Questions from the workshop

Soap is what happens when oils and lye finish their work together. The lye is used up. What is left is soap plus glycerin, plus the extra oils we choose to leave in the bar. Most bottles labeled “body wash,” “beauty bar,” or “moisturizing cleanser” are not soap. They are detergent blends — synthetic surfactants with a long ingredient list. We make soap.

We cook the soap until saponification is finished in the pot. That is the old way, and it is the honest way for our recipes. Once the cook is done, we stir in the oils we want to remain unsaponified — jojoba, sweet almond oil, and cocoa butter. They are not a guess left over from a formula. They are added on purpose, after the lye has already done its job, so those exact oils stay in the bar and on your skin.

It means free oils that never met the lye. In a hot-process kettle we can add them at the end and know they are still themselves: jojoba for slip and a skin-like feel, almond oil for softness, cocoa butter for a cushioned, lasting bar. That is the whole reason we cook it.

Yes to both. Grass-fed tallow is in many of our bars because skin already knows those fatty acids, and it makes a hard, long-wearing bar. We also keep a Castile line for anyone who wants olive-oil soap without tallow. Both are real soap. Both are disclosed on the label.

A bar is not ready when it comes out of the mold. We cut by hand and let it sit 4–6 weeks so water leaves, the bar hardens, and the lather settles into what it should be. If a listing says it is curing, the batch is already made. You can reserve it. It ships or comes to market when the date on the listing says so.

Used once a day and kept dry between showers, most of our bars last three to six weeks. Tallow bars usually outlast the softer ones. A draining dish is not optional. Sitting in a puddle will eat a handmade bar in days.

Many of our regulars came to us because commercial wash left them tight or itchy. We use short, readable ingredient lists, keep the glycerin that soap naturally makes, and superfat with oils chosen for skin — not foam. We do not claim to treat any condition. If your skin is reactive, start with a mild bar, use lukewarm water, and stop if it does not agree with you. Ingredients are listed on every listing and at the table.

It depends on the bar. Some are scented with essential oils, some with skin-safe fragrance oils in modest amounts, some are very quiet. The product page tells you which. If scent is a problem, ask us for the low-scent options. We would rather send you home with the right bar than a headache.

Honey or beeswax, plus the same honest oils we use everywhere else. Every bar with honey or beeswax carries Lizzy Bee’s name. That is not a marketing line. It is why those recipes exist.

Yes. Free local pickup is always available. You can also find us in person:

• Saturday · Flagler Beach Market · 8am–1pm
• Sunday · Palm Coast European Village · 9am–2pm

Online and on Etsy the rest of the week.

Cool, dry, out of direct sun. Do not seal a fresh bar in plastic. It needs air. Once you start using it, keep it on a drained dish and let it dry between uses.

It should. Detergent bars are designed to strip and foam hard. Real soap cleans and leaves a thin film of those leftover oils and glycerin. The first week on a new bar, give your skin a few days to remember what that feels like. Most people stop missing the squeak.