Does anyone use soap instead of shower gel?

[shimmerondown]

I've seen it recommended loads on here but I have a question...

I tried using just a soap bar and I feel loads cleaner, squeaky clean and fresher for longer

However, it really does seem to dry out the skin? I don't know how to describe it, but basically it's fine when cleaning with it but when you rinse it under water, the skin has this tight feeling?

I don't mean dry skin when dry if that makes sense.

What soaps do people use that don't have this as any soap I've ever tried does this?

I'm a convert back to bars of soap after using shower gels for years. I stock up in TKMaxx, lots of gorgeous Italian soap, and I've bought discounted Korres soap a few times too.

I have dry skin so always moisturise after a shower whether I use soap or shower gel.

I use these to keep the soap dry. Practical to have soap bar at right height to grab in the shower. Also works for solid shampoo etc

We use Friendly Soap, made in Yorkshire, lots of variety and lasts well. We changed for environmental reasons, as we were getting through too many plastic bottles. I do moisturise as I have dry skin but would need to do that with shower gel too.

To avoid the soggy soap issue we have a Shower Gem caddy that sticks to the tiles, drainage holes in each layer.

Always use nice soap because shower gel doesn't feel as clean.

To find proper soap look for Cold Process Soap - this is made using oils, butters & sodium hydroxide (lye) & water which when combined make soap.
I make my own soap but I love trying others & testing out new recipes.
For me, I find soap that has a high coconut oil percentage is drying for me. Coconut Oil in soap is great as a cleanser but can be drying, so needs other oils & butters to counteract it. Personally I'd aim for soap with little to no coconut & see if that feels better.
Castile Soap should be 100% Olive oil & is deemed one of the best soaps but isn't great in hard water areas & some people find it slimey & doesn't lather as much as other soaps. Bastile soap will have a high olive oil content (70-80%) but with other oils/butters added to give more bubbles & reduce curing time. Then you'll get myriad other combinations & it can be a bit of trial & error to find which oils/butters combo you like best plus what smell (if any). You may also want to avoid artificial fragrance so if parfum or fragrance are listed, give it a swerve. Essential oils will be listed separately usually under their Latin names.

For those asking what Dove Bars are - they are classed as SynDet - synthetic detergents, hence they aren't legally soap.

Recommendations for proper soap:

Boo Cottage Botanicals
www.boocottage.co.uk/

The Dartmoor Soap Company
thedartmoorsoapco.co.uk/

Hemyock Soap Company
www.thehemyocksoapcompany.co.uk/

The Natural Spa Company
thenaturalspa.co.uk/

If anyone is interested in making their own, you can buy kits or attend courses - that's what I did. It's actually very straightforward but you just need to right ingredients & equipment.

We only use Simple soap! A member of the family comes out with eczema, if we buy anything else!

Interested in this thread, I've just switched for environmental reasons too, and I do think it gets you cleaner. Dumb question probably, but how do you know what's proper soap? ( I would have called Dove soap)

I have always used bar soap. I love Le Petit Marseillais soap, which I buy in industrial quantities when I go to France. Otherwise Pears - even though the bastards have changed the formula, and it isn't as good as it was.

I use soap (though it really doesn't look like a word any more...). TK Maxx a good source.

DH swears by Dr Bronner’s. It has 18 different uses (allegedly). It has really sorted his eczema out and lasts for ages, although the scents aren’t the most exciting.

I’m using up some bars of Jo Malone Pomegranate Noir that I got for Xmas. Also love Roger et Gallet as they last ages and have loads of different scents. I’m not averse to Waitrose own unscented as a standby too. DH likes Pears (and Jo Malone ).

I can't work out if you're being serious or not

Definitely soap

If your skin feels dry/tight afterwards, then use oil or moisturiser. Or experiment with different soaps.

I find shower gels v drying (most contain SLS, some in very high proportions)

I don't think you can beat imperial leather. Smells amazing and so clean after.

We are bar soap people as well. Similar reasons to everyone else, don't feel clean with shower gel and I use a heap of it to feel clean if staying at a hotel for instance where its provided. I have got into the habit of taking my own soap in a sealable sandwich bag these days when going away, must be getting old!

I'm not in the UK but I buy one brand on line that is advertised as not having any nasties, I get a seasalt one from Costco, and another from the supermarket in Aussie, plus if I see any goatsmilk or lemongrass soaps I will buy those. Mostly based on smell and I have noticed DH even changes ''type'' from one bar to the next.

DH keeps his bar soap on an upside down finger nail brush on the shelf in the shower. I have a plastic soap holder on the same shelf and block docks in all the hand sinks including the laundry one.

We only use bar soap on armpits to get rid of deodorant

Everywhere else is shower gel

I personally use a gentle shower gel on my general body and fanny/bum hole and soap on arm pits and feet.
Someone on here has said that bars of soap are far better at staving off arm pit odour.
It's þoo drying to use everywhere for me personally.

If your skin feels dried out after soap, stop using deodorant soap and switch to one that's more moisturising. I've found lovely soaps in TJ Maxx (TK Maxx in UK).

We need to cut out single use plastics.

Bar soap (or a refillable, at a pinch) is the choice the future generations need us to make

I think I am a secret soap hoarder. Love buying them, handmade in craft and farmer markets. I choose so carefully by the gorgeous smells...so gorgeous that I save them for....something special...

@AluckyEllie - these are great. Stay on the shelf, dry quickly, holder and soap and can be rinsed as required too.

https://www.thegreenhouseripon.com/product-page/safix-soap-rest

We switched to soap a while ago, mainly for environmental reasons but also because we felt cleaner after using it. We mainly use The Sea Shed soaps, from Cornwall. The 'flavours' are fabulous 😊

Yes we use l’occitane verbena soap. It was primarily for the reasons of trying to reduce plastic waste that we changed.

I have been using only soap bars for 20 years and love it. I use French and Italian soaps. TKMAXX is a good place to get those soaps, I usually store a lot of them so I never run out.

I use soap on a rope, hanging from the shower fitting. Lasts forever, never slimy.

Me. My dry dry skin is much more comfortable with soap rather than shower gel