ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE REAL ARTISANAL SOAP OF OLD YEARS
Handmade soap is an everyday product that is coming back to the forefront, taking advantage of consumers' need for simple hygiene products and natural cosmetics. effective, sustainable and ethical, free from chemicals.
HISTORY OF SOAP
The first soaps can be traced back more than 4000 years. It was in Mesopotamia that the Sumerians used it to cure skin diseases and also to wash clothes . At the time, soap was made from fat and ashes. In ancient times, it was used by the Gauls and then adopted by the Romans for washing. Subsequently, Aleppo soap was imported into Europe and the soap industry developed mainly around the Mediterranean basin, with Marseille becoming over time a real hub for soap production and shipping soap to the four corners of the world thanks to the presence of its port. We also find the origin of the famous Marseille soap , whose fame and reputation would then spread all around the world. Faced with the rise of industrial soap artisanal soap is experiencing a real revival to meet the consumer expectations for cosmetic products ethical and authentic and sustainable beauty products .
THE COLD SAPONIFICATION METHOD
Cold process soap making is the method of making handmade soap. using a fatty substance (oil or vegetable butter ), an alkaline agent (caustic soda or potash) and water. This is a natural manufacturing technique consisting of preserving the properties of artisanal soap, in particular by allowing the fatty substances to retain their virtues: hydration , emollient, regenerating and soothing. The master soap maker needs all his know-how to develop original recipes which subsequently allow certain properties to be highlighted more than others ( moisturizing soap , soothing soap , sensitive skin soap , etc.). Cold saponification makes it possible to make soaps which does not attack the skin unlike industrial manufacturing which will dry out and irritate the skin due to the elimination of fatty substances which will transform the soap into aggressive detergent soap . With the return to our bathrooms of natural hygiene products and natural cosmetics this ancestral manufacturing method which has proven itself is making a big comeback.
RECOGNIZING A REAL ARTISANAL SOAP
Recognizing a handmade soap is not always easy! The traditional soap that we find on the edge of the kitchen or bathroom sink is not always made according to the rules of the art . To be sure of having a quality handmade soap at home, you must pay attention to the list of ingredients used in the composition of the handmade soap . The real handmade soap is the result of the work of a true master soap maker and a traditional ancestral production of cold saponification . We must not You may find preservatives, alcohol or petrochemical derivatives in the composition of handmade soap . A handmade soap is made up of the following raw materials: vegetable oils , saponified coconut oil or saponified olive oil , butters such as shea or cocoa and other essential oils with specific properties. Be careful with the following ingredients which, if they are present on the list of ingredients, mean that you are holding an industrial soap in your hands : Sodium palmate, Sodium palm kernelate and the following preservatives: EDTA, Tetrasodium, BHT, etc.
THE BENEFITS OF HANDMADE NATURAL SOAP
Authentic handmade soap has many assets . Due to its composition and its manufacturing method ( cold saponification ) it does not irritate the skin, protects the skin , moisturizes the skin and softens it. It can be used on all parts of our body and whatever the nature of the skin , avoiding epidermal and allergic reactions which often cause discomfort and skin problems . This type of reaction is often observed when using industrial detergent soaps manufactured with the hot saponification method , depriving them of their natural glycerin. They are therefore irritating due to manufacturing which also includes non-natural ingredients such as industrial detergents , fatty substances of animal origin or even non-certified oil.
Find our selection of Manufrance artisanal scented soaps here.
