The article discusses the necessary ingredients, containers and base options for making soap with your own hands. You will also find recipes for making liquid and lumpy detergent at home. Soap making is a newfangled hobby of modern housewives. Of course, handmade soap has a number of advantages over the purchased item. Indeed, certain components can be put into the product, depending on the type of skin and the requirements for it.
What you need for soap making at home
First of all, you need your desire and imagination. If you're still undecided whether you like boiling soap or not, get an inexpensive soap making kit. There are very few components in it, approximately 100-500 g of detergent can be made from approximately one set.
Ingredients for home soap making
Consider what ingredients you need for soap making at home:
- The foundation … It can be solid or liquid. Novice soap makers often resort to the use of baby soap without fragrances and dyes. But preparing such a foundation will take a little time. To begin with, the soap is grated and then melted. Professionals can purchase a soap base. Choose a consistency depending on whether you want to make liquid or solid soap. If you want to make soap from scratch, buy lye and oils. The base is being prepared for several hours. The difficulty lies in the correct calculation of the amount of alkali and oil to obtain a high-quality base.
- Butter … It is one of the basic ingredients that nourishes and moisturizes the epidermis. Oils can be both mineral and vegetable. Please note that mineral fatty substances create a film on the surface of the skin, preventing it from drying out. But they do not nourish or moisturize the epidermis. Therefore, give preference to natural substances.
- Pigment … This can be food coloring, herbal decoction, or brightly colored oil. Usually soap makers use food pigments, as they are completely safe.
- Flavoring … These are usually essential oils from herbs and fruits. True, their price is rather big, but the bottle lasts for a long time. Some experienced soap-makers purchase cosmetic fragrances, their price is an order of magnitude lower.
- Additional ingredients … These are substances for scrubbing the skin, such as loofah, coffee beans or regular oatmeal.
Dishes for making soap at home
To give the soap a certain contour, you will need plastic or silicone molds. If you are going to cook soap for the first time, use silicone molds, the finished product is easily separated from the soft surface and does not break. It is not advisable to use aluminum products, the components of the soap can react with the metal, causing it to corrode. It is problematic to remove ready-made blocks from glass.
Prepare the following utensils and containers: measuring cups, base melting containers and auxiliary containers. Please note that you cannot cook anything else in the saucepan in which you will cook the soap.
In addition, you will need auxiliary materials and chemicals. These are indicator paper, rubber gloves, stirring sticks, knives, plastic sleeves. But you can get by with the usual cheap rubber gloves.
How to choose the basis for soap making at home
It can be liquid or solid. The liquid mass is used for the production of creamy soap in bottles. It does not harden. Solid can be transparent or white.
Soap base manufacturers:
- England … This country produces Crystal bases. The bases for this brand of soap can be clear or cream in color. The company manufactures a base with glycerin and oils. Many soap makers consider it to be one of the best for professional use. It does not crumble during separation into pieces, mixes well with oil and dyes. Among the disadvantages are the high price and the formation of a large number of bubbles when melting in a water bath. When solidified, the soap may not completely follow the contours of the form and crumble. The finished product foams well and does not dry out the skin. In England, a creamy ORS base is also produced, it is suitable for the manufacture of scrub and cream soap. Outwardly, it differs from all other bases in its creamy texture and consistency.
- China … The basis from the Middle Kingdom was the first to hit domestic counters. Almost all craftswomen started their work with these funds. Now the quality of the base from China has deteriorated, but the price is the lowest on the market, so it is still being bought. The composition contains a lot of sodium lauryl sulfate. It is this component that is responsible for the ability of the base to wash. But at the same time, it dries out the skin. Therefore, the less surfactant, the worse the soap foams and less drying of the epidermis. The Chinese base mixes well with dyes and oils, even with large quantities. If you want to make soap of an interesting shape with many small details, you should not purchase this base. After removing from the mold, the product can crumble, and the corners and small parts can break off. Not so long ago, the foundations of the premium class appeared, they are not bad in quality, but they are inferior to the bases from Germany and England.
- Germany … The bases of the German production Zetesap are only transparent, and this property remains after the soap has set. This allows you to create an "aquarium" by adding sprigs of herbs, coffee beans and flowers. The melting point of the base is lower than that of Chinese and English, so watch closely the process of turning the bar into liquid. The main advantage of this base is the absence of bubbles in the finished product. At the same time, the price of the product is lower than the English one. The finished soap lathers well, but dries the skin slightly. Does not take large quantities of oils very well. It is very liquid, therefore, when solidified, it can flow out of the mold.
- Russia … The basics of Russian production appeared on the market quite recently. There are two brands from Russia - Brilliant and Prolab. The main advantage is the low price. In addition, virtually no bubbles form when poured into the mold. In the molten form, the bases are liquid, therefore they perfectly fill shallow depressions. This is a great base for creating demo figurines and master classes. But the prepared soap dries the skin, there may be an off-odor that is difficult to kill with essential oils.
Home soap set for beginners
Now in many hand-made stores you can find separate soap bases, dyes and oils. But all this is sold in large bottles and is not cheap at all. Therefore, if you decide to try yourself as a soap-maker, purchase a set. Its composition may differ depending on your requirements for the finished product.
The approximate composition of a set for soap making:
- Base or soap base … You can use baby soap instead. Choose a product that is free of fragrances and fragrances. This will give the finished product the desired color and smell. True, transparent soap from such an impromptu base will not work.
- Base oil … It is necessary for softening and moisturizing. It is usually added in small amounts. Moreover, the amount of oil used directly depends on the desired properties of the soap and its purpose. The most commonly used oil is almond oil or grape seed oil. It is they who have proven themselves well, and the price for them is not very high.
- Dye … As part of the kits, food colors are sold.
- Aromatic base … These are perfume or essential oils.
- Silicone or plastic molds … Required for making soap bars.
The contents of the kit may vary depending on the recipe. Along with all the ingredients, it contains detailed instructions for preparing a specific type of soap. Manufacturers often include dry herbs in kits to decorate products.
Homemade soap making recipes
There are many recipes for making soap. Of course, initially it is not worthwhile to engage in the creation of complex multi-layer blocks. Make a simple soap of the same color the first few times. Experiment with the amount of base oil, as some soap bases do not mix well with the ingredients, and during cooking, the fatty part can flake off from the bulk. When preparing soap for the first time, take a small amount of food so that you do not mind spoiling it.
Homemade soap making liquid soap from remnants
Baby soap or jelly base can be used as a base. Keep in mind that the baby soap will be opaque, and if you use a jelly-like base, then all the particles for scrubbing will not settle to the bottom. Consider a frugal recipe that uses remnants.
Instructions for making liquid soap:
- Take 100 g of base. This can be ordinary baby soap, odorless or remnants, which experienced housewives often collect. Dry the base in a warm place and grate. You will get a glass of shavings from one block. For 100 g of base, you need 4 glasses of water. You can use herbal tea instead of water.
- Cover the shavings with water and put the saucepan over the fire. Stir the composition all the time. The resulting foam must be removed. Boil the mixture until the chips are completely dissolved.
- After that, turn off the heat and pour in 25 ml of glycerin or base oil. It can be grape seed oil. Drop 2-3 potassium of lemon essential oil. Add yellow dye.
- As a result, you will have a lemon soap with your own hands. Pour it into a bottle with a dispenser, and you can safely use it for your needs.
DIY coffee scrub soap
An excellent soap for scrubbing the skin. Easily removes stubborn dirt.
Instructions for making a quick scrub soap:
- Take 100 g of base and grind it. Pour the shavings into a blender cup and pour a glass of boiling water over.
- Whisk in a blender until smooth. Pour in 30 ml of almond oil and 30 g of natural honey. Add a tablespoon of black ground coffee.
- Add a drop of honey flavor and add yellow dye. Leave it on for 20 minutes.
- Add another glass of cold water. Turn on the blender and beat for 1-2 minutes.
- Pour the scrub soap into a dispenser bottle. With this tool, you can wash your face. It is ideal for people who constantly work with fuel oil, coal or mud. Pieces of coffee beans gently exfoliate the remains of impurities, and honey moisturizes the skin.
Soap making for beginners: solid soap with lavender
This soap, due to its beautiful appearance, can be used as a gift. For the preparation of the product, the German base Zetesap is used. It is transparent, so we will make it white with milk.
Instructions for making lavender soap at home:
- Take 80 g of the finished base and divide it into two parts. From this amount, 100 g of the finished product will be obtained.
- Cut the base into pieces and leave to melt in a water bath. Stir constantly. When the pieces are liquid, divide the mixture in half. Add milk powder to one, and add nothing to the second.
- Continue to cook the soap in different saucepans. Add 15 ml of almond oil and 3 drops of lavender essential oil to each container, pour purple dye into the transparent mixture. Do not add pigment to the mixture with milk.
- Place a sprig of lavender on the bottom of the mold and cover with a little transparent base. When the soap is dry, add a layer of white brew. Alternate layers.
- Before pouring each new layer, the already hardened surface must be sprinkled with alcohol and scratched with a toothpick. This will improve grip and prevent bubbles from forming.
- After all layers have set, separate the soap from the mold. You will get a beautiful product that resembles an aquarium.
Gift detergent-soap with cinnamon
A great option for a gift. The finished detergent smells like lavender and has a beautiful shade.
Instructions for making lavender soap:
- Melt 80 g of the white base in a saucepan. English matte Crystal will do.
- Add 30 g of grape seed oil to the liquid.
- Pour in a few drops of cinnamon essential oil.
- Add 10 g of ground cinnamon powder. There is no need to add colorant.
- Sprinkle the mold with rubbing alcohol and pour the still liquid base into it.
- After 10 minutes, stir the base and sprinkle with alcohol again. This is necessary so that lavender particles do not settle to the bottom and are evenly distributed throughout the entire volume of the block.
To decorate your homemade soap, you can use glitter, dried calendula flowers, milk, honey, and even kelp. How to make soap with your own hands - watch the video:
There are a lot of recipes for making soap with your own hands, with a little practice, you can realize all your ideas and even organize a profitable business.
