MAKING HANDMADE SOAPS

H A N D M A D E    A R O M A T H E R A P Y    S O A P S   by Nancy Diodati

One of the most rewarding endeavors I do is to make my own soap.  I gradually got into a full blown soap making factory when my children kept asking for more soap as gifts every Christmas. 

At first, it was just a novelty with clever labels that meant things to people.  Then I discovered everyone really loved the soap, the smell, the lack of residue and the nice soft skin they got.  Commerical soaps leave your skin dried out. My soaps put moisture in.

To create my handmade soap, I purchased palm, coconut, olive, sunflower and corn oils that I slowly warmed on the stove and blended with fabulous cocoa and shea butters before being hand mixed with the alkali solution.  (Alkali is lye which used to be easy to purchase anywhere but since 9-11, it is restricted to certain suppliers and very well monitored by the government as it is a component of bomb making.)

I add carefully prepared flower and herb decoctions and infusions, plant extracts, fine oils, dried herbs or spices and then of course our deliciously expensive pure essential oils to fragrance and impart their natural beneficial properties.  Each soap has its own distinct smell.  Some scents are suited more for men. Some
I only use for babies.

I pour the warmed soap liquid into rectangle wooden boxes. Then it goes on a shelf to harden and cure for 30 days.  The lye in soap used before 30 days will burn your skin, so it is very important soap is marked with the manufaturing date and given a long enough curing time.

Once the soap has cured it is ready to be handled with bare hands. I dump the long loaf out of the mold and cut it with a special knife into the familiar little bars we are use to using.  Then the bar is placed in the center of a computer generated label with its name and all the ingredients listed on the side. Once wrapped in the label the soap is ready for distribution for sale or as gift for friends and family.

MY HANDMADE SOAPS PAGE - HOMESPUN NATURALS