What Can Be Substituted for Lye When Making Soap?
Lye is essential to the soap-making process, it is the catalyst that changes oils or fat into soap. However, if you don't want to work with lye, you can make soap by rebatching or by using melt-and-pour soap base.
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Rebatching
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To rebatch soap, grate soap bars into a sauce pan and barely cover with a fluid like herbal tea, water or milk. Stir over very low heat until the soap is completely melted. You can then add herbs, essential oils and exfoliants to make your own unique soap.
Melt-and-pour Soap Base
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Melt-and-pour soap base is available from craft stores and on line suppliers of soap making ingredients. Cut it into cubes and melt over very low heat, stirring now and then, until the soap is completely melted. Then add whatever ingredients you want in your soap, stir to combine, and pour into molds to cure. The soap is ready to use when it is hard.
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Liquid soaps
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Use organic castile soap, which is a liquid soap made with vegetable oils, to make your own soap and shampoo without using lye. Just add essential oils for fragrance and healing qualities and use as you would any soap or shampoo.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit towels and soap image by citylights from Fotolia.com
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Comments
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where do I find Lye in Port Elizabeth.
