What is castile soap?

Some of my family members, including myself, have developed many allergies over the years. I am so glad I found this site. Thank you for caring enough for our environment that you would offer these great recipes to all of us.

I am a dog groomer and a couple of months ago I started to do research on making my own dog shampoo, many of the recipes have Castile soap listed and I remembered my mother saying thats all they used years and years ago for everything. I am so happy to have come across this site so I know the origin of Castile Soap. I bought Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soap lavender scent but haven’t made any dog shampoo yet but plan to start experimenting soon. The Mountain Sky almond scent sounds really nice too, is it sold in Ontario? I am looking forward to being able to offer my clients a totally natural product that helps keep their dogs coat healthy.

how do you check the PH of the soap?

I was on pinterest looking for a quick and easy way to make body wash. Next thing I know it’s 6:00 am, I haven’t been to bed yet and I’m on the internet trying to find out what castile soap is. Of course now I have to have castile soap in my body wash……after I get sleep. Good night

Totally disagree. Castile soap has to be 100% olive oil, nothing else.

One of our popular varieites is the natural soaps which has had extensive media coverage and is great for people with sensitive skin or any skin conditions such as exzema or dermatitis. Why not try it for yourself.

Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps is the best selling natural soap certified organic under … dr bronners magic soaps … Dr. Bronner's Magic Pure Castile Classic Soaps …

Hi Olive oil is really good for skin and so is the castle soap made of olive oil. Thanks Lindsay

Hi Lindsay. Great article! I used it in a post about Dr. Bronner's Castile Soap on my website:

http://www.sourcevert.com/2012/10/24/dr-bronners-peppermint-bar-soap-review-castille-magic-gone-dry/

Thanks!

Someone thought you could buy Kirk's castile soap at Target, so I went looking today. …. The Green Living Tips blog hydrogen peroxide tips list has several uses for … Strain, pour liquid into bottle, and use on any surface but glass.

http://www.getnutri.com/dr.bronners.htm

Your Green Seal link was not working when I tried to access their webpage on the info re Dishwasher soap Also what is a recommended toothpaste without triclosan or other harmful ingredients?

Helpful tips.body care soaps. http://www.herbscity.com/castile-soap-organic-1525.html

Is castille soap effective in hard wate? I live in a very hard water area. I remember my mother using castille soap in the 50's but gave up on it and I think it was because it just created a lot of insoluble scum.

I am so fortunate to live so close to the "Mountain Sky" Company. It is stocked in our local grocery store. I have used "Kali Spice" for years and my son has always been washed with liquid "Honey Almond."

Thanks for the info on castile soap. Also I hope you can answer an inquiry. I am looking for a countertop clothes washer that doesn't use electricity. There is one in the States called the Wonder Washer and I'm wondering if it is available here in Canada. If you know of another brand that can be purchased in Canada I would love to know this also. Thanks so much for your help.

Can you please tell me what washing soda is and where to purchase. I see it is used in several cleaning recipes. Thanks.

When/where can I find this information in French? It's important if I am to influence my family. We are a dual-language household.

I just subscribed to the Queen of Green and saw this article. I use Olivier products, olive-oil-based soaps, creams, hair products, etc. made here in New Brunswick. They are wonderful: my complexion and my hair have never looked this good!

As to sunscreen: I use one made by Green Beaver. No scent

I have noticed on many natural soap containers (dish, hair, body, cleaners) that they will list sodium laurel sulfate but follow it up with (vegetable source). As a consumer and student of natural health I find this very confusing. Is the chemical makeup the same? Does it still pose the same dangers? Is it sourced from the same thing? As a family living with cancer, these questions are very important to me and I would really like some clarification on this and any other "chemicals" that are listed as "vegetable source" on a natural product to inform me once and for all about it's safety. I work in a natural store and I am asked this quite often and don't always trust the answers from the manufacturers. Thanks for your time. Roxanne.

Castille soap is awesome for so many uses. It is not drying, and works well on aging skin.

I've used Castile liquid soap before and wondered how I had forgotten about it?! I have the Honey Almond liquid Castile soap from Mountain Sky and it is so lovely to use. It's great for cleaning the skin, hair, and even for the face! It doesn't dry my skin out or my hair like other soaps and shampoos. It's all I need.

Mankind has been living on this planet for thousands of years and Castile soap has most likely been around for thousands of years as well. When you think about it the environment became more filthy in the past 100 or so years. My conclusion is stick with the old and out with the new. Live more natural and leave the unnatural.

shank You for posting the link for the 'how-to' video on making one's own castile soap. I'm excited to test it out!s

I've been using Mountain Sky soaps for several months and find them to be very pleasant. A superb product line! I'm happy that there are options available that allow us to avoid/boycott the worst offenders.

We have switched to castille soap in our household. Any personal care product we think of buying now we look it up on ewg.org. They have a database of 60,000 products from makeup to shampoos and toothpaste where they list the level of toxicity, ingredients etc. …very handy!

The least toxic shampoo they list is a scent-free product from Olivier Soapery (oliviersoaps.com). We use Olivier's shampoo which is awesome and their castille soap which we can buy online.

Once we started thinking about the chemicals we were putting on our bodies and clothes we were amazed at the number of toxins we were exposing ourselves to.

I took on the task of going chemical free about two years ago when I switched my household cleaning agents to environmentally friendly products especially ones made in Canada. Then I took on the task of cleaning up my personal care products. I discovered that castile soap can be used for anything! I use it on my body and my hair as well as a household cleaner. It leaves my hair squeaky clean but doesn't dry it out. It does the same for my sensitive skin. It works wonderfully in my bathroom even on tough tub grime. I simply squirt some on a micro fibre cloth and wipe away! I get scented castile soap and my bathroom smells wonderful! As well, I dilute castile soap for my laundry soap — my clothes have never been cleaner! It doesn't make a lot of suds but I have gotten used to that and realize that I don't need that either! It is so versatile that I recommend it to anyone wanting to "go green and clean". I must confess though, I have not tried to brush my teeth with it — they say you can. I believe it but going clean with my oral hygiene has been the toughest battle for me — trying to go without those sweeteners in my toothpaste has pushed me to the edge! But I continue to try and get used to new things and better things for both me and the environment. Castile soap is the best!

Quick question: I use all green cleaners, but I still have a collection of the nasty stuff. Any suggestions on what to do with them? Thanks!

Does Castile soap leave a residue, soap scum? My family and I are presently using Dove because it doesn't cause any allergy or dry skin problems and the soap scum is manageable. I realize that Castile soap is probably a better alternative because it is natural, but I am also the one who has to scrub the tub/shower so I am looking for something that is low/no soap scum.

I started making my laundry soap with castile soap following the Queen of Green recipe. We use it for many things. After reading this I decided to switch to Mountain Sky, because it's a family company, because it's Canadian and because I love the story of how the company started. Off to buy some now…

And the winners are…Jennifer and Sarah! Thanks to everyone who took the time to read and write! And stay tuned for our spring home cleaning campaign. You're going to love it! Lindsay

Appreciate the information on castile soap and several reminders about avoiding palm oil because this ingredient is linked to severe deforestation and related negative impacts. A useful information link for more info is http://ran.org/palm-oil

I purchased Castile Soap for the first time many years ago because I heard it was good for the environment. We recently moved and I found it in my cupboards and I'm now using it to make my own shampoo. Love it!

A longtime fave….

What I would suggest is that you are not really suggesting "Castile" soap as a green alternative but plant based natural soaps. The only thing your definition of Castile gives is some percentage of Olive Oil in the formulation. Using the word "Castile" in this fashion is a little misleading and not really necessary. What should be seen on the label is various vegetable oils and sodium hydroxide (bar) or potassium hydroxide (liquid).

nice to have more products for sensitive skin

Natural lavender soap sounds so nice.

My children have inspired me to make better choices for our family…tough choices in cost and time, but living on less and cooking from scratch is becoming our new normal. Finding safe, affordable cleaning products like Castile soap for ourselves and our home is wonderful. Thank you for pointing them out for us and thank you Mountain Sky for making them available :) Thank you to my children for opening my eyes to the world…luv you

I've recently jumped on the Castile soap idea due to some allergic reactions to all the chemicals in my life! We've been using it in shampoo recipes, as a body wash, household cleaner, and hand soap. We've been using castile soap on my children for washing too! Sure beats pouring chemical laden 'baby' shampoos on them! Fingers crossed…I haven't tried a lavender scented variety yet!!

Love castille soap! Thanks for a great article!

Awesome! I started making my own products for myself (e.g., shampoo, conditioner, laundry and dishwasher detergent, shave cream), and while I am still experimenting, veggie castille soap is always a key ingredient to keep me creative and eco friendly!

Mountain Sky products are all we use in our home (we are lucky to live very close to their business). Castile soap has so many uses. Wonderful to take camping (all your bases are covered if you've got that with you).

Thanks for this great info! I know Dr. Bronner's castile bar soaps are on sale @ my local Whole Foods Market this weekend, so I'm going to go pick some up. Can't wait to try it after hearing about it for so long!!

I am excited to try this. I have become increasingly perplexed and worried about what I have been putting on my skin and that of my 8 month babies skin. We both have eczema. Therefore, I have started making my own baby wipes and next on my list is soap. Thanks for the "how to".

That sounds absolutely wonderful. I have never tried castile soap, but intend to pick some up this weekend :) Thanks for the blog post, I learned a ton :) Hope I win, lavender is a lovely scent :)

Wow! Was searching for information this week on this soap…and pow, a reliable source. Thanks

I use castile soap shampoos and bodywash :) love it!

I recall my grandmother using castile soap when I was very little — and after that, I guess it went out of favour with all the mass produced perfumed chemical products that seemed to clean so easily. But I recall it being very stinky. I am going to try to learn more and would love to win some lavendar scented castile soap. Am wondering how it will do in the winter when our skin gets so dry!

Skin is our largest organ. What gets put on it gets absorbed. Thanks for posting this info. Watch out for sun block. Wonder if anyone knows 'friendly' products to help protect from the UV rays?

My girlfriend and I are learning to make homemade cleaning products, and we've only just learning about how flexible castile soap is. Can't wait to get started on some homemade chemistry! Glad castile soap is getting some more attention.

Green cleaning products have been around for ages but still haven't really caught on. What are we doing wrong?

so greatful there are people out there lokking out for us and helping us to make the right choices. Love the Queen of Green and David Suzuki.

I encourage all soap-makers who use palm oil to only use Certified Sustainable Palm Oil.

I've actually been meaning to pick up some castile soap for a homemade shampoo recipe I've been wanting to try (coconut milk

Good for you, good for the planet, can help in re-localization — GREAT!!

Now — we need to start pressing some oil — how about grape seed oil in the Okanagan and other wine-producing areas? Kootenays are great for sunflowers — press some seeds instead of making Spitz out of all of them. Get the promised hemp production finally going for fibre and oil.

Unfortunately our Canola is probably all contaminated by Monsanto's GMO pollution now — it's starting to grow all along the railway in BC.

I've been reading about DIY eco cleansers for the home and am planning to pick up some castille soap — I'll look for this brand!

Use castile soap for bathing, dishes, and washing walls. It is great stuff.

What if I want to avoid palm oil? I've been reading about the horrors of the palm oil industry and its effects on orangutans and their forest habitat. This article mentioned that palm oil might be one of the vegetable oils in castile soap. Is there a sure-fire way that I can avoid the palm oil-using variety (especially when companies make it tricky and just state "vegetable oil" in the ingredients without specifying which kind)? Thanks for your help!

It's nice to see that some companies are going against the flow and providing us with products that are healthy for us and the environment. Can't wait till there's a day when people will roll their eyes at you for using an unatural product rather than the other way around!

I have developed skin allergies over the years due to various product use I believe. Thanks for sharing!

I am happy to hear of a natural Canadian company!

It would be an enormous relief to find a non-toxic, eco- and animal-friendly product line that's also Canadian. There's hope!

I've only used it for cleaning tubs and floors so far. Didn't know there was a Canadian company! Whoyoo!

I will be on the lookout for more Castille soap from now on. It just makes sense. Thanks for a great article explaining why it is such a great choice.

Hmm, my skin is rather sensitive to chemicals, so I wonder if this might not be a better solution than the stuff I find for mass "sensitive" -skinned retail..

Castille soap has been one of my mainstays for about three years. It's the main ingredient in my home-made all-purpose cleaner, I use it as hand soap (it doesn't clog foaming soap dispensers!) and more. Because it's so versatile, I think it has saved me money on getting many different cleansesr and soaps, but it feels so luxurious using it, it's hard to credit it's saving me money!

What happened QoG? I thought you were my scent-sensitive environmental on-line role model? I would love to win, but can I switch it for an unscented kind?

I'm really interested in all the natural soap/shampoo type things you've been posting, but have no time to think about making it, nor do I really want to taking the time or cost risk to order on-line with shipping charges and all that. Also I don't have a chance to smell it to see if it will bother me.

What I really want to see is stuff that you would approve of in my local grocery or health food store. Can you make it easy for us? Get this stuff into Loblaws or Zehrs with a little David Suzuki head in the corner of the label so we can see quickly which ones you approve of and just buy it…

I would use this to make some home made laundry soap.

Yes Sarah, you can use castile soap to make laundry soap. Check out my recommended recipe (click on "home cleaning in the link above") or try this: http://www.davidsuzuki.org/publications/resources/2011/green-cleaning-recipes/

Lindsay Coulter

I use castile soap for hand washing but it's unscented. I'd love to try out this lavender scented soap :)

I JUST googled "castile soap" yesterday and then I saw this article. Weird how coincidences like that happen!

I haven't tried this soap yet, but it's something I want to start using. Does this soap work for laundry, specifically high efficiency washers?

I use unscented castile soap for hand washing but would love to give this lavender scent a try!

Great article! I use liquid castile soap for my body wash and some home cleaning right now. It's the best, and cheapest (!), body wash I've ever used, although I can't quite seem to get used to using it as shampoo. It leaves my hair rather unmanageable. I love the Dr Bronner brand, but am interested to try a Canadian company!

I just started using liquid Castile soap to make my own laundry detergent (thanks to a Queen of Green recipe!) and love it! And now I'm learning about all the different uses for Castile soap, it's amazing!