subject: You Can Start With Soap Making Right In Your Home [print this page] Herbal soap has been the choice of some people because they believe that it has better properties compared to regular soap. Aside from the cleaning effects of regular soap, it also incorporates the healing properties of the plants that was included in the making of the soap. More often than not, herbal soaps are also milder and safer to use on the skin.
These kinds of soap need not be bought in specialty stores which sell such kinds of soap. Soap bought in these stores is usually more expensive due to their special properties. In addition to these, other soaps sold in such stores have extensive and beautiful designs which help them justify the price of their products.Since most of these soaps are found only in specialty stores, they can be more expensive. In addition to this, some soaps are also made with special designs which make them even more expensive. Some people still buy these soaps as they prefer the effects of herbal soaps compared to the normal ones.
The truth is that soap making is a fairly easy process, which makes use of cheap materials so it does not have to be sold at a very high price. It is very easy to do such that you can even make your own soaps at home. Even small children can make this into a hobby as long as the proper precautionary methods are taken.
Some of the basic ingredients that you will need are lye, cooking oil or any other type of oil and your choice of herbal leaves. You may also choose to use some coloring dyes to give your soap the color that you prefer.
As for the tools that you need, you have to have a pail, some mixing tools, some cups, a mortar and pestle, a cooking pot, some molds, a chopping board, a knife, cheesecloth, gloves and a face mask. These last two are needed for you own protection as caustic soda can cause skin and lung irritations when it comes into contact with these surfaces.
The first thing you need to do is prepare your herbal mixture. The leaves need to be washed thoroughly and chop up enough that will fill 1 glass. Boil these leaves in 2 glasses of water for 15 minutes and then strain it afterwards. Set this aside and let it cool.
The next step is to measure 1 cup of caustic soda and 3 cups of your herbal mixture. These needs to be mixed within a bucket stirred continuously until all of the caustic soda has been dissolved. Next add 5 cups of oil and continue stirring until the consistency become similar to that of condensed milk. Coloring dye may also be added while stirring. The mixture must then be placed into molds and allowed to cool for several hours. Once this has hardened, the soaps still need to be aged for one month before they will be ready to use.
Now wasn't that very easy to do? These ingredients are very cheap and easy to find so you won't have any problems in buying and getting hold of them. You can also choose what kind of herbal leaves you want to use, and you may also design your soap in any way that you like. This might even be a good gift idea to give to your friends and relatives.
