Posts
Neil:
regarding "fake soap..."
(I'm having to reply to a commenter via a blog post because Blogger is an asshole about letting me comment on my own freaking posts. So, here's my rather lengthy response to Neil who wanted to know if you could tell if an olive oil soap really contained olive oil. Here's my 'brief' answer. Honestly, it's brief because there are a lot of things to look out for, so this topic could in fact go on further & I'll be happy to discuss it in more detail with you, if you like..._
That is a tough question! I do not have a way to contact you, so I hope this finds you well...
It can be tough to tell if a soap truly contains what the label claims, but usually, with enough research, you can find out. Sometimes. Could you give the name or brand or what the label says? I will gladly look into it for you. We could contact the manufacturer even and usually, that's one sure fire way to get an answer. If they cannot absolutely guarantee you that they have olive oil in their soap, then you can pretty much bet it's a lie. At the very least, if a company can't guarantee it in some way, then it's best to not even bother doing business with them. That's what I've learned.
Aside from contacting the company, sometimes there are some "hints" you can find that will stand out to you as the soap being shady, if you read the label. If it says "glycerin" as the first ingredient, it's probably a mostly glycerin-only soap. Can you check the label and see where "olive oil" is listed? Usually, the way labeling works is the ingredient the product contains most of is listed first, and it goes in that order. So, when you see an olive oil soap with "olive oil" listed near the end of the ingredient list, basically, it's probably got so little of it that it may not even count!
Your best bet with this sort of thing is to opt for a soap that has as few ingredients as possible! Really, a good, high quality olive oil soap from an honest company will have only a few ingredients. For instance, the Olivella I was using had like 3! That's the best kinds because they aren't loaded with other fillers and chemicals and parabens...
Also just by looking through a manufacturer's website can tell you a lot about the quality of their product. Certified organic soaps are trustworthy and will gladly give you plenty of information regarding the ingredients and how much goes into each bar.
I've searched high and low and have tried so many soaps it isn't even funny. Some of the best, most trustworthy I've tried have been reviewed here. For instance, one company I trust fully and am 100% sure uses organic, totally safe ingredients is by Herbaria. You can check them out online & see all their proof of being organic, which is what convinced me in the first place. Only downside is they are expensive and of course, organic doesn't last as long. For teeth only though, it will last for a very long time.
I will say, all the natural & organic bar soaps I've used tend to run out or use up much quicker than your typical store-bought bar soap. Unless you keep it out of the shower when you aren't using it, anyway. I've found that a large bar of 100% organic ingredient soap lasts at least a month LESS than the crap soap. I guess that's how it goes. However, I can't say much about Olivella as I never used it in the shower, so perhaps not all natural soaps would, but usually, a totally natural or organic bar will last a significantly shorter period of time when used as a shower soap, so keep that in mind, too. If it lasts as long as your typical drug-store soap for shower use, then that could be a red flag, if all the other "signs" are pointing to "fake," too.
Look for these words: "Cold-pressed," "Organic," and you can be sure they're safe.
Another helpful hint: it's illegal (supposedly) for soap-sellers to put the word "soap" on their bars! Interesting, huh? So, if you ever see one that says "moisturizer bar" or "beauty bar" or something else that sounds shady and is not "soap," then that's their little loop-hole. Pretty much it's a way of tricking us. It's shady and unethical.
Okay, one more thing that may help you: if you want to test your soap to see if it's "real" or just a bar of glycerin, you can do so by cutting a chunk off the bar and putting in the microwave for 10 seconds. If it turns liquid really quickly, within those 10 seconds, it's probably not the "real" stuff. If it takes longer to liquify, that's a good sign it's the real deal, but keep in mind, this is no for-sure thing. And I wouldn't want to cause a real good soap a bad name based off this test only, so just keep your eyes opened for other signs too (like the ingredients label.)
Hope this was helpful, Niel! If you'd like to discuss it further, or dig deeper into that label, email or comment back & I'll do my best to help.
regarding "fake soap..."
(I'm having to reply to a commenter via a blog post because Blogger is an asshole about letting me comment on my own freaking posts. So, here's my rather lengthy response to Neil who wanted to know if you could tell if an olive oil soap really contained olive oil. Here's my 'brief' answer. Honestly, it's brief because there are a lot of things to look out for, so this topic could in fact go on further & I'll be happy to discuss it in more detail with you, if you like..._
That is a tough question! I do not have a way to contact you, so I hope this finds you well...
It can be tough to tell if a soap truly contains what the label claims, but usually, with enough research, you can find out. Sometimes. Could you give the name or brand or what the label says? I will gladly look into it for you. We could contact the manufacturer even and usually, that's one sure fire way to get an answer. If they cannot absolutely guarantee you that they have olive oil in their soap, then you can pretty much bet it's a lie. At the very least, if a company can't guarantee it in some way, then it's best to not even bother doing business with them. That's what I've learned.
Aside from contacting the company, sometimes there are some "hints" you can find that will stand out to you as the soap being shady, if you read the label. If it says "glycerin" as the first ingredient, it's probably a mostly glycerin-only soap. Can you check the label and see where "olive oil" is listed? Usually, the way labeling works is the ingredient the product contains most of is listed first, and it goes in that order. So, when you see an olive oil soap with "olive oil" listed near the end of the ingredient list, basically, it's probably got so little of it that it may not even count!
Your best bet with this sort of thing is to opt for a soap that has as few ingredients as possible! Really, a good, high quality olive oil soap from an honest company will have only a few ingredients. For instance, the Olivella I was using had like 3! That's the best kinds because they aren't loaded with other fillers and chemicals and parabens...
Also just by looking through a manufacturer's website can tell you a lot about the quality of their product. Certified organic soaps are trustworthy and will gladly give you plenty of information regarding the ingredients and how much goes into each bar.
I've searched high and low and have tried so many soaps it isn't even funny. Some of the best, most trustworthy I've tried have been reviewed here. For instance, one company I trust fully and am 100% sure uses organic, totally safe ingredients is by Herbaria. You can check them out online & see all their proof of being organic, which is what convinced me in the first place. Only downside is they are expensive and of course, organic doesn't last as long. For teeth only though, it will last for a very long time.
I will say, all the natural & organic bar soaps I've used tend to run out or use up much quicker than your typical store-bought bar soap. Unless you keep it out of the shower when you aren't using it, anyway. I've found that a large bar of 100% organic ingredient soap lasts at least a month LESS than the crap soap. I guess that's how it goes. However, I can't say much about Olivella as I never used it in the shower, so perhaps not all natural soaps would, but usually, a totally natural or organic bar will last a significantly shorter period of time when used as a shower soap, so keep that in mind, too. If it lasts as long as your typical drug-store soap for shower use, then that could be a red flag, if all the other "signs" are pointing to "fake," too.
Look for these words: "Cold-pressed," "Organic," and you can be sure they're safe.
Another helpful hint: it's illegal (supposedly) for soap-sellers to put the word "soap" on their bars! Interesting, huh? So, if you ever see one that says "moisturizer bar" or "beauty bar" or something else that sounds shady and is not "soap," then that's their little loop-hole. Pretty much it's a way of tricking us. It's shady and unethical.
Okay, one more thing that may help you: if you want to test your soap to see if it's "real" or just a bar of glycerin, you can do so by cutting a chunk off the bar and putting in the microwave for 10 seconds. If it turns liquid really quickly, within those 10 seconds, it's probably not the "real" stuff. If it takes longer to liquify, that's a good sign it's the real deal, but keep in mind, this is no for-sure thing. And I wouldn't want to cause a real good soap a bad name based off this test only, so just keep your eyes opened for other signs too (like the ingredients label.)
Hope this was helpful, Niel! If you'd like to discuss it further, or dig deeper into that label, email or comment back & I'll do my best to help.
