I’ve been a big fan of soap nuts for the past two years. I like to think of them as God’s natural soap –because sapindus shrubs and trees (native to tropical regions) produce soap berries/soap nuts. When you wash with the dried berries/nuts, the fruity pulp acts as a soap, called saponin.
Wondering what a soap nut looks like? Like this:
It’s been very easy to use soap nuts as a laundry detergent by tossing a few soap nuts into a muslin drawstring bag, then adding the bag into my front loading washing machine. My laundry gets clean and I can reuse the soap nuts about five or six times.
In the past I read about turning my soap nuts into liquid soap nut detergent, but never found the time to experiment. Enter Green Virgin Products. They have an entire line of soap nuts products – from the actual nuts to liquid soap and bar soap for the shower. I’ve been trying – and liking – them for the past month.
In my laundry room
I’ve discovered I like using liquid soap nuts as a laundry detergent even more than the dried soap nuts. Green Virgin Products’ Soap Nuts Liquid comes in an 8-fluid-ounce pump top container – the product boasts 120 HE wash loads, and I believe it.
I’ve been easily adding just two squirts of the certified organic liquid soap nuts to each load of laundry. I still have about 4 ounces left, even after washing at least two loads of laundry a day for the past month. Priced at $18.95 for 8 fluid ounces or $34.95 for 16 fluid ounces, it’s more affordable than buying harsh, synthetic-based detergents. Plus, the soap nuts are completely safe.
The liquid soap nuts act as both a detergent and fabric softener, and I’ve noticed that my laundry is much softer than my typical safe detergent/wool dryer ball laundry routine. There’s also a pleasant scent when I pump the detergent that disappears once the laundry is dried.
In my bathroom
I’ll admit I’ve not thought of using soap nuts in the bathroom before. Yet Green Virgin Products have a variety of soap nut bar soaps – including Soap Nut and Moringa Peppermint, Soap Nut Peppermint, and Soap Nut Moringa. And they work well.
I’ve been trying the Soap Nut and Moringa Peppermint bar soap and like the way it moisturizes my skin. Typically at this time of year I deal with very dry, flaky skin – but the Green Virgin bar of soap keeps my skin moisturized all day. The soap nut bar soap has a lot of lather and smells nice and pepperminty.
Green Virgin’s bars of soap are made with liquid soap nuts, extra virgin cold pressed olive oil, coconut oil, palm kernel oil, sunflower oil, shea butter, peppermint essential oil, sodium hydroxide – and moringa leaf powder.
Moringa is a plant used for many helpful and healthful purposes. According to Green Virgin Products, the leaf powder is filled with is Vitamins A, B, B1, B2, B3, B6, B7, C, D, E, and K, alanine, alpha carotene, arginine, beta carotene, beta sitosterol, caffeoylquinic acid, calcium, campesterol, carbohydrates, carotenoids, chlorophyll, chromium, delta-5-avenasterol, delta-7-avenasterol, fiber, glutathione, histidine, indole acetic acid, indoleacetonitrile, kaempferal, leucine, lutein, methionine, myristic acid, palmitic acid, polyphenol, potassium, proteins, prolamine, proline, quercetin, rutin, selenium, threonine, tryptophan, xanthins, xanthophyll, zeatin, zeaxanthin, and zinc.
Have you heard of soap nuts before? How do you use them?
Disclosure: I received products to review from Green Virgin Products. All opinions are my own. Purchasing products through this post will result in a commission for Accidentally Green. Thank you!
Latest posts by Hilary Kimes Bernstein (see all)
- The Day I Realized Healthy Choices Don’t Guarantee Health - July 21, 2015
- Avoid Synthetic Bug Sprays with All-Natural Repellents - July 16, 2015
- The Day I Learned I Could Cook Real Food - July 13, 2015
Leave a Reply