regiment overall. Remember, skin care is not just choosing one product, it's more choosing a group of products and coming up with a consistent regiment. As someone who makes products, specifically handmade soap it pains me to say that handmade soap is not appropriate for acne prone skin. Why? Because handmade soap generally has a pH of between 8-9 or so and our skin's pH is 5.5. Using a handmade soap will unbalance your face and cause it to over produce sebum in order to get back to that acidic pH of 5.5. Now the whole process of re-balancing itself generally takes no more than 20 minutes, but in that 20 minutes your skin will feel oily and who wants that after just washing their face? Not me. What do I use? Because I have acne prone AND sensitive skin I vary my selection of products but keep the regiment. For example, my process is: cleanse, tone, moisturize. I will 1-2 times per week use a gentle exfoliant and 1-2 times per month do a light (very VERY light) steam with a nourishing mask. I have information on both masks and exfoliants in previous posts for your viewing pleasure (sorry I am having trouble linking them right now).

For my trinity of skincare products I have found that my skin likes a gentle cleansing milk which is soap free, it's basically a very thin lotion, it's completely nourishing, gentle and since "like attracts like" it pulls the oils and grime from my skin and pores with ease. I make this myself, I have been formulating and testing variations of this recipe for months and I am very happy with the latest version. Since I prefer this blend to be very thin it has a high water content, in order to get some additional "yumminess" into this product I infused the water with chamomile. This cleanser smells so sweet and feels so silky. If formulating scares the pants off of you you can simply do the oil cleansing method (OCM) which is exactly what it sounds like. Olive oil is great for this since it has the same pH as our skin. Cotton ball, gently wipe your face and leave it be. I find this cleansing method to be great in the winter when my skin is super thirsty and prefer to do it before bed so I don't feel all shiny when I am out and about. Also I prefer avocado oil because my skin really drinks it up, but again, it's a matter of preference.

If you feel like getting nutty and formulating your own, I will share with you the basics of my recipe:

Phase 1
Water 80%

Phase 2
Oils (I selected 3) 14.5%
E-Wax 3%

Phase 3
Preservative (I used germaben @ .5%)
Vitamin E oil (NO this is not a preservative)
Essential oil of choice @ 1%, I prefer lavender and keep the % low since it's on my face and very near my nose. (geez of course it's near my nose! My nose is on my face, lol, I left what I originally wrote there because now it's just funny) :)

I infused the water with chamomile because it is very soothing especially for sensitive skin, in my case I found this information to be true.  There are about a gazillion herbs that you could choose from though, do your research and be creative! I went through many different oils before I found 3 that I was happy with, go ahead, play around with combinations, the old wives tale that oils clog your pores is just that.....an old wives tale and not true. Phase 3 is very important, you MUST preserve this formulation. Any product with water in it needs to be properly preserved, you are making this to help your skin, don't hurt it by leaving the preservative out. If you are unsure or nervous about preservatives, I have other posts about different ones on the site and you can also check with the manufacturer about different ones for different types of formulations.

Alright, on to toner. I have made it before but I am going to be completely honest, I cheat and purchase toner. I have only so many hours in my day and find the toners available in the store to work very well for me, why torture myself? Let's look at what toner really does. Benefits: freshener, pH balancing and astringent. Toners remove any residue which is left over from cleansing, it can temporarily make your pores appear to be smaller and should return your skin to it's normal pH as well as offer some hydration. I prefer non-oil based toners because they just make my skin feel fresher, although they should not contain alcohol, just read the label to be sure. You can apply it with a cotton ball or spritz it on.

Last moisturizer. In the winter I use either straight oil or a very heavy facial moisturizer at night, I feel that it plumps my skin while I sleep and makes it super soft, I generally prefer avocado oil, however I have recently tried just jojoba oil and find that it is also wonderful, did you know that jojoba is actually a wax and has properties that mimic our skins natural sebum?!?

In the summer I just cannot stand the thought of something heavy on my skin and opt for lighter cremes. If you are going to be in the sun get a moisturizer with sunscreen in it. It's such an easy step to take to protect yourself from sun spots, wrinkles and of course skin cancer. Think you are too young to get skin cancer? I have a list of people who are my age and younger who have already dealt with this at times disfiguring disease. This is the largest organ on your body, protect it as if your life depended on it! I digress, For those times when you just want to moisturize, I have actually been using my cleansing milk as my moisturizer, it's super light and soaks in like a dream, after all, it is just a thin lotion. Find something that you like and that feels comfortable to you and go with it. While I am sure the cremes that cost $65+ an ounce are great, I am just not interested in spending that, in fact I think it's a total rip-off! Yes, they have some superb ingredients but topically applied lotions and potions do not penetrate past the epidermis. I prefer to have something affordable that I can apply as I need to instead of worrying that I might run out and not be able to buy more because my payday has not yet arrived. Again it's a matter of preference, I have had to the good fortune to be able to try the ridiculously expensive as well as the less expensive hand made and my preference is for the less expensive.

Well, there you have it, a ridiculously long post about acne and products......I could write for days about this topic!

~Best in acne-freeness
Your Soapsmith

Disclaimer 1. This post raged out of control in terms of length and I only skimmed the surface.

Disclaimer 2. I am not qualified to give not medical advice nor do I aim to, if you have long term, serious or  painful acne or other skin conditions please stop surfing the net and please seek professional face-to-face help.

Let's talk about Triclosan

Triclosan is an ingredient which is found in multiple household items. It is a common ingredient in anti-bacterial soaps, body washes, toothpastes and some cosmetics as well as being incorporated into clothing, kitchenware, furniture and toys.

While this ingredient is not known to be harmful to humans there have been several new studies released and the FDA and EPA have collaborated and are re-evaluating its effects on the environment as well as humans in light of these studies.

This question is posed on the FDA web site which I found to be very interesting:

Does triclosan provide a benefit in consumer products?

For some consumer products, there is clear evidence that triclosan provides a benefit. In 1997, FDA reviewed extensive effectiveness data on triclosan in Colgate Total toothpaste. The evidence showed that triclosan in this product was effective in preventing gingivitis.

For other consumer products, FDA has not received evidence that the triclosan provides an extra benefit to health. At this time, the agency does not have evidence that triclosan in antibacterial soaps and body washes provides any benefit over washing with regular soap and water. 


There are other studies are investigating the possibility that use of triclosan contributes to making bacteria resistant to antibiotics.

According to the EPA:

Current as of March 2010

Triclosan (2,4,4’ –trichloro-2’-hydroxydiphenyl ether) is a chlorinated aromatic compound. Its functional groups include both phenols and ethers. It is used as a synthetic broad-spectrum antimicrobial agent. Triclosan was first registered as a pesticide in 1969.


Triclosan is also utilized in many industrial settings for machinery and equipment in order to prevent microbial growth.

Based on monitoring, triclosan was found in at least 36 US streams which were close to some sort of water treatment plant (sewage, sludge etc. plant) and is believed to be contributing to the occurrence of triclosan in open water. While it currently appears that fish are not affected it has been determined that aquatic plants are affected (which would lead me to believe that fish may eventually be effected via the food chain).

The EPA admits that it does not know how much triclosan is being released into the environment from industrial sites and is amending some rules and regulations as well as labeling regulations for these institutions to begin being able to monitor this pesticide better.

There are a list of "Nest Steps" listed on the EPA site about it's plans for triclosan:

Next Steps

• Given the rapidly developing scientific database for triclosan, the Agency intends to accelerate the schedule for the registration review process for this chemical. Currently, the Agency intends to begin that process in 2013, ten years earlier than originally planned.
• EPA and FDA are collaborating on research projects that will help both agencies to better characterize the endocrine-related effects of triclosan, including toxicological effects, human relevance, and the doses at which they occur to determine if levels of human exposure are safe or not. The Agency will pay close attention to this ongoing research and will amend the regulatory decision if the science supports such a change.
• The Agency is also updating its 2008 assessment of triclosan exposure using the newly released 2005-2006 NHANES urinary monitoring results and will incorporate those results into the revised risk assessment.
• The Agency will continue to participate in the Interagency Task Force on Antimicrobial Resistance and evaluate information that results from that activity, and will continue its cooperative efforts with the FDA to share information on triclosan and discuss future research efforts and needs that will best meet the needs of the two agencies. 

Why am I writing about this particular ingredient? Simple, this ingredient is used in many if not most of our every day products and there are just now numerous studies coming out with information stating that this may not be the best thing since sliced bread. For starters, you really can't kill it, it kills things and therefor itself is very hard to render ineffective.

I was really surprised when I learned that it was first registered with the EPA as a pesticide and is now in my toothpaste......toothbrush fibers.....some cosmetics.....and pretty much anything labeled anti-bacterial. I saw on another site that it can stay active in your skin for up to 12 HOURS! I am still working to confirm this bit of info with a scientific based source, but if this is true it pretty much means that we all eat triclosan daily in addition to eating it when we brush......um, yuck! Just the simple fact that the EPA is moving their assessment timetable up for this ingredient by 10 years raises some red flags with me.

Anytime there is an ingredient that is used so heavily in such a variety of ways I am instantly curious and want to know more about it. Conveniently the EPA and FDA have also decided that they are curious and want to know more too so I will be keeping a close eye on this topic and report back what is published as I learn more. I always find it particularly interesting that through so many of these studies the FDA still stands behind the study that washing your hands with plain soap and water is just as effective, so it leaves me wondering why to the big corporations add the extra chemical and dump so  many millions and billions of dollars into marketing something that may not even be necessary?

Stay healthy my friends
~Your Soapsmith

My resources:

http://www.fda.gov/forconsumers/consumerupdates/ucm205999.htm

http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/REDs/factsheets/triclosan_fs.htm