Is it too ambitious to try bubble bath as a first project?

[Margaret_Yakoda]

Hello everyone!

I decided I wanted to try making my own soap. I have already been making dishwasher powder and laundry powder for about a year. I just use 1:1 washing soda and borax for the dishwasher, and add a grated bar of Ivory to two cups of the dishwasher powder to make the laundry powder.

Anyhow, I had the idea to make some castile liquid soap, because we love Dr Bronner's, and we had run out. I bought some basic supplies. KOH, a hand stirrer, a crock pot, and some fragrances. I already have a face shield, and I spent a semester as a chem prof's lab assistant.

I borrowed Catherine Failor's book from our Kindle library, but that was before I got my supplies. That's when I got the idea to try bubble bath as a first project. The book was automatically returned before I was ready to start cooking the soap, and I didn't write down the bubble bath recipie. Now Amazon is "reviewing" it and I can't buy it. I tried a sample of The Soap Maker's Companion, but I couldn't tell if there was a recipie for bubble bath in it. Further, I've not been able to fine anything else that even hints at how to make a decent bubble bath.

So, here I am. Maybe I'm too ambitious. Maybe I'll make liquid castile soap and scent it with those amazing scents I bought. Unless someone here can point me to a decent bubble bath recipie? One that uses basic ingedients?

 

[Relle]

Do a search for a recipe on this site and see what you come up with -
http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com.au/

 

[Margaret_Yakoda]

Do a search for a recipe on this site and see what you come up with -
http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com.au/

Thanks for the link. It looks like an awesome resource. But I didn't see any bubble bath recipies that are made with simpler ingredients. I'd rather stay away from any ingredients that are subject to California's proposition 65 law. I should probably spend a little time reasearching the surfactants she mentions.

 

[TVivian]

I'm pretty sure that to make a decent bubble bath you'll need to add some kind of surfactant. From what I've read, the bubbles just won't last or even happen without it. I just received some Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate it's a powder and works incredibly. I added 2 teaspoons to my oversized tub and it made a mountain of bubbles. I highly recommend it if you're not apposed to the idea.

 

[Margaret_Yakoda]

Ahhh thanks for this.

OK so it does seem like I should try a simpler soap before I dive into bubble bath. :think:

That said, I do want to stay away from any ingredients which are known to cause harm, but I'm not a afraid of something just because it's got a complex chemical name. People forget, "chemicals" are everywhere! LOL.
I looked up Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate, and happily enough, Snopes has already done a response to a fear-mongering email that's aparently been making the rounds. http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/household/shampoo.asp

So, I guess I'll make a castile liquid soap base and go from there.