How many here make homemade soaps?

[MiaBella Farm]

I make goat milk soap, cold process, use mostly essential oils for fragrance and like to incorporate other additives such as Rose Hip powder, Comfrey leaves, Green Tea, Eucalyptus and Lemongrass powders and Rose Kaolin Clay just to name a few.  I like an interesting bar that will catch someone's eye as well as their sense of smell when they pick up a bar.  I sell a lot over the internet from online purchases off my website and I participate in several Craft Fairs each year.  A lot of my milk/cheese customers also purchase soap.

[MrsKK]

I use coconut oil for that purpose also.  Another additive that helps with lathering is paraffin wax,but you don't need much.  I usually add about the size of a crayon to a batch of soap.

[Tea]

I agree with MrsK, each oil needs a differrent amount of lye to soponify, so you can't just swap and alter amounts or types of oils used without re-calculating the amount of lye that you use.

MrsK thankyou for the tip on paraffin, I haven't heard that one before and surprised me as beeswax actually reduces lather.  How big would your batch be?  I am interested in giving this one a go.  1tlbsp of sugar per pound, also ups the lather.

[MrsKK]

I'm glad you asked, Tea, because it made me go back and read over my recipes.  It has been nearly 2 years since making my last batch (17 1/2 lbs of fats/oils) and I didn't use any paraffin in that batch, but it came out nice and gave good lather.  I broke that batch into three parts to make three distinct soaps:  Oatmeal/lavendar, Tangerine Scrubber (I add cornmeal), and Parsley and Sage deoderant soap.

However, the recipe I found that I used the paraffin in used just over 11 lbs of fats/oil and I used half a bar of paraffin, so about 1/8 of a pound of the wax.  As I remember, that was a really lathery soap.  I melted the paraffin separately and added it at trace.

I'll start a new thread and post my recipes.

[Tea]

Thanks, I am going to have to give this one a try.

[Quesa]

I used to make soap back in 2000-2002. But for some reason, here in Florida the lye was taken off grocery stores shelves, and at the present time it's almost impossible to find any. All lye-based products still sell, but not the ole Red Devil, or similar pure lye that can be used for soap.

The soap I made, even with essential oils, always smelled like unscented Ivory soap. We used it to wash the dogs, and hands. Whoever said above that it's great for taken heavy duty stuff off the hands is right.

I stopped making soap mainly for the shortage of lye. But, also because when I ordered essential oils from a Canada website, after 911, the package almost caused an international incident. Someone thought the essential oils were chemicals for bombs, or something.

So, that swore me off of buying stuff like essential oils online. Though I found a good website based in India that sells bulk for affordable prices. I guess that buying from them could still put me in a terrorist watch list, or something.

Buying essential oils in this area can cost more than buying pure gold.

I could pick up the hobby again, if I were to find a local lye source.

I don't know of the "cold" method, but I'm going to dig into it.

[MrsKK]

Cold process soap is soap made with lye and fats/oils.  As opposed to melt and pour soaps.

If your soap still smelled like Ivory after adding essential oils, it was probably because you didn't add enough of the EO's.  And they should not be added until the soap has reached trace, otherwise the continuing chemical reactions just tend to destroy the EO's anyway.

If you are ordering your oils online, why from Canada or India?  Why not from US companies?

Red Devil lye (and other pure lye products) are not available over the counter anymore because it is used in the manufacture of street drugs. (as stated above).  So you will need to order your lye online, as well, unless you have a local chemical company that you can buy it from.

[Tea]

Depending of the strength of the EO/FO they can be used anywhere between .25 - 1oz per pound of raw soap.  So when making big batches, it is easy to use quite a few $$$'s just in scent.

[Quesa]

I was using cold process then, and didn't even know it.

I ordered essential oils and other stuff from Canada because they had better prices than the stuff I saw being sold online in US companies. The shipping was just about the same as if ordered from the US, so why not?

That was until my shipment was flagged by customs. 

The company in India that I'm putting my eye on is "Seema International." http://www.mentholindia.com/index1.htm is their URL, they sell mostly mint products, but if you click the "Shop Here" button on top you get their huge listing.

I read their shipping cost is also similar to that in the US. That is yet to be seen.

 

[chilipepper]

Should have know I'd stumble across a topic like this on this message board.   My Mother-in-law just gave us all of her soap making recipes.  She used to make and sell soaps out on the west coast for many years so they are pretty tried and true recipes.  Well my wife wants us to make some and as I was looking through her notes and process (as I didn't have a clue what it involved) I found there to be a very close resemblance to making cheese.  So I told my wife we should be good on the equipment and process. 

Well last night we put together the order for the pieces and parts and so it looks like next week or weekend  we'll be making soap!  So I guess I can join this club as well!

First one we are attempting I'm told is a Calendula/Chamomile soap.  She seems to know exactly what that is like and what it will be... me I'm more of a process and ingredient guy.  As it looks like most of you are doing, this will be a cold process soap with olive, palm and coconut oil for the fixed oils. Some beeswax, lye and water... plus all of the foo-foo stuff   We'll see how it goes!

Ryan

[MrsKK]

Good luck, Ryan!

Just be very, very careful with the lye.  I can never be cautious enough with it.  I have gotten just a tiny bit on my hand when rinsing out the container and it burns big time!  I can't imagine what a spill of it would do.

[Lennie]

Soapmaking was one of my hobbies, haven't made any for several years but I still have all the supplies.  I make a really nice oatmeal/milk/honey soap.

[Chevre]

I love soapmaking.  My favourite soap to date is hemp oil based soap, which after curing has a lovely grassy straw scent and great lather.  It is quite an indulgent soap, but really worth it (10% superfat).The recipe is below for those who are interested:

325g coconut oil
260g palm oil
130g shea butter
130g palm kernel oil
455g hemp oil

494g water
178g NaOH

[Tea]

10% is a high superfat, I was wondering if you have had any problem with this soap going rancid?  Not sure that it would hold in our hot humid climate.  Just wondering.

[Chevre]

Tea, I only make small 1 - 1.5kg batches at a time so the soap isn't around long enough to go rancid.  Also, I keep my soap downstairs in shoeboxes as our house is built into the side of a hill making downstairs a cool and stable temperature environment (although i don't think it is cool enough to keep cheese down there). I think I might try and obtain a maximum/minimum thermometer and see what sort of temperature variation we have down there this winter though - I can only hope!!!