Has anyone noticed a difference switching to bar soap?

[bobstersmum]

A few weeks ago I stopped using shower gel and face wash and use only soap now (dove beauty if interested).
I have noticed that even in the heat we have had I am hardly sweating. And I have also noticed that my sparse eyebrows are definitely thickening up for the first time in years! Is this likely to do with the soap? I did notice it says sulphate free on the box.

I use simple soaps which are none scented and Waitrose scented are lovely

I changed to bar soap about 3 months ago and it's made such a difference. I feel and smell cleaner after a long day and my skin is much better. I keep telling people to swap but they aren't convinced!

I switched to soap a few months ago. I do have a few dry patches that flair up and they're definitely worse with soap. Still sticking at it though in an attempt to reduce my use of plastic.

Nom thanks for your tip on making sure it's palm oil free - I'll certainly be double checking the ingredients next time.

ifonly4 have a try with other soaps,some strip my skin but others are very kind and don't leave my skin dry at all .

I LOVE dove soap I have such sensitive reactive skin and I’ve used it for years (standard one or if v sensitive or having a flare up then the ff one). I actually wish they did a perfume of the dove smell

I actually wish they did a perfume of the dove smell

It's your lucky day,they do! From Perfume Parlour,you can get a roll on oil or a spray,I prefer the oil and the smell lasts all day. They also do a Nivea one too which I love . About £2

www.perfume-parlour.co.uk/dov-soap-for-women-0446/page/4

Might be worth saying that some bars of 'soap' are really detergents (e.g. Dove).

The difference being that soaps is made from a reaction between natural ingredients (fats and lye) and detergents are made from synthetic ingredients (I think mostly petroleum-based).

People who don't get on with one type might find another better for them...

have a try with other soaps,some strip my skin but others are very kind and don't leave my skin dry at all

Yeah, I find the Faith in Nature ones really gentle.

Sorry, meant to add for @ifonly4 that it might be you tried a detrgent but would find soap better (or the other way around).

Plus, the oils that are used to make soap all have their own properties so one bar of soap is not the same as another...

e.g. olive oil is incredibly mild so good for senstivite skin, but can leave the bar a bit slimy when wet and tends not to lather too much

Coconut oil can be very cleaning, creates lots of lovely bubbles but can sometimes be too harsh for some skin

Palm can be quite conditioning to skin but is mostly used because it is cheap.

These three are known as the soap staples and a bog-standard cold processed soap would often contain a balance of all 3.

Shea butter and cocoa butter are also very moisturising and are often added to more luxurious bars.

There are then loads and loads of other fats, oils, butters that can be used.

Faith in Nature (just as an illustration) is a cold processed soap with the folowing ingredients in their lavendar bar...

Sodium Palmate (palm oil)

Sodium Cocoate and/or Sodium Palm Kernelate (coconut oil or palm kernal oil)

Aqua (water)

Glycerin (a moisturising by product of the chemical reaction, some makers add extra to make it extra moisturising; it essentially creates a misture barrier on your skin to trap the moisture in, plus attracts moisture from the air)

Lavandula Angustifolia Oil (lavender oil)

Lavandula Hybrida Oil (diff type of lav. oil)

Sodium Chloride (lye - it's this that reacts with the fats etc to make soap)

Sodium Citrate (citric acid that helps prevent the bar creating soap scum)

Linalool (a chemical found in many flowers and spices and used as a foundation for the scent)

Limonene (citrus based extract that helps with cleaning and smells nice)

Geraniol (another scent chemical, found in things like rose oil)

Might be worth saying that some bars of 'soap' are really detergents (e.g. Dove)

I thought Dove wasn't a soap at all,that's why they call it a beauty bar,but what makes it a detergent?

** sorry,you've explained

I find anything with glycerine in a good bet for my skin.

For people concerned about palm oil, it has many, many names:

names for palm oil

In my experience most “high Street” soap does contain palm oil (although I think Lux and Radox were mentioned up thread as not)]]. Most food and toiletries that don’t contain palm oil are usually labelled as such. I really like Friendly Soap, not least because it is quite local to me.

Just took a look at the Friendly Soap website (out of nosiness). They seem like the real deal to me...

Nice, simple ingredients.

Friendly Soap looks great,very good prices too.

I wish I liked soap with hard edges,I love the look of Versailles soap but it's all hulking great cubes. I need a smooth soap with curved edges.

@LoafofSellotape you can use a vegetable peeler to take the edges off. Just run it along the corners and it'll smooth them.

Thank you, that's fab tip!

I'm glad I found this thread. Luckily my skin is better in the summer, so I've got time to try a couple of other products during the summer (or maybe not as soap lasts so long!).

I tried to switch to bar soap but my skin reacted badly to all of them - it doesn't help that I am allergic to coconut and pretty much anything perfumed so rules out a lot of products.

Conversely Sanex shower gel is the only one I get on with - I'd love to switch away from plastic but can't find anything my skin will tolerate.

Dove was my worst!

Did you try Simple soap?

Sanex does soap too

Waitrose do a good non scented one too.