How a Bar of Cold Process Soap Comes to Life

Cold process soap starts with fats and lye water. That is the whole chemistry, and it is also where all the craft lives.nnI use creamy goat milk along with olive, coconut and soybean oils plus shea and sunflower for a lather that feels rich instead of stripping.nnOnce the batch reaches trace, I add color and fragrance, pour, swirl, and cover it while it heats up and sets. The next day it gets cut into bars by hand.nnThen comes the patient part. Every bar cures for four to six weeks so the water evaporates and the bar gets harder, milder and longer lasting. No shortcuts, just time.