Page 289 - The Lost Ways

like material was found in cylinders dating back to around 2800 BC (that’s 4,800 years
ago).

Soap has gone from strength to strength since then, not only being used for cleaning of
humans and our garments but also for medicinal uses too. For example, soap imbued with
aloe vera has been used to treat fungal skin infections.

th
By the 19 century, rural Americans were making their own soap using ashes from the
fire and hog fat.

Traditional Recipe for Soap

Making soap is known as “saponification.” The chemical reaction underlying the creation
of soap is very basic and involves heating an oil or fat with a base (alkali) such as sodium
hydroxide to produce the soap.

The more difficult of the two ingredients to obtain is the base. We mentioned earlier that
th
19 century Americans used ashes to create soap.
These ashes were the starting material for the base, also known as lye. Lye is commonly
called sodium hydroxide and most often used in modern soaps, but if made from wood
ash, it is potassium hydroxide and makes a slightly softer soap.

Making Lye Water from Wood Ash

Follow this recipe to create a supply of wood ash lye in preparation for soap making:

❖ Collect rain water. Use rain water as it’s a soft water; you should never use hard

water for soap making.

❖ Collect wood ash from fires. The wood from broad-leaved hardwoods make the
best lye, but make sure it is well burned, to a white ash if possible.

❖ Create a container with small holes in the bottom that are small enough so the
wood ash can’t fall through.

❖ Take another container that the first container can fit over. This will collect the lye
water.

❖ Take the container with holes, and cover the bottom with stones.

❖ Fill this bucket with the wood ash up to about four inches from the top.

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