The point is that already there's an excellent variety of choices of readymade bath soaps, making it likely that you'll find at least one that suits you quite well as your go-to bar. But this is just the beginning of the soap-making possibilities provided to you by Becky's Tallow Treasures. There are literally hundreds (if not thousands) of additional options. But how is this possible? 

Custom-Made Bath Soap: A Special Treat!

The wildly expanding possibilities for soap varieties comes via Becky's build-your-own soap-making laboratory. Within this laboratory, you get to exercise your own soap-making genius. You get to be the wizard, the alchemist, the mastermind -- choosing among 44 different essential oils the one that truly makes your heart sing; or skillfully combining two or three different oils. These oils are then blended into the base of the bath soap -- a luscious combination of organic grass fed tallow, organic coconut oil, and organic castor oil. 

Your custom-made bars can be single-scented, double-scented, or tripled-scented. Along with the essential oils listed above, your choices include clary sage, blood orange, star anise, cedar-wood, cypress, clove, anise, nutmeg, lime, rosemary, bergamot -- and a host of others. As you can see, the number of possible combinations is truly vast and inspiring!

Even though our essential oils are of the highest quality, still there are those who -- for a variety of reasons -- prefer a completely "naked" bar, i.e. without the addition of scented oils. And this also is possible within Becky's soap-making laboratory. You can create an entirely unscented soap bar, using either water or goat milk as the base (along with the tallow, coconut oil, and castor oil). 

And then, whether your bars are scented or unscented, as a final flourish you can add in other beneficial make-your-skin-happy ingredients such as colloidal oatmeal, shredded luffa, ground coffee, activated charcoal, or kaolin clay. How awesome is that?! 

In previous posts, we described the benefits of activated charcoal, colloidal oatmeal, and kaolin clay. Here we'll have a closer look at shredded luffa and ground coffee – outlining the reasons why these two ingredients also work wonderfully in a bath soap.

Shredded Luffa Skin Benefits

The rather funny-looking luffa (aka loofa or loofah) is often referred to as a "sponge" -- but actually is the dried-out remnants of a gourd, from a plant that's a relative of the cucumber. Like the cucumber, the luffa gourd grows on a vine. And when it dries out, its natural fibers make it ideal as a skin-cleansing scrub. Here are some of the skin-health benefits of the luffa, and what makes shredded luffa an excellent addition to your soap bar:

1. Exfoliates the skin. The durable, non-elastic fibers of the luffa are perfect for exfoliating the skin: brushing away the dead skin cells, and removing dirt and pollutants from the skin pores. With dead and damaged cells removed, the surface of your skin becomes more clear and clean. The vital new skin cells have room to grow and flourish. 
2. Improves blood circulation in the skin. Scrubbing with luffa increases the circulation of blood through the various layers of the skin. And this improved blood circulation helps to flush out chemicals and other toxins -- which in turn improves the health of your skin and entire body.
3. Doesn't cause irritation or inflammation. Some of the more harsh scrubs can peel away even healthy skin cells, causing the skin to become red and inflamed. But luffa -- and especially shredded luffa -- is gentle enough to avoid causing irritation to the skin. It will brush away dead skin cells and accumulated dirt, without damaging the healthy cells. Even if you scrub vigorously with your luffa-enhanced soap bar, it's very unlikely to cause scratches or other damage to your skin: just healing exfoliation.
4. Perfectly safe and natural. As discussed above, luffa is a 100% natural ingredient. It contains no artificial additives or chemical preservatives that could potentially cause damage to your skin. Luffa is perfectly safe and natural.
5. Keeps the skin smooth and firm. The regular use of luffa will not only clean your skin but also leave it feeling more firm and smooth. With dirt and excess dead cells removed, only newly vibrant, fresh and healthy skin cells will remain. 

For all of these reasons, shredded luffa can be a very nice addition to your bath-soap bar. Another possibility -- equally excellent -- is one that may surprise you: coffee grounds.   

Ground Coffee Skin Benefits

Who would have guessed that the grounds that remain after your morning brew could be used to enhance the health and beauty of your skin?! But it's true, and here's why ...

1. Silky smooth exfoliation. Like shredded luffa, coffee grounds make for an awesome effective-yet-gentle exfoliator. Coffee grounds are the perfect consistency to remove dead cells, dirt, and toxins -- leaving your skin silky smooth without any irritation.
2. Increased collagen production. One ingredient of coffee grounds is caffeic acid, which is known to increase collagen production. Collagen is the main structural protein in our bodies, and one of its main jobs is to give skin its firmness and elasticity. Skin that is healthy and youthful continuously regenerates itself via the production of collagen. As we age, collagen production tends to slow down, which translates into skin that is less vibrant than it used to be. To remedy this situation, we can supplement internally with a multi-collagen protein powder. And another excellent way to increase collagen production is to use a soap with added coffee grounds.
3. Calms inflammation. Coffee grounds contain antioxidants that protect the skin from premature aging and also soothe and calm swollen, red, or inflamed skin.  
4. Firms skin cells. Coffee is a diuretic, which means that it draws fluids out of the cells. By temporarily dehydrating fat cells, coffee grounds have the effect of tightening the skin, creating a more smooth and elastic surface, and minimizing the visibility of cellulite.  
5. Brightens the skin. The stimulating properties of coffee grounds improve blood flow, which makes your skin look more vibrantly healthy and alive -- and shine with natural brightness. 

For all these reasons, coffee grounds -- though it may seem a bit weird -- actually make an excellent addition to a bath soap bar.

The Bottom Line

The create-your-own-soap laboratory offered by Becky's Tallow Treasures provides the opportunity to custom-design a bar that suits your own (or a friend's) unique needs and preferences perfectly. So ... what are you waiting for? Go ahead and take the leap-- and feel free to contact us with any questions you may have. We'd love to support you in making a choice that you'll be genuinely happy with.

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