Soap Making 101

[me&thegals]

We sprinkle it on the gardens, too, plus on the ice in winter to prevent slippage and speed up melting on the driveway.

As for soap, I've been having a blast with fall product soap like apples and cream, pears and cream, carrots and goat's milk, cucumber-mint, etc. I have a huge fundraiser this weekend, so I made up almost 100 bars of soap. Hope they sell!!

 

[valmom]

Our wood ash is valuable for non-slip walking in the winter! It is much more environmentally friendly than salt, for sure, and it puts grit that stays put on the ice really well.

 

[Rhettsgreygal]

I made my first batch of just plain soap - lye, beef suet, pork lard and water.

I want to try making milk soap, but the book I have has recipes that call for fats other than suet and lard. Can I make milk soap with suet and lard? I have some left over and want to use them up and considering that neither my husband or I have now have permanent jobs, I want to save money on buying the fancy ingredients.
Thanks,

Annette

 

[Farmfresh]

If you are trying to save money I would stick to the basic suet and lard soaps and drink the milk or make cheese from it.

I love a nice milk soap, but to me (without a dairy animal) milk IS an expensive ingredient.

 

[me&thegals]

I made my first batch of just plain soap - lye, beef suet, pork lard and water.

I want to try making milk soap, but the book I have has recipes that call for fats other than suet and lard. Can I make milk soap with suet and lard? I have some left over and want to use them up and considering that neither my husband or I have now have permanent jobs, I want to save money on buying the fancy ingredients.
Thanks,

Annette

I've found you can substitute just about anything in for the liquids. I have used cow's cream, milk, goat's milk, yogurt, pureed cucumbers, tomatoes, pears, apples, sweet potatoes and pumpkin. Coconut milk has made my most exceptionally hard and creamy soap so far. Good luck!

 

[freemotion]

I've made goat's milk soap with your recipe, just replacing the water with milk...frozen in ice cube trays so it wouldn't burn and be orange. Made some nice soap! I even added a small amount of chicken fat leftover from making catfood, from some VERY fatty commercial chickens. It worked out just fine. Lovely soap.

 

[Rhettsgreygal]

I've made goat's milk soap with your recipe, just replacing the water with milk...frozen in ice cube trays so it wouldn't burn and be orange. Made some nice soap! I even added a small amount of chicken fat leftover from making catfood, from some VERY fatty commercial chickens. It worked out just fine. Lovely soap.

I may have to try that. I'll be using cow's milk since there are more cows than goats around here. We buy our bagged milk straight from the dairy in town. And if I go there enough, maybe she will hear of job opps somewhere and tell me, or maybe names of contacts at area companies. Networking and making soap go together I guess.

Annette

 

[me&thegals]

I've made goat's milk soap with your recipe, just replacing the water with milk...frozen in ice cube trays so it wouldn't burn and be orange. Made some nice soap! I even added a small amount of chicken fat leftover from making catfood, from some VERY fatty commercial chickens. It worked out just fine. Lovely soap.

Free, are you referring to the one I posted--EIEIO?

 

[freemotion]

Nope, this one:

I made my first batch of just plain soap - lye, beef suet, pork lard and water.

I've been making this because I got some fat for free last winter and some suet for VERY cheap. And a nice big Dutch oven to season via lots of rendering!

 

[murphysranch]

Please tell me, too, about what recipe you used for goats milk soap. I've been reading, ordered a book from Amazon, and joined a couple of forums to see what recipe works for most ppl. Thanks!