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01 Natural Soapmaking Ebook

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Riddhima Singh
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100% found this document useful (13 votes)
11K views95 pages

01 Natural Soapmaking Ebook

Uploaded by

Riddhima Singh
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 95

IMPORTANT LEGAL STUFF

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be sold in whole or in part
without the prior written permission of the author. Please do not copy or
duplicate entire recipes or pages from this book onto your blog or website, or into
another digital or print book, without express permission from the author. Thank
you for respecting the author’s expended time and effort by abiding by these
guidelines.

There may be a few affiliate links scattered throughout this ebook. If you click
on one and buy something, the author earns a small commission for sending
customers their way.

The author claims no responsibility to any person or entity for any liabilty, loss
or damage caused, or alleged to be caused, directly or indirectly as a result of the
use, application or interpretation of the material contained herein.

All images and text © by Jan Berry I TheNerdyFarmWife.com

Layout by Honey Bee Hill Creatives LLC.


Cover Design by Blend Creations

A Special Note Concerning Essential Oils


If you’re pregnant, nursing, taking medication or have health conditions, consult
with a health care provider before using essential oils.

Print Permission
The purchaser of this eBook has the author’s express written permission to make
a print copy of this eBook and its accompanying printables, via a local copy shop
or print center, such as Staples©, for the purchaser’s personal use only.
This book is dedicated to my wonderful
husband and amazing children, who are
always so supportive of everything I do.
I love you!

I’d like to also extend a special thank you


to my goat, Isabelle, who kindly ate all of
my photo props — whether I was done
with them, or not!

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 3


Table of Contents
Introduction 6 Lavender Soap 48
Soap Making Equipment 7 Easy Carrot Soap 49
About Lye & Safety 8 Cedarwood & Oatmeal Soap 50
Why Do We Need Lye Anyway? 9 Calendula Soap 51
Adding Flowers & Herbs to Soap 10 Oatmeal & Honey Soap 52
Making Teas And Infusions 11 Dandelion Rose Soap 54
Making Infused Oils 12 Violet Flower Soap 55
Infusing Oils - Slow/Fast Methods 13 Violet Leaf Soap 56
Adding Flowers Cucumber Nettle Soap 57
& Powdered Herbs 14 Garden Rose Soap 58
Adding Fruits Garden Mint Soap 59
& Veggies To Soaps 15 Jewelweed Soap 60
More Fun Additions 16 Charcoal Mint Spa Bar 61
Natural Soap Colors 17 Kombucha Soap 62
Essential Oils 20 Lemon Sunshine Soap 63
Oils & Butters 23 Aloe Rose Soap 64
Soap Molds 26 Plantain & Aloe Soap 65
How To Line A Soap Mold 27 Chamomile & Honey Soap 66
How To Fiqure Batch Sizes 31 Hollyhock Soap 67
What Is Gel Phase? 32 Earl Grey Tea Soap 68
What Does Trace Mean? 33 Forsythia Soap 69
What Does Superfat Mean? 34 Eucalyptus Spa Bar 70
How To Read A Recipe 35 Apple Cider Soap 71
Cleaning Up 36 Pumpkin Soap 72
Soap Making Overview 37 Cambrian Blue Soap 73
Converting a Recipe To Hot Process 43 Aleppo Soap 74
Soap Making Checklist 44 Making Salt & Brine Bars 75
Recipe Notes 45 Basic Salt Bar 76
3 Basic Soap Recipes 47 Hawaiian Black Salt Bar 77
Simple Shea Butter Soap 48 Dandelion Salt Bar 78
Table of Contents - continued
Brine Bars 79
Packing & Labeling 80
Using a Lye Calculator 82
How To Resize A Recipe 89
How To Change A Recipe 90
Troubleshooting Problems 91
End Notes 93
About The Author 94
Introduction
I first became interested in making my own soap when my son was a toddler. He
was allergic to wheat, milk, soy, corn, rice and much more. Finding a soap that he
could use was tough, so I decided to try to make one tailored just for him and his
skin issues.

Upon researching the craft though, I became intimidated. Lye sounded so scary
to handle! The charts filled with SAP numbers and iodine values made absolutely
no sense to me.

I just wanted to learn how to make


natural soap, as simply and as quickly
as possible! As a visual person, I also
wanted to see pictures of the finished
product, so I’d know what to expect.

With this soap making eBook, I hope


to cut through the daily overload of
information we’re presented with, and
get straight to the heart of the topic you
want to learn about:

Natural Soap Making, Simplified.

This eBook covers cold process soap


making basics, adding herbs, flowers and other goodies to your soaps, coloring
soap naturally and how to read a lye calculator, along with 35 cold process recipes
to serve as examples and jumping-off points for your own creations. If you’d like
to make soaps in your crock pot instead, see page 43 for tips on converting these
recipes to hot process.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 6


Soap Making Equipment
You’ll need the following equipment to make a batch of cold process soap:

• A heatproof pitcher for mixing lye with water. I use an old 4-quart Tupperware
pitcher or heavy duty plastic paint buckets. (I used glass or Pyrex in the past, but
no longer do that since there’s a chance of shattering.)
• A small container for measuring lye in. I use a small plastic cup, clearly marked
with the word: “LYE.”
• A soap pot or large mixing bowl. I use an enamel-coated pot that I picked up at
my local Wal-Mart or the removable ceramic liner from an old crockpot for mixing.
Other options include stainless steel or high density plastic (recycle symbol 5.)
Never use aluminum, cast iron or non-stick containers, since they can adversely
react with lye.
• A digital scale for measuring ingredients.
• A thermometer for testing temperatures of lye and oils.
• Heat proof mixing utensils. I have a heavy-duty plastic spoon I use to mix the lye
with water and a heavy-duty silicone spatula to scrape the soap mixture into molds.
• Rubber gloves, long sleeved shirt and safety goggles to keep hands, arms and
eyes protected from splashes of lye and raw soap.
• Stick blender, also called an immersion
blender. I consider this almost essential,
since it shortens mixing time to minutes
instead of the hour or more that hand
stirring takes.
• Soap molds. We’ll talk more about them
on page 26.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 7


About Lye & Safety
A lot of people love the idea of making their own soap, but get intimidated by the
thought of handling lye. I can completely relate, because I was terrified of it as well!

Once you make your first batch though, you realize, yes, lye can be dangerous and it
deserves a great deal of respect. However, the same can be said for strong household
chemicals such as bleach and ammonia. All items of this sort can cause potential
harm and should be handled carefully and only by adults. Children and pets should
never be allowed in the work area.

Mixtures containing lye should be clearly marked with the


word: “LYE” in bold letters along with a crossbones symbol
for nonreaders. If lye solution is accidentally swallowed,
drink plenty of water, call poison control and seek medical
treatment immediately.

Lye mixtures and raw soap are very alkaline and caustic.
When working with them, you should always wear gloves,
long sleeves and safety goggles. If lye solution or raw soap
gets in your eyes, rinse thoroughly with water and then
promptly seek medical attention.

Always pour lye into water. Doing it the opposite way could
possibly cause overheating and a lye volcano. Work in your
kitchen sink, if possible, so if anything spills, overflows or
breaks, it will all be contained in one area.

Avoid breathing in lye fumes. Since we’re working with teas and infusions in this book,
the fumes are usually less offensive than with plain water. However, you should still
turn your head away while first mixing the lye into water, work at arm’s length while
you stir to dissolve the lye and utilize an exhaust fan or fresh outdoor air for good
ventilation. If you have breathing issues or concerns about this step, consider wearing
a full facemask. (Thin white dust or allergy masks aren’t sufficient for this job.)

If you spill some lye solution or raw soap on your skin, rinse thoroughly with plenty of
cold water. Seek medical treatment if you have damaged large areas of skin or have
persistent pain.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 8


Why Do We Need Lye Anyway?
Our grandmothers made homemade soaps without having to use a caustic chemical,
so why do we?

The short answer is that our grandmothers manufactured their own caustic chemical
of sorts, called potash, from hardwood ashes. Since there was no way of standardizing
the ingredient, often their soaps turned out extremely harsh.

By using standardized lye (sodium hydroxide for solid soaps and potassium hydroxide
for liquid soaps), these days we’re able to consistently produce batch after
batch of gentle soap.

Without lye, the oils in your recipe would stay oils. A chemical change must happen in
order to create soap.

With apologies to real chemists everywhere, here’s my simplified illustration of what a


molecule of sodium hydroxide (lye) looks like (see figure 1.)

The purple represents the “sodium” and the light gray & red represent the “hydroxide”
parts of lye.

The oils (and butters) in your recipe are made up of fatty acids and glycerol. They look
something like figure 2.

In the presence of heat and water, this is what happens to the parts (see figure 3.)
The fatty acids bond with the sodium part of sodium hydroxide and form soap. The
glycerol and “hydroxide” parts form glycerin, which is great for your skin! No actual lye
is left in the finished soap.

Fiqure 1. Sodium Hydroxide


(LYE)
Fiqure 3. Soap and Glycerin

Fiqure 2. Fats (Oils)

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 9


Adding Flowers & Herbs to Soap
My favorite way to create custom soaps is by adding flowers and herbs as a tea or oil infusion
to the recipe. While some feel that the health benefits of certain plants are carried over to the
final soap, others disagree. Personally, I just enjoy the creativity factor in using the plants
growing around me to create a unique soap.

The main criteria I use for determining which flowers and herbs are safe to experiment with, is
if they’re edible or not. If a plant is safe to eat, I figure in virtually all cases, it should also be
safe to use on our skin.

While a quick Google search will let you know if a particular flower or herb is edible, here’s a
list of some of my favorites:

Dandelion - blossoms
Violets & Pansies - leaves and flowers
Bachelor Buttons
Dianthus, Sweet William, Carnation
Chamomile
Calendula
Forsythia
Honeysuckle
Sunflowers
Hollyhock - flowers and leaves
Roses - all types
Mint - all types
Lemon Balm
Basil
Lavender
Goldenrod
Nettle
Rosemary

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 10


Making Teas And Infusions
Instead of using plain distilled water in a soap recipe, I like to use teas or water infusions.

To make, gather a few handfuls of fresh flowers or herbs and place them in a heatproof jar or
pitcher. Try to fill the jar at least half way (packed loosely), but if you don’t have enough plants
to do so, that’s okay. You can steep your tea a little longer to make up for it.

If you don’t have a source of fresh plants, you can fill the jar about 1/8 to 1/4 full with dried
herbs/flowers instead. (Mountain Rose Herbs is my go-to place for high quality dried herbs.)
The size of the jar will depend on how much tea you need for your recipe. All of the recipes in
this book use between 8 to 10 ounces of liquid, so a pint jar works perfectly.

Pour simmering hot water over the plant matter, cover


with a saucer and let steep until room temperature.
Distilled water is usually recommended since tap
water can sometimes contain minerals or other
contaminants that might cause problems during the
soap making process, though I’ve also used spring
water, rain water,snow and yes – tap water sometimes,
with good results.

For an even stronger tea, place the herb/flower filled


jar in your refrigerator for several hours or overnight.
However, be aware that if your tea is too strong/
dark, it can make your final bar have a brownish hue.

Once it has steeped to your satisfaction, strain and


use the liquid in your recipe.

You can store freshly made tea in your refrigerator


for about two days before using, or freeze six to nine
months for longer storage.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 11


Making Infused Oils
Herbal and floral infused oils are always useful to have on hand for making salves, creams,
balms and of course – soap!

There are two ways to make infused oil – the slow way or the fast way. While some have good
results using fresh plant matter for this purpose, I find that the high water content leads to
quicker spoilage and a shorter shelf life for the finished oil.

For this reason, I recommend using dried herbs and flowers or at least freshly picked plants
that have been allowed to wilt overnight on clean dishcloths or paper towels, letting most of
the moisture evaporate.

You can use infused olive oil for part, or the entire amount called for in a recipe. If you only
have 8 ounces of infused oil but need more for a recipe, that’s fine – just use plain olive oil to
make up the difference.

For both the fresh way and the slow way,


you’ll need:
• ¼ to ½ cup dried flowers or herbs
(use more for bulky herbs like rose
petals, less for herbs like crumbled
nettle leaves)
• 1 pint jar
• a bottle of olive oil (light colored oil
makes for a lighter colored soap;
a dark green oil might tint your
finished soap)

Place the dried herbs or flowers in the pint jar.


Pour olive oil over them until the jar is almost
filled. Leave a little space at the top, to allow
for expansion. On the next page, I’ll detail
both methods of infusing.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 12


Infusing Oils The Slow Way
Cover your jar filled with dried herbs and oil and tuck it away in a cool, dark place
for about four weeks, shaking every few days, or as you remember to.

After that time has passed, strain the oil from the herbs/flowers. Discard the
plant material and pour the oil into a clean, dry mason jar. Cap, label and store in
a cool, dark place for up to a year.

You may want to infuse your oil on a sunny windowsill instead of a dark area.
Extended exposure to sunlight tends to discolor and age herbs though, so stash
them in a cabinet after a week or two.

Infusing Oils The Fast Way


Make sure your jar is heatproof (canning jars should be.)
Set the jar containing herbs/flowers and oil down into a
medium saucepan that has been filled with several
inches of water.

Set the pan over a low burner and allow the water
to heat, but not quite to a simmer. Boiling or heavily
steaming water is too hot. In doing this, you’re creating
a makeshift double boiler of sorts, to gently warm the oil
and speed up the infusing process.

Keep a close eye on things, making sure that the water


doesn’t evaporate out or the oil gets overheated. If it
gets overly hot, your oil will take on the unpleasant smell
of deep fried leaves.

After about two hours, remove from heat and strain the
infused oil into a clean, dry mason jar. Store in a cool,
dark place for about a year.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 13


Adding Flowers & Powdered Herbs
At first thought, adding flower petals and sprigs of herbs directly to soap bars sounds like
an amazing idea. The problem is that most of these items don’t hold up well during the
saponification (soap making) process.

Fresh flowers and leaves should never be mixed into soap batter as they’ll spoil and blacken
fairly quickly.

Even dried herbs should be used with care. Lavender buds look lovely sprinkled on top of
soap, and will maintain their purple color for some time. However, if you mix them into the
soap itself, the buds will turn brownish-gray and start to resemble mouse droppings.

One thing you can do, however, is to finely grind up


dried leaves and flowers, sift them to get out any large
pieces, and stir in a few teaspoons of the resulting
powder right before pouring your soap into a mold.
This will give a speckled look to your soap and
add interesting texture. Be aware that most colors still
don’t hold up over time though and will eventually
turn brown or black.

Calendula is one of the few exceptions and keeps


its pretty golden color. The top bar of soap, in the
adjoining photo, has about half a tablespoon of dried
calendula petals stirred into it.

Keep in mind that soap with large chunks of plant


matter aren’t exactly practical to wash with and could
cause problems with bathtub drains.

Because of this, I find it better to decorate my soaps


with scrapbook paper and ribbons. (See page 80.)

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 14


Adding Fruits & Veggies To Soap
Fruits and veggies are another fun way to personalize your soap. You can either add them as
juice or purees to your lye water at the beginning of the soap making process, or stir them in
at trace. (See page 33 for an explanation of what “trace” is.)

Whenever you get the urge to add a food item to a soap recipe, do a quick Internet search
first to see if anyone else has tried it out. You can usually find some great posts on soaping
forums where people share their experiences and feedback.

If you’re adding purees to a recipe you created, be sure to discount or subtract a similar
amount of liquid from your recipe. So, if you add 2 ounces of pumpkin at trace (right before
pouring into the mold), subtract about 2 ounces of water from your initial lye mixture.

Some fun food additions that work well in soap include:

• Pumpkin puree (recipe page 72)


• Avocado puree (similar to pumpkin, but pop the
mold in the fridge or freezer for 10 – 12 hours after
pouring to maintain color.)
• Honey – (recipe page 52)
• Oatmeal – finely ground or colloidal (recipe page 50)
• Coffee grounds - 1 tsp per pound of oil in recipe
• Cucumber (recipe page 57)
• Apple Cider (recipe page 71)

Because of its alkaline nature, soap doesn’t tend to


spoil (mold), even with foods added. Instead, as all soap
ages, the oils within will eventually go rancid, causing
the bar to develop an off smell, like old oil. Including
rosemaryantioxidants in your recipe may help prolong
freshness.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 15


More Fun Additions
Here are some more fun additives to experiment with:
• Aloe – you can use aloe juice for all or part of the water in a recipe, or add
an ounce or so of gel at trace (subtract the same amount from your water
allowance, to keep things even)
• Witch Hazel – subtract an ounce or two from your water amount and add a
matching amount of witch hazel at trace
• Cornmeal – good for scrubby types of soaps, try adding about 1/2 teaspoon
per pound of oil in a recipe
• Pumice – good for mechanic’s soap (like Lava soap), use around 1/4 tsp per
pound of oil in a recipe
• Sand – very exfoliating, similar to pumice, use 1/4 tsp per pound of oil
• Salt – see salt bars on page 75
• Bentonite Clay – excellent for shaving soaps, gives glide and smoothness
for razors, try 1 tsp per pound of oil in a recipe
• Poppy Seeds – nice exfoliation without being overly scratchy, add ½ tsp per
pound of oil in a recipe

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 16


Natural Soap Colors
You have a rainbow of options when it comes to coloring your soap naturally! I buy most
colorants from Mountain Rose Herbs, BrambleBerry and Etsy.

Starting at the top of the photo, on this page at right, these are the amounts used to obtain
the colors shown, when used in recipes that each contain around 27 to 30 ounces of total oil
(or approximately 2.5 pound batches).

• Yellow Brazilian Clay


- 1 teaspoon
• French Green Clay
- 1/2 tablespoon
• Indigo Powder
- 1 teaspoon
• Rose Kaolin Clay
- 1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons
• Chlorella
- 1 teaspoon
• Alkanet Root
- 1/4 teaspoon
• Annatto Seed Powder
- 1/2 teaspoon (yellow)
• Annatto Seed Powder
- 3 teaspoons (orange)
• Purple Brazilian Clay
- 2 teaspoons
• Cambrian Blue Clay
- 5 teaspoons

The following pages have a few more close-ups so you can see the ingredient next to the bar
of soap used to color it, along with some tips for using natural colorings in general.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 17


• Natural colors usually show up best when
soap is allowed to go through gel phase.
(See page 32.) French Green Clay
• Thoroughly mix colored clays with around
twice as much water before stirring into
the soap batter at trace. You can also mix
clay into hot lye solution for better color
dispersion throughout the soap.
• If you’re going for a single colored batch
of soap, versus layers or swirls, you can
color the entire thing by adding one of the
herbal (alkanet, annatto seed, chlorella
and indigo) colorants shown to the lye
water. This gives ample time for the color
Purple Brazilian Clay
to dissolve, helping ensure a more evenly
toned product.
• If adding at trace, herbs such as annatto seed powder, chlorella powder and alkanet root
do best dissolved in oil before stirring into soap batter. You can use a tablespoon or so of
oil out of the amount measured for your recipe.
• If you plan to make large quantities of soap, it’s a great idea to keep colored infused oils
on hand. Simply place a heaping tablespoon or so of dried alkanet, annatto or chlorella
powder into a small jelly jar or similarly sized glass container. Cover with olive oil, cap and
shake thoroughly. Let infuse for several days to weeks, shaking occasionally. Replace a
small portion of your olive oil with infused oil instead.

Yellow Brazilian Clay

Rose Clay

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 18


• Activated charcoal makes a very nice gray or black color, but remember that if used in
excess, it can stain bathtubs. Go very light on the amount you add; try ½ to 1 teaspoon per
batch to start with, then increase the amount if needed.
• Some natural colors will fade more than others over time. Store your soap in a cool, dry
place, away from direct sunlight for the longest shelf life possible.

Cambrian Blue Clay


Alkanet Root

Annato Seed Powder Chlorella

French Green Clay


Activated Charcoal

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 19


Essential Oils
Essential oils can be used to scent soaps naturally, though some hold up better over time
than others.
Remember that although they’re natural, essential oils are also very powerful. Use gloves
when measuring essential oils so the undiluted oil doesn’t spill on your skin. If pregnant,
nursing or on medication, consult with your health care provider before use since some oils
may be contraindicated for you. Don’t use old or oxidized essential oils as they have the
potential to irritate your skin.

• Bergamot (Citrus bergamia) has an uplifting and relaxing scent that’s a combination
of citrus and a hint of floral. It’s sometimes used to treat skin conditions such as acne,
eczema and psoriasis. Use up to 15 grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.
• Cedarwood Atlas (Cedrus atlantica)
has a soft pleasing woodsy scent that’s
popular with both men and women
alike. Its astringent and antiseptic
properties make it useful for oily skin
types. Use of to 17 grams per pound of
oil in a soap recipe.
• Clary Sage (Salvia sclarea) has a lovely
calming floral scent. It’s great for aged
or dry skin types, or in shampoo bars
designed for hair loss or dandruff. If
pregnant or nursing, check with a health
care provider before using. Use up to 14
grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.
• Cypress (Cupressus sempervirens) is
very gentle with a clean evergreen scent.
Its astringent properties make it helpful
for balancing oily skin. Use up to 17
grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.
• Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus) has a strong, cooling camphor-like scent. Eucalyptus
is not recommended for using on children under age 10. Use up to 14 grams per pound of
oil in a soap recipe.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 20


• Fir Needle (Abies sibirica) smells fresh and clean, as though you’re walking through a
pine grove, without the strong cleaner type scent that regular pine essential oil can have.
Use up to 17 grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.

• Geranium (Pelargonium graveolens) is an economical substitute for rose essential oil


and is useful for all skin types. Use up to 14 grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.

• Grapefruit (Citrus × paradisi) has a bright refreshing scent that uplifts your spirits. It’s
especially useful for toning oily skin. Use up to 22 grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.

• Juniper Berry (Juniperus communis) has a warm woodsy fragrance and may be helpful
for some skin conditions. Use up to 14 grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.

• Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) is very gentle and has a calming herbaceous floral
scent that helps relieve stress and soothe skin. Use up to 20 grams per pound of oil in a
soap recipe.

• Lemon (Citrus limon) has a fresh clean citrus fragrance and is especially useful for oily
skin types. Be sure to use a “folded” type of lemon, shown as 5x or 10x on the label.
Regular lemon essential oil will fade quickly from soap, while the folded version sticks
around longer. Use up to 22 grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.

• Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) has a lemon like scent and is often combined in
a blend with citrus essential oils to help their scent last longer. Check with a health care
provider before using if you’re pregnant, nursing or on medication. Use up to 22 grams per
pound of oil in a soap recipe

• Lime (Citrus aurantifolia) has a strong citrus fruity scent that blends especially well with
lemon. Like other citrus essential oils, it’s helpful for oily skin types. Use up to 22 grams
per pound of oil in a soap recipe

• Litsea (Litsea cubeba), also called may chang, has a lovely scent that’s a blend of citrus
and floral. It’s often used for those with skin problems, though a small subset of the
population may be prone to sensitivity to it. Use up to 17 grams per pound of oil in a soap
recipe.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 21


• Orange, Sweet (Citrus × sinensis) has a fresh cheerful citrus fragrance and brightens
and tones all skin types. Be sure to use a “folded” type of orange, shown as 5x or 10x on
the label. Regular orange essential oil will fade quickly from soap, while the folded version
sticks around longer. Use up to 22 grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.

• Patchouli (Pogostemon cablin) has a strong exotic scent that most people either love or
hate, but it really shines in blends. Patchouli also offers some regenerative skin benefits.
Use up to 17 grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.

• Peppermint (Mentha × piperita) has a fresh minty scent that cools. It’s sometimes used
to stimulate the scalp to improve hair growth, making it a good option for shampoo bars.
Avoid using peppermint oil on young children, along with those with cardiac fibrillation or
G6PD deficiency. Use up to 15 grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.

• Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) has a strong green herbal scent. It should not be
used in products intended for young children, those with epilepsy or women who are
pregnant. Rosemary is often used to stimulate hair growth, making it a good addition to
shampoo bars. Use up to 11 grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.

• Spearmint (Mentha spicata) has a fresh minty fragrance similar to peppermint, but is
sweeter and gentler. Use up to 15 grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.

• Tea Tree Oil (Melaleuca alternifolia) has a strong resinous antiseptic scent. A powerful
antimicrobial, it’s often used in soaps for those with various skin conditions. Use up to 14
grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.

• Vetiver (Vetiveria zizanioides) has a relaxing aroma and is used to treat nervousness and
depression. It does best used in small amounts, as part of a blend. Use up to 8 grams per
pound of oil in a recipe.

• Ylang Ylang (Cananga odorata) has a strong sensuous scent and is used to calm
nerves and balance all skin types. Avoid use on children under 2 and those with low blood
pressure. Use up to 10 grams per pound of oil in a soap recipe.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 22


Oils & Butters
I source oils and butters for soap making from a variety of places. If you have a local grocery
store with a high turnover rate, then you can usually find olive and coconut oil from there for a
reasonable price.

Be careful that the oil is fresh though – old oil makes for a soap that is likely to develop DOS
(dreaded orange spots), which indicates rancidity.
Health stores tend to carry items like castor oil
and other specialty oils, but you can’t usually
beat the prices and high quality from online
soap supply vendors.

Below, is a listing of the oils and butters that


I like to use, along with a brief note about
their role in soap making and guidelines for
suggested amounts to use in a recipe.

I try to keep these suggested numbers in mind


when creating a recipe, but still sometimes
go outside of the boundaries just to see what
will happen.

Remember, we all have different tastes and


likes. While one person may adore a soap
made with extra coconut oil, another may find
it too drying.

As with all things in life, don’t be afraid to


gently prod at the status quo and test the
limits. That’s how great discoveries are made!

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 23


Oils & Butters - continued
• Almond Oil, Sweet (Prunus Amygdalus dulcis) – useful for dry skin;
often interchangeable with sunflower oil, use up to 15 to 20% in a recipe
• Apricot Kernel Oil (Prunus armeniaca)– moisturizing, use up to 15%
• Argan Oil (Argania spinosa) – good for skin and scalp problems, great for
shampoo bars, use up to 10%
• Avocado Oil (Persea gratissima) –excellent for dry & sensitive skin, makes
a softer soap if too much used, use up to 15 to 20%; a dark green avocado
oil may tint your finished soap
• Babassu Oil (Orbignya oleifera) – can be used as a direct substitute for
coconut oil in soap recipes, try 15 to 25% in a recipe
• Castor Oil (Ricinus communis) – boosts lather, use up to 10% (or 15% in
shampoo bars)
• Cocoa Butter (Theobroma cacao) – makes a hard bar with creamy lather;
use the refined version if you don’t want the scent to carry to your final bar;
use up to 15%
• Coconut Oil (Cocos nucifera) – makes a hard bar with great lather, use up
to 30%, higher than that can be drying, so be sure to superfat
• Grapeseed Oil (Vitis vinifera) – lightweight and helpful for acne soaps,
has a shorter shelf life, use up to 10%
• Hempseed Oil (Cannabis indica) – moisturizing, silky lather, keep oil
refrigerated, unrefined version will tint soap green, use up to 15%
• Jojoba Oil (Simmondsia chinensis) – conditions skin & hair, excellent for
shampoo bars, helps extend life of soap, use up to 10%
• Kukui Nut Oil (Aleurites moluccana) – nourishing, may be helpful for
those with skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis, use 5 to 10%
• Lard/Tallow - makes a hard bar with low lather, can be used to replace
palm oil in recipes, use up to 35%
• Mango Butter (Mangifera indica) – moisturizing, may slightly harden
soap, use around 5 to 10%

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 24


Oils & Butters - continued
• Meadowfoam Oil (Limnanthes alba) – increases shelf life of soap,
conditions skin, creamy lather, can be interchanged with jojoba oil, use
around 10%
• Neem Oil (Azadirachta indica) – skin healing, antiseptic, repels fleas and
ticks; good for pet soaps, strong smell - use 5 to 10%
• Olive Oil (Olea europaea) – contributes to hardness of bar (starts out soft,
but cures hard), limited bubbles, use any amount in a recipe, all the way
up to 100% of the oils, dark green olive oil can affect the final color of your
soap so choose a light color
• Rice Bran Oil (Oryza sativa) – high in vitamin E and good for aged or dry
skin, a good substitute for part or all of the olive oil in a recipe, try 15 to 20%

• Rosehip Seed Oil (Rosa rubiginosa) – is a regenerative oil, naturally high


in vitamins, carotenoids and other beneficial compounds. It’s helpful for
weathered, aged or problematic skin, use 5 to 10%
• Sea Buckthorn Oil (Hippophae rhamnoides) – is a powerful oil used to
heal and regenerate skin. Use 0.5 to 1 oz per pound of oil for shades of yellow
• Shea Butter (Butyrospermum parkii or Vitellaria paradoxa) – moisturizes
and nourishes skin, adds some hardness to soap, use up to 15%
• Sunflower Oil (Helianthus annuus) – silky lather, good for skin,slows down
time to reach trace, use up to 15 to 20% in a recipe
• Tamanu Oil (Calophyllum inophyllum) – excellent for various skin
conditions, use up to 5% in a recipe

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 25


Soap Molds
All of the recipes in this book have between 27 to 30 ounces of oil in them and make around
a 2.5 pound batch. I use the following molds:

• Silicone Column Mold – use batches more towards the 27 ounces of oil range in this mold
or you may have a little extra left over. Decrease the water by about ½ or 1 ounce and allow
the soap to stay in the mold an extra day or two to help it release easier.
• Twelve Bar Silicone Mold – recipes in this book will fill about 9 of the rectangle spaces.
I love this mold for making small test bars. You can separate some plain batter out of a
fresh batch of soap and pour it into an old yogurt container. Then mix and stir in additives
that you’d like to experiment with, but aren’t sure if they’ll work or not. (Use a plastic knife
or spoon for stirring.) That way, an entire batch isn’t ruined if a good idea, goes bad.

• Homemade Log Mold – my homemade wooden mold’s inner dimensions are 8” x 3.5”
x 3.5”. Wooden molds should always be lined with parchment paper, freezer paper or
silicone liners. Don’t use wax paper since it allows moisture to seep through to the wood
and will shorten the life of your mold.
• Glass Bread Loaf Pan – You can use a regular glass loaf pan such as is used for baking
bread, but you must line it with parchment paper or freezer paper, otherwise, it will stick.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 26


How To Line A Wooden Soap Mold
This technique can be used with freezer paper or parchment paper. Wax paper isn’t
recommended since it’s very thin, and allows moisture to seep through to the wood.

For a pretty imprinted pattern, try following these directions using a fondant mat instead of
freezer paper. Fondant mats can often be found in the baking section of your local craft store.

As a bonus, fondant mats can be reused over and over. Use the textured side up, if you want
the outside of your soap to have a design, or flip it over and place the textured side down, if
you want your soap’s surface smooth.

Step 1
Assemble your supplies.
• ruler
• pencil
• your soap mold
• parchment or freezer paper,
or a fondant mat
• scissors
• freezer tape

Step 2
Cut a large section of freezer paper
that’s long enough to almost wrap
around the outside of your mold,
lengthwise. Right now, we’re
eyeballing size, so you don’t have
to be precise. You can always trim
extra bits off later, if needed.

This section will be cut to make two pieces – a long, skinny piece that’s exactly the width of
your mold, and a wider piece that will cover the length of the mold.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 27


Step 3
Position the paper so it’s taller, rather
than wider. Use a ruler to measure out
the width of your mold from the margin
of the paper, starting at the top and
working your way to the bottom, marking
the spots in pencil with small dots.
Connect the dots to form a straight line.

Step 4
Cut along the line..

Step 5
You should end up with a long piece of
paper that fits neatly inside your mold
and extends over the sides. Place that
piece in your mold and secure the ends
with freezer tape.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 28


Step 6
With the rest of the large piece of paper,
do the same thing as before, only using
the measurement for the length of your
soap mold, making this piece larger.

Press that piece inside your mold, laying


it crossways across the long skinny
piece, and tape down the sides with
freezer tape.

When unfolded and laid flat, the two pieces look like this:

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 29


If using a fondant mat instead of freezer or parchment paper, the lined mold will look
something like this:

The fondant mat should easily peel away


from the soap, leaving an imprint such as
the one shown to the right.

Now, you’re done! The inside surface of


your mold should be protected from
direct contact with raw soap batter and
will allow for easier removal of your
finished loaf or block of soap.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 30


How To Figure Batch Sizes
Many times you’ll see molds with descriptions such as “2 pound mold” or “5 pound
mold”. But, what does this mean? How do you know how many pounds of soap that a
recipe will make?

The formula is super simple.

Just add the weight of the oils + lye + liquid in a recipe together..

Since lye is usually in decimal places like 3.95 oz or 4.12 oz, just round that up or down
to an even number, in this case to 4.
So, if a recipe has:

28 oz oil + 8 oz liquid + 4 oz of lye


then that = a total of 40 ounces.
There are 16 ounces in one pound, so
40 divided by 16 = 2.5 pounds

That means this particular recipe would be


perfect for a 2.5 lb mold. If you can’t find a
2.5 lb mold, try a 3 lb mold instead and it
should still work out.

The majority of my recipes range from 2.5 to


almost 3 pounds.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 31


What Is Gel Phase?
When a soap goes through “gel phase”, that means that it has heated up to a higher
temperature than it was when you first poured it into the mold. As it does so, its appearance
changes and it starts to look darker and jelly-like, especially in the middle section. You might
think something is wrong with it, but don’t worry - this is a temporary symptom; the colors
will even out again once it cools.

One of the benefits of soap going through gel phase is that it usually helps colors “pop” and
show up more brightly. This is especially helpful when dealing with natural colors, since they
tend to be more muted than artificial ones.

Your soap will probably want to go through gel phase on its own, unless you are soaping at
low temperatures or in a really cold room, but you can help it along by insulating the mold
with blankets. (Peek every so often to make sure that the soap isn’t cracking though. If it is,
that means it’s too hot and should be uncovered.)

Your soap doesn’t have to go through gel phase. In some cases (as with full milk soap), gel
phase might cause the soap to turn out much darker and browner than if you stopped the
process. For some, that’s not always desirable.

To prevent gel phase from happening, soap at


lower temperatures and don’t cover your mold.
Even then, gel phase or partial gel phase
(which darkens just the middle of your soap
and not the outside edges) may happen in a
really warm room or if you have an ingredient
that tends to heat up (like honey, milk or other
items containing natural sugars.)

One trick is to pop your freshly filled mold in


the refrigerator or freezer for 24 hours to keep
gel phase from occurring. After the time has
passed, remove from the cold and bring
to room temperature. Let the soap stay in
the mold for an extra day or two, to firm up
further. Soap that doesn’t go through gel
phase may tend towards the soft and sticky
side at first, but will eventually firm up as it
cures.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 32


What Does “Trace” Mean?
When a soap mixture has reached “trace”, that means that it has thickened enough to hold
an outline (or “tracing”) when you drizzle soap batter across the surface of itself.

A medium, almost thick trace is what’s shown in this picture. I lifted the stick blender and
the imprint of it stayed visible for a moment before sinking back in. By the time soap has
reached this stage, you should quickly add all of your extra scents and colors and be ready
to pour into molds.

When using a stick blender (also called an immersion blender), you should reach trace within
2 to 10 minutes. In contrast, stirring by hand can often take several hours. Don’t use a hand or
stand mixer, since those won’t work in the same way as an immersion blender.

If your soap refuses to trace, it’s possible


that something is off with your lye. Make
sure that you measured the amount
correctly with a digital scale. Mechanical
scales are not accurate enough and should
not to be used for soap making.

Check your lye. Is it clumpy? If so, then it


has gotten moisture in it at some point
and cannot be measured accurately. Try
again with a fresh batch of lye. Locally
bought lye isn’t always reliable for me,
since storage conditions vary widely. I find
that lye from Essential Depot on Amazon.
com is among the most dependable I’ve
used to date.

Sometimes, “false trace” happens. This is when your soap looks like it has thickened up,
but if you stop stirring, it becomes thin and watery again. I always check for this before
pouring into the mold. If your soap batter thins out again, as described, try stick blending
or hand stirring for a little bit longer.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 33


What Does “Superfat” Mean?
You’ll remember from the diagram on page 9, that in the presence of heat and water,
molecules of sodium hydroxide (lye) need to find matching molecules of oil to pair up with,
in order to change them both into soap.

If you had exactly enough oil in your recipe, to use up every speck of lye, your recipe would be
considered 0% superfat. That means no extra oils (fats) are left in the bar.

However, if you figured out how much lye you needed to “use up” your oils and then add a
little bit more oil, then your soap becomes “superfatted.” Superfatted soap contains extra
oils, above and beyond what you need to make soap. The reason for superfatting soap is to
make it extra gentle and moisturizing.

Fortunately, we don’t have to do the math


ourselves to figure out how much oil we need
to superfat a batch. Lye calculators will do all
of the hard part for us. (See page 82.)

Once you plug your amount of oils into a


lye calculator, it will offer up a range of lye
amounts for you to choose from:

• 0 to 4% - These bars offer very little room


for error and could potentially be harsh.
• 5 to 8% - This is a good balanced area to
make soap that’s not too soft, but not
too harsh.
• 9+% - Anything over 8% will make for
a softer soap that may go rancid more
quickly, due to the high amount of oils in
it. There are exceptions to the rule; salt
bars (see page 64) are superfatted in the
15 to 20% range and still work splendidly.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 34


How To Read A Recipe
The recipes in this book are broken down into the following sections:

• Liquid & Lye Portion – this gives the amount of lye needed for the recipe along with the
amount of recommended tea or water. All of the recipes in this book (other than salt bars)
are superfatted at 5 or 6%. (See previous page.)

• Oil Portion – this gives the total amount of oil in the recipe (ranging from 27 to 30 ounces
for the recipes in this book), followed by how many ounces are needed of each type oil.

You’ll notice a percentage given beside the name of each oil. They’ve been rounded for
simplicity’s sake, but indicate the percentage of that particular type of oil in the recipe.
When you add them all together, they will equal 100%.

Example: Oil Portion (30 ounces total):


16 ounces (454 g) infused olive oil (53%)
8 ounces (227 g) coconut oil (27%)
2 ounces (57 g) castor oil (7%)
4 ounces (113 g) sweet almond oil (13%)
53% + 27% + 7% + 13% = 100%

You can compare these numbers with


the suggestions on page 24, when
making substitutions or creating your
own recipes.

• Trace Portion – The third section of the


recipe, lists items to add at trace, such
as natural colorants and essential oils.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 35


Cleaning Up
For many years, I just ran my soap making pot and utensils through the dishwasher when I
was done making soap.

After a few new dishwashers plus an expensive plumbing visit to replace a portion of my
kitchen pipes, I learned that straight raw soap should never go down drains, in any form.

You may get away with it for a while, but after so many batches of soap made, the buildup
will have silently grown, and plumbing problems can occur.

While not as convenient as a dishwasher, there are two ways that I use to safely clean up soap:

Using old rags or paper towels, wipe out the


inside of the soap making pot, spatula, and
end of the stick blender. It’s okay if a very thin
layer remains in spots, but try to get most of it.
Since the soap is still caustic, wear gloves and
place the rags in triple layers of plastic grocery
bags for final disposal in your trashcan. You
can wash the leftover bit off right away, if you
use plenty of grease cutting dishwashing liquid
(like Dawn), OR set the pieces of equipment
aside for a few hours to dry up any remaining
bits of soap, then wash and rinse as normal.

Alternatively, skip the wiping out part and


just set the pan and utensils aside in a safe
spot for a day or two. The raw soap will have
cured enough not to be a danger to your
drains, and the pot and utensils can then
be soaked in warm water for a few hours
before draining and rinsing out any residue.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 36


Soap Making Overview
Now that you have some basic knowledge under your belt, you’re almost ready to get
started making soap!

Before you begin though, read through all of these steps carefully. Be sure that you
understand every section. It’s also a great idea to do some searching online and see how
other people make their soap.

Don’t do like I did though and spend a year thinking about making soap, but not actually
doing it. The best way to learn is to just jump in and try it out!

1) Choose a recipe and run it through a lye calculator, especially if you decide to make
changes to it.

Even though I checked and double-checked the recipes in this book, it’s always good to
triple check them. Typos and human error happen all the time.

Each type of oil requires a different amount of lye to saponify it (turn into soap.) So, if
you’re out of the castor oil called for in a recipe and want to use sunflower oil instead, you
may need a different amount of lye or your soap might end up too harsh or too soft. (See
page 24 for suggested amounts of oils to use in a recipe.)

I like to use the Majestic Mountain Sage Lye Calculator to


check recipes or make changes.
(See page 82 for instructions on how to use a lye calculator.)

2) Assemble your ingredients and safety gear.

Lye is sometimes hard to find; my local Tractor Supply


store carries two containers at a time, but doesn’t
always have it in stock. Make sure the bottle says
Sodium Hydroxide and nothing else. If you shake it and
hear clumps, then it has been stored improperly and
won’t measure correctly. You may have to order online.
My favorite source is Essential Depot on Amazon.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 37


I buy oils and butters from various online soap supply vendors, but you can also check your
local grocery and health food stores, if they have a high turnover rate. Old oils do not make for
good soap.

Don’t forget, you’ll need disposable gloves and safety goggles, along with a thermometer to
measure the temperature of lye and oils. (Have one dedicated just for soap making, and don’t
use it for food.) Wear long sleeves in case any lye splashes on your arms.

3) Prepare your mold by lining it with parchment


paper or freezer paper, shiny side up.

I describe the types of molds I used to make the


soaps in this book on page 26. If you’re using
silicone molds, you won’t have to line them.

4) Now, you’ll need to measure out your water


or tea into a heat proof stainless steel
or heavy duty polypropylene plastic (recycle
symbol 5) container.

Mark this container clearly with a symbol such as


a skull and crossbones (for non-readers) and don’t
put it in your refrigerator or on the counter where
someone might mistake it for a beverage.

Do NOT use aluminum at any time during the soap making process. Aluminum will
react with the sodium hydroxide and form toxic fumes.

When figuring out a recipe on a lye calculator, it may give you a suggested range of liquid to
use. More liquid means your soap takes a bit longer to set up and reach trace (useful if you’re
adding honey or other items that speed up things) and less liquid means it is ready to pour
into molds faster. I like to use somewhere in the middle of the range.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 38


All soap ingredients should be weighed with a digital scale, this includes your liquids.
A mechanical scale is just not accurate enough.

5) Next, measure out your lye. (Make sure you have


on those gloves, long sleeves and safety goggles!)

Pour slowly and carefully, trying not to spill, then


immediately re-cap the lye container and place it
far from the reach of children and pets. Take a wet
paper towel and thoroughly wipe down the scale and
surrounding area in case a few grains got loose.

6) Pour the lye into the water (or floral/herbal tea.)

Do this in your kitchen sink in order to catch any


splashes or drips and just in case you have a
“volcano.” This only happened to me once because I
tried to pour my lye into a warm herbal tea. I should
have been patient and waited for it to cool first!

Make sure you pour the lye into water that is cool or
no warmer than room temperature.

Also, you always add the lye to the liquid and not the other way around (the other
cause of lye volcanoes.)

This mixture will shoot up to over 200° F (93° C ) quickly, so use caution when handling.

Turn your face away and/or hold your breath to avoid directly breathing in the fumes.
I keep the window over my kitchen sink opened during this step or work outside on my
back deck. Working under a running exhaust fan may help too. If you don’t have proper
ventilation, consider wearing a full-face mask. (The thin ones intended for dust or
allergies aren’t effective against these fumes.)

The lye will often change the color and smell of the herbal/floral tea. This is normal.
Don’t worry — the strange smells/colors won’t last!

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 39


Stir with a heavy-duty plastic spoon or silicone spatula until fully dissolved and set in a safe
place, out of reach of children and pets, until it cools to about 90 to 115° F (32 to 46° C). If you
feel it will be safe in your kitchen sink, then just leave it there to cool.

7) While the lye solution is cooling, weigh out the oils and butters called for in your recipe.

Place these in an enamel or stainless steel pot that you plan to use for soap making only.
(Remember, no aluminum!) Place the pot on a burner, turn the heat on low and gently warm
the oils until they reach up to 90 to 115° F (32 to 46° C).

8) Before mixing, make sure your lye and oils are


also somewhere in the range of 90 to 115° F
(32 to 46° C). (I aim for around 95 to 100° F.)

They don’t have to be precisely the same temperature;


it’s okay if they are about 10 to 20 degrees different;
you have a lot of leeway with this part.

I sometimes add an ice cube or two to my lye solution


to cool it faster (remember the water amount can be
adjusted by this small amount) or set my pan of oil
down into a sink filled with a few inches of water and
ice cubes if it needs cooling.

Temperature is a subjective, personal preference that


varies between soap-makers. Some will only mix
at higher temperatures than I list, while others let
everything sit overnight and mix the next morning at
room temperature. I like to aim for the 95 to 100° F
range, but that is not the only way! Experiment to find
what YOU like best.

Mixing at higher temperatures will speed things along, but sometimes too quickly. If your
soap sets up too fast and is difficult to get into the mold, try mixing at lower temperatures
next time.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 40


9) Once the desired temps are reached, drizzle your lye solution into your pot containing
oils and butters.
I do this right beside my kitchen sink. As soon as I pour the lye solution into the oil, I
rinse the pitcher/container it was in with plenty of cold water then set aside on paper
towels or a clean dish towel to air dry. It’s okay if your lye solution sits in your oil for
just a minute while you do this.

10) Using a stick blender, start combining the lye solution and oils, stopping to occasionally
stir and check consistency.
When you first place your stick blender in the unmixed oil/lye solution, tilt it slightly sideways
to let up any bubbles that are trapped underneath it. Straighten it again and make sure it’s
fully submerged before turning it on. (If it’s not fully submerged, it may splash oil and lye
solution everywhere, making a caustic mess.)

Work in small bursts of about thirty seconds on, then turn the stick blender off and hand stir
with it for about thirty seconds. Keep alternating in a pattern like this. Blending non-stop
from the start could burn out your motor, cause false trace and create lots of air bubbles.

It should only take a few minutes for most of these recipes to reach “trace” – which means
when you drizzle a small bit of the soap mixture over the surface, it will leave a faint pattern
or trace before sinking back into the mixture. (see page 33.)

I HIGHLY recommend using a stick blender instead of stirring by hand. I have one made by
Cuisinart that I’ve had for over a decade, so they’re well worth the investment. Make sure
you use it strictly for soap making and not for food use.

11) Once trace is reached, you’ll add any extras such as honey, oatmeal, natural colorants
and essential oils, then stir for just a bit more until they are all incorporated.

You should already have these measured out and ready to dump in. Some types of add-ins
can make your soap thicken faster, so work quickly and methodically to get them stirred in.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 41


12) Working quickly, pour the soap into your
prepared mold, smoothing the top with
a rubber spatula or wooden spoon.

Pick up your mold and carefully give it a few sharp


raps on the table or counter surface to help get rid of
any little air bubbles that may have formed. The soap
is still caustic at this point, so keep your gloves and
goggles on and be aware that the mixture can burn
your skin. If that happens, rinse thoroughly with cool
running water.

13) Cover with the mold top, if it has one, then several layers of blankets and quilts.

This makes sure that the soap is well insulated and retains the heat needed to go
through gel phase. Leave undisturbed for about 24 to 48 hours. (If you want to skip
gel phase, see page 32.) It’s okay to peek at your soap every now and then. It’s not like
baking a cake where you might make it fall.

Check your soap periodically during the first few hours and make sure that the top isn’t
cracking. If it is, that indicates that the soap is getting too hot and you should uncover it
so it can cool down some.

14) Unmold your soap. (Note: Palm-Free


Soaps tend to need more time to firm up.)

You can cut it into bars right away or later. I


like to do it within a few days after making, so
that the soap is still easy to cut. Use a ruler
and a knife to cut into desired sizes. There’s no
reason to cut right away though. Some like to
leave their soap in whole loaves or blocks and
just cut off what they need, when they need it.
It’s a personal preference thing.

Let the bars cure in the open air on pieces of wax paper or brown paper, turning occasionally,
for 4 to 6 weeks. I start testing them on myself after three weeks. Store in a non-humid area
where they still have some airflow. A hall linen closet usually work nicely; a bathroom closet or
cabinet is less than ideal.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 42


Converting A Recipe To Hot Process
Some soapmakers prefer the hot process method for making soap. This involves cooking the
soap batter in a slow cooker (crock pot) for around 1 hour. By doing this, you speed up the
saponification process and are able to try out your soap much sooner.

Most of the soap recipes in my Natural Soap Making ebook and package can be converted to
hot process with just a few changes.

1. Increase the water amount in my recipes to around 10 oz (283 g). Normally, I use a
reduced water amount in cold process recipes so the soap reaches trace quicker and is
easier to unmold. For hot process recipes though, you don’t want to reduce the water
amount or the soap batter may harden or dry up in your crock pot.

2. Don’t add anything at trace. When making cold process soap, you normally mix the soap
to trace then stir in extras such as essential oils, oatmeal, honey and so forth. When
making hot process soaps, you wait to add these things until after cook time.

3. While you can use hot process soap right after making, it will last longer if you let it cure
for at least 2 to 3 weeks before using.

Below is a side-by-side comparison of cold process and hot process methods.

Cold Process Hot Process


1. Make lye solution according to recipe. 1. Make lye solution, increasing water to
2. Weigh and heat oils. 10 oz (283 g).
3. Combine the lye solution and oils. 2. Weigh and heat oils.
4. Mix until trace is reached. 3. Combine the lye solution and oils.
5. Stir in essential oils and other extras. 4. Mix until trace is reached.
6. Pour into soap mold. 5. Cook in crock pot for 1 hour on low heat.
7. Cover mold and leave for 24 – 48 hrs. 6. Let cool 10 to 15 minutes.
8. Unmold and cut into bars when firm. 7. Stir in essential oils and other extras.
9. Cure bars in the open air for at least 8. Spoon into soap mold.
4 weeks. 9. Leave in uncovered mold for 24 – 48 hrs.
10. Unmold and slice into bars.
11. Use one bar right away if you’d like,
and let the rest cure for at least 2 to
3 weeks.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 43


Soap Making Checklist
For my first several batches of soap, I found it helpful to jot down a checklist to follow as I
went through each unfamiliar step. There was something comforting about being able to
mark off each step as I went along.

Write down your full recipe, noting if you need to make a tea or infusion for it first.

Try to consider every step you will take. Even little things like where you’ll place your spoon or
spatula after you stir the lye with water. (Since I work in or right beside my kitchen sink
usually, I rinse it with fresh water right after stirring and set it aside on a piece of wax paper.)

Write down reminders to yourself to put on your gloves, goggles and long sleeves
before handling lye.

Make it as detailed as possible.

After over a decade of making soap, I still find that I forget a step every now and then. I’m
rather famous for forgetting to add essential oils at trace! Having a checklist helps minimize
the chances of anything like that happening to you!

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 44


Recipe Notes
The following recipe section is broken into two parts. The first features some of my simpler
recipes that are great for beginners. The second part features recipes that showcase how you
can utilize herbal infusions and other natural additives to create your own unique soaps.

While each recipe has specific oils listed, you can take the same ideas, such as infused teas,
herbal oils, or extra add-ins, and use them in another recipe if you’d like.

For example, if you find a recipe that you just love on another web site or elsewhere, you can
take that basic recipe and change the distilled water into an herbal tea instead.

You could take any oil listed and replace it with an infused version of that oil instead.
(Example: If a recipe calls for 8 ounces of olive oil, you can use 8 ounces of herbal infused
olive oil instead. Or, part herbal infused olive oil and the rest plain olive oil.).

You can take any recipe and stir in a few extra items once you reach trace, to give it something
special. (Examples: A teaspoon of honey, or some essential oils for scent.)

Just because a recipe is written one way doesn’t mean you have to exactly follow it, as long as
the oils and lye amounts remain unchanged.

If at any time though, you want to change out one oil for another type, this will require a quick
check using a lye calculator, to make sure that the lye amount doesn’t change. See page 82
for directions on using a lye calculator.

One more important note – some of my recipes are higher in olive oil than others that are out
there. Some of these might take longer to firm up and cure than other soap recipes you may
be used to. Once fully cured though, high olive oil soaps become very hard and long lasting.
As a bonus, they are very gentle!

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Beginner Recipes

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 46


3 Basic Soap Recipes
The following three soap recipes can be used as basic formulas to make a variety of
soaps. You can make the recipes exactly as written to make a plain unscented soap, or
you can make changes, such as using herbal infused olive oil instead of plain olive oil,
stirring in fun things such as honey or oats, and adding natural colorants and essential
oils to create your own signature soaps.

Basic With Oils Basic With Butters


Oils & Butters: Oils & Butters:
• 14 oz (397 g) olive oil (50%) • 12 oz (340 g) olive oil (43%)
• 8.5 oz (241 g) coconut oil (30%) • 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (28.5%)
• 4.5 oz (128 g) sunflower oil (16%) • 3.5 oz (99 g) sunflower oil (12.5%)
• 1 oz (28 g) castor oil (4%) • 4.5 oz (128 g) cocoa butter (16%)

Lye Solution: Lye Solution:


• 3.95 oz (112 g) lye • 3.95 oz (112 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) distilled water • 9 oz (255 g) distilled water

Optional Extras Optional Extras


• 30 - 35 g essential oils • 30 - 35 g essential oils

Basic With Lard/Tallow


Oils & Butters:
• 10 oz (283 g) olive oil (36%)
• 7.5 oz (213 g) coconut oil (27%)
• 4 oz (113 g) sunflower oil (14%)
• 6.5 oz (184 g) lard/tallow (23%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.95 oz (112 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) distilled water

Optional Extras
• 30 - 35 g essential oils
Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 47
Simple Shea Butter Soap
This soap features rich and creamy shea butter to moisturize and nourish dry skin types.
You can leave it plain and unscented, or add a natural colorant (page 17) and/or essential
oils for scent (page 20).

Oils & Butters:


• 13 oz (369 g) olive oil (46%)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (29%)
• 5 oz (142 g) shea butter (18%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (7%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.90 oz (111 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) distilled water

Optional Extras
• 30 - 35 g essential oils

Lavender Soap
An old-fashioned classic, this soap’s lovely hue comes from purple Brazilian clay. If you’re unable
to obtain this natural colorant, you could leave it out instead for a creamy white bar of soap.

Oils & Butters:


• 14 oz (397 g) olive oil (50%)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (28%)
• 3 oz (85 g) almond oil (11%)
• 3 oz (85 g) sunflower oil (11%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.95 oz (112 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) distilled water

Optional Extras
• 2 tsp purple clay (add to lye solution)
• 35 g lavender essential oil
Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 48
Easy Carrot Soap
Carrots make a wonderful addition to handmade soap, lending both color and
nourishing antioxidants. Carrot soaps are usually very gentle and are often favored as
facial soaps or by those with sensitive skin.

In this recipe, carrot baby food is used, but you could substitute in equal measure with
carrot juice instead, if you’d like.

Oils & Butters:


• 18 oz (510 g) olive oil (64%)
• 7 oz (198 g) coconut oil (25%)
• 3 oz (85 g) cocoa or kokum butter (11%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.90 oz (111 g) lye
• 6 oz (170 g) distilled water
• 3 oz (85 g) carrot baby food

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 49


Cedarwood & Oatmeal Soap
This simple natural soap features oatmeal, for visual texture and to soften skin as it gently
exfoliates, French green clay, for a natural green color and mild cleansing properties, along
with cedarwood “Atlas” essential oil for a clean woodsy scent.

In this recipe, I offer two different scent options. If your essential oil supply is limited, you can
use just cedarwood essential oil. If you have them available though, a small amount of vetiver
and clove essential oils really adds a wonderful depth and helps anchor the scent.

Oils & Butters:


• 16 oz (454 g) olive oil (57%)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (29%)
• 4 oz (113 g) sweet almond or
sunflower oil (14%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.95 oz (112 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) distilled water

Optional Extras
• 2.5 teaspoons French green clay
• 1 tablespoon rolled oats, finely
ground in a coffee grinder
• cedarwood “Atlas” essential oil (* see amount or blend suggestions below)

* For a light scent, use 20 grams of cedarwood “Atlas” essential oil, or for a stronger
scent try 30 grams.
* If you have vetiver and clove essential oils available, try this blend instead of plain cedarwood:

28 g cedarwood “Atlas” essential oil


4 g clove essential oil
4 g vetiver essential oil

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Calendula Soap
Calendula soap is a classic, gentle soap that’s perfect for everyone from babies to their
grandmothers. Its unscented nature makes it suitable for those with sensitive skin. It also
makes an excellent home remedy for skin afflictions such as poison ivy and poison oak.

Calendula soap’s simple ingredient list makes it a great choice for a beginner soap maker’s
first herbal soap project. Because of the high amount of olive and other soft oils in this recipe,
it might need a few extra weeks of cure time to fully harden up.

Besides calendula tea, you can infuse part of your oils with calendula flowers. (See page 12
for how to do so.) Depending on how much calendula oil you use and how strongly infused
it is, your soap may turn out various shades of off-white or yellow. If you use plain oils and
distilled water instead, this recipe can easily become basic lye soap.

Oils & Butters:


• 15 oz (425 g) olive oil (50%)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (29%)
• 4.5 oz (128 g) sunflower oil (15%)
• 2.5 oz (71 g) castor oil (8%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.16 oz (118 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) calendula tea

Optional: If you’d like to dress this soap up a bit,


try adding 30 grams of lavender essential oil
or 1 teaspoon of honey at trace.
Substitution Idea: Try using sweet almond oil
instead of sunflower oil.

Tip: Dark green olive oil tends to give finished


soap a greenish hue. If you want a whiter or
lighter bar of soap, use light colored oils in
your recipe.

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Oatmeal & Honey Soap
This skin soothing bar is filled with gluten free oats and fresh honey.

It’s particularly useful for those with rashes, hives and other skin irritations.

When using oats in a soap recipe, be sure to finely grind them in a coffee grinder first. You can
use regular rolled or old-fashioned oats. I use a gluten free variety. Colloidal oatmeal is made
of oats that have been specially processed and can be substituted in equal measure.

This is a bastille soap, which is very high in olive oil. It might need a few extra weeks to cure
and completely firm up, but will be well worth it!

Oils & Butters:


• 22.5 oz (638 g) olive oil (75%)
• 7.5 oz (213g) coconut oil (25%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.16 oz (118 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) distilled water

At Light Trace, Add:


• ½ tablespoon finely ground oats
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) honey
• optional: ½ teaspoon tea tree oil and 1
teaspoon lavender essential oil (use more
for a stronger scent)

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Recipes

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 53


Dandelion Rose Soap
This springtime soap is made from freshly picked dandelions and roses gathered from my
front yard. It’s colored with two types of clay: yellow Brazilian and rose kaolin. It contains
olive oil that has been infused with freshly dried dandelions and rose petals. (See page 12 on
infusing oils with herbs.) If you can’t make the infused oil, you can use plain olive oil instead.

To make the flower tea for this soap, gather a handful each of dandelions & rose petals. Place
them in a jar and pour about ten ounces of simmering hot water over them. Let steep until
cool, then strain before using in the recipe.

Oils & Butters:


• 16 oz (454 g) infused olive oil (53%)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (27%)
• 4 oz (113 g) sweet almond oil (13%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (7%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.18 oz (119 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) cold dandelion & rose tea

At light trace, divide the soap batter in half.

In one portion add:


• ½ teaspoon yellow clay mixed well with
1 tablespoon water

In the other half stir in:


• 1 teaspoon rose clay mixed well with 1 tablespoon water
• 15 grams (about 1 tbsp) geranium essential oil (optional)

Once the clays are added to the soap, you should try to work quickly since clays absorb
moisture and will cause the soap batter to thicken faster. Pour the pink half into mold, then
the yellow half on top. Cover and insulate with blankets for about 24 hours before unmolding.

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Violet Flower Soap
Sweet wild violets inspired this soap, which is colored with a bit of powdered alkanet root.
When you first pour this recipe into a mold, it will appear a dull gray, but don’t despair - it
won’t stay that way.

Be sure to let this soap go through gel phase (page 32) to ensure the purple hue develops.

When you add lye to the violet flower tea, it will turn from purple to brown. That’s perfectly
normal and does not reflect the final color of the bar.

Oils & Butters:


• 15 oz (425 g) olive oil (50%)
• 9 oz (255 g) coconut oil (30%)
• 3 oz (85 g) sunflower oil (10%)
• 3 oz (85 g) castor oil (10%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.21 oz (119 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) violet flower tea

Tips:
• add alkanet to oils before adding lye
solution
• essential oils, optional - You can use
35 grams (about 3 tbsp) of a scent like
lavender, or try a blend of lavender, rose
geranium and a bit of ylang ylang for a
different scent profile.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 55


Violet Leaf Soap
While violet flowers are only around for a few brief weeks, the leaves will persist for months,
depending on where you live.

Violet leaves are exceptional for healing various skin afflictions. In this recipe, both the oil and
water portions are infused with violet leaves for maximum effect.

Oils & Butters:


• 14 oz (397 g) violet leaf
infuse olive oil (50%)
• 7 oz (198 g) coconut oil (25%)
• 3 oz (85 g) sunflower oil (11%)
• 2 oz (57 g) hemp oil (7%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (7%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.88 oz (110 g) lye
• 8.5 oz (241 g) violet leaf infusion/tea

At Light Trace, Add:


• 1 tsp chlorella powder dissolved in 1
tablespoon reserved soap oil (or use
pre-infused chlorella oil as part of your
oil allowance, see page 17.) You could also
add the chlorella to the violet tea and lye
solution before adding to the oils.

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Cucumber Nettle Soap
This soap recipe was originally created for the Nettle issue of Natural Living Herbal Magazine.

It combines the skin soothing properties of cucumber, nettle and French green clay to make a
nourishing, unscented bar.

Make a strong nettle tea by pouring 8 ounces (227 g) simmering water over 2 tablespoons
of dried nettle, cover and let cool. In the meantime, puree 6 ounces (170 g) water with
¼ cup chopped cucumber peel, strain and store in the refrigerator until needed. Add enough
strained tea to the cucumber juice to make the 8.5 ounces of liquid required in this recipe.

Oils & Butters:


• 12 oz (340 g) olive oil (44.5%)
• 7 oz (198 g) coconut oil (26%)
• 5 oz (142 g) sunflower oil (18.5%)
• 1.5 oz (43 g) avocado oil (5.5%)
• 1.5 oz (43 g) castor oil (5.5%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.75 oz (106 g) lye
• 8.5 oz (241 g) cold nettle tea combined
with cucumber puree
• 1/2 tbsp French green clay mixed with
1 tbsp water

At Light Trace, Add:


• 1 to 2 tablespoons dried nettle, ground to
a powder in a coffee grinder

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 57


Garden Rose Soap
One lovely day in May, my mom came over for a visit and wanted to see how I made soap.
We created this recipe on the fly and she loved it!

We used fresh rose petals to make the water infusion, since they were abundantly in bloom
at the time, but you can use dried as well. Pour about ten ounces of simmering hot distilled
water over a jar full of fresh petals, or about ¼ full of dried roses, and let it steep until room
temperature or cooler before straining and using. (Avoid steeping too long, since a dark tea
will make for a browner soap.)

I use rose petal infused olive oil for this recipe, but if you don’t have it available, use plain
olive oil instead.

Oils & Butters:


• 16 oz (454 g) olive oil (53%)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (26%)
• 2 oz (57 g) sweet almond oil (7%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (7%)
• 2 oz (57 g) shea, mango or cocoa
butter (7%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.16 oz (118 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) rose flower infusion

At Light Trace, Add:


• 1 tbsp (15 ml) rosehip seed oil
• 25 g (abt 2 tbsp) geranium essential oil

Tip: Dark green olive oil may give your finished


soap a greenish hue, so you may want to use
light colored olive oil in this recipe.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 58


Garden Mint Soap
This mint soap is a personal favorite, especially during the hot summer months. The
invigorating scent and feel of the peppermint essential oil leaves you feeling clean and
refreshed while the French green clay helps soothe skin irritations like rashes and bug bites.

To make a minty oil infusion, gather fresh mint leaves from your garden and let them wilt
overnight. Proceed with the directions on page 12, for infusing oils.

Mint infused oil is also great to have on hand for making salves, creams, lip balms and other
such cosmetic goodies.

Oils & Butters:


• 15 oz (425 g) mint infused olive oil (50%)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (26%)
• 3 oz (85 g) avocado or hemp oil (10%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (7%)
• 2 oz (57 g) shea, mango or cocoa butter (7%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.16 oz (118 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) distilled water

At Light Trace, Add:


• 1 teaspoon French green clay mixed
with 1 tbsp water
• 25 g (abt 2 tbsp) peppermint essential
oil

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Jewelweed Soap
Jewelweed is a well-known wild plant used as a natural remedy for treating skin irritations
and rashes. It’s especially effective at relieving the discomfort of poison ivy.

For the liquid portion of this soap, puree fresh jewelweed with 10 ounces of water. Strain and
store in the refrigerator until ready to use or up to 24 hours. Any left over jewelweed infusion
can be frozen in ice cube trays and used as needed to rub directly on itchy skin.

The olive oil is infused with two other skin-soothing herbs: plantain and violet leaf. Those
herbs are optional, but recommended.

*Important note: The lye solution and raw soap tends to smell very bad at first, almost
skunk-like! Just stick it out for several days as the soap cures. The final bar will smell
lightly of oats unless you add essential oil. It may also start out a dark brown, but will
lighten up over cure time.

Oils & Butters:


• 15 oz (425 g) plantain/violet leaf
infused olive oil (50%)
• 9 oz (255 g) coconut oil (30%)
• 4 oz (113 g) sunflower oil (13%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (7%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.22 oz (120 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) fresh jewelweed infusion

At Light Trace, Add:


• 1 tablespoon each: kaolin or French
green clay, water, ground oatmeal &
honey
• 1 teaspoon tamanu oil
• optional: 25 g (abt 2 tbsp) essential oil
such as lavender or peppermint

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 60


Charcoal Mint Spa Bar
This deep cleansing bar contains both French green clay and activated charcoal to help gently
draw impurities from your skin. Peppermint essential oil makes it a refreshing treat, especially
on a hot summer day!

Oils & Butters:


• 13 oz (369 g) olive oil (46.5%)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (28.5%)
• 3 oz (85 g) hemp oil (11%)
• 4 oz (113 g) cocoa butter (14%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.95 oz (112 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) distilled water
• 1 tsp french green clay -
added to lye solution

Optional: 15 - 25 g peppermint essential oil

At light trace, divide the soap batter in half.

Leave one half plain.

In the other half stir in:


• 1 teaspoon activated charcoal mixed well with 1 teaspoon glycerin or oil

Pour half of the green layer in the soap mold. Add the charcoal layer on top. Pour the rest of
the green layer last. If desired, run a plastic knife straight up and down though the batter a
few times, down the length of the bar, to give the charcoal layer a bit of visual interest.

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Kombucha Soap
This recipe is a terrific way to use up homemade kombucha. Besides its potential health
benefits, kombucha (a fermented tea drink) is reportedly great for your skin too!

To scent your soap, try adding 20 to 30 grams of essential oil at trace. My favorite kind
in this particular soap is lemongrass, though you may enjoy other scents such as peppermint,
lavender or ten-fold orange.

Oils & Butters:


• 14 oz (397 g) olive oil (47%)
• 7 oz (198 g) coconut oil (23%)
• 4 oz (113 g) rice bran oil (or more olive) (13%)
• 3 oz (85 g) sunflower oil (10%)
• 2 oz (57 g) cocoa butter (7%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.14 oz (117 g) lye
• 5 oz (142 g) chilled water
• 5 oz (142 g) chilled kombucha

At Light Trace, Add:


• 20 to 30 g (abt 2 to 3 tbsp) essential oil

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Lemon Sunshine Soap
This bright, cheerful soap can be made year ‘round. It’s colored with annatto seed powder
that’s stirred into the water right before adding the dry lye. Adding it early this way helps give
a speckle-free smooth color.

The lye mixture and raw soap batter may start off looking orangish-brown and not the color
you’re looking for, but give it a few days cure time and it should develop the sunny yellow
shade as shown in the photo.

Since regular lemon essential oil tends to fade rather quickly in cold process soap, it’s
been replaced with lemongrass essential oil instead, for a similar, but longer lasting,
zesty citrus scent.

Oils & Butters:


• 15 oz (425 g) olive oil (55.5%)
• 7 oz (198 g) coconut oil (26%)
• 3 oz (85 g) sunflower oil (11%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (7.5%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.75 oz (106 g) lye
• 8.5 oz (241 g) distilled water
• 1/4 teaspoon annatto seed powder

At Light Trace, Add:


• 20 g (abt 2 tbsp) lemongrass essential oil

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 63


Aloe Rose Soap
I sometimes make this gentle pink bar using rose infused aloe (see this post on my site HERE
for the how-to.) However, plain aloe will work just as well. Read labels and make sure it’s as
additive-free as possible.

The tea can be made with fresh or dried rose petals. Since we’re adding 1 ounce of aloe at the
very end of this recipe, we need to subtract (or “discount”) one ounce of liquid from the
starting amount of water/tea we’d normally use. Don’t let your rose petal tea steep for too
long, since a very dark liquid can affect the final color of your soap.

Rose infused olive oil works nicely in this recipe, but if you don’t have any made up, it will be
fine to use plain oil.

Oils & Butters:


• 15 oz (425 g) olive oil (52%)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (28%)
• 3 oz (85 g) meadowfoam oil (10%)
• 3 oz (85 g) apricot kernel oil (10%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.01 oz (114 g) lye
• 8 oz (227 g) rose petal tea (if NOT
adding aloe, use 9 oz

At Light Trace, Add:


• 1 oz (28 g) aloe vera*
• 1 teaspoon rose clay (use less for
a lighter pink)*
• 25 grams (about 2 tbsp)
geranium essential oil*

* Stir together thoroughly before adding.

Tip: If you don’t have apricot kernel oil available, you can use shea butter instead, for a slightly
firmer bar. If you’d like to replace the meadowfoam seed oil, try using castor oil instead.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 64


Plantain Aloe Soap
Plantain infused oil is a trusty standby that I like to keep on hand at all times. Not only
can it be used in salves and balms, but it makes a great skin-soothing addition to soap
recipes as well.

To create the infused oil, I go out in my backyard and pick a generous amount of plantain
leaves, spread them out in a single layer on clean dish towels, and let them air dry for a few
days to remove the moisture. If you don’t have an unsprayed source of plantain leaves, check
online at a site like Mountain Rose Herbs.

Oils & Butters:


• 13 oz (369 g) olive oil (46.5%)
• 7.5 oz (213 g) plantain infused coconut oil (27%)
• 4 oz (113 g) sunflower oil (14%)
• 2 oz (57 g) hemp oil (7%)
• 1.5 oz (43 g) castor oil (5.5%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.95 oz (112 g) lye
• 6.5 oz (184 g) distilled water
• 2 oz (57 g) aloe liquid
• 1/4 teaspoon chlorella powder
(for color)

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 65


Chamomile & Honey Soap
Chamomile is one of the few herbs that will somewhat survive the soap making process
with a hint of golden color and scent. It also makes an excellent infused oil, good to keep
on hand for other projects such as creams, salves and balms.

Remember to use a light-colored olive oil for this project, since the rich green of extra virgin
olive oil can affect the final soap’s color.

This is a wonderful soap for treating inflamed, itchy or irritated skin. The sprinkling of chamomile
flowers on top is just for decoration. For more practical use, you can leave them off.

Oils & Butters:


• 13 oz (369 g) chamomile infused olive oil (46.5%)
• 7.5 oz (213 g) coconut oil (27%)
• 4 oz (113 g) sunflower oil (14%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (7%)
• 1.5 oz (43 g) avocado oil or butter (5.5%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.9 oz (111 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) chamomile tea

At Light Trace, Add:


• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) raw honey

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 66


Hollyhock Soap
Hollyhock flowers are delights in the garden, but aren’t just for looks. As a cousin
to marshmallow, they share many of the same soothing and anti-inflammatory
characteristics and benefits.
This soap also includes rose kaolin clay for added pink color and its ability to
calm irritated skin.

Oils & Butters:


• 17 oz (482 g) olive oil (57%)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (27%)
• 2.5 oz (71 g) meadowfoam or castor oil (8%)
• 2.5 oz (71 g) shea or cocoa butter (8%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.13 oz (117g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) hollyhock infused tea

At Light Trace, Add:


• ½ to 1 tsp rose kaolin clay (for pink color)
• 20 grams (abt 2 tbsp) bergamot essential oil
(optional, for scent)

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 67


Earl Grey Tea Soap
To make this soap, you’ll first need to make an Earl Grey tea infusion. Place 2 tablespoons
of tea into a heat proof jar or pitcher. Pour 10 ounces of simmering hot water over it. Cover
and let steep for around 20 minutes. Strain and let cool completely. Measure out 8.5
ounces (241 g) for use in this recipe.

At trace, a small amount of powdered tea can be added for textured speckles, along with
bentonite clay. A blend of bergamot and lemongrass essential oils adds a light, citrus
fragrance that’s reminiscent of the tea.

Oils & Butters:


• 14 oz (397 g) olive oil (51.5%)
• 7 oz (198 g) coconut oil (26%)
• 2 oz (57 g) sweet almond oil (7.5%)
• 2 oz (57 g) meadowfoam or castor oil (7.5%)
• 2 oz (57 g) mango or shea butter (7.5%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.73 oz (106 g) lye
• 8.5 oz (241 g) cold Earl Grey tea

At Light Trace, Add:


• 1/2 tablespoon Earl Grey tea finely ground in a
coffee grinder (optional, not shown)
• 15 g bergamot essential oil
• 10 g lemongrass essential oil

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 68


Forsythia Soap
Forsythia flowers come from those bright yellow ornamental bushes you see blooming
everywhere in the springtime. The flowers are edible and the fruit (that shows up later,
in the fall), is an excellent anti-viral.

For this recipe, I collected forsythia flowers, spread them out in single layers on clean
dishtowels and let them dry for several days before infusing in oil.

To make the tea for this soap, fill a jar about half full with fresh (or dried) blossoms and
then pour about eleven ounces of simmering hot water over them. Let them steep until
room temperature or cooler before using in the recipe.

I used jasmine absolute in this recipe, since I’d had some sitting around for ages, being
unused. It is very expensive though, so if it’s out of your price range, definitely replace it
with more affordably priced essential oil. Lemongrass is a popular choice, or try blending a
combination of lavender, rose geranium, litsea and/or ylang ylang, for a more floral scent.
You’ll also want to have a lot of practice making successful batches of soap with cheaper
ingredients, before adding expensive essential oil to any soap recipe.

Oils & Butters:


• 15 oz (425 g) forsythia infused olive oil (50%)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (26.5%)
• 3.5 oz (99 g) sunflower oil (12%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (6.5%)
• 1.5 oz (43 g) mango or shea butter (5%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.17 oz (118 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) strained forsythia tea

At Light Trace, Add:


• optional: 25 to 35 g essential oils for scent (see
note above and page 20 for more on essential
oils.)

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Eucalyptus Mint Soap
This uplifting and refreshing soap is scented with eucalyptus and spearmint essential oils and
has speckles of dried mint leaves scattered throughout for added visual and textural interest.

To prevent the leaves from being scratchy, keep the amount of dried leaves low and rub them
through a fine mesh sieve before adding to the soap.

Oils & Butters:


• 15 oz (425 g) olive oil (55.5%)
• 7 oz (198 g) coconut oil (26%)
• 3 oz (85 g) sunflower oil (11%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (7.5%)

Lye Solutions:
• 3.75 oz (106 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) mint tea or distilled water

At Light Trace, Add:


• 2 teaspoons French green clay diluted with 1½
tablespoons water
• ½ tbsp ground dried mint leaves (optional)
• 10 g (abt 1 tbsp) eucalyptus essential oil
• 10 g (abt 1 tbsp) spearmint essential oil

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Apple Cider Soap
This fall soap was inspired by a trip to my local apple orchard. It’s scented lightly with
cinnamon and ginger essential oils, but be sure to go easy on the cinnamon, as in large
amounts it can become a skin irritant. The goal is just a hint of scent.

Fresh apple cider is used instead of distilled water. It’s important to note that I did not use
apple cider vinegar or hard apple cider. Just regular, non-alcoholic apple cider made from
freshly pressed apples.

Oils & Butters:


• 15 oz (425 g) olive oil (50%)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (26%)
• 3 oz (85 g) avocado oil (10%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (7%)
• 2 oz (57 g) mango or shea butter (7%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.17 oz (118 g) lye
• 9 oz (255 g) chilled pure apple cider
(can be diluted 50/50 with water)

At Light Trace, Add:


• ½ teaspoon each of ginger and cinnamon
leaf essential oil

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Pumpkin Soap
This soap is made with canned pumpkin and has a vanilla spice scented swirl running
through the middle.

Mix together the soap, and then add the canned pumpkin at trace. Before pouring into the
mold, separate out ¼ of the soap batter into a container (I use a recycled yogurt container.)
Mix the vanilla absolute and clove essential oil into this portion and set aside. The vanilla
absolute oil will color this part of the soap brown.

Pour half of the remaining pumpkin batter into the mold, then pour the vanilla spice layer,
then pour the rest of the pumpkin on top. Cover and let stay in the mold for at least 36 to 48
hours. This recipe might take a little longer to firm up at first; if so, just leave it in the mold a
few additional days.

Oils & Butters:


• 16 oz (454 g) olive oil (53%)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (27%)
• 3 oz (85 g) sunflower oil (10%)
• 3 oz (85 g) unscented cocoa butter (10%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.19 oz (119 g) lye
• 7 oz (198 g) distilled water

At Light Trace, Add:


• 2 ounces (57 g) canned pumpkin
• blend 1 teaspoon vanilla absolute
and ¼ teaspoon clove essential oil
into ¼ of the batter, to make the
vanilla spice swirl in the middle.

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Cambrian Blue Soap
This pretty soap is colored with Russian Cambrian Blue Clay. It’s rather hard to find in
powdered form, but I discovered some HERE at Altai Botanicals Etsy Shop.

I used peppermint essential oil in this recipe, since it’s a personal favorite, but you could really
use any type of scent you’d like!

Oils & Butters:


• 14 oz (397 g) olive oil (50%)
• 7 oz (198 g) coconut oil (25%)
• 3 oz (85 g) sunflower oil (11%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (7%)
• 2 oz (57 g) mango butter (7%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.87 oz (110 g) lye
• 8.5 oz (241 g) distilled water

At Light Trace, Add:


• 5 teaspoons Russian Cambrian Blue Clay
mixed with 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of water
• 20 g (abt 2 tbsp) peppermint essential oil

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Aleppo Soap
This recipe is inspired by an ancient Syrian soap made from just olive oil, laurel berry
fruit oil, water and lye. It’s reported to be beneficial for those with skin conditions such
as eczema, psoriasis, acne and rashes.

Because of the high amount of olive oil in this recipe, it should ideally cure for
upwards of 6 to 9 months; while most soapmakers prefer to cure Aleppo soaps for at
least a year before using.

Oils & Butters: Lye Solution:


• 20 oz (567 g) extra virgin olive oil (80%) • 3.25 oz (92 g) lye
• 5 oz (142 g) laurel berry fruit oil (20%) • 7 oz (198 g) distilled water

Notes & Tips:


• The star ingredient in Aleppo soap is laurel berry fruit oil. Laurel berry fruit oil
should not be confused with bay laurel (or laurel leaf) essential oil. They’re from
the same plant, but two completely different things.

• Laurel berry fruit oil smells somewhat like medicinal herbs crossed with old
cigarette butts. It’s not overly unpleasant, but many people find it strong at first.
Be assured that the scent will mellow as the soap cures.

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Making Salt & Brine Bars
Salt bars are a special kind of soap made with large amounts of coconut oil and salt.
The bars harden quickly and become smooth, like a river rock, over time. The lather is
creamy and exceptional, making them popular for shaving legs.

Recipes usually contain 70 to 100% coconut oil to help counterbalance the lather
inhibiting properties of salt. Because coconut oil can become drying when used in
excess, the soap is superfatted in the 15 to 20% range.

Once made, salt bars get hard, fast. I highly recommend individual molds to make
these. If you do use a loaf mold, pop your gloves back on and cut them as soon as you
see they’ve firmed up. (Depending on your recipe, this could be anywhere from 2 to 6
hours, but start checking after about 1½ hours to be safe.)

Waiting too long can result in your bar crumbling or being difficult to cut. This is the most
common difficulty that people run into when making salt bars. (If this happens, try powdering
them in a food processor and incorporating them into a batch of regular soap, as an exfoliant
of sorts.) Again, salt bars set up FAST and individual molds are the best way to go with these!

The types of salt I like to use in salt bars are:

• Sea Salt
• Himalayan Salt
• Hawaiian Black Salt
• Redmond’s RealSalt

You can also use regular table salt or even canning salt.

There are many adverse reports about


weeping and oozing occurring when using
Dead Sea or Epsom salts in salt bars, so I
avoid those in high quantity in any soap
recipe.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 75


Basic Salt Bar
This salt bar is pure, simple and uncolored. It’s scented lightly with lemongrass and lime
essential oils for a delightful tropical twist.

While many soapmakers like to make salt bars with 100% coconut oil and a 20% superfat
(and that’s great to do too!), I like the skin-soothing qualities that other oils add to the mix.

Oils & Butters:


• 24 oz (680 g) coconut oil (80%)
• 3 oz (85 g) shea, mango or cocoa butter (10%)
• 1.5 oz (43 g) avocado oil (5%)
• 1.5 oz (43 g) castor oil (5%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.4 oz (125 g) lye (15% superfat)
• 11 oz (312 g) distilled water

At Light Trace, Add:


• 30 oz (850 g) of sea salt or table salt
• optional: 15 g lime and 8 g lemongrass
essential oils

*If you’d like to superfat this at 20% instead


of 15%, use 4.13 oz (117 g) of lye instead of
4.4 ounces. Remember to use individual molds
or slice loaves into bars as soon as they set up,
so they won’t crumble when cut!

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 76


Hawaiian Black Salt Bar
This recipe is almost exactly like the one above, with the exception of type of salt used.
Hawaiian black salt is a unique ingredient I found at Nature’s Garden. (You can find it HERE.)

The minute I saw it, I knew I wanted to make a salt bar from it. Because it’s more costly than
regular sea salt, I only used it for a portion of the salt in this recipe. You can use even less than
I did, just substituting more sea salt for the black salt.

Oils & Butters:


• 24 oz (680 g) coconut oil (80%)
• 3 oz (85 g) shea, mango or cocoa butter (10%)
• 1.5 oz (43 g) avocado oil (5%)
• 1.5 oz (43 g) castor oil (5%)

Lye Solution
• 4.4 oz (125 g) lye (15% superfat)
• 11 oz (312 g) distilled water

At Light Trace, Add:


• 12 oz (340 g) Hawaiian black salt
• 18 oz (510 g) sea salt
• optional: essential oils for scent, see page
20 for suggested usage rates

*If you’d like to superfat this at 20% instead


of 15%, use 4.13 oz (117 g) of lye instead of
4.4 ounces. Remember to use individual molds
or slice loaves into bars as soon as they set up,
so they won’t crumble when cut!

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Dandelion Salt Bars
This soap gets its soft yellow color from dandelion infused coconut oil.

To make the oil, place 1 cup freshly dried dandelion flowers in a large heatproof jar. Melt the
coconut oil and pour over the dandelion flowers. Set the jar down into a saucepan containing
a few inches of water and place the pan over a low burner. Heat the oil and dandelions for
around 2 to 3 hours or until the coconut oil has developed a bright yellow hue. Strain. Add
more coconut oil if needed so the weight of coconut oil used in the recipe is 28 oz (794 g).

Oils & Butters:


• 28 oz (794 g) dandelion infused
coconut oil (100%)

Lye Solution:
• 4.10 oz (116 g) lye (20% superfat)
• 10.5 oz (298 g) distilled water

At Light Trace, Add:


• 28 oz (794 g) table or sea salt
• optional: 25 to 35 grams of essential oil

*Remember to use individual molds or slice


loaves into bars as soon as they set up, so they
won’t crumble when cut.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 78


Basic Brine Bar
Brine bars are similar to salt bars in that they include an extra large amount of salt that
helps harden the soap. However, instead of stirring the salt into the soap batter at trace,
you stir it into the hot lye solution until dissolved. This gives the soap a smoother, more
polished look and feel.

While shea butter helps give this recipe an extra dose of hardness, you can swap it out with
another butter, lard, tallow or even an oil such as sunflower or sweet almond. (When making
changes to the types of oil in a recipe, be sure to double check with a lye calculator, page 82,
in case it also changes the amount of lye needed.)

Oils & Butters:


• 11 oz (312 g) coconut oil (39.3%)
• 11 oz (312 g) olive oil (39.3%)
• 4 oz (113 g) shea butter (14.3%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (7.1%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.9 oz (111 g) lye (10% superfat)
• 9.75 oz (276 g) distilled water
• 1.5 oz (43 g) sea salt

At Light Trace, Add:


• optional: 25 to 35 grams essential oil (I
used 15 grams lavender and 15 grams
cedarwood Atlas essential oil in this batch.)

* Brine bars do especially well in individual


molds, even the clear plastic ones that are often
difficult to unmold with other soap recipes.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 79


Packaging & Labeling
Once your soap has cured for at least four to six weeks, you’re ready to wrap it up for
gifting or selling!

Cold process (CP) soap gradually grows harder over time, as water evaporates from it.
Because of that, you don’t want to wrap these types of soaps airtight. Leave at least a
little opening on each end so the bar can breathe.

My favorite way to wrap soaps is to cut a strip of cloth or scrapbook paper and wrap it
around the middle. Secure this with a dot of glue or piece of transparent tape. I like to tie
a pretty ribbon around the bar too, when giving as a gift.

Another idea is to store each bar in an unbleached muslin bag to protect it from dust
and handling. (They make cute gifts too!)

If you plan on selling or gifting your soaps, you should make a label that reflects the full
ingredient list. This is especially important for customers with allergies, so they can avoid
certain types if needed.

I like to make my labels round, so I can use them on any sized soap. I have a full tutorial
HERE that explains how to make round labels using PicMonkey – an online photo editor.

Print your labels out on card


stock and cut them out. Wrap
your bar with a strip of scrapbook
paper, overlapping the ends, and
attaching them with a dot of glue.
Using another dab of glue, stick
the label to the front of the bar.
Let dry and you’re done!

Store your soaps in a non-


humid, cool area and away
from direct sunlight.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 80


ATTENTION!
This next section contains an explanation of how to use a lye calculator.

At first glance, it will seem confusing.

It will seem suspiciously like math!

Your brain might want to shut down. (Don’t give in!)

If you’re perfectly happy making ready-made recipes, exactly as they


are, then you don’t have to worry about this part yet.

However, if you’re ready to learn how a lye calculator works and you
want to advance your soap making knowledge – then put on your nerd
hat with me and keep reading!

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 81


Using A Lye Calculator
When I first started making soap, lye calculators completely intimidated me. However, once I
began fiddling around with one, I realized that they’re pretty straightforward.

Without a lye calculator, we’d have to sit down, find the SAP values (or the amount of lye each
type of oil needs to turn into soap) and figure out recipes by hand. It would involve a great
deal more math than I would be fond of doing!

Even if you don’t want to create or change a recipe, it’s always a good idea to double check
the amount of lye in any new recipe that you’re trying - even ones from this book and my web
site. Typing errors happen all the time and it’s better to take a few minutes to make sure the
recipe is correct than wasting valuable ingredients and time with a failed batch.

For this demonstration of a lye calculator, I’m using the one found at:
https://www.thesage.com/calcs/LyeCalc.html

It’s the one I learned to use when just starting out, and it has served me well for many years.

There are other lye calculators out there though, that you can explore, including the ones at:

• Bramble Berry

• SoapCalc

• Summer Bee Meadow

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 82


When you first pull up the page containing the lye calculator, you’ll be presented with a form
like this:

You can enter your recipe title, units of measure, lye type and any notes you want to make here.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 83


Scroll down a ways and you’ll see a long list of oils and butters:

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 84


I’m going to use my Cambrian Blue Soap recipe in this example:

Oils & Butters:


• 14 oz (397 g) olive oil (50%)
• 7 oz (198 g) coconut oil (25%)
• 3 oz (85 g) sunflower oil (11%)
• 2 oz (57 g) castor oil (7%)
• 2 oz (57 g) mango butter (7%)

Lye Solution:
• 3.87 oz (110 g) lye
• 8.5 oz (241 g) distilled water

Using the little boxes beside each oil’s name, I’m going to fill in the number of ounces of oil in
my recipe. The numbers will look like this:

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 85


Once the amount of oils is filled in, go to the bottom of the list and hit the “Calculate Lye”
button. It looks like this:

Once you do, this screen will pop up, with several important numbers that you need to know:

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 86


Let’s break down each section and talk about it.

Liquids
The first section covers the amount of liquids you need. Normally, you use distilled water (in
case your tap water has a mineral or contaminant that might react negatively in your soap.) In
this book, we use several herbal infusions too. You can also use milk, aloe, coffe, etc.

The calculator gives you a range to work


with, in this case 7 to 10 ounces. I like to
aim for the middle, so might choose around
8.5 to 9 ounces for this batch. If you go too
low, your soap might trace and set up faster
than you can work with it. Too much water
in your recipe will make for soft soap that
takes forever to set up. (Exception: use a full
water amount if making hot process soap, see
page 43.)

Fats & Oils


The next section is Fats & Oils:

The calculator took my amount of oils and


broke them down to tell me what percentage
of the recipe they make up. I like to round my
numbers for simplicity’s sake.

So, in this recipe I have 7% castor oil, 25%


coconut oil, 7% mango butter, 50% olive oil,
and 11% sunflower oil. It also tells me I have a
total weight of 28 ounces of oil altogether.

You can compare the percentage of oils as shown


in your recipe with the recommended oil
amounts found on page 24 to make sure your
recipe has a good balance, but remember those
recommendations aren’t set in stone.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 87


The Lye Table
The last section to look at is the Lye Table:

• The red range (0 to 4% superfat or excess fat) is


not recommended.
• The green range of lye (5 to 8% superfat) is a nice,
safe middle ground to go with.
• The blue range (9% superfat and higher) will make
a softer soap than some people like.
I like to use around a 6% superfat, so my recipe would
need 3.87 ounces of lye.

Looking back at my original Cambrian Blue Soap


Recipe, it looks like I got all of my numbers correct!

Now you can use this same process with any new
recipe that you’d like to try.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 88


How To Resize A Recipe
Let’s say that you love the recipe and want to make twice as much next time.

Scroll down to the bottom of the page and you’ll see this:

Under “Resized Batch”, change the 28 to 56, if you’d like to double it, or to whatever number
you’d like to increase it by.

Hit “Resize Recipe” and the new amounts of oils, liquids and lye that you need for the larger
batch appears.

Next, we’ll learn how to use a lye calculator to change a recipe.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 89


How To Change A Recipe
Let’s say that you don’t want to use mango butter in the Cambrian Blue Soap recipe, but
instead want to use something else.

Go to the oils information on page 23 and decide what you’d like to use. It looks like mango
butter is in the recipe for moisturizing, but it also hardens soap a tiny bit. It’s not much
though, so we’ll just use something similarly moisturizing to replace it.

Let’s go with hemp oil – keeping in mind our new bar might be a tad softer.

Fill in the original recipe, calculating


the lye just as above, but then click
“Edit Recipe” at the bottom of the
screen (see right.)

Where you had a number 2 in


the box beside Mango Butter,
backspace that out or put a
number 0 in its place.

Find Hemp Oil on the list and


put a 2 beside it. Recalculate the
recipe and you now end up with
the result on the right.

As you can see, the lye amount


changed only from 3.87 to 3.88.
That’s not a lot of difference in
this case!

However, sometimes the amount


changes greatly, so it’s always
good to double check.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 90


Troubleshooting Problems
We’re going to wrap up this book by covering a few common soap making issues and how to
deal with them.

Let’s start with this first picture. What you see there is what happens when...

Soap In Mold Overheats


First, a crack will develop along the top.
If you don’t catch it in time, raw soap will start
oozing out of the crack, as it grows hotter.

The remedy for this is to soap at cooler/lower


temperatures, don’t heavily insulate soaps
containing honey or other natural sugars in
them and always take a few sneak peeks
at your soap during the first few hours after
making it.

If you see a crack forming, uncover your soap right away. Move it to a cooler area, if practical,
or even your refrigerator. You can gently push things back together with gloved fingers or a
heavy-duty spoon or spatula.

Soap Won’t Come Out of Mold


This is not a problem with wooden molds that have removable sides, but can be an issue
in silicone molds. Try leaving your soap in the mold for a few more days; it might just
need more time.

If that doesn’t help, you can freeze your soap for several hours to firm it up enough to try
and pop it out.

Next time, try using a less water in the recipe and/or add 1 teaspoon of salt to the lye
solution.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 91


My Soap Is Squishy & Soft and Won’t Firm Up In The Mold
There are a few reasons this could happen.

Check your lye. Is it clumpy or well past the expiration date? If so, moisture has likely
compromised the ability to measure it out correctly and your soap is probably too heavy
in oils to firm up.

Another reason is from using too much water. Double check the recipe and make sure
you didn’t overdo the liquids.

If your soap recipe is high in “soft oils” like olive oil, sunflower oil, and so forth, it just might
need a little extra time to cure. Leave it in the mold for a few days longer and then recheck.

If your soap never firms up, you should still be able to use it. It probably won’t lather as well
and shelf life will be shorter, but try it out and see how it works for you, before giving up on it..

There’s a Powdery White Layer Over My Soap


This is a purely cosmetic, albeit annoying,
issue that plagues many a soap maker. It’s
sodium carbonate, or more commonly called
soda ash. One of the better ways to prevent
it is to place a layer of plastic wrap directly on
top of your soap, once it has been poured.

Some other ways that might reduce the


chances of it happening is by using distilled
water instead of tap, spraying freshly poured
soap with rubbing alcohol, letting your soap
go through gel phase and insulating the soap
so it doesn’t cool too rapidly.
You can slice or steam the ash layer off. Your
soap is still fine to use.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 92


End Notes
Thank you for purchasing my Natural Soap Making ebook

I hope you found it a helpful and inspiring.

If you'd like to stay in touch, click HERE to sign up for my newsletter. About once or twice a
month, you'll receive my latest soap recipes, DIY herbal projects and information about my
newest books.

You can also find me at:


• Facebook
• Instagram
• Pinterest

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 93


About The Author
Jan Berry is a writer, herbalist, soapmaker and owner
of the website The Nerdy Farm Wife. She lives on a
small farm in Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia with her
husband and two teenagers, along with a menagerie of
animals. She enjoys gardening, reading, tabletop games
and spending time with her family.

Resources
The watercolor art in this ebook set can be found at the Corner Croft shop at Creative Market.

Natural Soap Making THENERDYFARMWIFE.COM 94


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