Homemade Lye Soap

Posted by User Contributed

June 22, 2008

Before going on to the amazingly fun and easy guide on how to make your very own homemade lye soap, here is an interesting little fun fact mixed with a bit of shocking truth. Before the 1850’s the folks had to rely on their own techniques, tricks and recipes to enjoy some of the luxuries we take for granted in the modern age. Amongst these were homemade lye soap. This homemade soap was made primarily from the lye which they got from gathered ashes and additional lard. Home soap making purists tend to avoid calling it lye soap mainly because at the end of the soap making process, there isn’t any lye left in the bar of soap. Now for the shocking truth bit, during the soap making process glycerine is created as a by product which is a main ingredient in top market beauty products. Big companies today actually extracts the glycerine produced by the soap making process to use in their more expensive moisturising products. More on that a bit later though, for now we will focus on how you can make your very own luxurious bar of soap.

Please note that lye, which is a main ingredient in the soap making process, is a very caustic chemical and does require safety precautions when being used. Wear safety goggles, rubber gloves a face mask and a rubber apron whenever you work with lye. Read the manufacturer’s notes carefully. Work in a well ventilated room or if at all possible outside. Avoid breathing the fumes or touching the lye with your skin. Follow the recipe exactly. If you stick with this warning label then the soap making process will be a world of fun.

Now back to what everyone has been waiting for with great anticipation, your easy to use home made lye recipe. This is perhaps one of the most interesting and useful craft available to date, and thinking back to the origins of homemade lye soap, that is really saying something. It allows you to be creative while making something that your entire family can use and it is really cost effective. All it takes are a few ingredients, some love, a little care and a bit of time.

Ingredients:

1 can lye crystals.
2x ½ pints of cold water.
5x ½ lbs. cooking fat or lard.
Scented essential oil (such as lavender)
Food coloring or pigment that should match the scent produced by the oil. (Eg. Green for mint, purple for lavender etc.)

What you will need:

Glass bowls.
Wooden spoons.
Glass pans or soap molds.
Wax paper.
Safety glasses.
Rubber gloves.
Glass cooking thermometers.

What you need to do:

Before anything else, put on your safety goggles, rubber apron, rubber gloves and face mask. Please always keep in mind that lye is a very caustic chemical and can cause severe burns if it gets on you skin or in your eyes. Now we need to add the lye to your water, never the other way around. Pour your water into one of the clean glass bowls. Now you SLOWLY add the lye to your water while being careful of any splashes or spills. Stir the mixture with a wooden spoon so that all the crystals dissolves into the water. You will notice that the temperature starts to rise while you are stirring, which is quite normal. Put the mixture aside while we start melting your lard.

Melt your lard or fat in a pot until it becomes a nice liquid and then leave the lard to cool. Remember that for this step you need to have all the proper safety gear and work in a well ventilated room if you can’t work outside. Once both the lard liquid as well as the lye mixture have cooled to between 85 and 100 degrees you can pour the lard liquid into a clean glass bowl. Now carefully pour the lye mixture into the liquid lard being very careful not to splash or spill. Add one or two drops of your chosen fragrance and coloring oil. Any more than that and you risk having too strong a scent or a soap that might stain anything you try to wash. Stir the mixture carefully with a wooden spoon until it starts to trace. In other words, if you see a visible line made by the wooden spoon that stays behind for a few seconds, your mixture is ready.

Prepare a glass pan by greasing it and lining it with wax paper. If you have molds that you would wish to use than use them instead of the glass pan. Pour your mixture into the molds or the glass pan. Cover the mixture with additional wax paper and wrap the molds or pan with a towl so they can cool and set overnight. Once they have set, remove them from their packaging, cut it into the shapes and sizes that you want, and then place them on a rack in a cool, dry place. The bars need two to three weeks to harden sufficiently. Then it is simply a case of enjoying your creative new product.

The rest is entirely up to you. You and your family can use the soap at home as a luxurious cleaning product equivalent to expensive, upmarket beauty products. You can give it as a wonderous gift to family, friends, business people or whomever else you want. It can be used in guest houses or hotels as a personalised soap. With some creative packaging you can even turn it into a lucrative product for your business or to earn a bit of extra cash at you local arts and crafts market. This is the perfect hobby in my humble opinion and can provide endless joy.

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