[KD1980]

My brother and I recently had a discussion where he told me he only uses shower gel or body wash. It made me realize that some people are strictly Team Bar Soap or Team Shower Gel.

Where are you in this? I'm Team Bar Soap. I make my own soap, and I still buy soaps from other businesses. I really only ever buy handmade soap from small businesses. I don't buy Dove or Irish Spring or any mainstream brands.

[Mountaindewed]

I mostly use shower gel. I use a bar of soap to shave though.

I use both but mostly show gel/cream.

Tiny exfoliating pebbles...found only at the outlying edges of the Nile delta
where ancient African bedrock
finally meets the Mediterranean seabed
and scraped against the skin in handfuls
.....out in the back yard when it rains...???

OR...whatever's on sale and doesn't smell like the foyer of a funeral home. The bathroom drawers are usually stocked will bars of Dove unscented or Dove for Men.

[dontworrybaby]

bar soap. i also make my own soap! there’s a huge difference in how my own handmade soap makes my skin feel (vs store-bought).

shower Gel

I always found soap too slippery and icky on my hands (at least the bars)

if it's from a bottle, I'll use it

but soap rarely. prefer the Gel

[lizardlady]

I like shower gel. I find bar soap, even the expensive ones, dry my skin too much.

[WishfulThinker66]

Both. natural pure bar soap for my face and body wash everywhere else.

[lightly toasted]

Bar soap, but only because it's cheaper.

[Nammu]

Liquid soap, less mess and stronger scent.

[LadyShadow]

I actually use both which is kinda overkill, but I really enjoy showers and if you have a nice body was on a little sponge thing, it can be really rejuvenating. I still use bar soap in addition to that for other reasons.

[unaluna]

Im afraid liquid soaps are going to irritate my sensitive areas, and not be strong enough for like my underarms. Whereas Safeguard bar soap! Its like a chastity belt of freshness! They should make THAT the slogan!

[Goforward]

I prefer bar soap because I don't like to throw away the container the shower wash comes in. Less is more.

[KD1980]

Originally Posted by dontworrybaby

bar soap. i also make my own soap! there’s a huge difference in how my own handmade soap makes my skin feel (vs store-bought).

I agree! If you want to see my soaps, they're in my profile pics.

[88Butterfly88]

I use mostly shower gel.

[CepheidVariable]

I've always simply used Ivory bar soap. It does the job and has never caused me any issues. I merely want to be clean, not smell all ... um, weirdly symbolic.

I'll use whatever is around of course. So, I've tried "shower gels" and "body washes" when visiting elsewhere. I did not find them to be any sort of transformative experience.

[unaluna]

Ivory bar soap dries me out horribly! It just merges with every last molecule of oil on my skin (not sure how many layers deep it penetrates, but i wouldnt be surprised if it lowered my cholesterol) and washes it down the drain.

The little hotel size / version is usually okay, but one time i was at a friend's house and used their regular ivory bar and was very unpleasantly surprised! Am i the only one?

I use bar soap on my face (as natural as possible) and a toxin free body wash (Alaffia) on my body. I try to be as careful as possible about products because the U.S. does not have the precautionary principle....this means that companies are allowed to sell products with synthetic fragrance and other harmful toxins. The seller is not required to list all of the ingredients so any time you see "parfum" or "fragrance" for example that is a clue that the product contains a lot of harmful ingredients. These chemicals include: benzene derivatives, aldehydes, phthalates, and many other known toxins which can have serious effects on human health. If anyone is interested, you can check out the EWG website. They rate various products based on safety level.

[unaluna]

So the threads where we talk about NOT taking a shower, is actually a GOOD thing?! We're smarter than we smell! I mean seem!

I typically shower every other day. I don't feel the need to shower every day. One of my guy friends thinks that's weird/gross. My partner says I never smell bad....he knows he's free to tell me...I'd want to know if I didn't smell fresh. I think my skin would be too dry if I showered every day. I can always add a shower if the weather is very hot or something. Also, I live with depression and showering and doing my hair every single day seems like too much work. I'll have to check out the other shower thread you mentioned Unaluna!

[Raindropvampire]

I use shampoo. That way I can just lather head to toe in one swoop. My depression sucks the life from me and I don't have the energy to do it any other way.

[eskielover]

I hated bar soap from the time I can remember. I never liked the slippery slimy feel of it in my hands. I would always put it in a wash cloth to touch it. Ok...at 66 I still don't like bar soap. I was so thrilled when shower gel was invented.

However with that I actually started using a Norwek shower mit. It has a scrubby side that functions to remove dead skin cells....no shower gel necessary. It has actually solved my rough skin problems & even works for underarm washing (that actually really surprised me) I use it on my face in the shower also. The other side of the mit is like a soft washcloth & shower gel can be used with it. I have so many different shower gels.....maybe I can just use them up as hand soaps

[gina_re]

I pretty much stick to bar soap, Dove to be exact. I've been using it for years. I've also used homemade soaps and I didn't notice that much of a difference.

[possum220]

Bar Soap. The price of shower gel or lotion is just rude.

[CepheidVariable]

Originally Posted by unaluna

Ivory bar soap dries me out horribly! It just merges with every last molecule of oil on my skin (not sure how many layers deep it penetrates, but i wouldnt be surprised if it lowered my cholesterol) and washes it down the drain.

So maybe that's the problem with your drains? Your pipes are clogged with cholesterol.

Originally Posted by unaluna

The little hotel size / version is usually okay, but one time i was at a friend's house and used their regular ivory bar and was very unpleasantly surprised! Am i the only one?

Doubtful. However, there's a huge range of skin types and body chemistries out there, so you might have to ask around a bit.

I offer no suggestions on how to ask strangers for this information. Other than asking on the Internet; People aren't surprised by anything on the Internet.