How to Make Your Own Soap

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This article was co-written by Susan Stocker. Susan Stocker runs and owns a leading green cleaning company in Seattle. She is locally known for her model of outstanding customer service – winner of the Better Business Torch Award 2017 for Ethics & Integrity – and is a strong advocate of fair pay, employee benefits and corporate governance. green sanitation.

This article has been viewed 81,278 times.

Making soap at home is a great way to meet a family need or create great gifts for friends that are both pleasing to the eye and inexpensive. You can use soap making kits, but with making your own soap from scratch, you can choose your own ingredients and customize them to suit your needs. The article will show you how to make soap from basic ingredients using the cold method.

Table of Contents

Ingredient

680 gr coconut oil/olive oil
1,000 grams of vegetable fat
340 gr sodium hydroxide or lye (aka caustic soda)
900 gr purified water or distilled water
120 ml of your favorite essential oil, e.g. mint, lemon, rose or lavender

Preparing to make soap by cold method

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Prepare materials. Cold soap is made from oil, lye, and water. When combined at the right temperature, these ingredients harden into soap in a process called saponification. You can go to craft stores and grocery stores to buy the ingredients listed above.

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Prepare the soap making area. Clearing up a spot in the kitchen is easiest because you’ll need to heat the ingredients on the stove. You will need to deal with alkali – a dangerous chemical, so be sure to keep small children and pets out during the preparation. Spread newspaper on the table and prepare the following supplies (can be purchased online or from a craft store):

Goggles and rubber gloves to protect yourself from lye.
Scales to weigh ingredients.
Large stainless steel or porcelain kettle. Do not use aluminum kettles and kettles with non-stick surfaces.
Glass or wide-mouth plastic water bottle for water and alkali.
480 ml capacity glass or plastic measuring cup.
Plastic spoon or wooden spoon.
Hand blender. This tool is not absolutely necessary but will help reduce the stirring time to about 30 minutes.
2 glass thermometers can measure temperature from 27-38 degrees Celsius. You can use the thermometer to measure candy temperature.
Plastic molds are suitable for making cold soap, or shoe boxes, or wooden molds. If you’re using a shoe box or wooden mold, you should line it with parchment paper.
Plenty of paper towels to clean.

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Read how to use lye safely. Before you start making soap, you need to read the safety warning that came with the lye box. The following should be kept in mind when handling alkaline or raw soap before drying:

Absolutely do not let the lye solution get on the skin because the alkali causes skin burns.
Always wear goggles and gloves while handling lye and harsh soaps.
Handle lye solutions outside of housing or in a well-ventilated area to avoid inhaling airborne gases.

Mix ingredients

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Weigh 340 gr of lye solution. Use a balance to ensure accurate weighing, then pour lye into a 480 ml measuring cup.

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Weigh 900 grams of cold water. Use a scale to ensure accurate weighing, then pour water into a large container, such as a stainless steel pot or glass bowl (don’t use aluminum).

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Pour lye solution into the water. Place the pot of water under the stove’s exhaust fan or open a window and make sure the room is well ventilated. Slowly pour the lye into the water and stir gently with a spatula until completely dissolved.

It is important to pour alkali into the water, not the other way around; If you add water to an alkaline substance, the reaction between the two will happen very quickly and can be dangerous.
When alkali is poured into water, the alkali will heat the water and produce a gas. Turn away to avoid inhalation.
Set the mixture aside. Wait for the mixture to cool and the substance to dissolve.

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Measure oil. Use a scale to weigh 680 grams of coconut oil, 1,000 grams of vegetable fat and 680 grams of olive oil.

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Mix oil. Place the large stainless steel pot on the stove over low heat. Pour the coconut oil and vegetable fat into the pot and stir until melted. Add olive oil and stir until all ingredients are completely melted and well combined. Turn off the stove.

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Measure the temperature of lye and oil solutions. Use a separate thermometer to measure lye and oil solutions. Continue monitoring until the lye reaches a temperature of 35-36 degrees Celsius, and the oil reaches 35-36 degrees Celsius or lower.

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Pour lye into the oil. Once the two mixtures reach the right temperature, you can pour the lye slowly and evenly into the oil.

Use a wooden spoon or a heatproof spoon to stir; Do not use metal spoons.
You can use a hand blender to stir the lye and oil.
Continue stirring for another 10-15 minutes until “bursting” occurs; you will see the spoon leave a clear streak like when making pudding. If using a hand blender, this should happen in about 5 minutes.
If you don’t see streaks on the surface within 15 minutes, you should let it sit for 10-15 minutes before continuing to mix.

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Add 120 ml of essential oil when the mixture begins to streak the surface. Some fragrances and essential oils (e.g. cinnamon) cause soap to harden quickly, so you should be ready to pour the soap into the mold as soon as you stir in the essential oils.

Pour soap mold

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Pour soap into the mold. If using a shoe box or wooden mold, make sure to line it with parchment paper. Use an old plastic spatula to scrape the last remaining soap in the pot into the mold.

Be sure to still wear gloves and goggles during this step as harsh soaps are corrosive and can cause skin burns.
Carefully hold the mold 2.5-5 cm from the tabletop and then drop it down. Do this step a few times to push the air bubbles inside out of the raw soap.

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Close the mold. If you’re using a shoebox as a mold, you can cover it and cover it with a few towels. If using a soap mold, you can glue a piece of cardboard on top before covering with a towel.

The towel will help insulate the soap and help the saponification process happen.
Cover, let stand and keep soap away from exhaust fans (including air conditioners) for 24 hours.

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Check soap. The soap will go through a gelation and heating process for 24 hours. Open the lid and let the soap sit for another 12 hours and wait to see the results.

If measured correctly and followed the instructions, the soap will have a thin, ash-like white coating on the surface. This substance is basically harmless and you can scrape it off with an old ruler or metal spatula.
If the soap has a thick glossy film on top, it cannot be used because the alkali and oil have been separated. This occurs if you measure incorrectly, do not stir long enough, or if there is a significant difference between the temperatures of the alkali and the oil when mixed.
Soap that doesn’t harden or has white or transparent particles in it means the soap can be corrosive to the skin and unusable. This is due to not being stirred enough in the soap making process.

Dry soap

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Remove the soap from the mold. Turn the box or mold upside down so the soap falls onto a clean towel or surface.

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Cut the soap into cakes. You need to use pressure to cut this soap. You can use a sharp knife, a long metal wire with two handles, thick nylon thread, or fishing line.

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Soap drying. Place soap on parchment paper on a flat surface or drying rack for 2 weeks to complete saponification and soap to dry completely. Turn the soap over after 2 weeks to dry the other side.

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Dry soap for a month. Leave the soap in place and expose to the air for at least a month. When the soap is completely dry, you can use it as a commercially available soap or pack it as a gift for friends.

Advice

Do not use perfume as a fragrance, especially perfumes containing alcohol. The alcohol will change the chemical reaction between the alkali and the fat, causing the soap to spoil. You can use natural essential oils or specialized fragrances to make soap. A little essential oil or aromatherapy also creates a very fragrant smell. You only need about a teaspoon.
Temperature is an important factor when mixing oils with alkalis. If the temperature is too high, the two mixtures will separate; If the temperature is too low, the mixture will not turn into soap.
You can buy lye at most chemical stores or online. Make sure the packaging says the product is 100% sodium hydroxide.
Do not make your own soap without the permission of a parent or guardian. If not, you could be in trouble.

Warning

Soap making tools are only used to make soap. Do not reuse in the kitchen or for food handling. Use caution when using wooden utensils, as they are porous and can flake off if used continuously for soap making. Do not use a whisk because caustic substances can stick to many places on the tool.
Small white particles that appear after the soap has hardened in the mold is a sign the soap is corrosive and must be handled safely. These white particles are alkaline. To deal with this batch of alkaline soap, you can neutralize the alkali with vinegar. Soak the bar of soap in water and use your hands (with gloves on) to break the bar or use something else to break the soap into small pieces, then pour the soap-vinegar mixture down the drain. .
An alkaline solution (sodium hydroxide) is a strong base and can be very dangerous. Avoid contact with skin and eyes. If lye comes into contact with the skin, flush with water, then vinegar can be used to neutralize the burn and seek medical attention. If lye solution comes into contact with eyes, you should rinse with cool water for 15-20 minutes and then seek medical attention. Use an emergency eyewash or eyewash bottle if available. If lye is swallowed, contact a poison control center immediately.
Wear rubber gloves and goggles when handling lye solutions. Do not leave lye solution within reach of small children and pets.
When mixing chemicals such as alkalis with water, you should always pour the chemical into the water, not the chemical to reduce the risk of the chemical splashing out.

Things you need

Oil:
- 680 gr olive oil (non-virgin)
- 680 gr coconut oil
- 1,000 grams of vegetable fat
Lye:
- 340 gr lye solution
- 900 gr purified water or purified water
Fragrance or essential oil
- 120 ml of favorite flavoring
Device:
- Goggles
- Rubber gloves
- Apron
- Scales to weigh ingredients
- Large stainless steel or porcelain kettle. Do not use aluminum kettles and kettles with non-stick surfaces.
- Wide-mouthed glass or plastic water bottle for water and alkali
- 480ml capacity glass or plastic measuring cup
- Plastic spoon or wooden spoon
- Hand blender (optional)
- 2 glass thermometers that can measure temperatures from 27-38 degrees Celsius. Can use candy thermometers
- Plastic molds are suitable for making cold soap or shoe boxes or wooden molds.
- Stencils
- Lots of tissues
Source of running water and vinegar (in case of contact with lye).