Soap Making

For a few years now I've been wanting to make soap but was too frightened.  I think I was frightened of the safety aspect and the unknown.

Soap making was one of my goals for this year so I thought it was time to take the plunge. I came across a very simple and cheap recipe from a blog I follow called House of Simple.  Phil is the blog writer and he promised it would be easy.  So one Saturday I followed the instructions ( to the letter ) and the soap turned out beautifully.

Here are the instructions from House of Simple ( used with permission )  


Blended Vegetable Oil Soap
Safety Note: Wear eye protection, mask and gloves, keep kids and pets away, perform in close proximity to running water in case of spills, keep a window open for ventilation.



INGREDIENTS

1.25 litres of cheap blended vegetable oil (no name is perfect)
173 grams of caustic soda
450 mils of water


METHOD(please follow method exactly in this order)


1. Place water into a very large plastic mixing bowl
2. Pour caustic soda very slowly into water whilst stirring continually with a wooden or plastic spoon until dissolved
3. Add in vegetable oil slowly, stirring all the while with a wooden or plastic spoon
4. Mix with stick blender till a firm trace has occurred - must look like thick custard.
5. Place into large plastic flat-bottomed container - cover with an old towel.
6. Leave totally undisturbed for 24 hours7. Remove from plastic container (twist the container slightly - turn upside down to pop out).8. Cut into bars with the sharpest knife you have

9. Put bars away on a wire rack in a cool airy place to cure for 6 weeks

This recipe will make about 12 bars of simple, frugal and lovely-to-use soap. This recipe is a great one to start with if you have not made soap before as there is no oil blending required, no thermometers required, no special molds or perfumes required either. The ingredients are not expensive which is important for a first time soap maker and vegetable oil is very forgiving

Wendy's notes -

*  I used silicon baking moulds as well as small oblong cake tins.  Silicon baking moulds can be found really cheap at op shops.

*  If using metal cake tins,  line them with cling wrap first for easy removal of the soap when it sets.

*  If the soap hasn't set enough within 24 hours, leave it for another 24 hours then you should be able to remove it from the moulds.

*  If you have an Aldi near you,  they have the cheapest blended vegetable oil at under $8 for 4 litres.

*  I bought the Caustic Soda from Bunnings.  I think it was in the paint section.  Make sure the container has the words "  for soap making " on it.

*  Make sure you have all your moulds close by and ready to use straight after the mixture reaches trace.

*  These soaps will make wonderful presents when added to a fancy face washer or hand towel.

*  I did not put a coloring or fragrance in the soap as I have skin allergies.

Some of the soaps I made

Reaching trace.  It looks like thick custard

Rose moulds

Waiting for the soap  to set

This was from Bunnings

Skin Care and Beauty Products On A Budget

I've had a few requests asking me to reveal what skin products and makeup I use.  My skin is slightly oily at times and I have very sensitive skin.  While this might pose a problem for some,  I've found I can use budget friendly products providing they are not cheap and nasty.

I wash my face with Dove soap and a face washer every day and once a week I exfoliate my skin with St Ives Apricot Scrub.  Exfoliating once a week seems to be enough to keep my skin smooth.  I then moisturise with Olay lotion.  The pink one is used in Autumn,  Winter and Spring.  When Summer comes I switch to the white lotion which has an SPF of 15.  I try to stay out of direct sunlight as much as possible.  Olay lotions are great as they are absorbed into the skin quickly, then I can start putting on my makeup.  I remove eye makeup with tissues and no name brand Vitamin E cream from Woolworth or Coles - it doesn't matter.  They both work really well.

 

Skin Care Products

Deodorants have been a bit tricky for me.  I've tried many brands over the years including the expensive ones and I've found the Avon deodorants work really well.  I use the 24 hour aluminium free one for every day use.  When the weather is super hot or I'm filming under hot lights I switch to the 24 hour plus one.  It just seems to work a little better.  The problem is I can only use this one for a couple of days before my skin reacts and becomes itchy.

The makeup I use consists of different brands.  I use face powder purchased from the supermarket.  I was using a brand called Tania and it was around for many years but has now been deleted.  Now I use a brand called Classics.  Face powder feels better than liquid foundation and looks natural ( with a little coler ) on my face.  The blusher brand I use at the moment comes from the $2 and cheap shops.The brand is BYS.  I try to pick a color that looks like a natural blush.  Nothing brown or orange.  Eye liner comes from Avon and is called Glimmersticks For Eyes in Cosmic Brown.  Eye shadow has been a problem for me.  I like to wear a medium brown color and every time I find one I like it gets deleted.  At the moment I'm using Rimmel but I have used Maybelline and Avon.  I always use dark brown mascara and for many years I've been using the Maybelline Waterproof. Full N Soft range. A year ago I switched to their standard Full N Soft one.

Makeup

Lipstick is generally an Avon one.  I'm using a Smooth Minerals lipstick in the shade of Rosy Brown at the moment.


When I'm on tv,  all makeup is applied in layers as the lights wash it out.  I learnt that the hard way with the first tv story I did about 3 - 4 years ago.  I thought I'd put plenty on.  The mirror told me I had enough but when the story went to air it only looked like I had a bit of lipstick on.  Now I put about six layers of mascara on,  three of lipstick,  two of face powder,  three of eye liner and extra blusher and eye shadow.  It's not a look I'd normally wear out.

Here are the approximate prices I pay for my makeup -

Dove soap - $1 or under
Exfoliating scrub - $10
Olay lotion - $9 - $10
Vitamin E cream - under $5 for a 500ml pump bottle
Deodorant - $1.50 - $1.99
Face powder - $6
Blusher - $4
Eye liner - $7
Eye shadow - $7 - $10
Mascara - approx $8 on clearance
Lipstick - 2 for $20