What is Soap anyway?

I get a lot of questions at Rocky Mountain Soap about, well ... Soap, as I guess I should since we sell more than 30 different kinds! The most common questions are: "What is soap anyway?", "Is your soap natural?" and "Do you have glycerin soap?", so let's address these here.

What is soap anyway? : in lay terms it is the product of an oil reacted with lye or potassium/sodium hydroxide. You take almost any oil - olive, coconut, and almond oils are very common - and you mix it usually with KOH (potassium hydroxide) and/or NaOH (sodium hydroxide) and a gelatinous slippery material is produced - i.e. soap. KOH and NaOH historically were derived by pouring water through wood ash - this is rarely they case anymore - but the reaction is a natural one, and both materials occur naturally. Indeed, Pliny the Elder mentions this in his Historia Naturalis (AD 79), so we have been using soap for a long time. As you can see from the picture to the right, soap comes in solid form, but it also comes in liquid that is dispensed as is. Recently companies have been aspirating glycerin enhanced liquid soaps to produce a very luxurious and natural foaming wash. Of course natural soap may just be that, without any additions. However, for those that like texture or scents or colours, essential oils and extracts are used, such as lavender essential oil or apricot fruit extract to name but a few. Colours are usually natural earth minerals and textures such as pumice, seeds, grains and even coffee are sometimes added for look, feel or exfoliating purposes.

Is your soap natural?: If soap is produced in the above manner, it is considered natural. However, most 'soap' these days is hardly natural, and sometimes isn't even soap. Detergents, which contain no actual soap are often formed into bars with added moisturisers. Dishwashing liquid is also usually just a detergent with synthetic fragrances added. Most detergents contain harsh surfactants like SLS, SLES or Coco Betaine etc. Rocky Mountain Soap's products are all 100% natural. If you are unsure, read the ingredient list, if there is one. It should say something like saponified oils of coconut (insert oil of choice here) - but if it says something like "derived from" coconut (etc) oil, then you might want to question how it was derived...

Do you have glycerin soap?: All real soap has glycerin. The oil molecules that real soap is made from contain a component called glycerol on one end. In the saponification reaction, this is converted to glycerin. In commercial soap production, the glycerin is often skimmed off, and sold for industrial purposes, as it is quite valuable. Natural soap makers usually leave all the glycerin in their soap because it has natural cleaning and moisturising abilities. This is what helps give the soap its silky and slippery feel. It is also a natural humectant, that is, it attracts moisture - another reason that you will also find it in natural moisturisers. However, many people think of those clear, almost see through soaps when they think of glycerin soap. This is simply because alcohol has been added during the soap making process. Aesthetically, this might be more pleasing to some, but alcohol is drying and helps defeat the purpose of glycerin being left in the soap in the first place.

Soap is a pretty simple product - yet there are a variety of issues surrounding it. Read ingredient labels and when in doubt, ask your soap retailer for clarification so that you get what you really think you are buying. Natural matters!

Rocky Mountain Soap Product Swap!

Are you an ingredient reader? I am. I find so many incomprehensible ingredients in personal care products these days. This is another reason that I fell in love with Rocky Mountain Soap Co.'s natural products - the ingredients. They only use natural ingredients and natural isn't greenwashed. All their ingredients come from nature, in their natural form. They don't mess with the molecular structure, they don't use petrochemicals. Pthalates, PAH's, synthetic sulfates and parabens are simply not found in any of their products.

Rocky Mountain Soap simply believes that there are too many synthetic ingredients found in bath and body products that are questionable as to their long term health effects. They believe that if there is an ingredient that could potentially be harmful or could have negative long-term effects on your health, that if is probably best not to use it when there are healthy and safe alternatives out there.

From Thursday July 23rd to Friday the 25th, we are officially launching our Natural Matters campaign. To highlight the fact that many personal care products contain chemicals that you might not want your skin absorbing, we will have a Product Swap at our store in the Mayfair Shopping Centre in Victoria, BC. The rules are simple, bring in a used or unused and unnatural personal care product from home such as a deodorant, perfume, moisturiser, soap etc and we will replace it with a comparable one of our own at 50% off the retail price.

What will we do with the products that are exchanged? The packaging will be delivered to a recycling depot and the contents to a hazardous waste disposal depot.

I can't wait to see what you have to exchange. So, please bring in your:

• Deodorants
• Face creams
• Moisturisers
• Perfumes
• Hand soaps
• Body washes
• Lip balms
• Toners
  

Chemicals Add Up. Natural Matters.

Farmer's Market

We've been asked to participate in a farmer's market, to be held here every Wednesday from 4pm at the Mayfair Shopping Centre, right through to September. I was hesitant at first, but someone pointed out that Rocky Mountain Soap products are all natural and hand-made, often from the very same natural ingredients one finds at a farmer's market.
A little research confirms that farmer's markets in BC are plentiful and increasingly popular. I was surprised though to find that they have a large economic impact, to the tune of 3.1 billion dollars in BC. That's a lot of lettuce, onions and hand-made soap. And beyond the economic impact, it is somehow satisfying to buy products direct from the people that had a hand in making them, growing them, creating them. Connecting with like-minded individuals is also an added bonus. Speaking of which, if you are in the Victoria area, check out Green Drinks, an informal network of green-minded people connecting together to share ideas. They also have other groups in other cities internationally.

If you are in the area on Wednesdays, June through Sept from 4 to 8pm, stop by and ask for a soap sample. We will probably be cutting soap, chatting with the other vendors or at the very least sun-tanning our toes.

Thank you!

We had a great turnout at the Open House Event this past Thurs, Fri and Saturday - thank you to all who made it out. We had a great number of walk-by customers who saw all the fun and decided to come in and see for themselves. Over 80 people who had never been in the store discovered natural at Rocky Mountain Soap over the past three days.

The make-your-own brown sugar scrub was quite a hit. Everyone had fun mixing up their own to take home. For those interested, here is the recipe that we used:Natural Brown Sugar Body Scrub

1 cup (250mL) granulated light brown sugar
1/4 cup (63mL) sweet almond oil
3 – 5 drops of your favourite essential oil

1. Combine sweet almond oil and the essential oil(s) in a bowl.
2. Add the sugar and mix thoroughly. Scoop mixture into a glass jar with lid.

Tips
• Almond oil is a skin softener. The amount of almond oil you use will depend on your personal preference and skin type, experiment with more or less oil until you get your perfect mix.
• You can substitute sweet almond oil with pure un-roasted sesame oil, extra virgin olive oil or any other oil you like that is suitable for the skin.
• You can substitute the brown sugar with white sugar, but brown sugar is preferable for sensitive skin and exfoliates better.
• Choose an essential oil to enhance the mood you’d like to create:
Orange, lemon, or rosemary for a stimulating energy boost. Lavender for relaxation. Lemongrass for a refreshing lift.
• Optionally, you can add a little honey for extra moisturising on dry skin.
• Optimally use within 2 weeks. Store in cool, dark environment.

Caution
• Do not use a body scrub on face or irritated skin (sunburned, a rash, or open cuts)
• Avoid sun exposure for 12 hours after you use citrus essential oils (eg: orange, lemon). This could result in burns or discoloured sun spots.
• If you are pregnant, it is best not to use essential oils or consult with the aromatherapist for safe essential oils during pregnancy.

Rocky Mountain Soap Company carries sweet almond oil and a variety of top grade pure and natural essential oils.We had spearmint tea from Silk Road and a variety of cookies that were a hit with the kids - and Scott. Many of you got to try a couple of the iterations of Awake and Sleep aromatherapy roll-ons that are currently under development, thanks for the feedback! Jane, from Rocky Mountain Soap in Canmore, came out to lend a hand and she was quite the chatterbox - entertaining our customers with testimonials to natural, we were sad to see her leave on Sunday - thanks Jane!

A heartfelt thanks to everyone that helped make this event a success and again to our valued customers who had the time to drop by.

INCI names - what are they?

You might have noticed that on your personal care products that there is a bunch of Latin in the ingredient list. In short, that's INCI (International Nomenclature of Cosmetics Ingredients) naming which assures consumer safety because everyone is on the same page with respect to a particular ingredient and so the consumer can look up essential oils, preservatives and other components of a cosmetic product easily and compare them with others, even if they come from different provinces, regions or countries. It is required under the law to have the INCI name for ingredients on cosmetics and personal care items in Canada, the USA, Japan, the EU and many other countries.

For example, on the label of Rocky Mountain Soap's Foot Butter, the ingredients are:
Vegetable oil, Alberta beeswax, cocoa butter (Theobroma cacao), and carrot tissue oil (Daucus carota sativa root extract), with essential oils of grapefruit (Citrus grandis), fir needle (Abies sibirica), patchouli (Pogostemum cablin) & lemongrass (Cymbopogon schoenanthus)That is, the common name in vernacular use is listed first and in brackets the INCI name, based on scientific, Latin and English components. Whatever the language, the INCI name will be the same. This also relieves the confusion of which species is being used in a product. For example there are over 50 species of lemongrass. In the Rocky Mountain Soap Foot Butter, we can easily verify that the lemongrass used is one of the varieties that is found in N. Africa through to India and South Asia.

As a consumer, if you are confused about what an ingredient is, simply google (or use some other search engine) the INCI name and you will easily find information on that ingredient. Alternately you can consult the International Cosmetic Ingredient Dictionary and Handbook, which is available at research libraries - most manufacturers have a copy handy too - which lists all ingredients with their common name and INCI name. It is in its 12th edition as of 2008, and at over 5000 pages and listing 15,000 INCI names, cross-referencing over 60,000 common names, it isn't a light read.

3 day Open House May 7-9, 2009

The team at Rocky Mountain Soap in Victoria would like to invite our valued customers to a three day open house promotion: Free Gifts, Fantastic Discounts, a chance to try New Products in development and give feedback... exclusive and just for you, our way of saying thank you.

With the purchase $50 or more - 10% off
With the purchase $100 or more - 20% off
With the purchase $150 or more - 30% off

Free gift for you and your guests:
Customers in the rewards program/point system will receive a free gift (value $14) at the event. Friends who sign up to the rewards program will also receive a free gift. Bring your friends!

We will have refreshments, an opportunity to make your own Sugar Scrub, and a chance to discuss why natural matters to all of us.

May 7th (Thur) 9:30 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.
May 8th (Fri) 9:30 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.
May 9th (Sat) 9:30 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

These offers are available at the Victoria store only. Check here for updates.

Thank you for your continued support of Rocky Mountain Soap!

Kindly,

Victoria Store Team

Located at Mayfair Shopping Centre: (t) 250.382.7070.

Is that Lavender or Lavender?

One of my favourite scents is lavender. I grow it in my garden and we have it in many different products here at Rocky Mountain Soap. It is one of the few essential oils that can be applied directly onto the skin. It has been called "blue gold", has sedative properties and is very relaxing. It is anti-microbial, antiseptic and anti-inflammatory. It is of course used in cosmetics, bath and body products and as a delightful fragrance in French cooking and chocolate. The nectar from the flowers also produces a deliciously scented honey. So, with this in mind, I thought I knew everything that I needed to know: all lavender is produced in France, it is easy to grow and all lavender is the same.

I was wrong on two of the three counts. Lavender is not exclusive to France. Eastern Europe is a major production area, and there are lots of lavender farms in BC - in the Okanagan, Vancouver Island and Salt Spring Islands, as well as in Sequim, WA just across the Juan de Fuca Strait. And while it is easy to grow at home, and you can get plants already started at your local gardening centre, be aware that not all lavender is created equal.

There are over 40 different species of lavender. English lavender (Lavandula augustifolia), the most sought after lavender essential oil, known for its delicate and subtle fragrance is the most common. However, Lavandin (L. x intermedia) a clone of a hybrid cross between English lavender (L. augustifolia) and Spike lavender (L. latifolia) is becoming more common because of its larger flowers, often deeper colour, much stronger scent and ease of cultivation. Indeed, it takes about 130kg of English lavender to produce 1 litre of essential oil versus 40kg of Lavandin flowers to get the same amount of essential oil. Lavandin is not true lavender however and is often referred to as 'Bastard Lavender'. It produces an essential oil, strong in camphor (about 6-8% versus the less than 1% composition in English lavender essential oil), and can be found more and more in large scale applications. While its flowers are beautiful, its essential oil is considered to be inferior to of L. augustifolia, lacking the subtle lavender scents associated with fine English lavender. I was wrong, not all lavender is created equal!