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While soaps purchased at the supermarket are full of bubbling lather and scent, they’re also likely full of ingredients and chemicals that we can’t pronounce. Concerned about the use of chemicals on the skin, many consumers are making conscious efforts to purchase soaps made with natural ingredients. And the recently documented health benefits of olive oil have people turning back to the soap first created by French craftsmen so many years ago.
It turns out olive oil is good for our bodies, inside and out. Olive oil is an excellent moisturizer for the skin because it attracts external moisture and holds it close. It’s also been shown to help skin retain brightness, elasticity and flexibility.
Without taking a trip to the Mediterranean, olive oil soaps can be purchased at natural food stores, European markets and online beauty sites. But there is another way to treat your skin to the benefits of this pure luxury, and that is to make your own natural olive oil soap at home.
Most of the tools and ingredients you need are already in your kitchen. And by following these simple directions, you can use your creativity to customize an olive oil soap that’s naturally perfect for you.
First, it’s important to understand the chemical process of soap making. All soap is made with lye (sodium or potassium hydroxide). When lye and fat are brought together, they react to make soap or glycerine in a process known as saponification. This process actually takes several weeks and the soap must sit and age before it can be used safely.
Making homemade soap this way is tricky and somewhat dangerous because lye is a very caustic substance. It can create fumes, burn the skin and cause severe harm if inhaled or swallowed. For that reason, creating soap from raw materials should be left to experienced soap makers and craftsmen.
For beginners, a process called hand-milling is safer, easier and a lot more fun. Instead of making soap from scratch, we’ll use a purchased olive oil soap base where the lye reaction has already been done for us. By re-batching, or re-melting the soap base, we’ll be able to mold our own shapes and designs, as well as add colors, fragrances and additives to our liking. Better yet, you’ll be in the bath with a luxurious bar of homemade olive oil soap in about an hour.
What You Will Need
Tools:
microwave oven
microwave-safe bowl
plastic spoon or stirring stick
soap molds
Ingredients:
olive oil soap base
optional:
fragrance oils
herbs
coloring
additives of your choice
Tip: Look for soap making starter kits that include soap base, soap molds, oils and coloring in one convenient package.
You may already have a number of these items at home, but some may need further explanation. Before we begin making our soaps, let’s understand the use of soap molds and our ingredients.
Soap Molds
Soap molds are used to hold and shape the melted liquid soap until it solidifies. You can buy soap molds at craft stores in everything from perfect rectangles or ovals to more intricate flower, star and animal shapes. But you can use just about anything that has an interesting shape and holds hot liquid. Some makeshift containers that can be found around the house include ice cube trays, empty tuna cans, muffin tins or candy and Jell-O molds. Experiment with different sizes, and keep in mind that too small soaps will break easily and too large bars might slip out of your hands.
Tip: Do not use aluminum containers as molds. Soap is made from lye, which is an alkali substance. If there’s even the tiniest trace of lye in the soap base, it will react with the aluminum, dissolve it and create a big mess.
Olive Oil Soap Base
Soap bases, or melt-and-pour bases, come in olive oil as well as a number of other varieties like oatmeal, honey, goat’s milk and clear glycerine. You can find olive oil soap base at some craft or health food stores and at many soap and candle making retailers online. Just be sure to buy an all-natural soap base that is free of detergents, surfactants and sulfates. Check the ingredients listed on the package.
Fragrance Oils
If you’d like to add a special fragrance to your olive oil soap, you’ll need to purchase an essential oil and a carrier oil.
Essential oils create the soap’s overall fragrance. Popular essential oils include vanilla, peppermint, rose, musk, eucalyptus and orange.
Carrier oils help the fragrance of the essential oil to mix evenly with the soap base. They also carry the scent in the water while you wash. Popular carrier oils include sweet almond, sesame, coconut, olive, grape seed and jojoba.
Essential and carrier oils can be purchased at herbalist shops or craft and health food stores. They usually come in small 4-oz. bottles with squeeze dropper tops. (Keep in mind that you’ll only need a few drops for each soap.)
Herbs
Fresh or dried herbs are an option to enhance your design and add a fresh scent. Herbs can be ground, chopped or shredded depending on how you want your soap to look. A variety of herbs can be found at grocery and health food stores, or see what you have in your own spice rack. Lavender, rosemary, lemongrass, sage and chamomile are particularly nice in olive oil soap bars.
Colors
Both food coloring and vegetable dye will work to transform your soap base into a beautiful color. Just be careful not to use too much, because it can temporarily discolor your skin. (One drop of color for each mold should be plenty.) Food coloring and vegetable dyes can be found at grocery or craft stores.
Tip: It’s easy to enhance the appearance, texture and scent of your olive oil soap with the oils, herbs and colors described above. But you can also use a number of other creative additives. Some ideas include shredded loofah sponge, dried flower petals and pieces of fresh or dried fruits and vegetables.
Instructions
Once you’ve chosen your molds, olive oil soap base and additive ingredients, you’re ready to get started. We’ll use the following three-step hand-milling process:
Step 1: Add Your Chosen Ingredients to the Molds
Before re-melting the soap base, you should prepare your additive ingredients (if using). Place all of your oils, herbs, colors and other additives out on your workspace. Then, all you need to do is add them directly to the bottom of your molds in the following order:
First: Add the oils. For small molds, add 2 to 3 drops of both the essential and carrier oils. For larger molds, add 5 to 10 drops, depending on how strong you want the fragrance to be. It’s not necessary to mix the oils together at this time.
Second: Add the herbs. Just a pinch in each mold is enough.
Third: Add the color. One drop of food coloring or vegetable dye in each mold (regardless of size) is usually more than enough to create a deep, rich color. After you pour in the melted base, you can add another drop if you decide you want the color to be darker.
Tip: Always add your oils and colors to the molds before you melt and pour the olive oil base. The base will start to cool and thicken quickly, and you won’t have time to add everything you want in each mold after you melt it.
However, if you want to control the placement and design of other additives such as herbs, loofah, or flower petals, you can wait to add those until you pour the soap base. You’ll have just enough time to position them as the base cools and thickens. See Step 3 for further details.
Step 2: Re-Melt the Olive Oil Soap Base
First: Cut your soap base into small pieces (if it’s not already shredded for you). Since the base will start to cool and thicken rather quickly, it’s easier to handle in smaller amounts.
Second: Place the soap base in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on low for 10 seconds, and then stir. Repeat this process until the soap base is completely melted.
Tip: When melting the olive oil soap base in the microwave, be careful not to overheat it to a boil. This can cause the natural oils to evaporate in the steam and alter your finished product. Most likely, your soap will “sweat,” and continuously form tiny beads its surface.
Step 3: Pour and Set Your Soaps
First: Pour the melted olive oil soap base into your prepared molds. As you pour, use a plastic spoon or stirring stick to mix and distribute the soap base, oils, colors and other additives evenly. You can stop pouring when the molds are filled to your desired thickness.
Second: Add your final color and additives. If after pouring the soap base you decide that you want a darker color, add one more drop of food coloring or vegetable dye and mix well. Also, if you waited to use additives like herbs, loofah or flower petals so you could control their design, add them now. Use your spoon, stirring stick or fingers to control their placement as the mixture cools and thickens.
Tip: Don’t worry if the soap base in your bowl hardens before you’ve had a chance to pour it into all of your molds. Simply put it back in the microwave and reheat it until it liquefies.
Third: Let the soap-filled molds cool. Let the soap cool for 20 minutes to one hour, or until they’re solid to the touch.
Fourth: Remove your soaps from the molds. Your soaps should pull away from the sides of the molds on their own as they cool. If they don’t, try turning the molds upside down and placing them on a warm, wet washcloth for a few seconds to help loosen them. You can also try placing the whole mold in the freezer for 10 minutes to help cool and shrink the soaps faster.
Using the re-milling process makes it easy to create your own pure olive oil bars or personalize your soaps with your favorite colors, fragrances and natural additives like herbs, flowers and fruits. When you come up with a combination that you really love, write it down so you can make it again and again. Wrap up extra bars in pretty paper and display them in your bathroom or give them as gifts. Everyone will wonder when you had time to take a trip to the Mediterranean.
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