Simple and Natural Soapmaking (Page Street Publishing, 2017), by Jan Berry shares more than 50 homemade soap recipes that use natural ingredients and are easy-to-make. Jan includes step-by-step tutorials and detailed instructions, making this book perfect for soap crafters at any level. The following excerpt is from Part 2, “Soaps from the Apiary.”
You can purchase this book from the Mother Earth Living store: Simple and Natural Soapmaking
This homemade orange honey shampoo bar recipe uses natural ingredients that are perfect for moisturizing dry hair during the winter.
Yield: 7 to 8 bars of soap (2.5 lbs/1.13 kg)
What You Need:
• 8.75 oz (248 g) distilled water
• 3.9 oz (111 g) sodium hydroxide (lye)
• 8 oz (227 g) coconut oil (28.6 perecent)
• 3 oz (85 g) mango or shea butter (10.7 percent)
• 10 oz (283 g) rice bran oil (35.7 percent)
• 3 oz (85 g) sunflower or sweet almond oil (10.7 percent)
• 4 oz (113 g) castor oil (14.3 percent)
• 1 tsp (5 ml) honey mixed with 1 tsp (5 ml) warm water
• 0.88 oz (25 g) orange essential oil (use a folded or Valencia type)
• 0.35 oz (10 g) grapefruit essential oil
• 0.18 oz (5 g) litsea or lemongrass essential oil (about 1-3/4 tsp)
Directions:
1. Wearing protective gloves and eyewear, carefully stir the lye into the distilled water, then set the lye solution aside in a safe place to cool for about 30 to 40 minutes or until the temperature drops to around 100 to 110 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Melt the coconut oil and mango butter completely, then add to the other oils. Combine the warm oils with the lye solution. Using a combination of hand stirring and an immersion blender, stir the soap until it reaches a light trace.
3. At trace, stir in the diluted honey and essential oils, then pour into a prepared loaf mold. Cover lightly with a sheet of wax or freezer paper, then a towel or light blanket. Peek at the soap every so often; if it starts developing a crack, uncover and move it to a cooler location.
4. Keep the soap in the mold for 1 to 2 days, or until it’s easy to remove, then slice it into bars when it’s firm enough not to stick to your cutting tool.
5. Cure on coated cooling racks or sheets of wax paper about 4 weeks before using.
Substitution: You can replace coconut oil in equal measure with babassu oil instead. The lye amount will decrease slightly to 3.85 ounces (109 g).
More from Simple & Natural Soapmaking:
• Creamy Avocado Soap
• Classic Cedarwood and Coconut Milk Shave Soap
Reprinted with permission from Simple and Natural Soapmaking by Jan Berry and published by Page Street Publishing, 2017. Buy this book from the Mother Earth Living store:Simple and Natural Soapmaking
