Patchouli Love Soap!

After my first batch of soap turned out badly...I refuse to give up! I am still scanning the net and books that I've purchased and decided to give Patchouli LOVE SOAP a try. Book by Sandy Maine, I carry it around like a bible. I love this book! its called. "The Soap Book" Simple Herbal Recipes. Its easy to follow. I found a great Canadian Company "Saffire Blue" http://www.saffireblue.ca/ and have been ordering from them. This recipe was real simple as follows:

24 ounces olive oil

24 ounces coconut oil

38 ounces vegetable shortening (Crisco)

12 ounces sodium hydroxide (lye)

12 ounces distilled water

4 ounces patchouli Essential Oil

(and by the way I ordered myself a new wooden soap mold that comes apart and got the proper freezer paper for lining the mold)

The first thing I did was get my work space ready, I lined my counter with a large garbage bag, got my pots ready, scale, stick blender, measuring cups and spoons my oils at the ready.

Take the scale put your measuring container on it and tare to zero so you are only measuring the weight of the oils. add your oilve oil and measure out 24 ounces, put the olive oil aside.

Next measure your 24 ounces coconut oil, remember to tare the scale to zero, add that to your stainless steel pot, and then again same thing for your Crisco Oil, tare to zero measure out 38 oz and add to the stainless pot with the coconut oil. At a medium high heat on the stove start to melt these oils together.

SAFETY! are you wearing your robber gloves and goggles?? put them on!

While the oils are melting, make your lye solution. Measure out on your scale 12 ounces sodium hydroxide, remembering to tare to zero first, put aside. Measure 32 ounces of distilled water, taring to zero, put your water in your other stainless steel pot and in a well ventillated area take your sodium hydroxide and slowly add to the water, never the other way around as it will erupt like a volcano! and stir until the lye is mixed well into the water. You will notice the fumes and the heat rising. Now check your oils on the stove. Don't ever leave them alone too long.

When your oils on the stove have melted to clear take off the heat and add your olive oil that you have set aside. Allow your oils to cool to 100 degrees F you can check your temperture with a candy thermometer. Your oils and lye need to be at the same temperature to mix together.