Page 292 - The Lost Ways

❖ Slowly add the lye water to the melted fats, and stir to mix. The stirring allows the
chemical reaction (saponification) to happen. Mix briskly until the solution starts
to thicken. There is a point known as the “trace,” where if you take a drizzle of the
solution and let it fall onto the mix, it will remain on the surface for a while before

being drawn back in.

❖ At this point of the trace, pour the solution into the mold.

❖ Cover with blankets or towels, and leave at room temperature for about 24 hours.

The soap should solidify in this time.

Cold process soaps can be used within two days of production but do improve over time.

Making Your Own Signature Soaps

Now that you have a basic recipe for a soap base, you can experiment adding all kinds of

other ingredients. Just add the additional ingredients at step 4, just before the trace point.

Medicinal Soaps

Adding different ingredients to your basic soap recipe can create many types of soaps,
including ones that can help with various medical problems. For example, adding
lavender, geranium, or bergamot to your soap recipe creates a soap that is good for

eczema.

Broadleaf plantain (Plantago major), when used as an ingredient in soap making, makes
a great antiseptic soap. Take plantain leaves and grind them up, adding them into the
soap base. You can use the plantain soap to clean a wound before adding a poultice onto
the area (see the chapter on How Our Ancestors Made Herbal Poultice).

Ideally, you should use essential oils in the recipe, but you can make homemade flower
waters too and use those.

Homemade Toothpaste

If you’ve ever had a toothache, you know how important it is to keep your teeth clean.
The last thing you want is to have to perform “home dentistry” on yourself or a loved one.
Making toothpaste that is effective at keeping your teeth clean and healthy isn’t as hard
as it sounds.

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