Zelf zeep maken: het ultieme basisrecept

Make Your Own Soap: The Ultimate Basic Recipe

Make Your Own Soap: The Ultimate Basic Recipe

Making your own soap is the process of combining plant-based oils with lye (sodium hydroxide) to create artisan soap through saponification. With this basic recipe you can make a nourishing natural soap bar at home using organic olive oil, coconut oil and orange peel.

  • Time required: 1 to 1.5 hours active, 4 weeks to cure
  • Difficulty: beginner, care required when handling lye
  • Yield: approximately 8 to 10 soap bars of 100g
  • Prefer to learn with guidance? See the soap making workshop in Amsterdam

Want to make your own natural soap? Great idea. Making soap at home is not only fun and sustainable, but also surprisingly straightforward once you have a good recipe. In this article we share a tried-and-tested basic recipe for artisan soap, including a circular version with orange and calendula.

Why make your own soap?

Most soap today is machine-produced. Fast and cheap, but often with synthetic additives that can irritate your skin. At Nature Bar we use the traditional cold process method: an artisan process in which the ingredients are mixed at low temperature. This preserves vitamins and nourishing compounds better, and your skin will feel the difference.

Homemade natural soap is comparable to sourdough bread from a proper bakery: made with care and time and much better for you.

The magic of artisan soap

Making soap is a unique process every time. Just a handful of ingredients, yet infinite combinations possible. Through the interplay of oils, temperatures and timing, a gentle, nourishing soap is born that you have composed entirely yourself.

Did you know every Nature Bar soap contains a circular ingredient? We give by-product streams such as orange peel and coffee grounds a second life. In this recipe we include a simple version of our popular Orange & Calendula soap, so you can make your own circular soap too.

Equipment

  • Safety goggles and gloves
  • Face mask
  • 2 glass measuring jugs
  • Cup
  • Bowl
  • Saucepan
  • Thermometer
  • Sieve
  • Fine grater
  • Stick blender
  • Spoon
  • Spatula
  • Soap mould, old milk carton or silicone baking tin
  • Old tea towel or bath towel

Ingredients

Base oils

  • 150g olive oil
  • 150g coconut oil
  • 150g sunflower oil

Lye mixture

  • 149g water
  • 65g lye crystals (sodium hydroxide)

Additional

  • 15g orange essential oil
  • 1 tablespoon grated orange peel
  • 5g calendula petals (dried)

Step 1: Make the lye mixture

  • Handle lye with care. Wear gloves, safety goggles and a face mask.
  • Weigh 149g water into the first glass measuring jug.
  • Weigh 65g lye crystals into the second glass measuring jug.
  • Add the crystals to the water in a well-ventilated space, such as under an extractor hood or outdoors. Always do this in that order, never the other way around.

Stir immediately, carefully but thoroughly, until the crystals are fully dissolved. A lot of heat is released during dissolving. Allow the lye mixture to cool to 45 to 55 degrees, or until it becomes transparent.

Step 2: Melt the base oils

  • Weigh the oils into a saucepan.
  • Heat on a low flame until the coconut oil has melted and the oils form an emulsion. Watch the temperature: oils should not exceed 55 degrees, otherwise the nourishing properties are lost.

Step 3: Weigh out the additional ingredients

  • Weigh the 15g orange essential oil, 1 teaspoon orange peel and 5g calendula into a cup.
  • You can use peel from freshly squeezed oranges or grate the peel of a fresh orange.

Step 4: Final preparation

  • Place your mould on the old tea towel or bath towel.
  • Check the temperatures: when both the oil and lye mixture are around 45 degrees, you are ready to begin.

Step 5: Make the soap

  • Slowly pour the lye mixture through a sieve into the oil mixture. From this moment the saponification process begins. You will see the golden, transparent oil mixture transform into a cloudier, lighter mixture.
  • Use the stick blender and pulse a few times until the mixture is as thick as custard. To slow the process, use a whisk instead.
  • Test for trace: let a few drops of the mixture fall onto the surface. If they remain briefly without sinking back in, the mixture is ready.
  • Add the orange essential oil, orange peel and calendula petals and stir with the whisk until fully incorporated.
  • Pour the soap into the mould and use the spatula to clean out the pan.
  • Tap the mould gently on the worktop to distribute the soap evenly. Cover with a tea towel so the soap saponifies slowly and evenly.
  • Keep your gloves on while cleaning up. In fresh soap the lye has not yet fully reacted.

After 1 day you can remove the soap from the mould and cut it. After 4 weeks curing in a dry place, the soap bars are ready to use.

Frequently asked questions about making your own soap

Is making your own soap dangerous?

Lye (sodium hydroxide) is a caustic substance that can cause serious irritation on contact with skin or eyes. Always wear gloves, safety goggles and a face mask. Work in a well-ventilated space and always add lye to water, never the other way around. After the full saponification process of 4 weeks, no active lye remains in the soap.

Which oils can I use for soap making?

Olive oil gives a gentle, nourishing soap. Coconut oil provides firmness and lather. Sunflower oil makes the soap softer and lighter. Shea butter adds extra nourishment. Each oil profile gives the soap different properties. Always use a lye calculator to determine the exact amount of lye for your particular oil combination.

How long does soap need to cure?

A minimum of 4 weeks in a dry, well-ventilated place. During this time the remaining water evaporates and the soap becomes harder and milder. The longer the curing time, the better the soap. Some soap makers let their soap cure for 6 to 8 weeks before use.

What is the difference between cold process and hot process soap making?

In cold process, the ingredients are mixed at low temperature and the soap cures for 4 weeks outside the pan. In hot process, the mixture is heated which speeds up saponification so the soap is ready sooner, but has a rougher texture. Nature Bar uses the cold process method for all soap.

Prefer to learn soap making with guidance?

At Nature Bar we run a soap making workshop in Amsterdam every Saturday. You learn the complete process under the guidance of an experienced soap maker in our soap studio in De Hallen. You take your own handmade soap bar home with you. Cost: €74.95 per person including all materials.

Make it at home or join a workshop?

Would you prefer to learn how to make natural soap with guidance? Or are you looking for an original sustainable group activity? Sign up for our soap making workshop in Amsterdam.

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