How to Make Old Fashioned Lye & Lard Soap
For those accustomed to sudsy bath gels with exotic scents, a cleaning product made from ingredients as harsh and unpleasant as lye and lard may be difficult to fathom. Lye and lard were the main ingredients in the soaps used by early colonial Americans. The first soap products may have existed as early as 2800 B.C. and probably used similar ingredients. While lye and lard are not as readily available today as they once were, this old-fashioned soap recipe can still be made with careful preparations.
Things You'll Need
- Safety goggles
- Rubber gloves
- Protective clothing
- 2 enamel or heat-resistant glass containers
- 12 oz. lye
- 3 cups water
- Plastic or wood spoon
- 2 glass candy thermometers
- 3 lbs. lard
- Plastic dishpan or soap mold
- Knife
Instructions
-
-
1
Fill an enamel or heat-resistant glass container with three cups of water.
-
2
Put on protective clothing, gloves and goggles. Pour 12 oz. of lye into the water very slowly. Stir with a heat-resistant wooden or plastic utensil to dissolve the lye in the water. Do not lean over the container or inhale the fumes. The water and lye will become extremely hot.
-
-
3
Monitor the temperature of the lye with a glass candy thermometer. Let the lye cool to 110 degrees.
-
4
Heat 3 lbs. lard in a non-aluminum saucepan or other heat-resistant container over low heat. Monitor the temperature with a second glass candy thermometer. The lard should also reach a temperature of 110 degrees. When this temperature has been reached, remove from heat.
-
5
Pour the lye into a second container with 3 lbs. of lard. Stir as you combine with a second, clean plastic or wooden utensil.
-
6
Stir the lye and lard mixture continuously until it has thickened to the trace state. This should take approximately 15 minutes. When a spoonful of the mixture is lifted, it will leave a line, or "trace," on top of the solution as it is drizzled over top.
-
7
Pour the solution into a soap mold or plastic dishpan measuring about 10-by-12 inches.
-
8
Let the soap set for 24 hours. Cut it into bars and remove from the pan. Leave the bars in a cool, dry place to harden for another three weeks before use. Wrap in paper to store.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Work outside or in a well-ventilated area to avoid inhaling the lye fumes. Leave the soap to cure in a well-ventilated area as well.
Lye can no longer be purchased in retail stores. However, it is widely available online from retailers carrying soap making supplies.
Lard can be purchased in the butter or oil section at most grocery stores. Make sure you purchase 100 percent lard.
Many other variations of lye and lard soap recipes can be found online and in soap making books, many of which incorporate scented oils and other ingredients. While the same basic process applies, you may want to experiment with these variations.
Lye is a caustic, corrosive substance. Avoid direct contact with it. Always wear long pants and long sleeves, gloves and goggles when working with it. Keep it away from pets and children.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit bars of soap image by Jale Evsen Duran from Fotolia.com
More Like This
Comments
-
Debra Ryan
Jan 07, 2011
Lye can too be bought in retail stores you just have to know where to look try hardware stores we sell ours in the plumbong dept under the brand red devil, it comes in a pound container and is in granules.
