Comments on: Our Handmade Soap

By: JoanneG.

JoanneG. — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 00:27:55 +0000

“I’d love to make pretty colored soaps, every time I try coloring it changes while curing to a totally different color, or the color doesn’t take at all. Any ideas?”

What are you using to color your soap, ScrimplyThrifty? If you’re trying food coloring, I don’t think it will work very well if at all. And yeah, sometimes the color will change. I made a soap once with a black spiced tea for the liquid; beautiful dark, dark brown it was, so deep the soap looked like dark chocolate. By the time it was done curing it was a pale ivory color. Oh, well–it was still good soap!

By: ScrimplyThrifty

ScrimplyThrifty — Sun, 23 May 2010 22:01:02 +0000

I too make my own soap and have been for almost two years. I just made some a few days ago. We were almost out and my hubby told me I better make some because he doesn’t want to go back to using that ’store bought stuff’ again. (He was a big skeptic at first too, JoanneG.) I love working with essential oils and trying to make something smell really good, but our go to fresh smelling favorite is a mix of citronella, peppermint, and tea tree oils. I also make a castille for a laundry bar (recipe on my website) it works pretty good, but I would like to perfect it and make it work as good as those products like spray n wash. When I make my own laundry soap, I mix half zote and half laundry bar (or if I’m out I use Ivory) along with Borax and Arm and Hammer washing soda, etc. (I think that recipe is over there too, I’m not sure.)

I’d love to make pretty colored soaps, every time I try coloring it changes while curing to a totally different color, or the color doesn’t take at all. Any ideas?

There is just something about making your own soap that is satisfying to me! It’s like chemistry class (which I always loved), cooking, and art all rolled in one!

By: Teresa

Teresa — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 12:45:32 +0000

Hi Shirley,

I have just finished making my first couple batches of soap, and it was a lot of fun! I can’t wait for the finished, cured product.

By: JoanneG.

JoanneG. — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 15:11:45 +0000

Those are some *nice* looking soaps, Shirley. There’s nothing like handmade soap for your skin. I’ve been making ours for a few months now and my skin has never been happier. My husband was sceptical at first when I told him the glycerin in my soap would be beneficial, but admitted the other day that the only two times he’s had to use lotion on his hands this winter was after washing the sugaring equipment and using dishwashing detergent. By this time every winter my knuckles are cracked, split, and bleeding–but not this year.

And it’s so much fun to do! There’s something almost magical about seeing the mixture trace and then taking real soap out of the mold a day or so later.

By: Shirley

Shirley — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 21:48:48 +0000

I have never been nervous about working with lye. I am always careful with it, and I certainly would keep it away from children and pets, but it is very safe to use if it is handled properly. By the way, any properly-made soap will no longer contain actual lye. Combining the oils and lye in the correct amounts at the correct temperature causes a chemical reaction called saponification that actually changes the oils and lye into another product… soap.

I am much more concerned about melt and pour soap because of all the chemicals that are in it. Melt and pour starts life as ordinary soap (made with lye like any other soap). Then a variety of chemicals are added to this soap to make it melt easily, be pourable, etc., resulting in a far-from-natural product. The law does not require soap ingredients to be listed, and many melt and pour soap bases do not list the chemicals they contain. Some manufacturers claim that their bases contain only vegetable oils and glycerin, with no mention of other ingredients like the chemicals Sodium Laurate, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, and Propylene Glycol (the same chemical that is in antifreeze).

By: Andrea

Andrea — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 16:48:01 +0000

HI!

Recently jumped into soap making, but I’m still at the melt and pour phase. I really want to eventually make my own soap, but I have mixed feelings about working with and using lye. What are your thoughts on it? Have you ever tried making soap without it?

By: :::::::::::: wife mom maniac ::::::::::::

:::::::::::: wife mom maniac :::::::::::: — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 04:53:05 +0000

do you use it for laundry, or just body care?

By: Shirley

Shirley — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 14:23:51 +0000

Most Lowe’s have small cans of lye. Look for 100% sodium hydroxide and shake any can before you buy it. If it doesn’t shake and sound “loose” inside, it means that moisture has caused the lye to cake together. Some hardware stores will have lye too… look under drain cleaners, but the lye MUST be 100% sodium hydroxide with no other ingredients.

It’s fun to work with, but I’m not a great fan of melt and pour soap because of all the chemicals it contains. Most sellers don’t give a complete ingredient list, and the ingredients can range from propylene glycol (the stuff in anti-freeze) to sodium laureth sulfate.

By: Sheila Gregoire

Sheila Gregoire — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 13:00:37 +0000

I’ve always wanted to try this! We’ve made melt & pour soap a ton of times, but I’ve always wanted to do it from scratch. I could just never figure out where to get the lye from. I’ve got the palm oil and everything!

I think homemade soap just looks delicious. I’ve got all sorts of books in my shelves on how to make soap, and I like just looking through them. Even the pictures make me feel all nice and lathery!

Anyway, I’ll have to try this sometime soon, too. Just as soon as I find some lye.