I've been Soft Soaped

digitS'

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Yeah, they coaxed me into using Irish Spring years ago. "Gets you clean as a whistle!" "Manly, yes, but I like it too." Some lovely lady telling me that -- I was soft soaped :p.

Now, lately, I am wondering . . . why are the bars of soap so danged soft? They are so soft that I'm not sure if I'm getting thru a week with one of them! They wouldn't be doing this so as to sell me more soap, would they? I don't wanna be going all mule-headed about bath soap! I can change, if I have to . . .

I've got to go in for another bottle of Johnson's baby shampoo . . . what do you think I should try in the way of a bath soap? You know, something "manly" and fitting my interests and habits: flower gardening, birdwatching, that sort of thing . . .

Steve
 

897tgigvib

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Lever, aloe/cucumber!

Any of those glycerin kinds is good too.
 

thistlebloom

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Well Petey sells some really nice handmade soaps. Goat milk soaps, Emmalou Moo soaps, some very manly types too. :)
One of my favorites is her Bergamoo, smells like Bergamot :) Her website is on her signature line.
 

Carol Dee

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thistlebloom said:
Well Petey sells some really nice handmade soaps. Goat milk soaps, Emmalou Moo soaps, some very manly types too. :)
One of my favorites is her Bergamoo, smells like Bergamot :) Her website is on her signature line.
I second that. And the soap will last as long as a bar of Irish Spring! (And smells better!) :)
 

digitS'

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I use bar soap for hand washing, also.

I don't even know the brand. DW buys it and the bars last and last. Meanwhile, she uses the trademarked "Soft Soap." I think she just finds it easier to pump rather than pick up the bar. I don't like the stuff in the bottle. Strangely, I find it much more drying and hard on my hands.

Paying attention to my hands, and these lingering skin rash symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis pays off. I have been quite "abusive" to my hands lately, according to DW. She claims that she can't do all the handling of the potting soil without it damaging her hands. Well, I do that and spent a couple hours with buffing compound and Comet cleanser cleaning the wheels on the pickup the other day. All that can be drying and lead to problems but mostly, I have to notice any breaks and begin treating them with a steroid cream. I don't want to be a "bubble boy" and have no intention of changing my grubby ways. I just follow Mom's advice about always washing my hands when I come in from outdoors and don't go to bed dirty. I aspired in life to become a showers-in-the-morning guy. Never really happened.

Steve
 

MeggsyGardenGirl

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About a year ago I switched to organic liquid Castile soap for everything - kitchen, shower, bath. It's wonderful - no more cracked dry skin in winter. After a hard day in the garden, it cleans the grime beautifully. I find it cleans kitchen items just as well or even better than any of the grocery brands. It cuts grease and rinses clean but doesn't strip your skin. I dilute it 4:1 with water and use those foam dispensers everywhere. That makes it quite economical to use and the dilution doesn't reduce the soap's effectiveness in my experience. It took awhile to convince my hubby - he must be one of those Irish Spring lads.

Back when we used bar bath soap, the only way I could figure out how to make it last was to take all the bars out of their wrappers when we first bought them and let them air dry out. Somehow, the air evaporated the softening compounds and the soap lasted much much longer in the shower. I kept them in my linen closet and the perfume compounds in the bar soap scented the sheets and towels while they cured. We don't miss all that soap perfume though. Clean doesn't have a scent and doesn't need one either, I don't think.

The switch was worth it to us.
 

Stubbornhillfarm

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Carol Dee said:
thistlebloom said:
Well Petey sells some really nice handmade soaps. Goat milk soaps, Emmalou Moo soaps, some very manly types too. :)
One of my favorites is her Bergamoo, smells like Bergamot :) Her website is on her signature line.
I second that. And the soap will last as long as a bar of Irish Spring! (And smells better!) :)
X3

She has an awesome beer soap that can be used for shampoo too! Also her Birch soap smells really good. (very macho!) The farmer wouldn't use her Wild Rose soap. I think he was just protesting...:D. But he uses all of the others I have bought so far.
 

so lucky

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Meggsy, you have some good suggestions there. I'll have to start unwrapping the bars of soap my DH uses. He goes through it really fast. I have stopped using bar soap in my bath; switched to Bronner's lavender castile soap. My Sis in law reminded me that it is bar soap that puts that ring around the bath tub.
I have a lot of problems with eye irritation, so getting shampoo in my eyes is just one irritation I don't need. So I have been using children's shampoo for quite a while. I think it is Suave Kids "Surf's Up" or something like that. Not costly, good neutral smell, no tears!
And, digit'S, potting soil is very drying to my hands, too, as well as garden soil. I try to remember to use gloves if I'm going to be getting my hands in it for more than filling a pot or two.
 

digitS'

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Manly but why is it so soft?!

It has only been the last 2 packages of the bars . . .

I went back to "regular" after sloshing my way thru the "ice" - or whatever they call it :rolleyes:. Same Crisco-quality.

Steve
 
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