# Adding sugar and salt to soap



## debbs

Ive seen loads of recipies where they add sugar and salt when making soap. Can anyone tell me what this does to the soap and also should i be adding it to all my soap, even hp soap, as at the moment i only make  hp soap. Iam quite new to soapmaking so all these little things puzzle me lol  

Many thanks


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## Bubbles Galore

Salt is to harden the bar and sugar is to add bubbles. I do neither on a regular basis.  :wink:


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## Layne

While BG is right about one reason, there are other reasons to use them.
This is why I use so much salt and sugar in my soaps.

"Dead Sea Salts: The balance of the salts in Dead Sea water are magnesium, potassium, calcium chloride and bromides. Why are these types of salts beneficial? Magnesium is important for both combating stress and fluid retention, slowing skin aging and calming the nervous system. Calcium is effective at preventing water retention, increasing circulation and strengthening bones and nails. Potassium energizes the body, helps to balance skin moisture and is a crucial mineral to replenish following intense exercise. Bromides act to ease muscle stiffness and relax muscles. Sodium is important for the lymphatic fluid balance (this in turn is important for immune system function). So we can see that bathing in high quality sea salt could replenish the minerals which are critical to our skin metabolism."

"Sugars: More than just a sweet treat, sugar can improve health of your skin. Exfoliation is the key to glowing, healthy skin."

quoted from my ingredients page.
I like people to know what I put in the soaps I make and why.

Another good key to healthy skin is to understand how to nourish it and 
what ingredients can help do this.
Our skin is after all the largest organ of our body and it protects us against the enviroment, nurture and nourish it.


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## Northland Naturals

i use both in every batch.  dissolving salt in your water before you add the lye is said to harden the bar.  there is alot of debate over whether this is true, but i find that it is so i continue to do so.  dissolving sugar to your water before adding lye increases lather (also debatable) and i find that it significantly decreased the smell and fumes form mixing the lye solution.


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## lsg

I have used both in my soaps and find that sugar increases lather and salt gives me a harder bar.


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## Happy Lass

So the next question is: How much???


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## Northland Naturals

1 Tbs per pound of oils of each.  only problem i've run into is doing a water discount for 1/2 of another liquid like goats milk or coconut milk.  you'll have to put about half of that in if you're using 1/2 water in order to make sure you don't end up with little orange burned sugar spots in your lye mix.


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## debbs

Cool thanks for all the replies, i will give it a go. Is it ok to use both when doing hp soap.


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## paillo

i use sodium lactate instead of salt to my lye mix in every batch for a harder bar. i also use sugar for bubbles in every batch. i almost always use half the liquid in my lye mix and the other half (usually some kind of milk) at trace. i mix the sugar into the milk instead of into the lye to avoid burning the sugar. hope this makes sense!


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## debbs

Will sugar also make my hp soap more fluid and more bubbly  :?


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## falldowngobump

I'm not sure about HP, but I add both to all my cp soaps, unless I use honey.


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## debbs

Do i use powdered sugar or normal granulated.


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## lsg

Use granulated sugar.  Make sure it is dissolved in your water before adding the lye.


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## debbs

thankyou for all your answers, will give it a try.


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## Alanatt

Did the sugar in hp work?


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## Arimara

Alanatt said:


> Did the sugar in hp work?



Please pay a little more attention to the dates when people last posted. Only one person is still active on this thread, as far as I know. Also, you may also want to introduce yourself formally.


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## cmzaha

Powdered sugar works fine, which is cornstarch and sugar, in fact dissolves better. Fully dissolve your sugar in the water before adding your lye. LOL, I just noticed the date too...


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## Daniel AZEMOON

you can harden your bar with salt but you shouldn't eat too much of it.


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