Cold-Processed Soap

Photo by mwri Photo by mwri

All great things are started by focus.  Okay, not all...but many.  In any case, I do believe that many great things are started by focus, and perhaps a healthy amount of curiosity.

I have curiosity abundant, which is why this blog even exists.  I need to report on things I've learned, and things I've discovered.


Today's Discovery: Lye

I was researching cold-processed soap making (because some days I practically live on etsy, and I was looking at soap, which led into cold-processed soap, and I began to wonder what the heck it all really means).  So, right, cold-processed soap...

What is Cold-Processed Soap

Cold-processed soap (as opposed to hot-processed soap) is when you actually make the soap (rather than just melting it and reforming it, as you would with hot-processed soap).

             Photo by madaise

Making Cold-Processed Soap

To make cold-processed soap you need some kind of moisturizing agent (oil or what have you), fragrances and colors (should you so desire), and lye.  I've heard of lye and it had absolutely no meaning to me whatsoever.

Lye is what makes soap-making (cold-processed) not for the faint of heart.  Lye is a chemical compound (available in powder form) that needs to be mixed with water in order to create a mixture I'll call "liquid lye".  When the powder lye interacts with the water it has a chemical reaction which causes it to reach temperatures nearing 200 degrees fahrenheit (practically boiling).  That's all fine as long as you have something safe to stir your liquid lye mixture in.  The real danger with the powder lye is making sure that it doesn't touch any water when you don't want it to.  If you have a little extra lye residue on your spoon, be sure a little kid doesn't come along and try to use that spoon.  Make sure that any extra lye at the bottom of your pitcher doesn't skip getting washed thoroughly.  Other than those basic safety precautions, it's not such a horrible thing.  Storage, of course, is an issue as well, but as long as you follow directions, you should be okay.

After the lye business, you heat your moisturizers (oils) in a pot, and then when they are about 100 degrees Fahrenheit, add the lye (which should have been cooling to a balmy 100 degrees itself...use a thermometer, not your finger!).  Slowly add the lye to your oils, then pull out your handy submersion mixture (some might know it as a hand mixture) and then mix until your lye reacts with your soap (it will start to change appearance quickly).  After about a minute, the lye will have finished reacting.  Then, add whatever fun stuff you want (colors, scents, etc), mix some more (with a spoon or something) and then pour it into a soap mold.  Set your soap mold aside for at least 4 days (so the lye has time to finish reacting...otherwise you get chemical burns) or up to a few weeks if you really want to make sure it's good!  Slice your soap, and then enjoy!

Phew!  So that's what all that cold-processed soap was about.  You'll end up with something beautiful and fun to use.

                                                                                               Photo by certified su

(By the way, for the curious, in the days before lye was bought in powder form, people had to mix wood ashes with water, let it sit a few days, be sure it was good and strained, and then take the liquid lye to use it for soap and other things.)

That's all for today!