How can you make soap with essential oils at home?
Lavender, rosemary, rosehip, cinnamon…
Soaps with essential oils make an excellent gift (Creative commons)
Essential oils are natural compounds extracted from different parts of plants, fruits, or seeds. These are potent, ultra-concentrated substances commonly used in cosmetics today. You can make glycerin-based soaps, but another option is to use aromatic oils. Using the essential oil you prefer, for its aroma or its beneficial properties, you have the option of making soaps at home and achieving excellent results. It’s not difficult, and enjoying your own soaps or giving them as gifts will bring you numerous satisfactions.
Basic ingredients
First of all, you have to be clear about two important concepts
Essential oils are substances that, due to their high concentration of chemical elements, always need to be diluted and properly mixed . To make your soap, you’ll need a base of other oils , such as olive oil, coconut oil, sunflower oil, avocado oil, etc.
The mixture that allows you to shape your oil soap will require, as an essential ingredient, a certain amount of caustic soda.
essential oils (Creative commons)
Therefore, you need:
Base oil (your choice).
Caustic soda, in the proportion required by the amount of soap you want to make.
Water.
A silicone mold to shape your soap.
The essential oils you want to add, which will determine the soap’s aroma and properties, for example: moisturizing, antibacterial, relaxing, etc.
Steps you must follow
First, you’ll be using caustic soda, so you’ll need to make the essential oil soap in a well-ventilated area with proper protection: gloves and goggles.
The next step is to mix the soda and water in a glass container . Pour the water in first, not the other way around, to avoid any mishaps. As for the quantities, to give you an idea, you can calculate about 130-140 grams of soda for every 350-360 grams of water.
Let this first solution cool (be careful! the temperature will reach 80ºC) and meanwhile, mix the base oils you want, for example olive and coconut, although if you prefer to make your soap with just one oil you can also.
Place the base oil in a double boiler and stir well with a spatula. Next, add the lye dissolved in the water to the oil. During this process, try to maintain a temperature of about 40°C in both combinations (a kitchen thermometer may be helpful).
To make your mixture more compact, with a puree-like texture, blend it for a few minutes with a blender and then transfer it to a plastic container. This is the perfect time to add a few drops of your favorite essential oil and some plant-based soap pigment if you want yours to have a special color.
All you have to do is pour the soap into a silicone mold, cover it by placing another mold on top (upside down), and let it cool for 24 to 48 hours . You must wait at least 30 days to use your essential oil soap.
