Lye Free Soap?

[Chandra]

I am very new to soap making and am only doing it for myself currently.

I want to make an all natural soap, or soap like substance (if it cleans and smells alright, I'm happy) that is lye free, and if possible glycerin free.

I know that honey, citrus, and castor oil all have cleansing properties and I was wondering if there was any way to make some sort of soap using them and nixing the lye and glycerin.

If that isn't possible, I might be willing to use vegetable glycerin, though I'd rather not.

I have heard of the Oil Cleansing Method for the face and though I think it's fine for that it seems like it would take too long to use on the entire body.

Any help anyone can offer at all? Thanks a ton. [/b]

 

[carebear]

Soap is made by mixing caustic (lye) with oils to produce soap + glycerine. No lye is left so you are good there, but the glycerine isn't going anywhere unless you further process your soap to remove it. But why would you, since it's a skin caring item?

If you blend honey, citrus, and castor oil you will have what's fondly known as "an oily mess".

If you want to not work with lye, and have no glycerine then you will need to look to detergent based cleansers. Or...

The OCM actually can be used for the whole body. ancient Romans did it - they anointed their bodies, then scraped the oil and dirt off with a strigil. a search on it will result in lots of fun information. Just not MY cup of tea.

 

[donniej]

Hydroxides were invented in the late 1700's. Before that they used sodium or potassium carbonate. Wash soda is sodium carbonate. You can saponify oils with it but it takes a long time.

To remove the glycerin you put the soap in hot salt water. The soap will float on top, the glycerin will disolve into the salt water.

PS. The FDA defines soap as fats or oils reacted with an alkili, like hydroxides and carbonates. If you don't want a soap then you can use a detergent like sodiul lauryl sulfate.

 

[mariflo]

I've recently heard about using soap nuts for cleaning. I have not tried it myself, nor have I done a more extensive research on the topic so you may want to read more before you try it, but, here it goes:

To Make Soap nuts Liquid:

Boil approximately 12-15 whole soap nuts with 6 cups of water for 30 minutes. When it is boiled down, you will have about 4c. of liquid left. Add extra water, if needed, to keep it at that amount. When cooled, remove the soap nuts, and pour it into an airtight plastic or glass jar. It is better to make the liquid in smaller batches as it can spoil. Experiment with making liquid to see if you prefer a more concentrated version, using 3 cups water instead of 6 cups.
Some prefer the concentrated solution for handwashing and shampoo.

To make liquid from soap nuts powder, add 1/4c powder to 6 cups of water and simmer for 30 minutes. Strain the sediment, or use as is. Store in an plastic or glass jar.

NEW!!! You can also freeze it in ice cube trays as well. Depending on the size of each ice cube, use two or three per load of laundry. If each ice cube holds about 1Tbsp, use two ice cubes.

http://www.buysoapnuts.com/howtouse.html

 

[tespring]

I have some soap nuts, I have also boiled some down to get the liquid from them although mine was never as concentrated as what was mentioned above. I have seen some youtube videos where people swear by washing with them and using them on your hair, I have not tried that. I used them for laundry just by putting 4-5 per load or using the liquid. All of my laundry kept getting darker and darker because you never know when one of the nuts will pop open and when it does, it stains. They do not have a good smell to them either but the laundry did not end up smelling bad in the end.
I would wonder if you would have to use a preservative with the liquid if you would want to sell it because I remember the directions told me that I would have to refrigerate it if I boiled out the "soap" but if you are just using it for yourself, that should be no problem, just label it and hope no one mistakes it for juice. lol

 

[carebear]

to use the nuts in laundry you should have them in a little bag and they need to be broken up or crushed.

I've never heard of them staining (they don't stain the bags I used them in), but they certainly don't whiten clothes.

Beware when using as shampoo or face wash - it hurts WAAAAAY more than soap if it gets in your eyes.

 

[tespring]

The soap nuts that I have are whole WITH the seeds still in them, I got them from India. The seeds are what causes the staining but I cannot get them out because these nuts are rock hard when you get them. I have tried crushing them with a hammer to no avail.

 

[Chandra]

WOW!

Thank you everyone! I'm so so so sorry I didn't reply sooner. As embarrassing as this is to admit I've never used a forum before and didn't expect so much and especially not so quickly. I feel so dumb. But I'm so grateful to everyone for all the replies. I'm so sorry again.