April 9, 2024
Try Castile Soap for Natural Personal Care
You wouldn’t think to use your laundry detergent as a body wash, but with Castile soap it’s an all-in-one solution. Gentle enough to be used on both people and pets, but with the efficacy to clean dirt and grime wherever you find it!
If you’ve never heard of Castile soap before, you might think it’s a household cleaner. While you can use it that way, it also makes for a wonderfully natural personal care cleanser as well. With a multitude of creative uses, at the core it’s 100% natural and biodegradable.
What is Castile Soap Made From?
Castile soap, specifically in the liquid form, is made of water (aqua) and vegetable oils – pure and simple! When the soap is made with organic oils, it’ll have a certified organic logo. Green Beaver has a product line of Castile soaps that are certified as an organic cosmetic by ECOCERT Greenlife – this means that not only is it organic, but it is held to organic cosmetic standards.
Purified, or distilled, water is the main ingredient. This type of water needs to be used because it removes any toxins, additives or bacteria that could affect the product. This doesn’t make the product less effective – pure Castile soap is still very concentrated. It’s always best to use a few drops or dilute it for your cleaning or washing needs.
Coconut oil is the second ingredient in our soap. From antiseptic properties to being gentle on the skin, it also has great cleansing abilities. On top of that, it helps produce a great lather!
Sunflower oil and sunflower seed oil are the third and fourth ingredients. If you have sensitive skin or skin issues, these are great ingredients for you. Sunflower oil is very hydrating and helps protect the skin barrier. It also has antioxidant properties and is non-comedogenic, meaning it won’t clog pores.
You can choose unscented Castile soap and add a few drops of essential oils yourself or choose from one of our three certified-organic essential oil scents: Zesty Orange, Lavender, or Frosty Mint. They smell so good, and if you need a morning pick-me-up, try using Zesty Orange as a body wash; it smells just like a freshly squeezed glass of orange juice!
Is it Safe for the Skin?
Castile soap may not be the first product that comes to mind for skincare, but it’s ideal to use and can replace a cabinet full of personal care products. Castile soap is safe for the skin and works with most skin types, even sensitive skin.
Regular soap, even unscented, can still cause skin irritation and damage. That’s because most personal care products use synthetic surfactants to get that sudsy lather that we all associate with being clean. The only problem is that these surfactants are drying and can strip your skin of natural oils.
Other ingredients that cause irritation and allergic reactions are sulfates, synthetic preservatives, alcohol, phthalates, and parabens. Did you know that artificial fragrances are a culprit as well? Not only does artificial fragrance affect the skin and create or worsen conditions like eczema, but it can also cause nasal irritation, breathing issues, and even trigger migraines.
On the other hand, Castile soap doesn’t use sulfates, synthetic preservatives, alcohol, phthalates, or parabens. The ingredients are 100% natural. As for fragrance, only the highest quality organic essential oils are used. Again, if you are sensitive to specific scents, unscented Castile soap is a great option for you.
The combination of coconut and sunflower oil is also great for the skin. Though it has anti-inflammatory and anti-viral qualities, it is a gentle cleanser – it is not an antibacterial soap. As mentioned, it cleans away dirt and grime but protects the natural skin barrier.
Because of the process used to turn oil into soap (saponification), the natural oil-based ingredients will not strip and dry out your skin the way traditional soap does. Due to its concentrated nature, though, you can dilute Castile soap with water and it’ll still be effective.
You can use Castile soap as a multi-purpose cleaner or as a natural personal care option.
Bringing Natural Suds to Your Personal Care Routine
There is a misconception that all-natural products aren’t effective – this is false. Technology has advanced so that it’s possible to create natural products that perform just as well as traditional products…sometimes even better!
Through rigorous testing and experimentation, we have been able to use natural ingredients to their full potential to create personal care products that are vegan, gluten-free, cruelty-free, and biodegradable! That means that no animal fats are used to create our soap, and no animals are used to test the efficacy of our products.
Chemicals found in synthetic ingredients and petroleum found in synthetic preservatives are not just bad for your skin; they’re also bad for the environment. All these chemicals and agents eventually end up in our waterways; even if you wash them down your sink or bathtub drain, they’ll still end up in our lakes, rivers, and oceans.
Castile is a type of biodegradable soap. What this means is that it won’t harm plant or aquatic life and will break down naturally over time. You can wash your hands with Castile soap directly in a river or lake and it won’t have any toxic effects.
Castile soap is great for washing your dog...or cat, if you're brave enough.
How to Use Castile Soap
Pure liquid Castile soap is very versatile and is great if you want something you can use instantly. Though you can also get it in bar format, you’ll need to grate it into flakes and dissolve it to be able to use it. With the liquid format, you only need a small amount of soap to dilute with water.
It works great as a multi-purpose cleaner, but it’s also a great personal care product! The practical guide for using it on your body or hair is to wet the surface you’re going to be washing, then add a squirt or two of soap from the bottle. This will dilute it nicely and create a soap solution that you can work with. You can also add a few drops to your hand, add water, and work it up into a nice lather.
Keep reading below to learn how to try using Castile soap as a solution for making your personal care routine more natural.
Top Ten Personal Care Uses
1- Face wash
Wet your face, then take a few drops of Castile soap and add water and work up a nice lather in your hands. You can also add a few drops to a wet washcloth to wash your face with.
2- Body wash
Add a few drops of soap to your washcloth or body puff to wash your body. Add more drops if necessary.
3- Shampoo
Work about ½ tbsp to 1 tbsp of soap into wet hair. Lather thoroughly and rinse. Note: it is not recommended to use Castile soap on colour-treated hair.
4- Hand soap
Fill your soap dispenser with 1 part Castile soap to three parts water. Also works great in foaming soap dispensers!
5- Shaving
Add a few drops into wet hand and work into a lather. Apply to the area that you want to shave; it even works for shaving your face. The oils in the soap will help your razor glide easily over your skin.
6- Bath or foot soak
Add 3 tbsp to your bath or 2 tbsp to your foot bath. It won’t foam up like a traditional bubble bath because it doesn’t have synthetic surfactants, but it will clean and soothe your skin. If you opt for a Castile soap with natural essential oils, you’ll experience aromatherapy benefits as well.
7- Makeup brush cleaner
Fill a bowl or cup with warm water and add a few squirts of Castile soap, then swish your makeup brushes around and let them sit for 30 minutes. Rinse your brushes in clean running water and then let them dry.
8- Baby wash
Add a few squirts of soap to baby’s bathwater, or a few drops to a very wet washcloth. Be certain to dilute, as Castile soap is concentrated.
9- Dog (pet) wash
Our dogs are family, and they deserve to be cleaned with natural products, too! Wet your dog’s fur and add a few drops directly to their coat. Work into a lather and rinse completely.
10- Decongestant/Facial steam
If you’re feeling sick or congested, add hot, steaming water to a bowl and add a few drops of Castile soap. We recommend our Frosty Mint scent, as it’ll really help to clear your nasal passages. If you just want to do a facial steam, we recommend our Lavender scent so that you can relax and envision yourself walking through beautiful lavender fields.
Bonus: All-in-One Travel Companion
The space for liquids in your suitcase is at a premium while traveling, especially if you’re just taking carry-on. Why bring five different personal care products with you when you can just bring one? Castile soap can be your face wash, body wash, shampoo, shaving gel – plus you can also use it to wash your clothes on your vacation if they get dirty or stained.
Our soap is versatile and comes in three great scents - or you can choose unscented!
Where to Buy Castile Soap
While Castile soap comes in both bar format and liquid form, liquid soap is versatile and easy to use immediately without prior preparation.
It’s important to look for pure Castile soaps: not only should it say 100% natural on the bottle but be certain to search for certification logos, such as our EcoCert Organic Cosmetic logo. Additional logos to be on the lookout for are biodegradable, cruelty-free, and vegan.
Some mass market grocery chains and pharmacies carry Castile soap, and you will be certain to find it in health food stores. If you choose to shop online, you will be certain to find it as well. Here at Green Beaver, we offer four Castile soaps to choose from; we also offer a product bundle where you can choose two bottles and get 15% off – what’s not to love about that!
Castile soap is natural, effective, and won’t harm the environment. From personal care to household cleaning, to gardening and pest control, it really is a magical, all-in-one solution.
We challenge you to come up with your own uses for Castile soap and leave your answers in the comments below. Happy cleaning!
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