Hi Pat. I love your yearly topic of soap. I have a shower basket of bar soaps because someone in this house is never satisfied (Who me?)

Cetaphil bar soap and liquid facial cleanser. .I like both.

Kirks still remains one of my favorite

Dove bars white...I do like these but even in my soft water they don't like to lather up.

Dove liquid ..my boys love this...my washcloths don't.

Lux bars...found at an Asian market..so-so

Dove bars men....hubs wants to smell good.

A bar of castile BEER soap that my son found for me...scent free and very moisturizing. .Amiee loves it.

Dove Baby bar...This might be my favorite. ..

A pink bar of Rose scented imported from France, I don't remember who made it...its Amiees.

Caress bar....in test mode. ..but I think not.

Too many opened soaps here Pat, but if you insist on my favorite I will have to say.....Dove Baby bars.

What are you currently liking on your sensitive skin Pat?

Hope all is well with you and your hubs.

Cetaphil liquid "gentle" skin cleanser and VaniCream bar soap if I have to scrub off sunscreen. (neither have cocamidopropyl betaine.) That's it, or my skin goes bonkers. Olay has a nice bar soap that is coco bet free but the perfume bothers my skin. Arghhh!

Dove sensitive only for me. ( white bar ) I have a weakness for Yardley English lavender though.

Johnson's Baby Milk Soap is one of the few and of all thing liquid Soft Soap in coconut, as there are few that don't make me itch. Dove, anything Neutrogena, Aveeda and most anything labeled "natural" make me want to tear my skin off.

Unless I actually have mud or ink on me, I wash with water only. Yep, it's actually a thing. I just use a cheap, fairly rough wash cloth and water to wash my face and body. I spent way too many years trying one thing after another, and always ended up with rashes, etc. As long as you use a cloth to wash with, water alone does the job, and I do mean everywhere. My skin is clean and very happy.

There is always Kirk's Castile bar soap, even in an unscented version, but it dries my skin out like crazy, just like Ivory bar does.

Well, you don't want me to tell you this but Dial White bar soap was the only thing that I could use that didn't bother my dry, old skin UNTIL they removed the triclosan and replaced it with (can't remember the spelling). I liked the new Cetaphil face and body bar that replaced their anti-bacterial, but it finally got to me. So, i bought a Dr. Bronner's lavendar oil bar this afternoon and will trade it off with a Vanicream bar I have and like a lot. They're so damn expensive so I'm going to try a Dove original bar again one of these days. Shea Moisture is another one I haven't tried yet but want to. Thank you all.

Pat, is there a Costco near you? Ours has a pharmacy and they have all the Vanicream products behind their counter. Cheaper than Walgreens and CVS prices, too.

Skmom I have a bar of the Raw Shea Butter with frankincence and myrrh, it is a nice creamy lather but the scent is overwhelming. I don't have problems with scents except not liking them on my clothing or bedding but this is very perfumed. Do you know if there's a raw shea butter bar with a mild scent?

Pat I also liked the white Dial....between us ladies I prefer a antibacterial soap on my girl parts and under my breasts. I feel cleaner. Lol. I dont need a moisturizing soap in those places....well I am all dead and dried out but a soap won't cure that...I need my hormones back..lol.

And my feet. I like antibacterial soap on my feet also.

I know TMI...haha

I agree with Mamapinky, the scent of Shea Moisture bar is too strong. However the bodywash is light scented and I love it. It really moisturizes too. It will turn cloths gray so I use a puff thingy. For a bar I like white Dove bar. CeraVe has a cleansing lotion that I like as a face wash.

FINALLY, I'm THIS far from getting a Costco membership. Just waiting for hubs to think it's HIS idea to join. Everyone we know, even those with more money than we'll ever see, has a membership and raves about it.

Mama, you hit the old nail on the head when you said you like Dial antibac under "the girls." Can't believe you said it first! That's why my bras have to be washed in hot water and All plain or Tide With Bleach. And let me recommend Gold Bond Medicated powder for under the girls and other "parts!" Wonderful stuff in the hot summer.

Beagle, the plain, old CeraVe body lotion is wonderful for the entire body. The best.

Pat - FWIW, Costco has several CeraVe products behind the Rx counter, right next to the VaniCream products. Now that Costco ditched AmEx and accepts any VISA credit card, I am enjoying .... um .... LOVING! saving 40 cents per gallon on my gasoline there. And it is top tier grade gasoline. Depending on how many miles you drive per year, the savings can help offset cost of membership.

Dove bodywash makes my washcloths smell rancid even though I wash them with detergent and bleach, then rinse with vinegar added.

@elbits, way back when Dove had a variety with vitamin E mine smelled rancid too. You might have luck with any P and G powder detergent. They have lipase and along with hot water should help with the smell.

Right now I'm using J&J Oatmeal Baby Wash.

DS helped a friend move and ended up bringing home some odds & ends of toiletries. The Suave body wash was itch city; I poured it into the hand wash dispenser to use up the last of it. After the Suave incident, I dug out the Baby Wash. No problem with it.

Mama, I use Arid Spray for under the upper shelf and bought another can of it for DH's stinking feet. I sure know when he forgets to use it!

Cavimum, the gasoline savings at Costco is exactly what may have turned the tide for my spouse. We were told about it by people that drive BMWs and Mercedes' for goodness sake, like they need the savings!

kjoy1 - that is the VaniCream brand. Made by Psico. And "Betaine free" means no cocamidopropyl betaine. Their shampoo is a life saver for me!

I had no idea that was made by VaniCream! I wonder why it doesn't say that! I've seen the shampoo and conditioner at Target and wondered if it was any good. I've had issues with itchy scalp. I've never seen this liquid cleanser though...where can you buy it other than order it on line?

Love the baby dove line. The soap is amazing however I stumbled across the tip to toe liquid soap on amazon (three pack was like 9.00) and it’s amazing! They do make it in a sensitive version that’s unscented. They have a rich moisture one that I’ve been using. I originally bought it for my grandson and now love it so much I use it. The baby dove lotion is also amazing. They make that in a sensitive unscented version too.

Oh and I use the baby dove with white washcloths and no weird staining like I had with regular liquid soap. They really did good with the baby line.

arkansas girl - the psico website has a "where to buy" page where you can find retailers. I have since seen VaniCream products at local retailers listed on that page, but they do not carry all the products in that line at their brick & mortar stores. Costco pharmacy here does a pretty good job. The VaniCream bar soap is truly a lifesaver for me! There are other bar soaps that do not irritate --- true soaps --- and they leave horrendous soap scum on the shower stall walls that make my work harder. VC bar soap does not.

vaniCream/Psico also makes zinc oxide sunscreens, which I have tried. No allergic reaction, but they are so thick and yucky feeling that I tossed it. YMMV

Cavimum, I thought to ask you this at about 3 a.m. this morning as I was NOT sleeping, but am here now to ask you: Do you use the (Vanicream) hair conditioner after you use the shampoo???? My scalp is always dry.

And I really appreciate the time and consideration it took you to mention that the Vanicream bar soap does not have CB and does not leave a scum.

Pat - yes, I always used the VaniCream conditioner after the shampoo. It is a rinse out type. Some regular conditioners have caused problems lately. Argh! The VC shampoo alone leaves my shoulder length hair too tangled, otherwise. You could use a small amount of any leave-in or rinse out conditioner, if your hair is not short.

After two or three years of using the VC shampoo & conditioner (note: years), my hair was turning into straw. This isn't a top shelf hair care product but it didn't make me itch, so it has that going for it and why it exists.

Now I use the VC shampoo on the area that was itching like mad before I started using it, and can use Head&Shoulders on the rest of my head. (weird, I know) No conditioner needed thanks to the H&S, and my hair itself is back to normal. H&S had a small amount of coco bet, and way less than other shampoos, so I also don't let any of that H&S run down my body in the shower, or I get collateral damage ... itching.

BTW, Pat, if you are a lather, rinse, repeat person, stop doing that. My decades of dry scalp & dandruff stopped when I stopped doing the second lather. And all the hairspray comes out with one lather.

Okay. H&S has a new scalp-related set that I will try because of your message above, but that's it! I have tried and hated H&S for too many years,

Thank you for responding

Shea Moisture African Black Soap; I use the liquid. Doesn't irritate my skin.

Pat, just read the ingredients and look for coco bet, and see how close to the top of the list it is, just in case it is one of your allergy triggers. I think each formula has it in varying quantities.

Speaking of ingredients in **order**

I once spoke to someone with P& G about this and was told the list of ingredients is in no way any indication of amounts used..for instance if sodium percarbonate is listed as the third ingredient down on one box of Tide but 4'th down on another it doesn't mean there's more in the 3'rd one down. They said this falls in the category of **trade secrets**

I haven't a clue though if their correct...but I think sodium percarbonate is listed 3'rd down in both Tide with Bleach and Tide Mountain Spring...which doesn't make sense.

I know this isn't about detergents...sorry.

That is still interesting, mamapinkyo, and I thank you for sharing that. I know with food, the ingredients have to be listed according to volume so I always assumed the same with cosmetics, etc. Yikes.

There's still the chance knowing how much or little the folks are that answer the phone at P& G are could have given wrong info. Food for thought anyway.

mama, I remember your point about the order of items on the Ingredients lists. Do you know why there is no bleach activator in Tide Free Gentle POWDER? Might it be because it is a possible irritant?

Cavimum I love the Vanicream bar. Don't know why I ever stopped using it. Thank you so much.

Hisom said:

Unless I actually have mud or ink on me, I wash with water only.

And she’s on to something. For max skin protection, and if you shower daily (or mostly) wetting and sloughing with a washcloth is all you need. Soap is reserved for face, hands, u/arms, privates, feet, hands.

An avid gardener can’t get by w/Just water but if I worked in an office I would limit my use of soap for max skin protection. I use Vitabath original. I still get the fancy bars at TJX, Macys, etc when feeling pretty is priority #1 but I doubt any of those bars are gentle enough

ETA: my skin doesnt seem particularly sensitive but I’m saving your recommendations in case that changes.

BossyVossy, Since going water only for skin care, my skin is doing much better than it ever has. I have far fewer rashes, bleeding areas, etc. I rarely have to use any prescription ointments, and haven't needed to see a dermatologist for a couple of years.

Changing how I wash my clothing was another vital step. Between that and water only skincare, my skin thanks me daily. I share all this just in case someone with skin like mine is reading.

hisown, what were the changes you made in how you wash your clothing, please.

Pat, After MUCH trial and error over the years I ended up with the following, which works very well for me. In the spot intended for fabric softener I put about a tablespoon of Citric Acid Powder. Then where detergent goes I put about a tablespoon of STPP Powder, the same amount of Borax, and about 1-1/2 tablespoons of Charlies Powder. Except for the Borax, I buy everything on the internet, usually from Amazon or Ebay. I have a front loader, so the amounts may be different for a top loading machine.

Before I found my magic mix, I tried all the name brand and natural brand Free of fragrances, etc. versions. None worked as well in my extra hard water and with my extra cranky skin, so I stick with my own mixture.

I hope this helps.

It really helps a lot, hisown. Thank you for sharing and helping so much.

Not using a lot of soap/cleanser on the skin helps preserve the acid mantle of our skin, like hisown is doing. I stumbled across this information a few years ago. I have reduced greatly the amount of soap I use, prefer to use Cetaphil Gentle liquid cleanser (no coco bet and non-drying) and to remove sunscreen or Deep Woods Off, I use the VC bar soap.

Cavimum, are you using the Cetaphil Gentle liquid cleanser in the shower/bath or just on face?

Shower. To remove makeup w/sunscreen I use a Olay gentle face wash at night On my face.

The Olay gentle face wash is a very good product