I get asked all the time how I make soap or if my handmade soaps are “glycerin” soaps.  Well, I make what is called cold-processed soap.  Very simply put this soap is made by combining different fatty acids with sodium hydroxide (lye) and water.  When I make goat milk soap I replace the water with 100% goat milk.  Fatty acids can by from almost any oil from Olive, Oil, to Lard, to Sweet Almond Oil.  Combinations are as endless as your imagination.
 
Cold-process soap making is not rocket science but it does incorporate both art and science together.    There is a certain proportion of lye (sodium hydroxide) and water to fatty acids that forms a chemical reaction called “saponification”.  During saponification the oils and lye mix and become soap.   A by product of this process is glycerin.  This entire process takes several weeks to complete.  That is why handmade soap is allowed to cure.  I like to let my handmade soap sit on the drying rack and cure for a minimum of eight weeks.  This long cure period results in a mild and hard bar of soap that lasts in the shower.
 

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