Homemade Soap

katholicos

I am new to soap making and I have already made three batches of soap this week, i used the cold process method to make a coconut milk and lavender batch and then I used the hot process to make the last two batches which were 1) honey, coconut milk and bran and 2) spinach and candied peel (a bit of an experiment, but it seems to have worked, rather startlingly! For all of these three batches i used only trex, pomace olive oil, caustic soda, coconut milk/water and the additions of home dried spinach etc to colour the soap. Having realised that there is only soooooo much that one can do with trex and pomace oil, i bit the bullet and purchased a few kg of solid oils online. Since the hot process soap can be used straight away, i used some today in the bath and it left my skin wonderfully moisturised. I'm really enjoying this hobby and i've got a lot of enjoyment from reading the posts in this thread too.

Gigervamp

Yay! :T

I've never made hot process soap because the soaps that I got in swaps that had been made that way, didn't look very nice.

Stoopid, I know! :rotfl:

Thanks for your post.

The green of spinach (and any green herb) will fade. Green is notoriously hard to get in soap if you want natural colours.

I've noticed that Tesco are selling Pomace Olive oil in a big can for just over £7. Pomace is good for soapmaking.

DS2's gf has said she'd like to learn to make soap, so I guess I'll be doing a class.
If anyone else wants to come along, they're more than welcome.

midsummerlover

hi everyone, just wanted to let you know that I use Mitcheldean Soaps, they last for ages so are worth the money and made from scratch using I think what is called the cold process method. They do shampoo and shave bars as well, they are brilliant and much nicer than Lush. and they are gentle and kind but might be tempted to do a class myself as well!

katholicos

Gigervamp wrote: »

Yay! :T

I've never made hot process soap because the soaps that I got in swaps that had been made that way, didn't look very nice.

Stoopid, I know! :rotfl:

Thanks for your post.

The green of spinach (and any green herb) will fade. Green is notoriously hard to get in soap if you want natural colours.

I've noticed that Tesco are selling Pomace Olive oil in a big can for just over £7. Pomace is good for soapmaking.

DS2's gf has said she'd like to learn to make soap, so I guess I'll be doing a class.
If anyone else wants to come along, they're more than welcome.

I got my pomace oil from Tesco and i think its really good value.I can use it for cooking too :-)

Angelina-M

katholicos wrote: »

I got my pomace oil from Tesco and i think its really good value.I can use it for cooking too :-)

Make sure its pomace oil only. Tesco sell two side by side on the shelf and the cheaper one says pomace oil but when you read the label its a pomace/rapeseed mix and you will need to alter the lye accordingly.

j.e.j.

I would love to have a go at making soap. I've never done it before, but have found a soap-making tutorial on an Australian simple-living blog.

As far as I can tell you need oil, caustic soda, water, a couple of thermometers and some suitable moulds. Also apparently an electric mixer but you need to be careful in case the caustic soda splashes :eek:

Does anyone here make their own soap or can give any advice?

thanks in advance!

BitterAndTwisted

I wouldn't. I'm too afraid of caustic soda: the fumes can kill. This is one DIY project I'm happy to leave to the experts.

lancslass01282

http://www.soapcalc.net/calc/SoapCalcWP.asp

That's a useful calculator to work out the amount of lye (caustic soda) you need per oil

j.e.j.

Hi
Thanks for the replies and for the soap calculator. If I do get brave and try it I'll let you know how it turns out

stardrops42

Hi

I make soap, I absolutely love it:j Be warned though it's very addictive and not very MSE if you start buying all the various oils, essential oils etc but a basic bar would be quite cheap to make. I went with a friend on a soap making course for a day and it was brilliant. We were shown how to use caustic soda safely and the basics of soap making. I would advise you to go on a 1 day course if you can afford it or at the very least invest in some books/read forums etc before you think about making any soap as caustic soda is very very dangerous if not handled correctly. I love soap making and my friends and family adore the soap I make and won't use anything else now:rotfl:I am going to start making soap for christmas gifts next weekend, can't wait!

ETA - I did my 1 day course in Huddersfield as I'm from Up North but I've had a quick search and Melinda Coss runs 1 day courses in London and Essex if you are interested http://www.makesoap.biz/Bar-Soap-Process.htm I also have her book on soap making which is brilliant.