Over the years, I’ve looked into making soap but the number of finicky steps were always too daunting. Not for Lara though. She did the research, organized the endeavour, and executed the steps; and we now have homemade soap. Along the way, emulsification, saponification, and exothermic reactions were discussed.
This is the recipe she used.
They’re “curing” for a few weeks before we try them out. They smell so soothing, I want to tuck one under my pillow.
Can’t wait to see what she’ll want to do next.
Updated 2021-08-04 for cost comparisons
Homemade: $1.40 / 100g
Ivory soap, No Frills on sale: $0.33 / 100g
Irish Spring, No Frills on sale: $0.70 / 100g
Dove, No Frills: $1.41 / 100g
Detailed Ingredient Homemade Soap Costs:
- Coconut oil (non-food grade) – 11oz / 312g – $4.80
- Avocado oil – 2oz – $2.50
- Almond oil – 2oz – $3.00
- Beeswax – 2oz / 57g – $1.04
- Olive oil (cheap stuff) – 18oz / 511ml – $3.40
- Lye – 140g – $2.10
- Other (not counted in costs): Honey – 3 Tbsp, Grapefruit essential oil – 10 drops
Looks amazing Lara and Felix. Very tricky too.
Very interesting, strong ingredients, no wonder it can remove odours, or so I’ve been told. Next: how to attach the rope?