I'm thinking about ordering some soaps from Stirling too once my Nancy Boy supply runs out. Have to support a fellow Central Texan. Where are you guys located?
Good Question!
We are located in Killeen, about an hour north of Austin.
As for TOBS, they are a triple milled soap, while mine is standard cold process. I've used TOBS before, and it's not bad, but for the price I find it to be highly overrated. They are a veggie soap, while I've got both tallow and Vegan soaps available (as well as mutton tallow and lard). Also, while they are fairly "natural" for a commercial soap company, they do contain some extra ingredients, most notably titanium dioxide, which is classified as "possibly carcinogenic to humans" by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). It's what gives a bar of soap that shiny, white, marble-like finish and really adds nothing to the quality of the soap.
And for price comparison, our bar soaps are 3.00 each, and our shave soaps are 5.00 each, while TOBS is, well, it's been a while since I've bought soap, but I recall them being much higher. Frankly, they were one of the reasons I started making soap. I love good natural soap but I'm just a normal guy and can't justify plopping down 8-10 bucks for a bar of soap. Just not in the cards.
Hope this helps with your questions. Just let me know if you have any more.
Rod