Ilene's thoughts

I take my craft of soapmaking seriously and produce excellent soap because I have taken the time to learn how by studying the craft.

There are a lot of companies making handmade soaps and many of them make a good soap. But when you are deciding whose soap to purchase there are some things you can look for to assist you in determining which is the best to buy...

• Anyone can learn to make a bar of soap, but it takes a serious student of soapmaking to produce a bar that is truly kind to your skin, not stripping it of natural oils, and helping to protect it from environmental damage.

• Anyone can produce a bar of soap made with inexpensive oils to increase the profit margin, but not everyone uses expensive butters and oils known for their ability to soften, help protect from environmental damage, and assist in retaining moisture.

• When shopping for good quality handmade soap look for: An ingredient list and what benefits those ingredients have for your skin, and what method was used to make it.

• Fragrance: Try to determine if the fragrances used in the soap are high quality and will not fade over time. We all love to be able smell those wonderful fragrances.

The longer I am in this business the more I lean toward natural and organic products. It isn't news that what you put on your skin absorbs into your body so what I am putting on my skin has become more important to me as I realize I can make products that do not contain unsafe chemicals.

We are exposed to so many chemicals from the air, our foods, and all the cosmetics and bath products we use that it's no wonder people have all these auto immune diseases. The immune system becomes overloaded trying to protect our bodies. I am amazed at how many diseases and conditions are auto-immune related; Type 1 diabetes, hives, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, and lupus just to name a few. Add to that all the weird skin conditions people develop like contact dermatitis, excema, rosecea, yeast infection of skin, allergies and more. Do you think our bodies are trying to send us a message? I do.

Concerning my fragranced soaps and the partially chemical fragrance oils I use in them, my stance is this; in the shower soap stays on your skin anly a few moments and is rinsed off. Not enough time to absorb anything from the fragrance. But even along this line I have begun making all natural soaps using essential oils and will continue to offer more of these.

I do not sell body lotions because a preservative has to be used in any product that contains water. You can't make lotion without water and I have yet to find a preservative I can use that seems safe enough. My solution for this is to use a body cream or balm which has no water and does not require a preservative. In the future I'll be formulating a body cream to offer, meanwhile I am using my new Vitamin E balm; it is safe, healthy, and my skin is really soft.

I love making soap. Love the intricacies of the oils that can be used and the effect they can have on your skin. One minor change in a formula can make all the difference in how your skin feels after using it and the possibilities are endless. After years of soap making (since 2002!) and all I have learned studying the craft I can say there's still more to learn.

Recently I reformulated my base recipe for my scented soaps and increased the conditioning way above what it had been. This is awesome soap for dry or normal skin.

So many people think the idea of making soap is cool and think they are going to just learn a few things and be able to whip up a batch that everyone will love. This is a dangerous thing considering the lye we must use...no lye, no soap. An uneducated person can make soap that could actually burn your skin.

I was listening the past couple of days to Jimmy Carter and his Mom. She said it is a "privilege to serve others."

One of those light bulbs comes on in my head...it IS a privilege to serve others. It isn't about 'helping' others. Is about 'serving' others.

The way I can serve is to formulate products that are chemical free and safe to put on skin. This pleases me.

I tried a bar of the newly formulated soap in the shower a few minutes ago. It's awesome! Great creamy lather, and it felt just decadent, smooth, creamy and left my skin feeling really nice. It is possible I may not to be able to improve on this formula because it is really good soap.

I have reformulated the soaps based on new knowledge gained from a chemist who has software I can use to determine exact qualities for the finished soap. It lets me figure several qualities such as cleansing, conditioning, creamy lather, and bubbly lather based on the properties of the oils used. Previous research had lead me to use oils that help skin retain moisture and leave a protective barrier and with the new improvements added I am going to say this soap has to be the ultimate friend for skin.