A lot of people say they don’t use soap on their face now. I think I know why this is. In the soap industry the glycerin is removed during the soapmaking process so that it can be sold for use in creams etc. I’m guessing that that’s why soap is making people’s faces dry. Also people are using liquid soap a lot, so we had the idea of making liquid soap to offer for refilling soap dipensers.
This fits in well with the time of year, it being too cold to make bars of soap, and with our desire to use local rapaseed oil, which makes a very soft bar.
Previously Nick and I have been making bars of soap in the usual way using oils and caustic soda. When people first made soap, they were using wood ash and water, that had been concentrated. We’d call that caustic potash. ( the generic term for both caustic potash and soda is lye) This makes a softer soap as potash is deliquescent, (please say ooooh!) that is, it absorbs moisture from the air. Thus the liquid soap is made by a similar process but using a potash lye and a different quantity of oils. What was good for us was that you can do the whole lot in a slow cooker, which makes things lovely and tidy.
later on I’m going to run a few classes on soapmaking and natural cosmetics and remedies at the cafe in Albert St. Ventnor. Apart from teaching the basics of soapmaking, I will be encouraging discussion and sharing of knowledge and experiences of the group. Please let me know if you are interested by replying to this post or call Wendy on 07532372519
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Ventnor Permaculture 