Basic Castile Soap

This was also my first soapmaking experience. After reading Raynem's review I did some research, and I changed the proportions when I made this recipe... use 3 cups of olive oil and 1 cup of water with the 1/2 cup of lye granules. It was soft for 4 days or more, and was ready to use in about 3 weeks. It turned out great and is a gentle moisturizing soap, but doesn't lather a lot. To get more lather next time, I will substitute coconut oil for 3/4 cup of the olive oil. Good luck!

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The lye water should be poured into the warm oil when both are at 80-100 degrees F. The mixture may be stirred with a hand mixer, but be sure to use caution so that there are no splashes. This is a very caustic mixture. If the mixture comes out too brittle, you can grate it for laundry. If the mixture comes out too soft, it can be used as a liquid soap for laundry or for hands. Be certain to wait at least three weeks before using it on your body to insure that it is not still caustic.

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One ***important*** note- *never* add water to lye, always add the lye to the water! OPtherwise, a nasty splatter can result. To get the right amount of lye for a recipe, always use a lye calculator. There are many on the Web.

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This was my very first soapmaking expierence, and what an experience it was. My first batch did not turn out at all. After 2 days in the mold it was still soft. Like pudding. I did some research and tried again this time increasing the temperature of the oil and lye water. These got hard but were brittle and dried out my skin (only tried it on my hands). I found a trouble shooting chart and it said (according to my symptoms) that I had too much lye in it. (I measured very well) ANYWAY-- I ended up with success because I grated this soap and used it in my dishwasher and it worked very well. The kitchen smell great while the dishes were washing as I had used spice fragrance oil in the soap. Happy Holidays!

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