There is lot of Maths in making soap. Mathematics has never been my strong point.
Luckily there are sites to calculate these things. But you still need to know whats what. Each oil has a different make up and use. My children and I have very dry skin so I am working on designing a soap for dry skin sufferers.
And in the meantime I am starting to make soap that may be good enough to sell. I take notes on every batch and it has started looking great.
Everytime I make soap I end up with soft well oiled hands so yesterday I thought, why not make a body lotion bar. I read around and there is lots of talk about using pasture raised lard or tallow to make lotion bars for the skin.
The most popular seems to be one part lard/tallow, one part shea butter, one part cocoa butter or coconut oil then fragrance. Well of course I don’t have any shea butter left and no cocoa butter and yesterday we had freezing drizzle on and off, and ice falling out of the sky all day so I was not going anywhere to buy any even if i could find any round here. So I just set to and did the maths and created a new lotion bar.
Celi’s Dry Skin Body Lotion Bar
- 1 cup melted lard (allow to sit warm for a while with a vanilla pod – for obvious reasons)
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 1 tablespoon lanolin
- 1 tablespoon jojoba oil
- 1 tablespoon flaxseed oil.
- dash of lavender (right at the end)
This one has too much liquid oil in it so it is a bit soft. The recipe needs refining. But my skin loves it. I mean really loves it.
Because I did not have any Vitamin E or anything to preserve this, it will need to be kept in the fridge. (Plus if I leave it lying about I am fairly sure that Boo and Marmalade will eat it). Once it was cooler I poured it into a mold, when quite cold I cut it into bars and stored them in a tin in the fridge. I took a chunk and rubbed it into my skin after my bath last night and it is fantastic. (The trick is to rub the lotion into your skin while your skin is still wet from the bath, then pat dry) Just holding it melts the outside of the bar nicely so you can smooth it all over your skin. My hands and feet crack and bleed in this cold, cold weather, so I look forward to seeing if this makes a difference.
Plus I secretly put some on my face and it took years off me, I look Twenty-Twelve!! Not.
Do not put a lid on your lotion until it is absolutely cold, it will evaporate while cooling and the droplets of water may stimulate mould. There are no chemicals or preservatives in this remember.
When I get more shea butter I will certainly add that. Not exactly sustainable but ah well. Time for another trip to Chicago. But no more buying expensive lotions. Life just keeps getting simpler and simpler.
Did I tell you that Our John requested a still for distilling his own essential oils, for Christmas. It is presently set up in the cellar, looking very Mad Scientist-ish. And this year I am planting 100 lavender plants all around the front of the house.
Have a lovely day.
Your friend on the farm
celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
98 responses to “Making soap and body lotion on a cold day”
There is a lot of beauty coming out of your kitchen – and it is not just your magic body bar Celi. No one will ever regret looking after their selves in the years to come. And, look how wonderful we feel when we pamper ourselves just a little in the here and now. V.
A little pampering goes a long way! morning V.. c
The soaps – and that lotion bar! – sound fabulous, but I can’t wait to hear about John’s Adventures in Distilling…I always wanted to make essential oils when I was younger. All I grew then were herbs – mostly because they took care of themselves, while I chased three kids around 😉
Herbs are very forgiving, my daughter already has an order in for lemon and basil soap.. I may have to buy the lemon but john will make the basil essence.. now you are chasing two kids around! c
I think I have found a new years resolution for 2014 – Make soap. A month or two of reading research first and then In I go up to my elbows! 😉
How fun! Great post!
This is so exciting. I could feel your skin soaking up this marvellous concoction.
What an informative post and exciting venture ~ well methinks I am a little too far for a send and cannot quite see myself making any but have learned a lot from reading everyone’s interesting viewpoints! Good luck and much fun with both your venture and Big John’s!!
Off topic: I take my hat off to you [again!] ~ I bought and loved some of the books on your recent Fellowship list: the Norwegian and Finnish ones. Shared with a number of Estonian/Northern European friends, telling the tale of the farmy, the storm, your backward flight down the stairs and your bloomin’ coccyx! Well, as you would guess many of my friends are my Med School cohort or more recent personal doctors. A lot of notes back – bugger, that is a wicked place to hurt as doctors can’t do a thing about it!!!!!! So you were right in what you did, milady!!
I can smell the lavender from here !!
The only soap I’ve found I can use on my poor / excema (sp!) prone skin is olive oil soap. bloody brilliant it is, I’m wondering if there are other oils you could use? I use Rape Seed oil (locally grown etc in Sussex) for cooking and salads, just wondering… x to you and your mad scientist and wishing you a heavenly scented new year x
Flax seed oil and jojoba are very good for skin, but you can’t get pst good old olive oil soap, and it is easy for you to make yourself too.. I hope you have a wonderful New year too.. c
Ooooohhhh a mad scientist!!! Just what I need!!! Sooooo took years off eh? 😀 I have really dry heels. It all started when I moved out here to cold country! Of course I used to have a pedicure once a week too!!!! Not out here!!! LOL
Sounds wonderful and I love the way you cut the round bars!!! People love homemade soaps that are natural!!! I buy goats milk soap and it is lovely!!! And I have bought soaps made with emu oil!
I am so proud of you our little entrepeneur!!! Let me know when it goes on the market!!! 🙂
My hands are always so dry too. Look like pine cones!!! No matter how many times I put lotion on them. They are always in water!!! I wear gloves most of the time…but sometimes I am in a rush!
I use all those oils! I make a concoction for my legs which get very dry too.
I like grapeseed, jojoba, coconut, olive and castor oil. Never tried flaxseed oil!
Good for you Celi!!! Happy New Year to you too my friend! Staying home this year and will watch the ball drop in NYC and then switch over to CA!!! 🙂 Bought a bottle of champagne and thinking of something to go with it just to munch on!
Love you!!! Sorry I am so late!!! Take care! (((hugs)))
Hi, how are you doing? Well it seems like. You are brave and gifted soul. I don’t know how to make anything. I had an aunt who could tackle all and I believe that she learned how to make soap and such. I seem to remember hearing of this.
Good luck with it all. Happy New Year.
I do hope you get the right formula for a good lotion and oil soap. I remember how bad your hands get each Winter, especially when you’re milking Daisy. A good lotion and soap would go a long way to preventing the worst of it. Good luck!
Distilling “essential oil”…is that what we’re calling it now? 😉
Your place is going to look and smell so good with all that lavender. Your soap is looking good!
Twenty years in Florida left me dry and splotchy. My skin is grateful to live now in the Pacific northwest but I still need oiling regularly and devour lotions, bars, rubs and such. I like the idea of making my own. I have some beautiful, snow white lard to work with.