How to Make Organic Palm Soap
- 1). Put on your safety glasses, gloves and apron. It is best to wear clothing that covers all of your skin as well.
- 2). Combine the water with the sodium hydroxide. Stir it well. The sodium hydroxide causes a chemical reaction, heating the water. Set the mixture aside.
- 3). Combine the oils in a double boiler and heat to between 100 and 125 degrees. If you don't have a double boiler, use a smaller pot or bowl inside a larger pot of water.
- 4). Combine the oils and the lye water once they have both reached about the same temperature, between 100 and 125 degrees. The lye will be cooling as the oils heat up. Don't let it splash when you combine the mixtures.
- 5). Stir the mixture until it traces. A hand mixer can be used for faster results. Tracing is when you can dip a utensil into the mix and it leaves a visible trail, or trace, on the surface while you dribble it back into the bowl. Essentially, this is the point at which the oils and lye water are fully combined and will never separate.
- 6). Add a few drops of essential oil for fragrance, if desired, and stir in.
- 7). Pour the soap mixture into the molds and cover with plastic wrap. Let it set for a day or two before removing it from the mold. It will be firm, but it still needs to cure.
- 8). Leave the soap bars to cure for about 3 weeks. The curing process allows the soap formula to neutralize.
- 9). Test the pH of the cured soap. Put a drop of phenolphthalein onto the middle of a cut piece of soap. If the chemical stays clear, your soap is ready to be used on skin. If it turns pink, let it cure longer because there is still too much lye. Test it weekly until the phenolphthalein test is clear.