Soap Making Basics

Making soap at home can be a great hobby, but also a lucrative home business. Learning to make soap is also a way to use a healthier product on your body than most commercially popular brands available. Soaps can be made in any color and scent.

Processes

There are four possible ways to make soap. Rebatching, cold process, hot process and melt and pour. Melt and pour is simply that--melt bars down and add fragrance. Rebatching is mixing and matching several bars to make new ones, and the hot and cold processes are ways to make soap from scratch. Recent criminal issues regarding lye has made it hard to obtain, however.

Safety

Protective eyewear should always be worn in any method of soap making. It is a chemical process and can cause damage to skin and eyes. Wearing gloves also makes clean up easier. Covering the work surface is also a good safety basic.

Chemical Reaction

Soap is the result of two interacting chemicals. Sodium hydroxide, or lye, and water is mixed to make soap. Other ingredients can be added to change to consistency, smell and feel of the finished product. Olive and other essential oils in various mixtures as well as herbs can be added. Colors and scents are also added in forms of other oils and mixtures.

Accessories

Besides safety equipment and the actual dishes to hold the soap, the only other supplies needed would be a spatula for stirring and mixing, molds for the shape of the soap and any herbs used as decorations. If your making soaps for sale, then packaging must also be considered. Plastic wrap, small paper and plastic bags or tissue paper can all be used.