Monday 2 March 2009

Making Soap

So I finally made soap!

I went to a workshop sometime near the end of last year to learn how to make soap. It has taken me that long to collect all the necessary equipment, and so it was with great excitement that I assembled all tools and got down to business last weekend.

This is how I did it:

1. Add water to caustic soda. The temperature rapidly rises so that the water steams and the glass measuring jug is hot to the touch. (2 or 3 tiny caustic soda pellets fell onto the floor somewhere and I couldn't find them - I am SO hoping no-one steps on them with damp feet...) I put blue swimming goggles on to protect my eyes - I don't have proper science-y goggles - so from this point on, my memories of the process are marine tinted.

2. Start heating the olive oil. It's supposed to reach a certain temperature, 38 degrees or something, at the same time as the caustic soda cools to that same temperature. I over-estimated how much heat the oil required and consequently spent the next 20 minutes or so frantically trying to cool it, pouring the oil in and out of various containers, dunking it in ice and so on. Panic!

3. Then add the caustic soda/water to the oil, and stir until soap tracings appear on the surface. And then I realised, I had no idea if I was meant to be heating the mixture while I stirred! (Oh no! And what in God's name is a 'soap tracing'??) So I hedged my bets, stirring for a while without heat, then adding heat. You see, can't possibly go wrong!

4. Pour into pan. Over the next three days or so, stir morning and night to ensure oil is blended in. Only, by the next morning, half of it was solid already. Oh dear.

In the end I called the instructor, who'd kindly given us her mobile number in case we had any problems, even though it's all so easy, and she confirmed that I wasn't meant to heat it in step #3. She's agreed to look over some samples to see if I have ruined the soap completely (ie probably yes!) so I posted them to her on Saturday. By Australia Post, so she probably won't receive them for days and days...anyway. I am looking forward to the verdict.

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