About Our Soap Ingredients

You won’t see water mentioned on most of our ingredients—mostly because it’s, well, just water! We use distilled water in soap to avoid random spots of discoloration, but beyond that, it’s doing its essential job: dissolving the lye so it can do its soap-making magic.

A water-based soap can be just as nourishing—or sometimes even more so—than a milk-based soap! Every soap needs a liquid, and sometimes that liquid can add extra benefits, like fats or other skin-nourishing qualities.

But “just” water doesn’t mean it’s any less wonderful. What really makes a soap great is the blend of oils and butters. A well-balanced mix can create a nourishing, sudsy, cleansing bar, while a milk base can only enhance what’s already there. Conversely, a poorly planned fat blend won’t be saved by simply adding milk.

Coconut milk comes from the creamy center of a coconut, made up of coconut water and coconut cream. We often use it in our milk-based soaps because:

1. It smells delicious!

2. It’s gentle and nourishing for the skin.

3. It works well for most people, including vegans.

If we ever use a different milk in a soap, don’t worry—we’ll make sure it’s clearly labeled!

Oat milk isn’t just great for drinking—it can be amazing for your skin too! It’s said to soothe irritation and rashes, improve moisture, and even gently exfoliate thanks to its natural lactic acid. Some people also claim it can reduce inflammation, help with acne, or minimize the appearance of pores.

We only use oat milk made from oats and water—no added salts or sugars to complicate what it does for your skin. (Sure, salts and sugars can sometimes be beneficial, but if we include them, we want it to be because we formulated the soap that way, not because they snuck in!)

Goat milk is a classic in handmade soaps, loved for its skin-loving properties. While the overall benefits also depend on the oils and butters in the recipe, goat milk adds extra nourishment thanks to its natural fats. It gently cleanses, moisturizes, and even lightly exfoliates on its own, thanks to its natural lactic acid. Rich in vitamins A, B, D, and E, goat milk is a gentle, nourishing choice for many skin types. Plus, we use local goat milk in support of our community!

Note: A soap doesn’t need a milk base to be nourishing. What really matters is the balance of oils and butters in the recipe. A good milk is just icing on the cake—or silk in the soap, if you will!

Look, if you don’t know what coffee is, I don’t know how to explain it to you.

The real question is, why is it in soap? Well, there are a few reasons. Coffee can energize and refresh your skin, and when we add some of the coffee grounds back in after blending the lye and oils, it makes a gentle exfoliant.

Our coffee soaps are usually swirled with a coconut milk–based soap (see Coconut Milk [Cocos Nucifera Extract] for more info), so after exfoliating, your skin gets a nourishing dose of coconut cream. Pure bliss!

Fun fact: Pixie Elegance CEO Kay doesn’t even like coffee, but she loves the smell of this soap!

These statements about skin benefits come from common references in skincare research, but haven’t been reviewed by the FDA. Our coffee soap is meant to smell amazing, help clean your skin, and provide a little gentle exfoliation.

Coconut oil is the natural fat extracted from the rich, creamy flesh of coconuts. Traditionally used in Southeast Asia for food, medicine, and skincare, it’s prized in soapmaking for helping bars lather up beautifully, giving lots of bubbly suds. It also contributes to a nice, firm bar, though pairing it with richer oils keeps skin feeling soft and gentle.

Olive oil, native to the Mediterranean, has been treasured for thousands of years for food, medicine, and skincare — with evidence of use going back to 6000 BC! In soap, it’s one of the earliest oils ever used, prized for making a harder, longer-lasting bar while gently nourishing the skin.

Avocado oil has been prized for centuries, from the Aztecs to other ancient civilizations, for its healing and moisturizing properties. Some say it’s highly skin-penetrating, helping it absorb well. Used in soap since at least the 1600s, it adds a creamy lather and vitamins A, D, and E.

Mango butter, used medicinally and cosmetically since ancient times, comes from the seed, not the fruit. It’s soothing, healing, and unlikely to clog pores (or, put scientifically, has a very low comedogenic rating). In soap, it boosts conditioning for soft skin while adding hardness to help bars last longer.

We only use ethically sourced palm oil certified by the Round Table on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), which helps protect ecosystems and support local communities. Palm oil is great for soap because it helps restore skin’s natural moisture while adding hardness to the bar, so it lasts longer without drying out your skin.

Cocoa butter comes from cacao beans, long considered sacred in ancient Mesoamerican cultures for food, medicine, and skincare. Today we know it helps reduce the appearance of scars and stretch marks, and evens out skin tone. In soap, it adds rich moisture while helping create a firm bar with a stable, creamy lather.

Shea butter comes from the nut of the shea tree in West Africa and has been used for thousands of years—even Cleopatra used it! Loved for both skin and hair, it deeply moisturizes and helps create a thick, creamy lather in soap, giving an extra touch of luxury.

Gasp! Why is there lye in my soap?! That’s caustic stuff!

It is — but it’s also essential for making soap. Don’t worry! During saponification, the lye and oils go through a chemical reaction that completely transforms them. The result isn’t lye or oil anymore, but an entirely new substance: soap. By the time your bar is ready, there’s no lye left!

Um . . . that’s pretty vague, isn’t it? No fancy-schmancy science-y word or anything?

Yes, it really is just called fragrance! But don’t let the name fool you—we’re picky about what we use. All our scents are made specifically for soap and tested to be safe in the amounts we use. We steer clear of the ones most likely to trigger allergies, and we only use phthalate-free options (because, ew—phthalates can mess with hormones, breathing, the endocrine system; they’re just a mess!)

Want to avoid fragrance entirely? No worries! We offer unscented options in both soap and lotion!

Soap is often colored with mica. Even though a few ingredients may be listed, they’re all collectively called mica.

Unlike most of our ingredients, we’re proud to use lab-created mica! Why? Mica, like most minerals, isn’t renewable, and using lab-made versions helps protect the environment.

The micas we use are specially made for soap (and sometimes cosmetics) and tested to be safe for the skin. Prefer soap without added non-natural elements? No problem—our Natural Clean soap is both fragrance-free and colorant-free, and none of our lotions are colored.

Oat flour isn’t just for baking; it’s a natural ally for your skin too! In soap, it helps cleanse naturally thanks to saponins, the compounds in oats that act like a mild soap. Its finely ground particles provide gentle exfoliation, sloughing away dead skin cells to reveal fresh, smooth skin.

For those with oily or combination skin, oat flour can absorb excess oils and help balance the skin’s surface, all while soothing irritation and nourishing with proteins, vitamins, and antioxidants. The result is a bar that cleans, smooths, and leaves your skin feeling comfortable—not stripped!

The naturally mineral-rich brazilian clay is a gentle but powerful cleansing ingredient. It helps absorb excess oil and impurities, making it especially beneficial for oily or acne-prone skin. The fine texture provides a natural exfoliation, leaving skin feeling refreshed and smooth without being harsh.

Brazilian clay is also packed with minerals like silica and iron, which can support skin’s natural resilience and give it a healthy glow. In soap, it not only adds skincare benefits but also brings a beautiful natural color—no artificial dyes needed!

Like Brazilian clay, French green clay is fantastic at cleansing and balancing the skin. It absorbs excess oil, gently exfoliates, and helps draw out impurities, making it a natural fit for oily or combination skin.

What sets it apart is its toning and firming qualities. Many find it helps refine the look of pores and leaves skin feeling especially refreshed.

We also love French green clay because it allows us to give you the same wonderful cleansing and balancing properties of Brazilian clay while keeping our soaps affordable. By blending the two, we can use less of the more expensive Brazilian clay without losing its benefits, so you get the best of both worlds!

We use local honey from Western Maine in our honey soap bars, adding a touch of sweetness straight from our community.

Honey is a natural humectant, drawing moisture to the skin and helping it stay soft and hydrated. It’s also soothing and gentle, with natural anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties that make it a wonderful addition for sensitive or breakout-prone skin.

In soap, honey does more than just nourish—it enhances the lather, lends a subtle natural sweetness to the scent, and the natural sugars provide light exfoliation while antioxidants support healthy-looking skin.

While some enzymes don’t survive the soapmaking process, honey’s moisturizing and skin-loving qualities remain, making it one of our favorite specialty ingredients.

Note: Not recommended for people with certain bee pollen allergies. Please discontinue use if irritation occurs.

We use local maple syrup from Western Maine in our maple soap bars, bringing a little sweetness of our region into every bar.

Like honey, maple syrup is a natural humectant—it draws moisture to the skin and helps keep it soft and hydrated. It’s also packed with antioxidants, which can help protect against environmental stressors and support healthier-looking skin. With gentle soothing properties, it’s a lovely addition for anyone with sensitive or easily irritated skin.

In soapmaking, maple syrup does more than just nourish. Its natural sugars help boost the lather, creating a creamier, more luxurious feel. It also lends a subtle, sweet undertone to the scent of the finished bar.

Because maple syrup contains natural sugars, it can sometimes slightly deepen the color of the soap.

Note: While rare, those with maple allergies or sensitivities should avoid using maple soap.

Some of our soaps are adorned with natural botanicals, like dried cornflower petals. These additions are primarily decorative, bringing a touch of color and charm to your soap. They are safe to use in the shower, will break down naturally over time, and won’t clog drains. While botanicals can have skin benefits when used in larger quantities, in these small decorative amounts they’re mainly for visual delight.

Actually . . . not that much. Despite the moisturizing benefits of many of the oils and butters we use, the saponification process means most of the oils are fundamentally changed in order to become soap.

How? Lye (sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide) is a great cleaning agent, but caustic to organic materials. That means it can literally burn through your skin so please do not use lye as soap!

Then how can it go into soap and be fine? Saponification! Yup, that (delightfully or annoyingly, depending on your perspective) big word just means the chemical interaction in which lye and fats change together into something new: soap! Once that change has happened, neither the lye nor the fats still hold the same properties they held before.

Then what’s the point of a soap having all those different oils and butters?

There’s another factor involved: superfatting! Superfatting is when the soap recipe calls for more fats (oils and butters) than the given amount of lye is able to interact with.

Think of it like this:

100% of the lye included + 100% of the fats included = 100% soap

100% of the lye included + 105% of the fats included = 100% soap with the extra 5% of the fats left over

In other words, all the caustic lye becomes soap, but some of the moisturizing fats remain to moisturize too.

Nope!

Or . . . well, yes, but . . . .

Wait . . . first, let’s define “soft” and hard!

I know, I know, that seems pretty straight-forward, right? But it can actually mean two different things! A “soft” or “hard” soap might refer to the moisturizing properties of the soap, in which case, yes, you want a softer soap. But a soft or hard bar of soap refers to the properties of the bar itself! A physically softer bar of soap can seem like it would be more moisturizing, but the physical properties of the bar itself aren’t actually related to that. That goes back to the superfatting we were discussing before.

What does the harder or softer bar mean, then? The harder the bar, the longer it will last! Softer bars wear away faster.