Most of what we do at Illuman Apiary takes time. We plan, prepare, and waaaaait.

Illuman Apiary natural soaps are like that. Over the years we keep improving them but the soap making process, like all true biological processes, is in control. Not us.

Our soaps changed our lives. Have you stopped to think about the tools that you use everyday to function? Are they benefiting you? Handmaking soap caused us realize how valuable a good bar of soap really is. It can clean, moisturize, lather and protect your immune system?

Let’s get a little nerdy here.

The FDA says, “today there are very few real soaps on the market. Most are synthetic detergent products. Detergent cleansers are popular because they make suds easily in water.”

What’s the BIG deal about that?

The truth is that all the good stuff is gone. In fact, they can be harmful for your body and loaded with potentially cancer-causing ingredients (parabens for example). When you use these detergent cleansers/fake soaps you are requiring your largest organ, your skin, to work overtime.

Backtracking a little, this is how we make soap, and how it has been done for thousands of years.

Real soap is made by combining oils or fats and lye. The reaction that takes place is called saponification and the result is a combination of soap and glycerin. We use olive oil so that leaves traces of olives, we use coconut oil so that leaves traces of coconut, as well as avocado oil, palm oil, castor oil and beeswax. In real soap, nothing should be removed and no synthetic chemicals need to be added. This soap is perfect just as it is. Over the month that it cures, the lye reacts with the soap and eventually is used up in the reaction of the curing process.

Now, when you look at synthetic detergents or synthetic soaps, they do not have their MVI (most valuable ingredient) glycerin, because there was no saponification process. Part of gylcerin’s power is that it attracts moisture to your skin while it smoothes and soothes it. Often, soap manufacturers remove the glycerin from the soap to sell or use in other more expensive products. They then add synthetic ingredients, detergents, foaming agents and chemical fragrances to the glycerin-lacking soap to simulate the properties of glycerin.

Finally, The Not So Good Stuff

Witih our soap, nothing is added after the soap is poured.

In commerical synethetic detergents, here’s a few potential additives after the soap is made:

Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) is used in laundry detergent that will dry out and irritate your skin.
Sodium laureth sulfate (SLES) is a cheap foaming agent that can become contaminated with the suspected carcinogen Dioxane while being manufactured. Eek!
Triclosan is in most antibacterial soaps and is classified as a pesticide by the Environmental Protection Agency. This chemcial is thought to be contributing to increasing bacterial resistance across the world. It has found its way into our waterways, disrupting the photosynthesis of algae, building up in the fatty tissue of fish and carrying on up the food chain. A 2008 study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found triclosan in the urine of 75% of the people surveyed. To make matters worse, over 40 years of FDA research has concluded that antibacterial soaps are really no better than just washing with real soap.
Parabens as perservatives. Thankfully, many synethic soap and cosmetic companies have gone away from parabens due to their frequent presence in people who have breast cancer.

Our Soaps have the only the Goods

In our soaps, we use beeswax, which is great for your skin, immune system and overal health with its natural antibacterial properties. We also use coconut oil in every bar which has moisturizing and disinfectant properties combined with vitamin E that is necessary for healthy skin. Each ingredient is on the label and easy to understand. Our soaps don’t have to just clean you, they can make you healthier, moisturized and feeling better!

The Bottom Line: Why Use Natural, Cured Illuman Apiary Soap?

Illuman Apiary soap won’t dry out your skin or cause skin irritation since all of the ingredients are gentle and skin safe.
Our natural soap doesn’t contain any synthetic ingredients, which can be absorbed by the skin (the body’s largest organ) and sometimes get into the bloodstream causing problems.
Our scents are powered by essential oils and are all natural, more subtle and refreshing.

How to get started? Any of them will make a great starting place. Subscribing to a box of the month will give you seasonal varieties. You can also ask us, or come to a M arket.