Wednesday 14 December 2011

Benefits Of Organic Bathing Soap

Showering and bathing is an important part of our daily routine. Most of us wake up in the morning, take a bath and set out to start our day. It is important to know about the bathing soaps and products, which we use on a daily basis. Choosing the right bath products is very important because they regularly come into contact with our skin.

Bathing soaps come in the form bar and liquid. The main purpose of bath soap is to cleanse, nourish and soften the skin and keep it healthy. Majority of these cleaning agents available in the market today are designed to address specific skin issues, such as dry skin, blemishes, itches, black heads, pimples, prickly heat and oily skin. Apart from nourishing the skin, these products are also good for scalp and hair. Further, most of the bath products are scented. Fragrance of these products stays with you all day long.

Bathing soaps are generally composed of two main ingredients, alkali and vegetable or animal fat. Most of the soaps available in the market today also contain alcohols, harsh chemicals and other synthetic ingredients. Some of these chemicals present in these soaps have several side effects on skin. The bath care products containing harsh chemicals and synthetic ingredients are not suitable for those with sensitive skin.

People with sensitive skin can go for organic soaps. Bathing with natural organic soaps is a very pleasurable experience. Using organic bath care products can help you to prevent your skin from getting exposed to harsh chemicals present in synthetic products. It will allow you to enjoy pleasant fragrances without worrying about skin irritation or allergies. The organic soaps contain natural ingredients. These natural components do not have any side effects.

Some of the natural ingredients present in the organic bathing soaps are flower extracts, natural oils, olive oil, lavender, citrus, rose and goat milk. The flower essences and natural oils give soothing properties and pleasant fragrances to the soaps. These natural bath products exhibit several healing and beautifying properties. These natural products provide several benefits to your skin. Goat milk present in the organic soaps re-hydrates dry skin. The organic soaps also show toning and soothing properties. Further, they protect your skin from environmental damages. Using these products can also give you some relief from muscular aches and other health ailments.

Organic bathing soaps can be easily bought from health food stores, vitamin stores and bath supply stores. Also, you can prepare these soaps at home. Handmade soaps are suitable for those who prefer to use bath care products completely organic in nature.

Making Of Soap

The art or hobby of making soap needs a soap maker to have the proper materials for their craft. Molds for soap making and other supplies can simply be found in different places, as long as you know what it is you're looking for. In fact, many novice soap makers uncover that they don't really need to purchase anything new in order to start their hobby. Making soap recipe with no usage of lye completely is not viable so it's completely your desire to use lye in your soap production process or you feel like trying your hands in glycerine based soaps.

The people who are sensitive to chemical substances are warned not to use lye directly but it's present in the glycerine soap that would be melted and poured in the process. Lye, if used in accurate proportion can decrease the symptoms of eczema and can function in place of bleach on skin while in other cases it can cause severe burns. Lye is necessary to extract the reaction of fats and oils to turn into glycerine and soap molecules. Soaps can also be made from soap scraps found in your bathrooms by accumulating some ingredients and then recycling it through proper soap making process.

A lot of homemade soaps use tallow, or animal fats as one of the ingredients; though animal materials are organic in the sense that they are biodegradable, organic products often involves plant materials only. Generally a diversity of oils is used in order to make up for the lack of animal fat. This process uses the hot process method of soap making; however, caustic soda or lye must be used in order to create the soaps. It is usually the only chemical found in the final product, and is an essential ingredient in order to maintain the product's shelf life, and so that the soap can properly saponify.

Glycerine manufacturing process entails no direct utilization of lye but it is enclosed in glycerine soap base used in the soap making process which is being melted to eliminate all the dampness present. Slowly and progressively, you can add your favourite colour, oils and fragrances while stirring it so that it attracts all the ingredients and becomes smooth. The hot blend is then poured into moulds which are then hardened for additional usage.

When in the process of organic soap making, soap makers utilize a variety of ingredients which give the organic soaps an exceptional twist. For instance, dried herbs, beeswax, oatmeal, and other natural plant materials are used, and sometimes with a mixture of lye.

Soap Cleaning Process

If you have ever wondered how does soap clean, you have found out that you need to learn a bit of molecular chemistry first. Here is a short version of the process.

Molecules are groups of two or more similar atoms that are electrically bonded together. It was once thought that molecules were part of a neat orderly progression from atoms upward to visible matter, but that is not completely true. Some substances such as rocks do not have molecules at all. Most things do though including grease and oils that tend to adhere to the skin of the body.

Another thing that consists of molecules is soap. Now, when you get dirt on your hands, for example, you can take water and wash your hands. This will remove much of the dirt because much of the dirt is water soluble. This means that the dirt molecules get mixed up with the water molecules and just float away right off your hands. The grease and oil molecules are not water soluble. In fact, they have a tendency to cling with tenacity to the molecules of the skin.

The molecules of soap, due to their unique chemical and electrical makeup, act as handles or connectors between the grease and oil and the water. It might be said that the soap is making the not-water-soluble soluble, but it is actually more complicated. The soap molecules are actually attaching to the molecules of the grease and to the molecules of the water. Therefore, they all just float away together like the soluble dirt.

One of the problems with soap is that this process sometimes gets carried away. Natural body oils are also attached to the soap and water and are removed. This leads to dry, chapped, but very clean skin. This is why many soaps have certain oils added to them to replace the natural oil that might be removed. The glycerol that was a part of the soap making process in olden times went a long way toward keeping the skin soft and oiled, but today, glycerol is mostly removed to be used for other things.

This answers the question of how does soap clean in the simplest terms. The actual chemical processes involve a lot of letters and numbers of the kind that baffled many of us in Chemistry class. Although in recent years, detergents of various types have replaced soap in many cleaning applications, soap is much more environmentally friendly. It is also a boon to our health as a lot of microorganisms that are not really good for us like to hang out in that grease and oil clinging to our skin. Luckily, the same chemical bond that makes the process work removes them as well.

Tuesday 6 December 2011

Lux - Personal Care Products Range

We all like to look gorgeous and enjoy that confidence which makes us feel like anything’s possible. And that’s just what the Lux range offers you on a daily basis – at a price you can afford.

A delight to the senses

Everything about the brand – from the look and feel of the products and packaging to the subtle fragrances – is a delight to the senses. In fact, Lux has been making waves since 1924, when it launched the world’s first mass-market beauty soap at a fraction of the cost of some expensive brands.

How it all started

  • Lux was first introduced as a toilet soap in 1925. Produced by Lever Brothers, it arrived in the UK in 1928, offering people a chance to pamper themselves for a modest price.
  • From the 1930s right through to the 1970s, Lux soap colours and packaging were altered several times to reflect fashion trends. In 1958 five colors made up the range: pink, white, blue, green and yellow. People enjoyed matching their soap with their bathroom colors.
  • In the early 1990s, Lux responded to the growing trend away from traditional soap bars by launching its own range of shower gels, liquid soaps and moisturizing bars. Lux beauty facial wash, Lux beauty bath and Lux beauty shower were launched in 1992.
  • In 2004, the entire Lux range was relaunched in the UK & Ireland to include five shower gels, three bath products and two new soap bars. 2005 saw the launch of three exciting new variants with dreamy names such as “Wine & Roses” bath cream, “Glowing Touch” and “Sparkling Morning” shower gels.

Did you know?

Since the 1930s, over 400 of the world’s most stunning and sensuous women have been proudly associated with Lux advertisements. Marilyn Monroe, Brigitte Bardot, Demi Moore and, more recently, our own Catherine Zeta-Jones, have all been part of the Lux glamour story.
The name Lux means ‘light’ in Latin, however the name was chosen for its play on the word ‘luxury’.

Advertising

In 2004, Sarah Jessica Parker featured in the Lux ‘Brings Out the Star in You’ advertising campaign. Best known for her über-stylish and spirited character as Carrie from Sex & The City, Sarah Jessica Parker epitomises the modern Lux woman: comfortable and confident in her femininity, experienced in the ways of the world and understands how style and beauty really work.