For the moisturizing properties and gentle cleaning characteristics, Olive Oil Soap is a favorite of people desiring to look their best and to let their skin radiate with soft gentle warmness. With a lather that resembles a creamy lotion, this form of cleaning is a step above the rest for your skin. This soap is more expensive than most so I have found some of the best recipes to help you make your own olive oil soap.

When making your own soap you should follow the proper process to help ensure success. Make sure you have an area, even if temporary, to complete the whole process in one place to reduce the possibility of contamination. Next weigh out each ingredient separately on an accurate scale. Always use the same scale for all the ingredients. This will remove the error, if any, the scale might introduce into the process.

Place all of the solid oils in a container that is suitable for heating and slowly warm the solids. When the oils reach approximately 110 F eliminate the heat source but make sure all of the solids have melted. Add the liquid oils and bring the solution to 100 F. If you are going to add fragrances or colorants, make sure they are measured out and ready to be added.

Prepare your lye and water mixture. With the oil solution at 100F slowly add your lye-water mixture to the oil solution. The solution will become cloudy. Slowly but steadily mix the solution with a stick blender. This is when the ingredients start to inter react. Use short burst of 2 to 6 seconds with your blender. This process can be mixed by hand but the time involved for mixing could be up to an hour.

Keep blending the ingredients until the solution is completely mixed. The term in soap making at which mixing is completed is called trace. You can test for the trace by placing an instrument into your mixture and letting it drip back in the mixing container. If there is a trace or the drip is visible on the top of the mixture, you are close to being there. At this point add your fragrances and essential oils. The mixing from this point should be done by hand.

Next it is time to pour your soap into the mold. The mixture is still reacting so make sure your mold is insulated or wrap a towel around it. The soap will be hard enough to take out of the mold and use after 24 hours but the reaction in the soap will last for a few days.

Follow these amounts as closely as you can for 80/10/10 olive/palm/coconut oil soap use
40 oz olive oil, 5 oz palm oil, 5 oz coconut oil, 16 oz water, 6.7 oz lye. If preferred use 1.5 to 2.2 oz of fragrance or essential oils.

For an 80/20 olive/coconut oil soap use 40 oz olive oil, 10 oz coconut oil, 16 oz water, 6.9 oz lye. If preferred add 1.5 to 2.2 oz of fragrance or essential oils.

When bad smells rear their ugly head in your house or car, instead of using typical air fresheners, try an eco-friendly cleaning product. Air fresheners don’t freshen anything. Instead they just cover up bad smells with a concentrated cocktail of poison. Try these eco-friendly air refresher ideas.

First of all, if there are bad smells in the air, try opening a window. This is the simplest way of trying to freshen the air. Houseplants are another way of removing unpleasant odors. Some examples of helpful houseplants include spider plants, peace lilies, and English ivy. A thriving plant is always a beneficial addition to any home.

You can make your own air freshener by taking a small box of baking soda and adding 10-12 drops of an essential oil (lavender, peppermint, or patchouli). Be sure to mix them well and then put some in small dishes. Use throughout the house or office. To quickly freshen up small spaces like the closet, sprinkle cotton balls with vanilla extract and place in a small bowl.

Mixing your own spray takes only three ingredients. Put equal amounts water and vinegar into a spray bottle. Then add about 20 drops of an essential oil (lemon, jasmine, or eucalyptus). Shake well before each use and spray away from the face.

With easy tips like these, we can all find a way to go green. Find the tips that match your lifestyle and check back for more information about eco-friendly cleaning products. Let us know if you have any tips like these for cleaning products.