Never before has there been a greater need for natural skin care.
The cosmetic industry is booming, and offers a wider range of products every day. Market trends show that global expenditure, in all personal care categories, has been on a steady increase, with cleansing and moisturising products showing the highest overall growth rates between 2002 and 2003. According to independent research, a woman can use up to 30 different cosmetics, every day, as part of her "looking good, feeling better routine"- and even men, traditionally less vulnerable to grooming rituals, are following up closely, as they become more and more concerned with a perceived need to appear younger and fitter.
Side by side with the growth of commercial cosmetics and toiletries, an ever increasing number of consumers are becoming aware of the dark side of compulsive grooming: dozens of books, hundreds of publications, thousands of Websites warn against possibly damaging effects of common cosmetic ingredients, and stimulate the growth of an "alternative" personal care industry that aims at offering more natural and skin-friendly solutions.
The quest for healthier alternatives must, however, go hand in hand with a renewed awareness for the consequences of manufacturing practices and consumer habits, if we want our - individual and collective - choices to also reflect a more responsible attitude towards global issues, and an honest concern for our already impoverished and badly treated Planet.
We think it is wonderful that the media attention given to potentially dangerous cosmetic ingredients is generating a strong motivation to research and use safer alternatives. However, we perceive a greater danger in the risk that publicity will, once again, be confused with facts. Much more than dangerous ingredients, excesses must be avoided - and replacing "unhealthy" concoctions with "safer" products will only bring positive results, overall, if a good understanding of the global impact of our consumer choices is in place. The best way for someone to know what is in the soap they use, is for them to make it themselves. Handmade soap is mild on our skin and gentle in the environment. As those who have been using it regularly can testify, handmade soap is the first step towards rediscovering a fresher complexion and, by reducing the need for complementary skin care products, a more responsible approach to personal and global well-being.
Making one's own soap is a fun and creative adventure, where traditional craft methods foster an ethical and healthy way of life. With the world increasingly becoming more complex, it is normal to feel powerless when faced with a seemingly never ending stream of compromises. So it's wonderful to start the day with something we know, for sure, to be pure!
Every morning, having a shower with a bar of pure handmade soap is a way to step out of relativity and start the day with no compromises: purified and refreshed, we can put all other decisions in perspective, and face the world with renewed confidence in how beautiful life can be.
Making soap and skin care preparations in the kitchen is also a great way to rediscover the artist in each of us, and nurture expressions of instinctive creativity and ancestral gestures, to accomplish results that would otherwise be a prerogative of mass production factories.
While teaching how to make soap with everyday tools and wholesome ingredients, this book encourages the rediscovery of a more genuine and appreciative bond with Nature, describing how we can take care of ourselves, while at the same time respecting the environment.
New soap and skin care makers will find everything they need to know about ingredients, additives, tools and methods. Soapmaking is easy, but there are secrets, which are revealed from reading the book in its entirety: background information, step-by-step instructions, reliable recipes that illustrate how to incorporate different types of ingredients to obtain top results, and tips on how to avoid common pitfalls are extensively covered and explained in clear, concise language.
Advanced soapmaking methods, including the revolutionary Discounted Water Cold Process and a truly natural method for liquid soap, will appeal to those experienced soapmakers, who are already familiar with the basics and are looking for leading-edge solutions, or starting points for further investigations in the area of natural skin care.
As a natural complement to natural soapmaking, a whole Chapter is dedicated to the ABC of natural skin care and offers a complete, no-frills guide on how best to use essential and fixed oils in developing truly skin- friendly nourishing and moisturising applications: lip and skin balms, ointments, oil blends and sera, creams and lotions.
Comprehensive reference sections collect a wide range of handy lookup tables and Web resources.Through the underlying connection with one of the most authoritative soapmaking mailing lists in the world, the book also offers privileged access to the intercontinental soapmaking network.
We invite you to join the natural soapmaking revolution: it is a wonderful journey!
Part I: Fundamentals, ingredients and methods
Chapter 1 - Rediscovering good soap
1.1 Soap defined
1.2 A short history of soap
1.3 Industrial soap
1.4 Industrially made natural soap
1.5 Non-soap cleansers
1.6 Natural handmade soap
Chapter 2 - Ingredients
2.1 The essential ingredients: sodium and potassium hydroxides
2.2 Soapmaking oils and fats
2.2.1 Bulk oils and fats
2.2.2 Superfatting oils
2.2.3 Infused oils
2.2.4 Less common superfatting oils
2.3 Storage and shelf life
2.4 Soap characteristics
2.5 The wonderful world of essences
2.5.1 Selecting essential oils
2.5.2 Essential oil safety and handling precautions
2.5.3 Using essential oils in soap
2.5.4 Creating essential oil blends
2.5.5 Synthetic fragrances, aka fragrance oils
2.6 Colouring soap
2.6.1 Plant colours
2.6.2 Mineral and synthetic colours
2.7 "Live" additives
2.7.1 Aloe vera juice
2.7.2 Beeswax and honey
2.7.3 Clays
2.7.4 Coffee
2.7.5 Eggs
2.7.6 Flours
2.7.7 Fruit and vegetables
2.7.8 Herbs and flowers
2.7.9 Liquids
2.7.10 Milk powder and evaporated milk
2.7.11 Seaweed
2.7.12 Seeds
2.7.13 Silk fibres
2.8 Anti-oxidants, preservatives, fixatives
2.8.1 Benzoin and orris root powder
2.8.2 Grapefruit seed extract
2.8.3 Rosemary extracts
2.8.4 Vitamin E
2.9 Other additives
2.9.1 Sodium lactate
2.9.2 Stearic acid
Chapter 3 - Step-by-step soapmaking methods
3.1 Safety rules, tools and work area
3.1.1 Safety rules
3.1.2 Organising tools and work area
3.1.3 Forbidden materials
3.1.4 Moulds and molds
3.2 Choosing a soapmaking method
3.3 Cold Process method: CP
3.3.1 Olive and coconut oil soap - cold process
3.3.2 Mixing temperatures
3.3.3 No heat applied Cold Process method
3.4 Hot Process methods: HP
3.4.1 Double Boiler Hot Process method: DBHP
3.4.2 Oven Hot Process method: OHP
3.4.3 Crock Pot Hot Process method (CPHP)
3.4.4 Microwave Hot Process method (MHP, MWHP)
3.4.5 In The Mould Hot Process, Cold Process Oven Process methods: ITMHP and CPOP
3.5 Discounted Water Cold Process: DWCP
3.5.1 Calculating water discounts
3.5.2 Important warnings
3.6 Hand milled and rebatched soap methods
3.6.1 Commercial bases
3.6.2 Natural soap bases
3.6.3 Tools and moulds
3.7 Recycle and reuse
3.7.1 Wrong amounts
3.7.2 Highly caustic soaps
3.7.3 Soap scraps and rejects
3.7.4 Cleaning pots and tools
3.8 Glycerin Melt & Pour bases: M&P
3.9 Liquid soap
3.9.1 Special ingredients
3.9.2 Special tools
3.9.3 How to proceed
3.10 Troubleshooting
3.10.1 The soap did not come out as expected
3.10.2 The soap mix does not trace
3.10.3 The soap, after unmoulding, shows bright white, hard spots - or, the soap is hard, brittle and crumbly, or has pockets that contain a cloudy liquid
3.10.4 How can one be sure that soap is not too caustic?
3.10.5 The soap is covered in a white, somewhat sticky and powdery film
3.10.6 The soap mix goes solid (or too thick) in the pot
3.10.7 The soap does not come out of the mould
3.10.8 After 24 hours from pouring, the soap appears to have two layers, with an oily layer floating on top
3.10.9 The soap looks mottled or speckled
3.10.10 The soap remains slimy, spongy and soft several days after pouring
3.10.11 The soap mix is lumpy
3.10.12 The soap has dark brown spots and appears to be "sweating" dark droplets
3.10.13 The soap "sweats"
3.10.14 The surface of the soap has one or more dark spots, softer to the touch than the rest of the soap
3.10.15 Soaps that lose their scent
3.10.16 Examples of visible problems
Part II: Recipes
Chapter 4 - Soap recipes
4.1 Basic recipes
4.1.1 Three aces
4.1.2 Castile bubbles
4.2 Milk and honey soaps
4.2.1 No-freeze goat's milk soap
4.2.2 Milk and chocolate
4.2.3 Oatmeal, milk and honey
4.3 Soaps with herbs and spices
4.3.1 Lavender linden castile
4.3.2 Christmas scents
4.3.3 Vegetarian bubbles
4.4 Shampoo bars
4.4.1 Rosemary and nettle
4.4.2 Luxuriously hemp
4.5 Special soaps
4.5.1 Sea lather
4.5.2 Rice and shea delish
4.5.3 Coffee deodorant bar
4.5.4 Soothing emu soap
4.5.5 Bambino
4.5.6 Massage bubbles
4.5.7 Pet soap
4.5.8 Shower cream
4.6 Household soaps
4.6.1 Marseille
4.6.2 Laundry gel
4.6.3 Cream cleanser
4.7 Liquid soap
4.7.1 Liquid castile
Chapter 5 - Creating your own unique soaps
5.1 Creating new recipes
5.1.2 Choosing the base ingredients
5.1.3 Iodine and saponification (INS) values
5.2 Formulating special and problem skin soaps
5.3 Rendering animal fats
5.4 Calculating caustic soda and liquids
5.5 Colouring, perfuming, enriching
5.5.1 Suggested amounts
5.6 Your first recipes
5.7 Obtaining consistent results
Chapter 6 - From soap to skin care
6.1 Natural beauty from natural ingredients
6.2 Choosing anti-oxidants and preservatives
6.2.1 Anti-oxidants
6.2.2 Preservatives
6.2.3 Responsible choices
6.3 Lip balms
6.3.1 Lip balms: tools
6.3.2 Lip balms: ingredient ratios
6.3.3 Lip balms: additives
6.3.4 Lip balms: method
6.3.5 Recipe: Summer lip balm
6.3.6 Recipe: Vanilla soothing lip balm
6.4 Massage bars
6.4.1 Massage bars: tools
6.4.2 Massage bars: ingredient ratios
6.4.3 Massage bars: additives
6.4.4 Recipe: Tapioca pearls massage bar
6.5 Skin balms, salves, ointments and pomades
6.5.1 Skin balms: tools
6.5.2 Skin balms: ingredient ratios
6.5.3 Skin balms: additives
6.5.4 Skin balms: method
6.5.5 Recipe: Hand and foot rescue balm
6.5.6 Recipe: Beach balm
6.6 Beauty, massage and cleansing oils
6.6.1 Beauty, massage and cleansing oils: additives
6.6.2 Recipe: After bath massage oil
6.7 Creams and lotions
6.7.1 Creams and lotions: tools
6.7.2 Creams and lotions: ingredient ratios
6.7.3 Recipe: Cold cream (W/O emulsion)
6.7.4 Recipe: Macadamia vanishing cream (O/W emulsion)
Part III: Reference
Chapter 7 - Soap in the world: international and local factors
7.1 Soap and the law
7.1.1 European Union
7.1.2 Australia
7.1.3 Canada
7.1.4 United States
7.2 Soap on the Internet
7.2.1 Reference sites and e-mail mailing lists
7.2.2 SAP (saponification) calculators
7.3 Conventional supply sources
7.3.1 Supermarkets
7.3.2 Hardware stores
7.3.3 Craft stores
7.3.4 Cash and carry
7.3.5 Health and ethnic food stores
7.3.6 Chemists and pharmacies
7.3.7 Cake shops
7.4 Online suppliers
7.4.1 Australia and New Zealand
7.4.2 Europe
7.4.3 United States and Canada
Chapter 8 - Useful tables
8.1 Saponification values
8.2 Soap characteristics
8.3 Properties of common oils
8.4 Shelf life of oils and fats
8.5 Common acronyms and abbreviations
8.6 Conversion tables
8.7 Essential oils by skin type
8.8 Essential oils to be avoided
8.9 Essential oils to be used with caution
8.10 Essential oils by perfume note
8.11 Essential oil blends for various applications
8.12 Decyphering labels
8.13 European INCI names
Bibliography