Basic Soap Ingredients

Ask any soap maker and they will tell you that the soap ingredients you use will have a dramatic affect on the outcome of a batch. This goes beyond the benefits a particular essential oil may have on your skin. High quality soap ingredients can make a noticeable difference in its shower performance.

Soap Making Ingredients: Carrier Oils Carrier oils act as the fat needed in saponification. This is the name given to the chemical reaction between sodium hydroxide (lye) and fat/oil that creates the actual soap molecules. In the past when more people made their own soap, the fat/oil was usually tallow made from animal fat. This animal fat was readily available on farms where animals were raised.

Today, carrier oils are more popular for soap making hobbyists. This is due to their ease of use and the beneficial properties these oils may possess. Some popular carrier oils include coconut oil and avocado oil.

Soap Making Ingredients: Essential Oils Essential oils are another type of fat/oil that is added to help create soap. Generally, they are used to give the soap a natural scent while bestowing upon it any beneficial characteristics the oil may hold. Essential oils are usually extremely potent and are added in very small quantities compared to carrier oils and the lye/water solution. Unlike many synthetic fragrance oils, essential oils used in soap making are usually all-natural.

Other Soap Making Ingredients After mastering the basics, many soap makers want to test their abilities and push the envelope with their creations. The will add herbs, colors, and various natural exfoliants to their soap to enhance the quality of their soap. Many of these soap ingredients are readily available at natural soap suppliers.

One of the greatest things about soap making is the creativity that you can put into the hobby. With the use of the right soap ingredients, you can create unlimited possibilities.