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In step two, you mix the lye water with either melted fat or an oil such as coconut or sunflower. The mixture is boiled to get rid of extra liquid. Salt is added next to help make the soap hard.
Finally, the soap mixture is poured into molds to harden. After a few weeks the soap is taken out and cut into smaller pieces (bars) that are ready to use. Check out these links for further information on soap-making:
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Today,
you can get soap at grocery stores, pharmacies, and just about
anywhere else. In the old days, though, when people wanted to
get clean, they had to make their own. Surprisingly, many people
continue to make their own because the ingredients and scents
can be more appealing than what you can get from the store.
Also, handmade soap lets people get creative and to use more
natural ingredients, especially those they can collect from
nature.
Although
it takes some practice and the measurements have to be pretty
accurate, making soap requires only four ingredients:
To
begin the soap making process, first you must make lye water
(you can also begin with lye that you buy from the store). Lye
water is caustic, meaning it will burn skin quickly, and should
only be handled by adults. If you are making your own lye water,
you begin by mixing white ash with boiled rain water and letting
it sit for a minimum of four hours. You can test the lye water
by trying to float an egg or potato in it. If it floats, the
water is strong enough and you strain it through cheesecloth
to get ready for the next step.
In
step three, you can add flowers, herbs, fragrances, or dyes
to scent and color the soap. Traditionally, people have used
all kinds of things from the forest to help make the soap (and
the things that get washed with it) smell better. This includes
mint, lavender, rosemary, sandalwood, and just about anything
else you can think of.