Vacation

As I have mentioned on my website, I will be gone visiting Italy from July 2 - July 16th. All orders placed during this time will be filled and mailed by July 18th. Any order placed before June 30th will be mailed before I leave.

I'm hoping to come back with some great new ideas for products, scents, and herbs.

Lora's Beauty Brochure pdf

In the past, I have been asked for a brochure of products found at Lora's Beauty. I have now put together a brochure which I will include in orders and I've made available here for downloading.

Thank you for your requests!

Lora's Beauty Brochure.pdf

Soap Making Machines

I was cruising around the internet and found this. Sure beats my pitcher, pot, and spatula...I guess.

How Soaps and Detergents Clean

People use artisan, handmade soap rather than bars of detergent they buy at the grocery store, for many reasons. Some like the look, smell, or moisturizing effects of the handmade soap. Some people's skin is irritated by the petroleum products found in the bars at the grocery store. Rarely does the chemical process of how soaps and detergents clean enter into the decision making process, however different the two may be.

Soaps are made by combining oils and lye together via a chemical process called saponification. Soap is an excellent cleanser because it acts as an emulsifying agent. It's able to combine one liquid with another immiscible liquid. This allows it to take oil (which attracts dirt) that doesn't usually mix with water, to suspend to the water and be washed off.

Detergents, on the other hand, are surfactants which are produced from petrochemicals. Surfactants lower the surface tension of water making it 'wetter' and less likely to stick to itself and more likely to combine with grease and oils to be washed off.

Both soaps and detergents need a little agitation (a sponge, washcloth, or a washing machine's agitator) in order to complete the cleaning process.

When it comes to cleaning, both soaps and detergents get the job done via different methods.

More information regarding the chemical process used by soaps and detergents can be found here:

http://chemistry.about.com/od/cleanerchemistry/a/how-soap-cleans.htm
http://chemistry.about.com/od/howthingswork/f/detergentfaq.htm

Best Soap For...

I'm often asked what's the best soap for dry skin or acne or rashes? The truth is, all Lora's Beauty soaps are great for skin regardless of it's particular disorder. By nature of the oils used and the process they are made, all Lora's soaps are very mild. Some of the additives Lora uses, however, may be more beneficial to certain skin types than others.

I have put together the following list to help answer the question:

What's the Best Type of Soap For...?

Dry Skin

Cocoa Butter Vanilla. An extra 1 ½ ounces of cocoa butter is added to the already oil and butter rich soap to make this a great soap for dry skin.

Lemon Verbena. Great for all types of skin irritations including dry skin.

Milk&Cranberry. Cranberries are rich in antioxidants and vitamins A, B, C, and E. Cranberry oil is absorbed easily through the skin, acts as a superb moisturizer, and helps to relieve itchy, scaly, irritated skin.

Calendula. A wonderful, mild skin softening soap.

Marshmallow Root. Increases the skin’s moisture levels by inhibiting connective tissue degeneration.

Rashes/Eczema/Psoriasis

Honey Safflower. Safflower petals discourage cell proliferation and encourage cell death, which may make safflower petals useful in treating psoriasis, rashes, and eczema.

Lemon Verbena. Lemon verbena tones, firms and refreshes. It’s great for sensitive skin prone to rashes.

Calendula. Calendula has long been used to soothe skin irritations from bug bites to rashes. Calendula is also said to have antifungal properties.

Cilantro Lime. Cilantro is a powerful, natural cleansing agent. It is also beneficial as a natural anti-septic and anti-fungal agent for skin disorders like fungal infections and eczema.

Milk&Cranberry. Cranberries are rich in antioxidants and vitamins A, B, C, and E. Cranberry oil is absorbed easily through the skin, acts as a superb moisturizer, and helps to relieve itchy, scaly, irritated skin. Cranberries are great for everything from acne and rashes to wrinkles.

Cinnamon, Milk&Honey. Cinnamon is beneficial in skin care products because of its anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties.

Acne

Lemon Verbena. lemon verbena tones, firms and refreshes. It’s great for sensitive skin prone to acne.

Milk&Cranberry. Cranberries are rich in antioxidants and vitamins A, B, C, and E. Cranberry oil is absorbed easily through the skin, acts as a superb moisturizer, and helps to relieve itchy, scaly, irritated skin. Cranberries are great for everything from acne and rashes to wrinkles.

Wrinkles/Aging/Face

Raspberry&Milk. The oil from raspberry seeds is rich in Vitamin E, Omega-3 fatty acids and has a sun protection factor (SPF) of 25-50.

Milk&Cranberry. Cranberries are rich in antioxidants and vitamins A, B, C, and E. Cranberry oil is absorbed easily through the skin, acts as a superb moisturizer, and helps to relieve itchy, scaly, irritated skin. Cranberries are great for everything from acne and rashes to wrinkles.

Lavender Hibiscus. The hibiscus plant improves skin flexibility and elasticity, as well as creates higher moisture levels in the skin.

Marshmallow Root. Marshmallow root helps to minimize skin inflammatory processes and is therefore also useful for fighting any skin degeneration and aging.

Oily Skin

Cinnamon, Milk&Honey. Cinnamon is beneficial in skin care products because of its anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties and is mildly astringent.

Baby’s Skin

Cocoa Butter Vanilla. Cocoa Butter is added to make the bar more moisturizing and softening. No rough additives that would scratch a baby’s skin.

Calendula. A very mild, skin soothing bar.

Men’s Skin

Honey Safflower. Safflower threads make this soap particularly good for sensitive skin prone to rashes. Has a great anise scent. Not too flowery.

Cinnamon Milk&Honey. The cinnamon and honey together can help with inflammation. Cinnamon is also beneficial in skin care products because of its anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties. Works great for oily skin or skin that’s prone to sweating.

Cilantro Lime. Cilantro is a powerful, natural cleansing agent. It is also beneficial as a natural anti-septic and anti-fungal agent for skin disorders like fungal infections and eczema.

Types of Soaps

All the soaps at Lora's Beauty are made via the cold-process soap-making technique. This process involves combining lye and animal fats (or vegetable oils) and water through a process called saponification.

Lora's soaps are then rebatched or hand-milled. Rebatching involves grating the cold-processed soap like you would grate a block of cheese. The grated soap is then melted with milk at a low temperature. Rebatching soap allows for better integration with essential oils and herbal additives that would normally be damaged by the lye when applied directly to cold-processed soap. Rebatching also provides a finer, longer lasting bar.

Rebatching or hand-milled soap differs from a soap that is French-milled. French-milled soap is a commercial method of milling soap. It involves running soap base through stainless steel rollers. Hot and cold water is alternatively run through the rollers.

Store bought soap is most likely not soap at all but detergent. Soap, by definition, involves combining oils and lye through saponification. Detergents, on the other hand, contain petroleum distillants rather than fats or oils.