Category: Getting Rid of Harmful Chemicals

I found a loaf of castile soap that I know is over a year old. It could be two, I’m just not sure. It was in a plastic “clamshell” which may have slowed it’s curing. I almost never use plastic. I bought these for a soap class I offered and had leftovers that I used for this castile when I ran out of mold space. Because it was an odd shape I tossed it in the back of a…

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#1) I use my Orange Sunshine liquid soap to make a spray cleaner.  In a 24 ounce spray bottle I add a scant 1/4 ounce of OS, a couple good shots (about 2 ml – or 2 grams) of Clean Mix (EO blend – details below) and fill it with water. That’s it. I’ve used that for the last few years and we loved it (way better than vinegar which preceded it.)

#2)  But Then, a few months ago ……

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The term “Castile soap” comes from the Castile region of Spain where olives grew in abundance and where one soap – throughout all of Europe – managed to distinguish itself by its high quality and ability to clean better than others. This was Castile soap and it was made with nothing but Olive oil, lye and water.  All soaps use lye which causes a chemical reaction with oils/fats used in which both ingredients cease to exist as their…

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This was the first (and rather impromptu) workshop if this kind. We didn’t call it a workshop. We called it a birthday party for Melissa.

It takes about 2 hours to make soap this way. (Occasionally it can take longer) You’ll note that no one in these pictures is dressed for soapmaking. Soap makers should have eye covering and wear long sleeves. We work with lye in soap and a lye has dangers. I did the stirring and blending of this…

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