My favorite soap!

I am so excited - I think I've found a soap recipe that is perfect for the dry, scratchy winters we get here in MN.  I still have to use lotion about half the time after showering (maybe because I like the showers HOT, since the weather and the house are usually freezing in the morning when I wake up).

I was playing around with some pistachio butter I picked up from Brambleberry when it was on sale as well as some sunflower oil that I had hanging around, and came up with this:  (cue angels singing...)

OK, ok, this is not the most awesome picture I have ever taken or posted.  Just imagine the best possible version of this soap, with beautiful colors and swirls, clean edges, and an awesomely (lightly) scented with BB's Cranberry Fig FO.  I really need to learn more about lighting and photoshop...

Oh soap, how do I love thee?  Let me count the ways:

1. The lather lasts the perfect amount of time with my sponge.  I only have to load up my sponge once to get my whole body.
2. The scent is nice and refreshing, but not overpowering.
3. My skin feels so lovely and soft when I step out of the shower.
4. The charcoal and clay are exfoliating, but not in a scrubby way.  I can't use scrubby soaps in the winter - it gives me either really dry skin or rashiness.
5. The bar lasts a very long time, even with nearly daily use.
6. It was surprisingly inexpensive to make.
7. I could probably go on and on, but 7 seems like a perfect number to end this at :)

I am so excited about this recipe!  I am going to try it out with some different designs, colorants and fragrances now to see how it behaves in other situations.  I also received an order of babassu oil in the mail this week, so I will probably work that in here, since it's such a great non-greasy emollient.

Sorry for the pictures - I'll start working on better quality photos going forward, but happy soaping everyone!  Stay warm...

~Chrissy