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 Lard is a traditional and effective ingredient for making soap. It has been used for centuries and offers several benefits in soap making:

Properties of Lard in Soap:

• Hardness: Lard contributes to a harder bar of soap that will last longer compared to soaps made with some softer oils.
• Creamy Lather: It helps produce a stable and creamy lather, which many find luxurious.
• Conditioning: Lard is rich in fatty acids that are similar to those found in human skin, making it moisturizing, and conditioning. It doesn't strip the skin of its natural oils.
• Mildness: Soap made with lard is generally considered mild and suitable for sensitive skin.
• Cost-Effective: Lard can be a relatively inexpensive ingredient if you can render it yourself, however organic free-range lard from local sources makes it very expensive.
• Sustainability: Using lard, a byproduct of the meat industry, can be a sustainable way to reduce waste.
• Label Appeal: Some consumers may be hesitant to use soap made with animal fat; that's a relatively new trend brought about by chemical companies making detergent and selling their product as facial or body cleanser. Some people are more informed and prefer the benefits of soap made with lard over chemicals 
• Scent: While pure rendered lard has a minimal to no scent, some may associate it with a pork smell. This scent disappears during the saponification process, and essential oils can be added for fragrance if desired.
• Lather Quantity: Lard soap produces a creamier lather rather than a bubbly one. 
• Cleaning Power: Lard soap is mild. 
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 Oregon Hazelnut oil is a wonderful oil to use in soap making! It offers several beneficial properties to the final soap product. 

Properties of Hazelnut Oil in Soap:

• Moisturizing and Conditioning: Hazelnut oil is rich in oleic and linoleic fatty acids, as well as Vitamin E, which contribute to its moisturizing and conditioning properties. It helps to keep the skin hydrated and soft. 
• Mild Cleansing: It provides a gentle cleansing action, making it suitable for sensitive skin. 
• Stable Lather: Hazelnut oil contributes to a stable, medium lather that is often described as creamy.
• Light and Absorbent: It's a light oil that absorbs well into the skin without leaving a greasy residue. This makes it particularly appealing for facial soaps and those designed for oily skin. 
• Considered Astringent: Some sources suggest it has mild astringent properties due to the presence of tannins, which can be beneficial for oily or acne-prone skin by helping to tighten pores. 
• Contributes to a Softer Bar: Being a liquid oil high in unsaturated fats, using a high percentage of hazelnut oil on its own will result in a softer bar of soap. It's typically used in combination with harder oils and butters.
• Cost and Availability: Organic Oregon Hazelnut oil can be much more expensive than most other common soap-making oils.
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 Organic beef tallow is an excellent ingredient for making soap. Using local organic tallow ensures that the fat comes from cattle raised without synthetic pesticides, herbicides, hormones, or antibiotics, which some soap makers and consumers prefer for its potential purity and ethical considerations. 

Organic Beef Tallow is in a period of renaissance for use on the body and hosts a number of benefits over chemicals used for soap and cosmetics.

Benefits of Organic Beef Tallow in Soap:

• Hardness: Just like conventional tallow, it creates a hard, long-lasting bar of soap. 
• Creamy Lather: It contributes to a stable and creamy lather that many find luxurious and gentle. 
• Moisturizing: Beef tallow is rich in fatty acids that are similar to those found in human skin sebum. This makes it very moisturizing and helps prevent the soap from stripping the skin's natural oils. 
• Mildness: Soap made with tallow is generally mild and can be suitable for sensitive skin. 
• Nutrient-Rich: Organic, grass-fed tallow can be particularly rich in vitamins A, D, E, and K, as well as beneficial fatty acids like conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). These nutrients can further nourish the skin.
• Sustainable Option: Using tallow, especially from ethically raised local animals, is a sustainable way to utilize a byproduct of the meat industry, reducing waste. Choosing organic further supports environmentally conscious farming practices.
• Traditional Ingredient: Tallow has been used in soap making for centuries, and many find it creates a high-quality, traditional soap. 
• Source and Quality: Soap Organically ensures we are sourcing high-quality, properly rendered organic beef tallow. The rendering process removes impurities and odors. 
• Scent: Properly rendered tallow should have a minimal scent. Any remaining scent will usually be removed by saponification and by using essential oils added to the soap, natural fragrances can be enjoyed without worry. We never use lab created fragrance oils at Soap Organically!
• Lather Quantity: Tallow produces a creamy lather rather than a bubbly one. 
• Cleaning Power: Tallow soap is mild and moisturizing. 
• Cost and Availability: Organic beef tallow is more expensive and harder to find than conventional tallow or plant-based oils.
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 It's important to clarify that coconuts do not naturally grow in most of the continental United States, including Portland, Oregon. Coconut palms (Cocos nucifera) are tropical plants that require warm temperatures, high humidity, and plenty of sunshine to thrive. They are primarily grown in tropical regions around the world, such as Southeast Asia, the Pacific Islands, and parts of Central and South America.

Therefore, "organic American coconut oil" typically refers to coconut oil that has been processed and packaged in the United States using organically grown coconuts sourced from these tropical regions.

So, while the coconuts themselves are not grown in most of America, we certainly purchase and use organic coconut oil that has been processed within the United States. 

Properties of Organic Coconut Oil in Soap:

• Hardness: Coconut oil is a very hard oil and contributes significantly to a firm bar of soap.
• Bubbly Lather: It is known for producing a copious and bubbly lather.
• Cleansing: Coconut oil is a powerful cleanser, effectively removing dirt and oils from the skin.
• White Color: It generally contributes to a whiter color in the finished soap.
• Cost-Effective: Compared to some other specialty oils, coconut oil is often relatively affordable.
• Drying: Due to its strong cleansing action, using a very high percentage of coconut oil can be drying to the skin for some individuals, Soap Organiocally uses well tested recipes in percentages below those that cause drying or clogged pores. It's often balanced with more moisturizing oils, or other liquid oils.
• Lather Quality: While the lather is abundant, it can sometimes be less stable or creamy on its own. Combining it with oils like tallow, or castor oil can improve the lather's stability and creaminess.
• Scent: Organic coconut oil typically has a mild, sweet coconut aroma, especially if it's virgin or unrefined. Refined coconut oil has a more neutral scent.
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Organic USP grade castor seed oil is an excellent choice for soap making. 

• Organic: This ensures the castor beans were grown without synthetic pesticides, herbicides, or fertilizers. This is a preferred choice for those seeking more natural and environmentally conscious ingredients.
• USP Grade (United States Pharmacopeia): This designation indicates that the castor oil meets the standards for purity and quality set by the USP. This is a significant advantage for soap making as it assures a high-quality and consistent ingredient, free from harmful contaminants.
• Castor Seed Oil in Soap: Castor oil is a valuable ingredient in soap making, offering several unique benefits: 
  • Lather Booster: It's well-known for increasing the lather in soap, producing a rich and bubbly texture. 
  • Humectant: Castor oil is a humectant, meaning it attracts and retains moisture in the skin, helping to prevent dryness. 
  • Conditioning: It contributes to the conditioning properties of the soap, leaving the skin feeling softer and smoother. 
  • Stable Lather: Even in small amounts, it helps to create a more stable lather that lasts.
  • Silky Feel: It can impart a slightly silky feel to the soap.
• Usage Rate: Generally, castor oil is used in soap recipes at a rate of 5% to 10% of the total oils. 
• Combining with Other Oils: Castor oil is almost always used in combination with other base oils like coconut oil, lard, tallow, etc., to create a balanced soap with good hardness, cleansing, and moisturizing properties.
• Cold Process and Hot Process: Castor oil can be used in both cold process and hot process soap making methods.
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 Organic U.S. made vegetable stearic acid is a valuable ingredient used in soap making to enhance certain qualities of the soap bar. Let's break down its properties and how it's used by us:

  (note we do not use palm products)

What is Stearic Acid?

• Stearic acid is a saturated fatty acid that occurs naturally in both animal and vegetable fats and oils. 
• For our soap making, it's typically derived from vegetable sources like Oregan grown soy. When it's labeled "organic vegetable stearic acid," it means the source oils were organically grown and processed. 
• In its pure form, it's a white, waxy solid. 

Benefits of Using Organic Vegetable Stearic Acid in Soap:

• Hardness: Stearic acid is a significant contributor to the hardness of a soap bar. 
• Stable Lather: It helps to create a stable and creamy lather. While it doesn't produce a lot of bubbles on its own, it improves the quality and longevity of the lather generated by other oils which is why we use it in our shaving soaps.
• Opacity: Stearic acid can help to make the soap bar more opaque (less translucent). 
• Smoothness: It can contribute to a smoother, more polished feel to the soap bar.
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 US-made organic nutmeg butter is used in our soap making, although it's considered a more luxurious and highly expensive additive rather than a primary base oil.

Properties of Nutmeg Butter:

• Rich and Exotic Scent: Nutmeg butter has a warm, spicy, and slightly sweet aroma characteristic of nutmeg. 
• Moisturizing: Like many natural butters, nutmeg butter contains fatty acids that can contribute to the moisturizing properties of the soap, leaving the skin feeling soft.
• Potential Antioxidant Properties: Nutmeg contains compounds with antioxidant properties, which might offer some benefit to the skin, although this is more significant in leave-on products.
• Scent Retention: While the initial scent of nutmeg butter is strong, the saponification process (reaction with lye) will diminish or alter the fragrance in the final soap. 
• Cost and Availability: U.S. Organic nutmeg butter is likely to be very much more expensive and less readily available than common soap-making base oils. This makes it more suitable for specialty or luxury soaps.
• Usage Rate: Due to its cost and potential impact on the soap's overall balance, nutmeg butter is typically used in smaller percentages, often as an additive to contribute its unique properties rather than as a significant portion of the base oils. 
• Potential for Discoloration: Some natural ingredients can cause slight discoloration in soap. 
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 Oregon-grown organic olive oil is an excellent ingredient for soap making! While Oregon isn't as widely known for olive oil production as some Mediterranean regions or California, there are dedicated olive groves in certain parts of the state, particularly in the southern and western regions where the climate is milder.

Benefits of Using Oregon-Grown Organic Olive Oil in Soap:

• High Quality: If it's truly organic, it means the olives were grown without synthetic pesticides or fertilizers, resulting in a pure and natural oil. 
• Moisturizing: Olive oil is rich in oleic acid, a monounsaturated fatty acid that is very moisturizing and conditioning for the skin. Soap made with a good percentage of olive oil tends to be gentle and hydrating. 
• Mildness: Olive oil soap is known for being very mild and suitable for sensitive skin, including baby skin. 
• Stable Lather (in high percentages): While 100% olive oil soap (Castile soap) takes a long time to cure and produces a low lather initially, the lather becomes surprisingly stable and creamy over time. 
• "Superfatting" Benefits: Olive oil is often used at higher percentages in soap recipes, allowing for a good amount of "superfat" (unsaponified oils) which further enhances its moisturizing properties.
• Local and Sustainable: Using locally grown ingredients supports local farmers and can reduce the environmental impact associated with long-distance transportation. Choosing organic further supports sustainable farming practices. 
• Cost and Availability: Depending on the scale of olive oil production in Oregon, organic options will be more expensive and less readily available than commercially produced olive oil from larger regions.
• Lather Quantity (in high percentages): Soap made with a high percentage of olive oil (like Castile soap) will have a lower, more subtle lather compared to soaps with coconut oil. This isn't necessarily a negative, but it's something to be aware of. 
• Cure Time (in high percentages): 100% olive oil soap requires a very long cure time (several months) to harden properly and develop its lather. However, when used in combination with other oils, the cure time is more typical (4-6 weeks).
• Scent: Oregon-grown olive oil will impart a mild, characteristic olive oil scent to the soap, which usually fades during the curing process or can be complemented with essential oils.
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 Oregon-grown organic Buena Vista lavender is an excellent and highly desirable ingredient for soap making, especially if you are located in Portland or nearby! Buena Vista Lavender Farm is a well-known and respected lavender farm located in the Willamette Valley of Oregon, which is indeed a prime growing region for high-quality lavender.

Benefits of Using Oregon-Grown Organic Buena Vista Lavender in Soap:

• High Quality and Potency: Buena Vista Lavender Farm is known for its fragrant and high-quality lavender. Using their organic lavender ensures you are getting a potent and pure botanical. 
• Wonderful Aroma: Buena Vista lavender varieties (like 'Folgate', 'Hidcote', 'Royal Velvet', etc.) are prized for their beautiful and long-lasting fragrance, which imparts a lovely scent to our soap.
• Aesthetic Appeal: incorporating the dried lavender buds into our soap for visual appeal, adding texture and a natural touch. 
• Potential Skin Benefits: Lavender is known for its calming, soothing, and potentially antiseptic properties, which can be beneficial for the skin. 
• Organic and Local: Using organic lavender aligns with our preference for natural ingredients grown without synthetic pesticides or herbicides. Being Oregon-grown, it supports local agriculture and reduces transportation impacts, which is particularly relevant in Portland.
• Marketing Advantage: Oregon-grown organic Buena Vista lavender is a significant selling point for our soap, appealing to customers who value local, organic, and high-quality ingredients.
• Directly Added Buds: Dried lavender buds can be added directly to our soap batter at trace (the point when the batter has thickened slightly) providing a mild exfoliation.
• Lavender Essential Oil: For a stronger and more consistent lavender scent, Soap Organically uses organic lavender essential oil distilled from Buena Vista lavender

Considerations:

• Scent Retention: As with any botanical scent in soap, the lavender aroma might fade over time, especially if only dried buds are used. Essential oil will provide a stronger and longer-lasting scent.
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 Oregon grown organic meadowfoam oil is a wonderful and relatively unique oil to use in soap making! It offers several beneficial properties to the finished soap bar. 

Properties of Organic Meadowfoam Oil:

• Highly Stable: Meadowfoam oil is exceptionally stable and resistant to oxidation (rancidity) due to its unique fatty acid composition, particularly its high content of long-chain fatty acids. This contributes to a longer shelf life for our soap. 
• Moisturizing and Conditioning: It's a medium-weight oil that is easily absorbed by the skin, providing excellent moisturizing and conditioning benefits without feeling greasy. It helps to soften and smooth the skin. 
• Emollient: Meadowfoam oil is a great emollient, meaning it helps to lock in moisture and prevent water loss from the skin. 
• Lather Enhancer (indirectly): While it doesn't produce a lot of lather on its own, it can contribute to a more stable and luxurious lather when combined with other lather-producing oils.
• Unique Fatty Acid Profile: Its high content of eicosenoic acid and docosenoic acid (long-chain monounsaturated fatty acids) is responsible for its stability and skin-feel properties.
• Relatively Sustainable: Meadowfoam is often grown as a rotational crop, which can contribute to more sustainable agricultural practices. Choosing organic further supports environmentally friendly farming. 
• Cost and Availability: Meadowfoam oil is much more expensive and far less readily available than some common soap-making base oils like olive oil or coconut oil.
• Scent: It has a very mild, slightly nutty scent that generally doesn't overpower other fragrances in our soap.
• Softness: Being a liquid oil, using a very high percentage of meadowfoam oil on its own might result in a softer bar. It's best used in combination with harder oils and butters.
• Lather Quantity: It's not a significant lather producer on its own, so we need to include oils like coconut or castor oil in our recipe for good lather.
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This is a short list of the ingredients we use in Soap Organically's Luxury Soaps. Soap Organically tries to use only the very best organic ingredients available in the U.S., however, sometimes a recipe calls for something we cannot grow in the U.S. When this situation occurs, we source only from established organic farms to ensure we are using the very best ingredients available at any cost. 

Soap Organically doesn't try to be the biggest soap maker nor the cheapest soap maker, we try to be the very best soap maker in the world. Our products are made by hand each and every time, with careful attention only a real human person can achieve. Even our soap cutting is done by hand with an actual knife, not a machine or wire cutter. Our soaps have variability in shape and size because of this and as such we wrap them by hand as well!

If you're going to use soap, you might as well Soap Organically and use the very best money can buy.

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We care about the environment, which is why all of our packaging is eco-friendly. We use recycled materials and biodegradable packaging to minimize our impact on the planet.

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Why Willamette Valley Peppermint is Great for Soap:

• High Quality: The Willamette Valley in Oregon is renowned for producing some of the finest peppermint in the world due to its ideal climate and soil conditions. This often translates to a potent and aromatic essential oil. 
• Refreshing and Cooling: Peppermint essential oil, rich in menthol, provides a wonderful cooling and invigorating sensation on the skin. This makes peppermint soap a popular choice for a refreshing cleanse, especially in warmer weather or after a hike on the Oregon Trail. 
• Aromatherapy Benefits: The crisp, minty scent of peppermint essential oil is known to be stimulating, help improve focus and potentially alleviate headaches. Using peppermint soap can provide these aromatherapy benefits during your shower or handwashing routine. 
• Antimicrobial Properties: Peppermint oil has natural antiseptic and antibacterial properties that can help cleanse the skin and may be beneficial for acne-prone skin. 
• Anti-inflammatory Effects: The menthol in peppermint oil can also help to soothe irritated or inflamed skin. 
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 Oregon organic beeswax can be a wonderful addition to soap making, offering several benefits:

Benefits of Beeswax in Soap Making:

• Hardens the Soap Bar: Beeswax adds firmness to soap, making it last longer in the shower and preventing it from becoming mushy quickly. 
• Increases Lather: Some sources suggest that beeswax can help to create a more stable and luxurious lather.
• Gentle on the Skin: Beeswax is known for its moisturizing and protective properties. It can help create a gentler soap that doesn't strip the skin of its natural oils. 
• Adds a Natural Appeal: Using beeswax, especially if it's locally Oregon sourced and organic, enhances the natural and wholesome nature of our approach to soapmaking 
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 Organic Lanolin Availability: While organic lanolin exists in the market, it may not be specifically sourced and processed entirely within Oregon. 

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 Port Orford Cedarwood Essential Oil is a wonderful choice for soap making, especially if you're located in Oregon and appreciate locally sourced ingredients. 

Properties and Benefits for Soap Making:

• Aroma: Port Orford Cedarwood essential oil has a unique aroma that is often described as: 
  • Sweet and woody
  • Earthy and grounding
  • Coniferous (pine-like) 
  • With hints of pine and fennel 
  • Some describe it as lighter and sweeter than other cedarwood varieties like Atlas or Himalayan.
• Aromatherapy Benefits: The scent can provide: 
  • Relaxing and grounding effects.
  • Increased awareness and a sense of being present.
  • Stress reduction.
• Skin Benefits: While research specific to Port Orford Cedarwood in soap is limited, cedarwood essential oils in general are known for their: 
  • Antimicrobial properties: May help cleanse the skin. 
  • Anti-inflammatory properties: Could soothe irritated skin. 
  • Astringent properties: May help to tighten pores. 
• Fixative Properties: Like other wood essential oils, it can act as a mild fixative in soap blends, helping the scent last longer.
• Unique Origin: Using an essential oil derived from a tree native to a specific region like Southern Oregon and Northern California adds a special, local touch to your handmade soaps. 
• Repels Mosquitos: Port Orford Essential Oil is also an excellent mosquito and bug repellent 
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Soap Organically uses organic rosemary from our own garden, which provides the seasoning for our cooking and an ingredient for our soaps. We also use organic rosemary grown on our Hidden Hill Farm in Southern Oregon.

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Soap Organically uses organic Neroli Essential Oil (IMPORTED)

Organic neroli essential oil is a wonderful addition to soapmaking, offering a luxurious aroma and potential skincare benefits. Here's what you should know:

Benefits of Neroli Essential Oil in Soap:

• Fragrance: Neroli oil has a sweet, floral, and slightly citrusy scent that is considered uplifting and exotic. It provides a beautiful natural fragrance to soaps. 
• Skin Benefits: 
  • Rejuvenating and Revitalizing: Neroli is known to help regenerate skin cells, potentially reducing the appearance of scars, stretch marks, and wrinkles. 
  • Balancing: It can help balance oil production, making it suitable for various skin types, including dry, oily, and combination skin. 
  • Moisturizing: It helps maintain skin hydration, leaving it feeling soft and supple.
  • Soothing: Neroli has anti-inflammatory and antiseptic properties that can be beneficial for sensitive skin, acne, eczema, and dermatitis. 
  • Antioxidant: It contains compounds that can help protect the skin from environmental stressors.
• Aromatherapy Benefits: The calming and soothing aroma of neroli oil can help reduce stress, anxiety, and promote a sense of well-being. 

Cons of Neroli Essential Oil: 

• Neroli essential oil is relatively expensive because it takes a large amount of fresh orange blossoms to produce a very small quantity of oil, an ounce can cost several hundred dollars. 
• Neroli doesn't grow in Oregon and comes from the Northern African region
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Another little secret ingredient from our Hidden Hill Farm. The Hidden Hill Forest and Farm is part of our family heritage to source our own organic high quality juniper berries and botanicals. It is an ongoing endeavor and far from the city lights and sounds. Only nature lives in our forest! 

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 Using Oregon-grown organic spearmint essential oil in soap making is a wonderful choice! Here's why it's beneficial:

Benefits of Spearmint Essential Oil in Soap:

• Refreshing and Uplifting Aroma: Spearmint oil has a sweet, minty scent that is less intense than peppermint, making it a pleasant and invigorating addition to soap, especially for a morning or refreshing bar. 
• Cooling Sensation: The natural menthol content in spearmint oil provides a mild cooling sensation on the skin, which can be soothing and help with muscle relaxation. 
• Skin Benefits: 
  • It can help to nourish dull skin and improve the texture of oily skin. 
  • Spearmint has antioxidant properties that may help reduce the appearance of wrinkles and skin imperfections. 
  • Its antibacterial properties make it a good cleanser for the skin. 
  • It can help to relieve itching associated with dryness and skin irritations. 
• Mood Enhancing: The aroma of spearmint is known to have an uplifting effect and can help reduce feelings of stress and anxiety. 
• Natural and Organic: Using an Oregon-grown organic spearmint essential oil ensures Soap organically is incorporating a high-quality, pure, and environmentally conscious ingredient into our soap.
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