I have been interested in soap making since high school when my mom got me a book on the subject. I was initially intimidated by the process since it involves using lye which is a substance that requires safety precautions, so I put my ambition on hold for many years until recently. Of course I was busy with other things like finishing my education and building a career and family, but I have finally come back around to it and I am so glad that I did. I have often gravitated towards the soap booth at craft fairs and the soap displays at specialty shops while traveling. I am fascinated by both the design and fragrance elements as well as the beauty and creativity that goes into a bar of handmade soap. Now I know there is so much more to it from the chemistry of the process to the skill of layering and swirls and the properties of ingredients that add different characteristics. To get started making soap also requires a fair amount research and investment. I am excited to be building my supplies and learning with each new batch that I make.
Soap is the result of combining an acid and a base which results in a reaction that creates a new substance which is considered a salt and that is soap. The acid in this case is oils from castor oil, which adds bubbles, to olive oil, which is a humectant and draws moisture, to coconut oil and many others. The base in this case is sodium hydroxide or lye. On top of this, fragrance and colorant are also added. When coming up with a recipe, it is important to calculate the ratio correctly so that it ends up being a gentle bar of soap. There needs to be enough oil to disburse all of the lye and extra is even better, which is a type of recipe that is termed “super fatting”. Having extra oil at the end of the process allows that oil to add additional moisture to the skin. A by-product of this process, which is called “saponification” is glycerine, which is also a humectant (draws moisture) to further benefit the skin. Many commercial cleansing bars are not able to use the term “soap” because they are either made up of detergents instead of soap or the glycerine is extracted during the process and used in other products.
The chemistry behind soap is interesting both from the standpoint of how soap is made but also how it works to remove dirt from our hands. The process of saponification is explained well in Carol Hill’s book “Soap Making Business Startup”. Here is a summary: The oils used in soap making are made up of triglycerides and the sodium hydroxide base is made up of sodium and hydrogen ions. The soap making process includes separating the triglycerides in the oil into unsaturated fats and glycerol as well as parting of sodium hydroxide into sodium and hydroxide ions. The separating of the sodium hydroxide is called ionization. Water added to the sodium hydroxide is a key medium to the process because it helps to separate triglycerides and allows for ionization. The reaction of the unsaturated fat and sodium ions create soap and the reaction of glycerol and hydroxide ion creates glycerine. The resulting soap has a molecular structure that has two ends, a polar end that binds with water and a non-polar end that binds with grease and dirt. This is why we wash our hands with soap and water. The soap clings to the dirt and the water draws it away leaving our hands clean. Now that we know how it works, let’s look at how it is made.
Preparing to make soap can be a big investment from the specialty oils like avocado oil and vitamin E oil to the tools like wooden molds and soap loaf cutters. As soon as you think you’re ready to make soap, a recipe calls for rice bran oil or glitter which are not items currently in the supply closet. Of course, a recipe can be altered a to fit the oils on hand as long it is first run through a soap calculator to ensure the ratio of oil to lye is appropriate since each oil is different in this regard. I got a few soap making books to get started and read through them before I tried making soap. I now keep those books on my soap making table and reference back to the recipes. I have also found several online resources for soap recipes and tutorials which are useful. I started with a 10 inch soap mold and my first batch was a shea butter base with a ginger scent and blue swirl. The soap turned out well, but I cut it by hand and the bars were not very even. Since then, my dad made me some soap molds so I can do two batches at once and I got a soap loaf cutter which cuts 10 bars at once.
There are a number of free soap calculators that help “soapers” build recipes and provide guidance on whether the resulting bar will be cleansing, moisturizing, bubbly or creamy. The properties of a soap are largely based on the type of oils used. Some oils are hard at room temperature like coconut oil, palm oil, shea butter and cocoa butter and others are liquid like olive oil, avocado oil and castor oil. A typical bar of soap takes 4-6 weeks to cure however a pure olive oil soap called Castille soap can take longer. It is possible to add sodium lactate or beeswax to soap to help create a harder bar of soap, but a bar of soap also hardens the longer it cures as the moisture slowly evaporates. Additional properties are also considered such as antioxidants in cocoa butter and the moisturizing elements in avocado oil and jojoba oil. Soap design can also be a factor since some oils can speed (such as shea butter or palm oil) or slow (such as canola oil or sunflower oil) trace, which is the thickening of the soap. For layered soaps, speeding up can be beneficial, but for swirl soaps, slowing trace is needed to have time for the design. You can see what happens when you use a fast trace recipe for a swirl soap. I did this in the example here and ended up doing the swirl by hand instead of by pouring.
The process of selecting a recipe, a color, a fragrance, a design and finally naming the resulting soap has been a fun exploration. So far my most popular soaps have been my full moon soap and my felted mango soap. Both of those creations came about by chance. I had made some circle soaps that set up too fast, so they weren’t smooth enough. I wondered what to do with them and remembered hearing about “imbeds” which is putting pieces of soap in another soap batch to create shapes. I thought they looked like a full moon, so decided to put them in the center of a blue swirl soap. It turned out really well and has gotten over 3500 views on my marketplace listing on Facebook. I had to hurry up and make another batch because I sold out of the first one. My felted mango soap came about because I was processing wool fiber for spinning and my step mom, Lil, mentioned I could use some of it to make felted soap. I watched some videos on the process and got hooked.
Felted soap is used like a wash cloth in the shower for gentle exfoliation. It also acts like a soap saver to keep the soap for longer as well as enhancing the lather. Wool is naturally anti-microbial an adaptation that evolved in nature as the animals are out in the elements and their coats don’t mold, which makes it perfect for the moist shower environment. Designing the felted soaps is also interesting because different colors or embellishments can be used. I posted my felted soap in a soap making group and it got 130 comments from people who either shared their designs as well or people who wanted to know how to make it and what it was used for. It’s more well known in Canada where it’s available in many of their gift shops. The felting process involves wrapping the soap and then applying heat and agitation to get the fibers to felt. Felted fibers criss cross and shrink making them into a cohesive cloth like structure that is bound together and won’t fall apart. The below video shows the great lather produced from a felted bar of soap.
I have applied to the Farmers Market in Fort Collins, CO for the summer of 2021 and hope that I get a spot so that I can have a soap and craft tent. I think that will be a great opportunity to get more feedback on what people are interested in regarding their soap. All of my soaps are all natural and vegan using no man made or animal products (except the wool for my felted soaps). They are a great alternative to the more drying commercial bars. The designs and scents appeal to many different tastes and make them fun to use. I am grateful I could turn my interest and appreciation of handcrafted soap into a business where I get to be creative and continue to learn about this amazing craft.