How about a holiday soap deliciously scented with cinnamon and super-nourishing for the skin?
Made with shea butter, cocoa butter and hemp oil, this bar soap can be used on both hands and body.
If you love cinnamon, this recipe is perfect for the holiday season!
Materials List
- Several small and large stainless steel bowls
- 2 stainless steel tablespoons
- Digital or mechanical scale
- Soap molds (silicone) or be creative, recycle appropriate containers!
- Hand Held Mixer
- Dish gloves, mask and safety glasses
Ingredients
PHASE A (aqueous)
- 160 gr or ml Water
- 70 gr Caustic Soda (Sodium Hydroxide)
PHASE B (oily)
- 270 gr of Shea Butter
- 135 gr of Cocoa Butter
PHASE C (active ingredients)
- 1 tablespoon Hemp beauty oil
- 10 drops Cinnamon Cassia essentail oil
Preparation
1) At each step, weigh all the ingredients into individual bowls.
2) PHASE A: Put the water in a bowl, gently add the caustic soda, mix with the spoon until the crystals are completely dissolved.
3) PHASE B: In another bowl, melt the 2 butters together in a double boiler and mix with the other spoon.
4) PHASE A + B: Slowly add PHASE A to PHASE B and stir with the mixer until smooth and creamy.
5) PHASE C: Mix together the hemp oil and cinnamon essential oil and add to PHASE A + B, stir well with the mixer before final cooling.
6) Immediately pour into the molds and let stand for 24 to 48 hours.
7) Unmold the soaps and place them in a warm and dry place (do not wrap them before 4 weeks).
TIPS & TRICKS
Curing is the process of allowing saponification to complete and for the soap to fully dry and takes about 4 weeks.
If you don't allow them to cure and dry then your bars will not last once you start using them. They can also have impaired lather. The cure time will reduce the amount of water in your soap over a period of about 4 weeks or more if desired. By the end of that time, your bars can lose over half of the water they originally contained. There are many places where you can cure your soap but the premise is all the same. It needs an airy and dry place out of direct sunlight. You can use a bookshelf, metal racks, cardboard boxes, stacked milk crates, or even make towers of soap. Stacking soap during curing is perfectly fine if you have a warm and dry place.
Precautions & recommendations
Store in a warm and dark place, away from direct sunlight.
* This formulation should NOT be used for skin that is too sensitive or allergic to cinnamon essential oil.
** The caustic soda + water mixture is irritating and corrosive, it must be handled with gloves, mask and safety glasses!
** Keep your remaining caustic soda and essential oil out of reach of children.