The discovery - 

On a recent trip to Target my wife and I spent several minutes comparing the prices of Cetaphil and Dove soap, between the 6 pack and the 12 pack, the scented and non, and even liquid body wash. After cross-referencing Amazon's prices we decided to get the Dove soap because it was a better bargain than Cetaphil when factoring get-it-now vs. get-it-later to save-a-buck.

For reference, the price for a Dove 8-pack was ~$7.99 compared to ~$12.99 for the Cetaphil 6-pack.

On our way to the next aisle I noticed a 3-pack of Palmolive bar soap sitting on a lower shelf. The cost of this soap was a paltry 43cents. 3 bars of soap for less than 15cents a piece!

The backstory - 

Years ago I read a Consumer Reports article comparing dish soap brands. The study concluded Palmolive the best of the group and after testing it myself I agreed. One squirt of Palmolive is enough to wash an entire sink of dishes. Considering my positive experience with their dish soap I decided to take a chance on their body soap. Body soap is of course a much more sensitive issue and my wife was quick to say no-way would she try it. My big issue with soap is dryness, the wrong soap leaves me uncomfortable and itching all day but I'm willing to sacrifice in the name of research.

The experiment - 

The main criteria for this experiment were the following:

The soap must "work" in the traditional sense, after using it the unclean (I) shall be deemed clean.

The soap should not have any adverse effects, specifically it should not leave my skin feeling dry, scaly or itchy.

The soap shouldn't freak me out, I don't want to apply something to my body that feels gross or low quality.

Testing notes -

The first thing I noticed was the smell - I was immediately reminded of my Grandmother's house (not in a good way). The scent is strong and overwhelming at first compared to the myriad lovely Dove scents or the fairly mild Cetaphil. It's a floral smell from some distant era that I'm sure was popular or revolutionary for its time. I got used to it after a couple days and now I don't even notice it. Technically it's called "Classic Scent"

After lathering up, the second thing I noticed was the lack of moisture. Most soaps feel oily, like you're applying soapy moisturizing lotion - rinse the soap off and rub your arm, it glides smoothly across. By contrast, the Palmolive soap cleansed my skin but left it devoid of this moisturized sensation. After rinsing it off the sensation was like a windshield wiper without fluid - no lubrication. My skin didn't feel dry though, just non moisturized. Initially this worried me so I applied body lotion after my shower for the first few days but I've found that while lotion is nice it's not necessary and not applying it doesn't have any adverse effects.

So what's the verdict?

If this soap was bad I'd know it after my first miserably itchy and uncomfortable day, but even after several weeks I continue to use it. It works as it should and after my morning shower I'm left feeling clean and ready to start the day. Satisfying all requirements and costing 1/24 the price I've definitely made the switch for good.

Conclusion: Thumbs up!