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Anyone had any experience with homemade soap and skin problems?
I have always used one type of washing powder and get patches of very irritating rash if I use anything else so always been scared to use home made soap in case I wash everything with it and then start getting rashy.. It usually takes a while for my skin to start reacting to it so I literally have to re-wash every time I try something different..

I would love to make my own though so if anyone out there with sensitive skin who may have experience in the area please let me know!!

Gemx

are you talking about soap for washing your clothes? or body soap? .my grandaughter has ezcema and we use hand make glycerin or milk based soap on her as she CANNOT use regular soap at all. If you decide to make milk based soap that requires the use of LYE you need to make sure that it is cured properly before use (a couple of months!) get a good soapmaking book as they have pretty good instructions regarding letting the soap "cure".

Doh, not so clear on that was I, I have more issues (in terms of skin sensitivity) to clothes washing soap but have had probs with skin soap in the past also. Generally its worse with clothes due to the constant contact with skin.

Either way I am interested in making my own soap, body clothes and otherwise but am concerned about the implications due to my skin issues..

on my grandaughters clothes we buy liquid soap rather than powder, rinses out better, we buy the eco kind that is free and clear of dyes, perfumes etc.

Homemade soap is better for any skin sensitivity as it doesn't, like most shop-bought stuff, contain any detergents.

I have a couple of nieces with eczema who order my soap in bulk as it doesn't irritate their skin and they don't need to add any barrier creams after washing. I make castile soap so it just contains olive oil, water and caustic soda and occasionally beeswax. Don't be frightened by the use of the caustic soda as it is completely canceled out by the oil during saponification.

Like you, I've had problems with washing powders in the past so either use a detergent-free one or grate some homemade soap and turn it into a liquid with bicarbonate soda for use in the washing machine. I lot of recipes say add borax too, but I never have so couldn't vouch for how effective it is as a cleaning agent.

I have made the laundry liquid from a post here some months ago and it is really good. It is just grated soap, soda and borax, which I couldn't find but managed to find borax substitute. It makes a huge amount and I find it really works, even on dirty jeans etc, and sooooo cheap! pbf.