Frequently Asked Questions About Handmade Natural Soap

Natural Soap FAQ

You are here » Home > Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions About Handmade Soap

Does natural soap have a shelf life?
Why does natural soap cost so much?
Aren't the shipping costs high for a bar of soap?
Do you really use the highest grade of extra virgin olive oil in all your soap?
Will the soap I receive look exactly like the soap appearing on the web site?
Are all natural soap bars exactly 3.5 oz.?
Is there anything I can do to make my bar of natural soap last longer?
Why don't I get that squeaky clean feeling when I use your natural soap that I used to get from commercial soap?
I've heard that 100% olive oil soap is available. Wouldn't that be better than soap that's 50% olive oil?
Why are some natural soaps less expensive?
Do reed diffusers really work? I saw some in (national store name deleted) and you really couldn't smell them very well.
Which Blackberry Creek soaps are best for very dry skin?

Does natural soap have a shelf life?

Unlike commercial soaps, natural soap contains no preservatives. Therefore natural soap does have a shelf life. Blackberry Creek tells me their soap has a shelf life of about one year. It is always best to store natural soap in a cool, dry place until you're ready to use it.

The fact that natural soap does have a shelf life is an incentive to you to buy your soap online from a reputable source. Natural soap is expensive to stock in specialty stores and store owners are reluctant to dispose of obsolete inventory. Always smell the soap found on specialty store shelves to make sure the soap has not become rancid.

Handmade-Natural-Soap.net ships soap directly from the manufacturer located in Wisconsin. We do this to insure that we ship the most recently manufactured soap so you enjoy the longest possible shelf life. Blackberry Creek creates their soap in small batches to insure the rapid turnover of inventory. It's a more expensive way but the best way to run a natural soap company.
Why does handmade natural soap cost so much?

First, the all natural ingredients used to produce Blackberry Creek Soap are the highest quality ingredients available. Making natural soap is extremely labor intensive which is particularly true when manufacturing soap as beautiful as Blackberry Creek Soaps.

Second, it depends what you're comparing it to. My soap is priced very competitively with other all natural soaps. Of course it's more expensive than commercial soaps. Most commercial soaps extract many of the most useful substances in their soap while hot processing thousands of pounds of soap at the same time. Most noticeably they extract the glycerin from the soap. Glycerin is important for moisturizing your skin. The commercial soap companies are happy to sell the glycerin back to you in their lotions and creams to treat the conditions their soap causes you in the first place.

Third, put the cost of natural soap in perspective. How many baths or showers can you take using a 3.5 oz. bar of natural soap? 30? 40? Let's use thirty for an example. We currently charge $4.97 for a bar of natural soap. That would mean it costs you about 14 cents for each shower or bath. Suppose your bath takes 15 minutes. How many things can you think of that are this pleasurable and healthy for you that you can enjoy for 15 minutes for 14 cents? You can indulge yourself 15 minutes each day for a month for about the cost of a cup of Starbucks coffee that you drink in five minutes that isn't that good for you.

Lastly, if you use high quality Blackberry Creek Soap you don't need the plethora of moisturizing products most people need to replace the moisture in your skin the cheap commercial soap removes.

So is it expensive? No. And I didn't even consider the value of the beauty and incredible fragrance this soap adds to your home 24 hours a day when your not taking a bath or a shower. Blackberry Creek Soap is a bargain.
Aren't the shipping costs high for a bar of soap?

We add nothing for handling. Shipment usually occurs within 24 hours from the date you order it. We usually break even on the amount we charge for shipping.

We do recommend that you buy three or more bars of soap to minimize your cost for shipping.
Do you really use the highest grade of extra virgin olive oil in all your soap?

Yes, and it's expensive. But only the very best ingredients go into Blackberry Creek Soap. It's important to us to know that we provide the best possible handmade natural soap to our customers.
Will the soap I receive look exactly like the soap appears on the web site?

Blackberry Creek Handmade Natural Soap is produced in small batches and will probably never appear exactly the same twice. The batches are hand stirred. There are variations in the color in the natural ingredients used. Furthermore the images on the web site are produced using a calibrated computer monitor to produce the closest possible reproduction of the colors of the soap photographed for the product pictures. There is no guarantee that the colors produced by your graphics card on your computer monitor will be the same. I do give you a 100% money back satisfaction guarantee. I know how beautiful this natural soap is and I feel confident you'll agree.
Are all natural soap bars exactly 3.5 oz.?

No, because the bars are hand cut. We do guarantee that each natural soap bar is at least 3.5 oz.
Is there anything I can do to make my bar of natural soap last longer?

Yes. Simply use a soap dish with ridges that allows the soap to dry between each use. Your natural soap will last up to 50% longer using a soap dish with ridges. Don't let the soap in bath water while you're using it. Store unused soap in a cool, dry place.
Why don't I get that squeaky clean feeling when I use natural soap that I get from commercial soap?

I couldn't be happier that you don't get that feeling when you use our soap! Why? Because that squeaky clean noise you get rubbing your hand over your skin means that the detergent ridden commercial soap you've been using has taken all of the natural moisture out of your skin. Healthy, clean skin is not naturally squeaky. So I hope you remain "squeakless"!
I've heard that 100% olive oil soap is available. Wouldn't that be better than soap that's 50% olive oil?

I personally tried an imported bar of 100% olive oil soap. It's very expensive...almost twice as much per bar. But I'm not criticizing the price because extra virgin olive oil is very expensive. Olive oil is good for you...that's why we use it. But there are other things that are also good for your skin...that's why we use those ingredients as well. I also did not feel that my skin felt as good when I used the 100% olive oil soap.

I didn't like using the 100% olive oil soap because it just didn't lather well probably because I have extremely hard water. But Blackberry Creek Soap lathers well regardless of the hardness of your water because...you guessed it...the other natural ingredients it contains (palm oil).

The soap I tried was not beautiful in any way and did not have any fragrance...I missed them both.

I will never criticize other soap companies. There are some great companies and good people making natural soap. I would encourage you to compare Blackberry Creek Soap to the competition...I welcome it. That way you can draw your own conclusions.
Why are some natural soaps less expensive?

There's no one answer. Many times, especially for a good soap company, you have to look at the weight of the bar of soap. Many vendors don't even tell you the weight of their bar of soap. So obviously, given the same quality of ingredients, a 2.5 ounce bar is going to cost less than our 3.5 oz. bar.

Do they use the same quality of ingredients? I've seen some natural soap sold at a price that's less than the cost of the raw materials used to make our soap and we obviously buy in bulk quantities.

Is it truly all-natural soap made from scratch or is it start out as a commercial slab? Is it hand stirred and therefore more labor intensive?

So it could be any of these reasons, or combinations of these reasons, to explain why one soap is priced more or less than another. Our soap will always be priced fairly and to make it as affordable as possible to our customers to enjoy and use every day.
Do reed diffusers really work? I saw some in (national store name deleted) and you really couldn't smell them very well.

The problem with reed diffusers that don't fill the room with fragrance is usually because of low quality essential and fragrant oils. This is especially true if alcohol was used in the oil mixture. The alcohol evaporates over time making the diffuser oil thick. When it's thick it won't wick up the reed properly.

Blackberry Creek uses the highest quality essential and fragrant oils in making diffuser oil and doesn't use alcohol. Their reed diffusers fill a room with the most amazing fragrances for up to six months or more.

Blackberry Creek also uses rattan reeds which have physical characteristics that make them much better for wicking the diffuser oil than bamboo reeds.

Click here to find out more about Blackberry Creek Reed Diffusers...
Which Blackberry Creek Soaps are best for very dry skin?

All Blackberry Creek Soaps are good for dry skin. But according to the Blackberry Creek experts, Oat 'n Honey and Comfrey and Aloe are the absolute best for people with very dry skin.

Go to Top of Page

Call Toll Free: 1-888-205-3317

Send Email

Personal Checks & Money Orders Accepted

Report a Website Problem

Shipping

Returns