Customers ask me all the time: is all handmade soap the same?
No. It's not. Here's why.
What cold process actually is
When I make cold-process soap, I start by mixing lye with distilled water. Then I melt down my oils and butters and combine the two. That's where the magic happens.
The fatty acids in the oils react with the lye, and saponification begins. Over the next few weeks — what soapmakers call curing — that mixture turns into soap and glycerin. Real soap, made from scratch, with every ingredient chosen by me.
What melt & pour actually is
People mix melt & pour up all the time — myself included. Here's what most folks don't know: melt & pour can be made with the cold process method. But it's an even more tedious process than making regular soap, because at the end you still have to re-melt it, design it, and set it.
So what most soapmakers do (not all) is buy base in bulk from soaping distributors. They take that mass-produced base, scent it, dye it, and sell it as soap.
The people who make their own melt & pour base from scratch are rare — but they're out there.
The glycerin problem
One more thing before we move on. When soap is mass-produced, the manufacturer usually removes most of the glycerin — the good stuff that mimics your skin's moisture barrier and pulls water to your skin so it stays soft and hydrated. They sell that glycerin to lotion and makeup companies, because it's worth big money.
Here's the catch: when you buy a melt & pour base, you get told what was added. Nobody tells you what was removed. Glycerin has to be in there for the base to melt — but it might be the bare minimum, just enough to function. Which is why knowing your supplier matters.
Who you're buying from matters most
With cold process, the maker is the formulator. Ask them anything about their soap — they'll know.
With melt & pour, here are the questions to ask: did they make their own base from scratch? If not, which supplier did it come from? What's actually in it — is it detergent-free? Cruelty-free? What oils and butters?
The maker you buy from should answer all of that happily and easily. If they can't explain it in simple terms, they don't know their process as well as they think they do. And you're not asking to trip them up — you're asking because your skin matters, and what you put on it matters.
So what's the real difference?
Depends on the maker. If they make their own melt & pour base from scratch — honestly, not much. But if they buy their base from a supplier? World of difference. You can end up with additives the manufacturer slipped in, barely-there glycerin, plus whatever the maker added on top, like dyes.
So — is all handmade soap the same? No. Now you know why, and now you know what to ask