Do you older folks (like me) remember the soap in your elementary school bathrooms? That pink powder that was so harsh and drying to your hands that you didn’t want to use it? The Boraxo brand? We can use the homemade liquid dish soap recipe posted earlier this month just as well for hand soap, but with that borax in there, it’s also going to be a bit harsh.
As the skin is our most important and largest organ of the body and our greatest defense against disease, we have to be very concerned about protecting it, whether it’s from dirt and pathogens or harsh soap. We want to be especially sure our hand soap will still clean our hands while being gentle at the same time.
There are loads of recipes online for making your own gentle hand soap. Many go fully old-school on this, using oil (or other fats) and lye and precisely measuring everything out. You know, soap is still so inexpensive (well, a lot of it is) and easy to store that I’d rather buy a few years’ supply of it now and store it in the attic if I have to. I think the interesting times ahead are going to be busy, and I’d really rather avoid the chore of making soap.
There are several easy ways to make your own liquid hand soap.
Perpetual Hand Soap
- Break up soap slivers
- Put them into a pump soap dispenser
- Add a couple of marbles (optional, to help mix the soap)
- Add water to the top
- Let soften for a few days
- Shake it up
- If too thin, add a sliver of soap. If too thick, add some water.
- Keep perpetuating the soap by adding slivers and/or water as necessary.
Pour liquid soap and essential oil into a soap dispenser. Fill with water. Replace lid. Shake.
1 tablespoon vitamin E (optional, but especially good for dry skin)
20 drops of your favorite essential oil
Add all ingredients to your pump dispenser. Shake to combine.
In a large pan over medium heat, combine the water, soap, and glycerin. Pour into soap dispensers. Let cool overnight. Whisk in essential oils if desired.
Tips for all soap recipes:
The easiest way to grate a small amount of soap, like a tablespoon, is with a hand grater. But if you’re making a larger batch, using a food processor to grate the soap is a whole lot faster.
The glycerin helps moisturize the skin as you wash.
Essential oils smell nice. Some have antibacterial properties. Some, like tea tree, are best avoided around small children and pets.
You can buy soap pump dispenser lids to fit canning
jars. I got mine on Amazon. I love that they’re so easy to clean and I
can just throw them in the dishwasher if necessary.
My mom always had a jar of liquid soap from slivers of ivory soap in a mason jar under the sink, she'd use that on her slips and such. She also had a jar for fels naptha slivers.
ReplyDeleteI never understood why you had to have liquid soap. Why not just use the bar soap/slivers till its gone? Thats all I have here at my place.
Why not take the slivers, grate them well and then add just a tiny bit of water to make it back into a bar soap with your hands?
How did people get so wrapped up in liquid soap?