In addition to the birding enthusiast and an overprotective loving mom, resides in me, a maker. For a large part of my life, I did not realize this drive in me; the drive to make things. My sudsy journey started thanks to my daughter who had extremely dry skin and eczema. Additionally, swimming added to her already skin problem. Store bought soaps, even some very expensive ones with a lot of tall claims of alleviating dryness did not work for her. I was searching high and low for basic skin care products which were simple and as natural as could be, without gazillion ingredients which one couldn’t pronounce, let alone understand.
Frustrated, I decided to start making basic body care products, i.e., soap and body lotion/moisturizer for her at home. Initially, I started experimenting with pre-made soap bases. Though free of skin-damaging ingredients like SLS and parabens and most certainly better than our store-bought soaps, these soaps didn’t satisfy my need for a back-to-basics simple, clean product.
I spent countless hours reading, researching, YouTubing, and taking notes. The more I read the more I got hooked. Like a light bulb suddenly aglow in my brain, I realized that I would actually love preparing cold process soaps. I could completely customize the recipe and do away with toxic artificial chemicals, parabens, fillers and other jargon. Math and chemistry, what an awesome combo!!! This awakening was followed by countless trial batches of soap with different oils in different proportions and additives. To top it all, these soaps were sustainable and made from locally sourced ingredients as much as possible.
These artisanal soaps are made using traditional cold process methods wherein various oils and buttersare saponified (remember high school chemistry!); using Sodium Hydroxide and turned to soap.
Oils/butters + sodium hydroxide= Soap
So simple, so efficient! No fuss! I could not have been farther from the truth; I mean about the fuss stuff. These are fantastic soaps, yes, but the makingprocess is not a piece of cake, not even by a long shot.
Little did I know that this research would lead me to make soaps one day and that day did not come soon. It involved lots of research, trial and error processes, countless hours of patience, but I could say it was all worth it and looking back at it now, it was that time when the actual process of making soaps had taken root.
Else the soap goes bust. The fun part though is studyingthe fatty acid profiles of the oils that I planned to use and how these are beneficial to our skin (the nerd in me did a little happy dance, yay!). Additionally, the sodium hydroxide used for saponification is caustic. It is knownto cause burns so you have to be extracareful working with this caustic soda.We need to use gloves,eye protection and clothing which protects us from accidental splashes. Also, these soaps need 4 to 6 weeks to cure. It is the ultimate test of patience. Despite all of it, I loved having completecontrol over my recipe. Period!
To begin with, you have to know which oils you will be using because every oil or butter imparts a different quality to the soap. For example, castoroil in soap imparts a rich and luxurious lather but add more than 5% in the recipe and you will end up with a soft, sticky bar. Coconut oil is super cleansing but also super drying if we go over 20%. Olive oil is very moisturizing but too much of it will increase the curing period of the soap. Butters like mango and kokum give hardness as well as moisturize. The trick is knowing which oils to use and how much. That is where the super nerdy skillsand of courseexperience comes in.
There is a supercool concept called superfatting wherein we leave just the right bit of extra oil in the soap unsaponified which makes the soap gentle for the skin and gives that touch of added moisturization. The skin, our largest organ, needs the same care as the rest of them.
The realization that I could make a great, gentle,bubbly sudsy soap without using any synthetic detergents found in commercial soaps was thrilling.
Till date, all my soaps are vegan and palm oil free. The fragrances that I use are certified and phthalate and parabens free. Many times, I use blends of various essentialoils. The only downside to this perfect picture is that some fragrances do not stay put through the saponification process. Some fade, some go poof altogether. Depending on the season, I use additives such as natural clays,botanical infusions, naturalcolorants or fruit purees to give a diverserange of properties, scents and colors.I prefer to use oxide pigments for the soap and occasionally use cosmetic grade mica. Being 100% handmade, each small batch of soap is unique. Each and every batch of soap is tested for pH and also on ourselves beforebeing put up for sale.
Soap making has appealed to my creative, artistic side too. Reducing chemicals from our day-to-day life is an addedplus.
I am very grateful to have friendsand family who have alwaysshown great interest in my soaps and showered me with constant support. It was only during the pandemic that I startedlooking at soap making as a business, a small home-based business. A business of creating handmade, gentle luxurious soaps using skin-loving natural ingredients. This work is indeed full of passion, love and responsibility.
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