| Soapmaking can be a creative and rewarding | | | | the right equipment.Choose your bowls, |
| hobby as long as the proper safety | | | | pitchers, spoons, or whatever will come in |
| precautions are followed. One of the biggest | | | | contact with your raw soap carefully. |
| aspects of this means learning about lye and | | | | Ideally, you want to make sure your supplies |
| other safety procedures, and this should be | | | | aren't going to be used again for cooking, |
| done before even bothering to attempt to | | | | for an example. You also have to keep in mind |
| research how the soapmaking process works. | | | | that certain metals such as aluminum or |
| Sometimes even experienced soapmakers need to | | | | copper can have undesired chemical reactions |
| be reminded! Don't let this all scare you- | | | | with lye. The best materials to use are |
| making soap can be as safe of a craft as any | | | | stainless steel and heavy duty dishwasher |
| other! However, the key to safety means being | | | | safe plastics. (Even wooden spoons will do, |
| informed. Here's some guidelines and tips:GET | | | | though the lye water will slowly eat at them |
| TO KNOW LYE AND RESPECT IT!!!Soap CANNOT be | | | | over time. I lost a good spoon that way!) |
| made without lye. There's no way around it | | | | Some people even recommend using large glass |
| and if someone told you they did, I hate to | | | | Pyrex measuring cups. However, I personally |
| break it to you- they lied. Even liquid soap, | | | | can't. I have heard of rare instances where |
| bath gels, and shampoos contain a form of lye | | | | even sturdy Pyrex glass has shattered- in one |
| called potassium hydroxide. However lye, | | | | case I heard of, no one was even in the same |
| alone, is a highly dangerous substance. | | | | room when it happened! In a way it makes |
| There's no sugar coating it- lye can kill | | | | sense. Lye water, when first mixed, can reach |
| you. If you respect it and use it properly | | | | very high temperatures in an absurdly small |
| everything will be fine. Try not develop a | | | | amount of time. Then on top of it, over time |
| fear of it, and instead focus on handling it | | | | the potent lye itself may do it's damage. |
| properly.Label your lye water.If lye is | | | | Over time it may make the glass brittle and |
| ingested internally, there is a strong | | | | create stress on it, though unseen to the |
| likelihood of it being fatal. If you walked | | | | human eye.Use distilled water instead of |
| away for even for less than a minute and | | | | tap.Some people say it's alright to use |
| someone walked into your kitchen with a bowl | | | | regular tap water for soapmaking. In most |
| of lye water in a glass, bowl, or pitcher- | | | | cases, it probably is fine... However tap |
| the results could be deadly! Just to be safe | | | | water can contain various trace metals and |
| I like to mark my bowl or pitcher with large | | | | minerals that may interact with your lye, |
| adhesive label or even better yet, a | | | | giving some unexpected results in your |
| permanent marker.Wear your goggles or safety | | | | finished soaps. Once again, much better to be |
| glasses.Always! If lye water splashes into | | | | safer than sorry!Mind your pour!Always make |
| your eyes, it can blind you. It doesn't take | | | | sure to close the container of lye tightly |
| much... Better to be safe than sorry!Wear | | | | when you're done. Any moisture that gets in |
| your gloves.... And your clothes!If it can do | | | | contact with the lye granules will form |
| that to your eyes, exposed skin isn't safer | | | | clumps, which may increase the chance of |
| either! Lye can eat through skin. Even in | | | | spills while pouring next time you use it. It |
| tiny amounts it can cause painfully | | | | may even effect your soap by giving you |
| irritating chemical burns. It's wise to keep | | | | inaccurate weighings of your ingredients in |
| a bottle of vinegar around in case of | | | | the end, if enough gets in there. Pouring |
| splashes or spills. If this should occur, | | | | slowly so you get it right the first shot and |
| rinsing with vinegar helps to neutralize the | | | | don't have to put any back is also wise. |
| lye. However, care should be taken to prevent | | | | Another thing that can be a hassle sometimes |
| this because the vinegar cannot undo damage | | | | when pouring to weigh your lye is static... |
| that has already been done! Even finished | | | | Lye sometimes gets a "charge" and granules |
| soap bars can be irritating until soap has | | | | here and there seem to have a mind of their |
| it's "curing" time- usually a very minimum of | | | | own when being poured! A quick wiping of the |
| four weeks. When making soap, it's smart to | | | | container you'll be weighing with a dryer |
| make sure you're wearing clothes that will | | | | sheet first helps with a smoother pour.Always |
| protect your skin. Pants, instead of shorts | | | | use a lye calculator- no matter what.Never |
| or dresses, and long sleeves are ideal. Don't | | | | assume a recipe that someone gives you, that |
| forget your feet- remember your shoes!Keep | | | | you find online, or come across in a book is |
| pets and children away while soapmaking.It | | | | safe. Even if you obtain a recipe from the |
| doesn't take much for lye to be harmful to | | | | world's most trustworthy source, it is always |
| anyone- it takes even less to bring harm to a | | | | safer to run your recipe through a lye |
| small child or pet. If you have little ones | | | | calculator first to make sure you use the |
| running around, it's best to do your | | | | proper amount of your ingredients. There are |
| soapmaking in an area they don't have access | | | | many free and easy to use lye calculators |
| to or wait until you have "alone time". Even | | | | that can be used online or downloaded to your |
| with ground rules and with the best behaved | | | | computer, so there's no excuses!Stay away |
| children or pets in the world, it's just not | | | | from painted surfaces.It's best not to do |
| worth the risk.Only use pure lye.NEVER | | | | your soapmaking on any painted surfaces. Lye |
| attempt to use Draino or any other products | | | | can easily strip paint and damage surfaces. |
| that "contain" lye. These products contain | | | | Even on kitchen counters made with a tougher |
| other chemical additives that may interfere | | | | surface material, it's a good idea to lay |
| with the soapmaking process. The results | | | | down some plastic or freezer paper to protect |
| could range from winding up with a soap that | | | | the area you're working in. Remember to |
| is highly irritant to the skin to a lethal | | | | always keep that vinegar handy as well, just |
| concoction that you wouldn't even want to be | | | | in case!I know this all must sound terrifying |
| in the same room with!Work in a well | | | | to some and makes you feel as if you need a |
| ventilated area.The fumes that rise when lye | | | | Hazmat team on standby when learning how to |
| is mixed with water during the first few | | | | make soap, but believe me it's not really as |
| minutes can irritate the lungs. Some people | | | | bad as it sounds! More people than you'd |
| are more sensitive to it than others, but a | | | | probably imagine throughout the world make |
| well ventilated area is recommended to | | | | soap every day. If you're interested in |
| anyone. Remember even if it doesn't bother | | | | soapcrafting, just do as much research on the |
| you at the moment, repeated exposure may | | | | subject as possible from as many different |
| bring about a different story. Larger batches | | | | sources as you can. There are also several |
| of soap are usually give off more potent | | | | wonderful forums for soapmakers where people |
| fumes than smaller ones.Use an accurate | | | | can turn to others for advice and to share |
| scale.Never measure your ingredients by | | | | experiences and ideas. Soapmaking may not be |
| volume because it can lead to inaccuracies, | | | | for everyone, but chances are once you make |
| leaving you with an irritating "lye heavy" | | | | your first successful batch , you'll be |
| soap. Instead, make sure you use an accurate | | | | hooked on this craft! Just remember- at any |
| scale to weigh out your ingredients- one that | | | | stage in this wonderful hobby, safety always |
| measures in increments of at least a 10th of | | | | comes first!You can visit Lisa Chambers' |
| an ounce is best. A good postal scale will do | | | | website at for free information, recipes, and |
| just fine. It's also a good idea to invest in | | | | tips based on natural or crafty point of |
| calibration weights for your scale so that | | | | views. |
| you can test it's accuracy periodically.Use | | | | |