KIRK'S Gentle Castile Soap: REVIEW

[Cal]

After reading @Parallax Roy's brief description of KIRK'S Gentle Castile Soap in another thread, I HAD TO TRY IT!

It landed this morning so I jumped into the bath with it straight away. It has my all time favorite soap scent — clean and soapy.

What I really wanted to try was using it for shampoo. Boy! I wasn't disappointed. I just let (what I thought was) a little glide over my hair then started to lather it up. It exploded! Fantastic. I did a second lather just for the heck of it, only this time using hardly any soap.

I finished off my bath using the soap as soap and I must say it was very nice.

Now, about eight hours later I'm still feeling very fresh and squeaky clean, and my hair feels very nice and soft. (I never use conditioner or any other hair products [barring shampoo].)

I do appreciate that a review after only a single use can be somewhat iffy. So I'll continue with KIRK'S as my only body soap and shampoo and report back in a week.

FIRST USE SUMMARY
An excellent body and shampoo soap. Simple and clean scented. Fabulous value at ~$1 per 4oz bar in the US. (In the UK mine cost ~$4 per bar, but I'm perfectly happy with that.)

FOOTNOTE
Thank you for letting me know about this great soap Roy. I always aim for the simple life (kinda tricky when one has so many ADs ), and this product is definitely a step in the right direction for me.

 

[Dog Whiskerer]

I like the original Kirk's, but they have an Aloe version I like even more.

 

[malocchio]

I've been using original Kirk's for 50 years , great soap !

 

[Parallax]

So glad you tried it, Cal. Look forward to your follow-up.

Until I found Kirk's, could not use soap as shampoo. Would leave my hair greasy. Was reading a book about a couple who were trying to replicate 19th Century life and they used this soap. The wife spoke of how it worked great as shampoo. I already used the soap. Had been doing so for a few years. That day I tried it on my hair and I've never gone back. My old bottle of shampoo sits in the shower, exactly as it was when I read that book.

 

[BigJ]

Great review!!

 

[Cal]

My old bottle of shampoo sits in the shower, exactly as it was when I read that book.

You need to Feng Shui that bottle Roy (i.e. throw it in the trash)!

Great review!!

Thank you BigJ.

 

[Parallax]

You need to Feng Shui that bottle Roy (i.e. throw it in the trash)!

Not possible, my friend. Paid too much and I'm too cheap!

 

[ajkel64]

Thanks for the review.

 

[OldSchoolYoungin]

Actually picked some up the other day. It's what you reach for when you want something with a light scent that just works.

 

[Billski]

I've been using original Kirk's for 50 years , great soap !

Kirk’s is my favorite soap.

 

[H4nk]

I use Dr Bronner's Castile soap and really like it. It contains hemp oil.

 

[MM879]

I have found Castile soap to be rather industrial. It functions perfectly, but it is too harsh for me. I would think that it would be fine for horses or other animals. Castile soap would be great for the 4H fair.

 

[Scarry Knight]

I make my laundry soap with 2 bars of the unscented Kirk’s, grated into 1C. boraxo, 1 C. baking soda, and 1 C. washing soda, with some lemon oil and usually another essential oil added for scent. I dont like the residue the Kirk's bars leave on the tub or shower walls, so don’t use it as a body soap much. I blended some unscented kirk’s with flaked L’Amande Savon de Marseilles and Chandrika ayurvedic soap, and thats in my shaving mug currently. Also made some into a more pumpable liquid for shaving. It still lathers nice liquified, too.

 

[Cal]

I do appreciate that a review after only a single use can be somewhat iffy. So I'll continue with KIRK'S as my only body soap and shampoo and report back in a week.

Whoops! Where does the time go? Here I am a mere 8 weeks and 1 day late.

Until I found Kirk's, could not use soap as shampoo. Would leave my hair greasy. Was reading a book about a couple who were trying to replicate 19th Century life and they used this soap. The wife spoke of how it worked great as shampoo. I already used the soap. Had been doing so for a few years. That day I tried it on my hair and I've never gone back. My old bottle of shampoo sits in the shower, exactly as it was when I read that book.

I use Dr Bronner's Castile soap and really like it. It contains hemp oil.

Barring a three day "baths and shampoos" trial with Dr. Bronner's...

I've spent the whole time with Kirk's.

On my three day Dr. Bronner trip I liked the soap for body wash but wasn't too keen on its shampooing abilities. As Roy mentioned, it left my hair greasy. It did leave the bath water a little less scummy though.

This morning I returned to Kirk's. Boy! Night and day! I'm glad I did the Dr. Bronner's trial. I felt (and still do feel) SO CLEAN all over including my hair. From now on I'll be sticking with Kirk's, it's fabulous.

Thank you Roy, you're the man!

 

[Parallax]

Whoops! Where does the time go? Here I am a mere 8 weeks and 1 day late.


Barring a three day "baths and shampoos" trial with Dr. Bronner's...
View attachment 965810
I've spent the whole time with Kirk's.

On my three day Dr. Bronner trip I liked the soap for body wash but wasn't too keen on its shampooing abilities. As Roy mentioned, it left my hair greasy. It did leave the bath water a little less scummy though.

This morning I returned to Kirk's. Boy! Night and day! I'm glad I did the Dr. Bronner's trial. I felt (and still do feel) SO CLEAN all over including my hair. From now on I'll be sticking with Kirk's, it's fabulous.

Thank you Roy, you're the man!

Well, thanks, and I deflect in favor of Kirk's. It's definitely THE SOAP in my home. Even my all-organic wife loves it. Has saved me a ton of money against the overpriced stuff she was using before I discovered this great little soap.

 

[ironfist]

sorry for bumping the thread, where in the uk do you buy it?

 

[Cal]

sorry for bumping the thread, where in the uk do you buy it?

An eBay purchase from sunny Kirkaldy, link.

 

[simsoy]

Seeing that you’re paying $4 a bar I feel so fortunate that it’s only $1.10 a bar where I’m from! Maybe you should bring a large bag if you ever find yourself in America.

 

[Chaucer]

When I tried a bar of Castile soap in the shower (a different mfr), it melted and got soft and slimy. Does this happen with Kirk or Bonner?

 

[simsoy]

When I tried a bar of Castile soap in the shower (a different mfr), it melted and got soft and slimy. Does this happen with Kirk or Bonner?

Try letting the soap harden. First let it dry on a soap dish, then let it for a few weeks to harden. The soap tends to become less soft as you let it sit longer, which preserves the life of the bar.