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Smart Soapmaking |
Milk Soapmaking |
Smart Lotionmaking |
Castile Soapmaking |
Cool Soapmaking |
For soapmaking directions, if needed, please see one of my books, Smart Soapmaking or Milk Soapmaking. Or use another reputable source of soapmaking directions. The recipes make a 30 ounce batch.
Egg Soap--Why?Egg yolks and egg whites have completely different properties, and are used differently in soapmaking Egg yolks are treated as another fat in soapmaking. They produce a rich, thick lather. An egg yolk contains about five grams of fat. Mix with the liquid fats before adding the melted solid fats.
According to the US National Research Council, the fatty acids in egg yolk are typically: |
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Fat |
Role in Soapmaking (Courtesy of SoapCalc web site) |
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Oleic acid, 47% | Bubbly lather, creamy lather, conditioning | ||
Linoleic acid, 16% | Conditioning | ||
Palmitoleic acid, 5% | Bubbly lather, creamy lather, conditioning | ||
Linolenic acid, 2% | Conditioning | ||
Palmitic acid, 23% | Hardness, creamy lather | ||
Stearic acid, 4% | Hardness, creamy lather | ||
Myristic acid, 1% | Hardness, cleansing, bubbly lather | ||
Egg Whites contain no fat. The protein in egg white has an astringent effect on the skin. Commercial egg white soaps are made with rose water, which may add to that effect. |
Swedish Egg White SoapI didn't have a recipe for traditional Swedish egg white soap, if there is such a thing. What I did have was a small bar of it, and I noticed several things about the ingredients list on the box it was packaged in. One was that the soap was made, at least partly, with rosewater. The other was that there was not a lot of egg white in it. So I formulated a recipe with all this in mind. 3 ounces (8 grams) rosewater 4.5 ounces (128 grams) palm kernel oil flakes 9 ounces (255 grams) water Combine the rosewater and egg white. Blend thoroughly. Set aside Dissolve lye in water |
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Melt the solid fats, add to the liquid fats. Add the lye solution and blend to light trace. Add the rosewater mixture and continue blending. It will be stringy at first, but will smooth out. My purchased egg white soap was pale pink and smelled strongly of roses. I believe it would be necessary to use a fragrance or essential oil to get this level of scent. It's possible that having the entire liquid quantity be rosewater might do it. A good natural colorant to produce a pale pink would be alkanet root. The soap I made from this recipe had great lather. It was not nearly as astringent as the purchased product. No eggy smell. |
I read quite a few complaints that egg soaps turned out to have a bad smell. While this wasn't my experience with egg yolk soap, I decided to design one recipe using Cool Technique, so the lye would not react very much with the egg.
Different Egg Soaps
The rectangles are egg white soap, rounds are whole egg soap, and ovals (seen side view) are egg yolk soap
According to people who make and use it, the belief that egg soap spoils quickly is a myth.
Help! What Went Wrong? Analyzing and Fixing ProblemsI get questions from people with soap problems--fortunately, they're almost never with my books or recipes. But the soap gremlins can make a lot of problems for people. Here are some of the common questions, and my best trouble-shooting advice. I've made soap before with no problems, but now it suddenly has stopped working.
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My soap won't set.
I'm using individual bar plastic molds, and the soap won't unmold
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My soap has white stuff on it.
My soap is set, but it has something shiny on top, oil or liquid, or something
My soap has a pH of 10-11, and it's not decreasing any more. What did I do wrong?
My soap has orange spots. What did I do wrong?
When I sliced my soap, it had a darker core at the center.Will it go away?
I used (milk, yogurt, vegetable juice, fruit juice, egg. etc.) in my soap, and I got a rancid, burned smell
My soap has a serious problem. Can I rebatch it?
While it's rare for soap to have problems, there are many possible problems and questions. One good approach is to put the term "soap making" into your browser, along with your problem. You're likely to get dozens of possible good solutions. |
I'm fascinated by soap history and soap advertising. When I began paying attention to Nineteenth and early Twentieth Century soap ads. Some of the additives are intended to treat skin conditions and irritations. Others are purely cosmetic. Laundry soaps, as today, typically had additives to boost cleaning power or deodorize.
Most of these cards date from 1880-1920. As legal requirements for additives changed, many were no longer used.
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Quinine and sulfur in a baby soap? According to the back of the card, it "gives relief," but they don't say from what. Diaper rash? Sulfur is very drying. Quinine must be, too--quinine soap is recommended for acne in some publications. |
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According to the back of this trade card, you can have white hands, smooth skin, and clear complexion by using Cornell's Benzoin Cosmetic Soap. Benzoin is used today as a fragrance stabilizer and is known to irritate sensitive skin. |
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This card advertises "ozone soap," probably referring to ozonated olive oil. This is an old treatment to rejuvenate skin, now coming back into fashion. I could find no objective clinical information about this product. |
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A whole menu of medicinal soaps from a specialty supplier. |
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Another supplier of medicinal soaps |
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Wrapper from "Lettuce Heart Soap," which was supposed to whiten skin. |
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"Coal Oil Johnny's Petroleum Soap" may have been an early detergent bar. The card mentions that the soap is transparent. Supposedly, it's purer, but I doubt whether coal oil soap would be popular today. |
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Front and back sides of a trade card for borax soap. The poem is fun! And who could resist those kittens? Clearly, this soap was for laundry. |
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Carbolic disinfecting soap. A mild disinfectant and deodorant, now little used except in disaster relief areas. |
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