How to make Transparent Soap Making Transparent Soap This is the result of my experiments making transparent soap. I am in no way, shape or form an expert, but I have successfully made transparent soap using recipes found on the web as well as formulating my own. I highly recommend reading the book "Making Transparent Soap" by Catherine Failor before you begin. This tutorial is not intended to replace the book, it is intended to complement the book. Transparent soap is basically partly soap and partly solvent. Sodium Hydroxide causes crystals to form in soap and that is why the soap becomes opaque, in order to make it transparent, you have to dissolve the soap in enough solvent to make the crystals so small that the the light will freely pass through the soap, which makes it look transparent. There is no magic number when it comes to the quantity of solvents required for a particular recipe, transparency will exist in a narrow window within a range. A good way to find the right quantity of solvents is to start by calculating a 60% soap/40% solvent ratio and then a 50% soap/50% solvent ratio, depending on your formula, transparency will exist somewhere in that range.

(See the calculation page for tips on formulating your own recipes and to download a Transparent soap calculator to help you with the task. This tutorial is intended for people who already know how to make soap and are aware of the safety precautions that should be taken in order to do so. In this tutorial, we will use a very popular recipe by Jeff Bobeck . It is a good basic recipe and it works, it yielded my first successful batch of transparent soap, I modified it because I use 75.5% Alcohol instead of the 70% Alcohol used in the original recipe. Formulas can be adapted to use with the Alcohol you can find, although it would be difficult to go below 70% (140 Proof). Ideally, if you can find 190 Proof Alcohol, use it, it will make your life easier, if you can't, you can adapt a recipe to work with what you can find, just go to the calculation page to find out how. You need Ethanol (grain Alcohol) (Everclear) to make transparent soap, Isopropyl Alcohol will not work.

I use a crock pot, I have gas appliances so I can't do it on the stove, using a slow cooker is an easy way to do it without the risk of setting the house on fire. First, print the recipe , assemble your supplies and clear 5 to 6 hours off your schedule. Preheat your oven to 180F (if it will go that low, if not, you will use the slow cooker to bring your soap to gel). Put a clear cup or glass in the freezer, you will need it to test the transparency of your soap. You will also need a wisk, lots of spoons, a spray bottle with alcohol in it, colorants (food colorants work, Select Shades are great), FO or your favorite perfume, a large pot with a spout, some Glad Press'n seal plastic wrap and a small plastic strainer. Measure your oils and heat them up in the slow cooker, I use a 4 quarts slow cooker, anything smaller would not work for this recipe, if you use a larger crock pot, you may have to tip it on its side somewhat so you can use your stick blender to mix the oils and the lye solution.

Mix the lye with 6 oz of water and set aside to cool. When the oils and the lye are about 140F, pour the lye solution into the oils and stir with the stick blender, it should take only a few minutes to get to a good medium trace. At that point, put the cover on the soap and put it in a 180F oven for 1 1/2 hour. (If your oven won't go that low, just leave the soap in the slow cooker on warm and check it after an hour to see if it is going through the gel stage, I am not sure how long it will take for the soap to become neutral that way, but it should not take more than 2 hours. Try to minimize water loss because we already took a big water discount). After 1 1/2 hour, your soap should be neutral (PH of 9 - 10.5 is fine).

The entire soap mass should be in the gel stage and look like somewhat like this: Stir it and test it either with phenolphthalein (if you have any) or litmus paper, if you don't mind the "tongue test", there should be no zap :) (To test using Litmus paper, dissolve some of the soap into a little bit of water and apply the paper to the soap, this should give you a good reading). When you are certain that your soap is "neutral", it is time to mix in the Alcohol and the Glycerin. Measure 13.5 oz of Alcohol and 3 oz of Glycerin. Mix the Glycerin into the Alcohol and then, off heat, start pouring into the soap mass while stirring with a whisk. Pour the Alcohol/Glycerin mix in slowly, taking time to break up lumps of soap. You must work quickly in order to minimize the loss of Alcohol, but do not panic and go too fast, take the time to break the big lumps. Finish with the stick blender or a potato masher, anything that will break the bigger pieces. Make sure you get all the soap that sticks to the sides and the bottom of the bowl.

All the soap will not dissolve completely right way, you will have pieces of soap floating in a soupy mixture of Alcohol/Glycerin and dissolved soap. That's alright, the little lumps will dissolve during the cook. Keep your head away from the bowl otherwise you will get an instantaneous hang over ;). start the kitchen fan, Alcohol vapors are highly flammable and you don't want them to accumulate in your kitchen. Put the cover back on the crock pot insert and put the insert back in the slow cooker. Cook on warm (depending on your slow cooker, you may have to start it on high for a few min., then put it back on warm) for 30 - 45 min. Check it once in a while, the temperature should be between 160 - 180F. I have a very cheap slow cooker that I bought at Wallmart for $15.00 and the lid does not fit very well, so I put a band of Glad Press'n Seal plastic wrap around the edge of the lid to prevent the loss of Alcohol while the soap cooks.

After 30 - 40 minutes of cooking time, check to see if the soap is well dissolved, there will be a layer of foamy soap on top, spray that down with some alcohol in a spray bottle. Stir with a clean spoon. Some of it won't want to go back into the solution and will float on top, do not worry, this is normal, we will address that a bit later. Prepare your sugar syrup. Heat 4 oz of water to a boil, turn off the heat, pour in 8 oz of sugar and stir until all the sugar is dissolve. Turn the heat back on and bring it back to a boil, then let simmer covered for 1 - 2 min to make sure all the sugar is well dissolved. Pour the sugar solution into the soap and stir. Take a large soup ladle and skim the foamy soap from the top, put that in a small dish, mash it and scent it, add a little bit of glycerin to it and pour it in a mold. This time I had 2.9 oz of foamy soap, it made a nice little hand soap.

Get the cup you put in the freezer before you began the soap, and pour a little bit of the clear soap stock on it to test the transparency. At first the soap sample may look transparent, but it may not be, put the cup in the freezer for 5 - 10 min and look at it again. If your soap looks milky, it needs more solvents. That is when making transparent soap can test your patience. Do not panic at this time and think the soap will go bad if you have to make more than one test, the soap is perfectly fine on warm setting in the crock pot, as long as you keep the mixture around 160F, you can take all night to adjust it if you want, just make sure to spritz some Alcohol on it and then put the cover on to minimize the loss of Alcohol in between tests. You may have lost some of the Alcohol during cooking time so your soap is not transparent yet. (That is what happened to me this time). We are working from an existing recipe that we know works, so the solvent requirements should be pretty close to the numbers provided. In my case, I added .5 oz of Alcohol.

My soap was still not transparent enough, so I added 2 oz of sugar dissolved in 1 oz of water. Finally, I added 2 oz of glycerin, 1 oz at a time. (For a total of 14 oz of Alcohol, 10 oz of sugar in 5 oz of water and 5 oz of glycerin). I didn't have to do that the last time I made that soap, that shows that you may have to adjust recipes, even good ones, because there are a lot of factors that can influence the final results. I finally had a clear sample, so it was time to pour the soap into a jar to let it cool down a little. I poured through a strainer, to keep any soap flecks or foam out of the final soap stock. Cover the jar with some Press'n Seal and insert a thermometer, let the soap cool to about 140F before you add the colors and the fragrance. When your soap has cooled off to 140F, scent and color it, then pour it into molds. (There will be a skin on top of the soap, spritz it with a little alcohol and then mix it, it should dissolve).

You may have some foam on top of the soap after you pour it in the molds, a good spritz of Alcohol should take care of it. (Note: I pour my soap in my molds through a small strainer, just to make sure) If you can, put the molds in the freezer, the faster the cool off, the more transparent the soap, if you do not have enough space in the freezer, put the molds in the fridge. After a few hours, check the soap, if it is hard enough, you can unmold it, take it out of the freezer and wait about 5 min. before you pop the soap out of the mold. Be careful not to touch it too much, because at this point, you will leave fingerprints on it. Let the soap dry and cure for about 2 weeks before you use it, during those two weeks, it will become harder and even more transparent. A skin will form on top of the soap, polish it with alcohol and then wrap in shrink wrap to keep the humidity out.

Note: Home made transparent soap is different from M&P, if you try to melt it again, it will loose its transparency, you will have to adjust the solvents and you may end up with a soft sticky soap. If you absolutely have to remelt the soap, do it as soon as possible after making it, but be prepared to add alcohol, glycerin and sugar solution again. Instructions for Clear Glycerin Soap Rachael's Original Instructions: NOTE: If you plan to make clear glycerin soap for sale, you should check the F.D.A. rules about the use of rubbing alcohol in soap... particularly in Canada where soap is handled more like a cosmetic. This first information was offered by Rachael and posted on the Latherings Soap Forum . She cautions that it takes a bit of practice to do this, but these are the steps and once you get the hang of it, it's rather simple. As a note...if you don't want to purchase liquor or Vodka for such purposes, you can order a stronger alcohol from the pharmacist. I believe what you want is about a 99% solution (regular rubbing alcohol is 70% and not as effective in rendering a clear soap...

particularly if it's isopropyl... see Jeff's post below). For 3 pounds of soap shavings you will need approximately: 1 1/2 cups high proof alcohol (whichever kind you use...vodka, 99% rubbing, etc.) 10 oz. sugar, moistened in just enough hot water to dissolve it, but as little as possible 6 - 8 oz. glycerin 12 oz. Palm Oil or 30% of total oils 12 oz. Coconut Oil or 30% of total oils 8 oz. Sweet Almond Oil or 20% of total oils 8 oz. Castor Oil or 20% of total oils 15.2 oz. Distilled water 6 oz. lye Your lye discount will be 0% for a clearer soap. The reason for no supferfatting is to achieve clarity. Second part of recipe Remember alcohol is lighter in weight than water, so make sure you have more than what is called for in your recipe. I usually have two bottles on hand at all times just in case. You do not want to run out of this very important ingredient.

One pint of alcohol weighs around 12.5 oz. Compensate for evaporation. It evaporates very quickly when heated. Also, keep the lid on as much as possible! Alcohol will be 35% of total volume (before evaporation) Sugar will be 28% of total volume Glycerin will be 15% of total volume 40 ozs. of oils will call for: 14 oz. Alcohol 11.2 oz. sugar dissolved into 4 oz. boiling water. Dissolve sugar thoroughly in as little water as possible. If sugar crystals are left, it will cause cloudy soap. 6 oz. Glycerin 1. Make sugar solution and have ready to heat on stove. 2. Preheat oven to 160-180 degrees. 3. Place a glass or Pyrex cup into refrigerator. 4. Pour alcohol into a squirt bottle and position next to stove ready for spritzing. 5. Lay a towel on the floor in front of stove, in case of water splash. 6. Measure out your alcohol and glycerin and have ready. Cover alcohol with plastic wrap so it does not evaporate. 7.

Combine water and lye and set aside. 8. Melt oils and fats in your main stockpot. 9. Combine oils and lye between 135-145 degrees. 10. Pour lye very slowly while stick blending 11. Stick blend until very thick trace. 12. Cover pot with glass lid and place into oven for 15-20 minutes. 13. It will be very thick at this point so use a heavy spoon. 14. Stir. 15. Cover and cook for 15-20 more minutes. 16. If it hasn’t gelled, cook for 10 more minutes or until it slides cleanly off the back of metal spoon. It should look somewhat like thick amber applesauce. Also you can add a teaspoon of soap to a cup of water and let dissolve, if a lot of oil floats on top, cook a little longer. 17. Remove from oven and slowly add half the alcohol and full amount of glycerin. Stir and scrape sides and bottom of pot very well. 18. Stir quickly and immediately replace lid. 19.

If using a home fashioned double boiler, insert your stockpot into another pot ( on top of trivet with a couple inches of water). 20. When soap begins to melt, stick blend the heck out of it until there are no more chunks. 21. It should look thick and gel-like. 22. Add the other half of alcohol and quick buzz with stick blender, then quickly replace lid. 23. If lots of foam forms, squirt with alcohol. Keep lid on. 24. Cover with halved towel. 25. Use caution when heating, lay small towels around the burner for splashing water but not too close. 26. Heat until temperature reaches 160-175 degrees. Don’t allow temperature to get too high, your soap should bubble not boil. Watch out for splashing water between the upper and lower pots. 27. Cook for 15 minutes with intermittent stick blending. 28. If you see a lot of foam forming, add 1⁄2 oz.-1 oz. alcohol at a time. 29. Keep on a spritzin' with alcohol to achieve clearness. 30. It should be clear. If not, cook a little longer. 31.

If soap is clear, remove from heat. 32. If soap becomes jelly-like add 1⁄2 - 1 oz. more alcohol at a time. 33. Set pot into sink. 34. Bring sugar solution temperature to 160 degrees. Soap should be around 160 degrees also. Add sugar solution very slowly to soap while stirring slowly. 35. Return to double boiler and allow to reach 180 degrees. 36. Remove pot promptly. 37. Drizzle small amount of soap onto your upside-down cold glass or Pyrex cup. 38. If soap is clear, proceed to next step. If not; cook longer with a little more alcohol. 39. Keep lid on and let cool to 130-140 degrees. 40. To lengthen playtime, leave sit in hot water of double boiler with heat shut off or sit in hot water in sink. 41. The trick is keeping the soap hot to be able to have time to color and scent. 42. If you notice your soap has a skin on top just spray with alcohol really well or let it be caught in the sieve. 43.

At this stage, do not scrape sides of stockpot of stuck on soap. It will affect clarity. 44. Pour through sieve into Pyrex cups and add fragrance and color. Stir lightly. (Check about colors from the other post on this site.) Spritz with alcohol if foam forms on top. 45. You can divide into several Pyrex cups and do as many colors as wanted but remember... you have to work fast! 46. Make sure your flashpoints on fragrance oils are high enough for 130-140 degrees. The faster your soap cools the more transparent it will be. Winter puts her molds outside in the winter like on a porch and pours into the molds so they will cool faster and freeze. I tried it last night and it does work great. 47. Pour into molds as quickly as possible and spray down foam with alcohol. Spritz until smooth. 48. Let sit undisturbed until soap is completely firm. If you have trouble releasing soap, freeze for an hour and try again. 49. Let cure for 2 weeks before cutting soap because soap will shrink. Ask me how I know! 50. Keep in mind the longer the soap cures, the clearer it becomes.

A couple more tips: • Your soap will be a natural amber color before coloring; this does not affect your final color. • If you’re making your soaps for decorative use, when unmolding use rubber gloves so you won’t get fingerprints on the soap. • I would suggest starting with one color until you get the hang of it, then you will know what to expect. • The thinner the soap, the more transparent it will appear. • Transparent soap needs time to harden. • Frozen soap will look cloudy; let it rest first before checking for clarity. • Make sure to use 0-1% superfat for clearer soap. If you find your soap is sticky or not clear after removing from the molds, you can cut it back up into small pieces into a large Pyrex cup, heat at half power in the microwave for a couple minutes at a time until all melted down. If you have a couple chunks left over in the mix, stir with a spoon and they will melt. Add a couple more ounces of alcohol, stir and pour through a sieve into another Pyrex cup. Now pour into your molds. I also do this if I didn’t quite achieve the color I wanted. I add more color and alcohol and pour into molds.

Make sure you do this within the first couple of days because you risk evaporating alcohol, which reduces transparency and makes sticky soap. After freezing, let soaps thaw for about 3 or 4 minutes and they should pop out. When creating recipes, use the Soap-Calc . It is my favorite tool! THIS IS NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH MELT AND POUR SOAP. YOU CANNOT REMELT IT AND POUR AGAIN. Thanks for reading and Happy Soaping! ~Kristy This page last updated on 14 October 2011. If you still have questions, please read through the information on the Troubleshooting Help page, MOST Frequently Asked Questions and Modern Procedures . More can also be learned through the Botched Batches and Soapy Success pages. Many common problems have already been addressed on the site and it's difficult for me to keep up with emails these days and get anything else done. If your question involves my looking up information that you can also research, or going over numbers and recipe calculations, I might not respond if in the middle of a project around our home and garden. I apologize for this, since I've enjoyed my correspondence with people and don't like to ignore emails of any kind. Thanks!

:-) How to Make Liquid Soap | Chickens in the Road Printer-Friendly How to make a soap paste: Prepare your work area. Gather all tools, utensils, safety gear, and ingredients. Along with a large (unchipped) enamel crock pot, you will need a number of bowls and utensils for holding, measuring, stirring, etc. Do not use aluminum, tin, or copper. Use stainless steel, glass, or heat-resistant plastic for your bowls and utensils. You will also need a kitchen scale and a stick blender. (Note: You may want to weigh your crock, empty and removed from the outer heating pot, before you start. I’ll explain below.) Weigh the oils and place in the crock pot on Low. Prepare the lye solution. Weigh soft or distilled water in a large bowl. Weigh the lye. ALWAYS ADD LYE TO WATER. NEVER ADD WATER TO LYE. Add the lye gradually, stirring constantly. (I was taking a picture, but otherwise you should be stirring.) The mixture will appear cloudy at first. It will quickly clear. Pour the lye solution slowly into the warm, melted oils. Your crock pot remains on Low.

The mixture will darken and not look very appealing. Place the stick blender in the crock pot, making sure the blade is completely immersed in the mixture to avoid creating splatters. The mixture will turn opaque and become thicker and smoother as you blend it. To avoid burning up your stick blender, blend with it on for a few minutes, then turn it off and just stir with it. Then on, then off, as you watch for the mixture to come to trace. What is trace? Trace is the stage in soapmaking where you can draw a line across the mixture and it will remain visible for several seconds before disappearing. (Sort of like when you’re making a thick gravy or a pudding.) Trace is even easier to recognize in a liquid soap recipe than a solid soap recipe. In fact, you can’t miss it. And it will go from starting to thicken to trace so fast, you will be lucky to get your stick blender out in time. Right before trace: A minute later, so thick I can’t shake the mixture off the stick blender, I have to scrape it off. With the crock pot still on Low, put on the lid and begin the cook.

Check it a couple of times during the first 30 minutes to be sure there’s been no separation of the oils. If you see any liquidy oils at the bottom of the crock pot, stir them back in. The mixture will quickly become so thick, a spoon will stand up in it. The paste will become very difficult to stir during the cook. Do your best. You can try a potato masher. It’s nearly impossible to stir at some points. Check the mixture about every 30 minutes during the cook and stir/break up/move it around the best you can to continue to mix the mixture as you watch for signs of finished paste. Finished paste looks like thick Vaseline with a translucent quality. Another look at a finished paste: Finished paste close up in a sample: How do you know if your paste is finished? Aside from looks, you’ll need to dilute a sample to test. Testing for finished paste: Dissolve 1 ounce of soap paste in 2 ounces of boiling distilled water. If it tests clear, your paste is done. If it tests slightly cloudy but you’ve cooked for the expected period of time, that’s okay, you’re done. If it tests milky, you are so NOT done.

(If it tests milky forever, you did something wrong. Probably mis-measured something.) In the recipes below, I’ve given you my cook times per recipe. Don’t test sample constantly. Wait at least 3 hours before test sampling, and then test sample about once an hour. Don’t be impatient, grasshopper. (Extra cook time will not hurt your soap, so never fear.) Tip: Start with 2 ounces of boiling water and the 1 ounce of soap paste–then zap 45 seconds in the microwave, stir, zap again, stir, zap again, several times over and your test sample will dissolve more quickly. Sample testing clear (the paste is done): Sample testing cloudy (this is still done): Sample testing milky (NOT done!): Once your paste is finished, weigh it. (You will need this information, and soap paste weight can vary, even when using the same recipe a second time, due to even slight differences in measurements, cook time, and evaporation.) You can either weigh your crock pot before you start (crock removed from outer heating pot) or remove the paste to weigh.

I weighed my pot, but found later that when I tried to weigh the pot and paste combined, my scale couldn’t take it. It’s a pain, but not impossible, to remove the paste to weigh. Scrape it out with a big spoon and transfer to a bowl. You don’t have to get every last bit, just close enough. (Weigh the bowl first to deduct from the total weight or hit tare after you place the bowl on your scale and before you add the paste.) Weigh the paste, then return it to the crock pot. You may at this point want to store half the paste for later use. As you move the paste back to the pot, keep your bowl on the scale and weigh out half the paste to return to the crock pot. Store the other half in a plastic baggie labeled with the recipe name and the weight of the paste for future reference. Depending on your rate of dilution, you might not even be able to dilute the entire paste in your crock pot anyway, but you will have no trouble diluting half the paste in your crock pot even at 20 percent dilution.

Another reason to divide your paste in half, or even in thirds, is to experiment with different dilution rates in preparing the soap. You may also want fragrance it in separate batches to please family members or friends, or make one part unscented for someone who doesn’t like scent while still fragrancing the rest. When you divide the paste, you have room to play with each part separately in dilution, scent, color, thickening, and so on. Dilution: Use soft or distilled water to dilute your paste. Here is a dilution table showing percent of soap and percent of water added per pound of paste. For 15 percent soap — 48 ounces water (3 pounds) added per pound of paste 20 percent — 32 ounces (2 pounds) 25 percent — 22 ounces (1 pound 6 ounces) 30 percent — 16 ounces (1 pound) 35 percent — 12 ounces 40 percent — 9 ounces Soaps made from 100 percent coconut oil will dilute at 40 percent (though that would be a very drying soap).

You will have a hard time getting a recipe with any significant amount of olive oil to dilute at anything other than 20 percent. I started out trying all of my recipes at 30 percent. If a soap doesn’t dilute in a reasonable period of time (several hours) then you’re probably at the wrong dilution rate. A soap that isn’t going to dilute at your current dilution rate will start forming a layer on top. No matter how many times you break it up, it will keep layering. An olive oil soap layering at 30 percent dilution: You have two choices. You can either dilute the soap further, or emulsify it with a 33 percent borax solution. Emulsification with a borax solution allows you to dilute soap at higher concentrations. Your other choice is to dilute further then thicken with glycerin. Borax is a natural mineral/salt. Glycerin is a byproduct of soap fats. Which path you choose will depend on the type of soap you’re making, its intended use, and your personal preferences. I used a borax solution to emulsify my home cleaning soap at 25 percent.

For my hand soap and shampoo, I chose to dilute to 20 percent then thicken back with glycerin. Your diluted soap weight = the weight of your paste plus the weight of your dilution water. (You will need this information, so after you finish diluting, add it up!) Emulsification: To emulsify liquid soap at a higher concentration than it will naturally dilute, add up to 2-3 tablespoons borax solution per pound of diluted soap. (See how to make a borax solution below.) If you choose to emulsify a recipe, you don’t need to add any further neutralization. You can do this before or after sequestering, but if you do it before sequestering, your soap is as clear as it’s going to get because this level of borax solution addition will interfere with further clearing. Neutralization: You can neutralize your liquid soap one of three ways–with citric acid, boric acid, or borax. You will add this to your diluted soap, but the amount you add is based on your paste weight.

To make a citric acid or boric acid solution (these two solutions are made at 20 percent), add 2 ounces of citric or boric acid to 8 ounces of boiling distilled water. Stir until dissolved. Use while hot. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons per pound paste weight to neutralize. To make a borax solution (made at 33 percent), add 3 ounces of borax to 6 ounces of boiling distilled water. Stir until dissolved. Use while hot. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons per pound paste weight to neutralize. (Borax means, for example, the 20 Mule Team stuff.) Following neutralization (or neutralization by emulsification), while your liquid soap is still hot, add (if using) scent, coloring, superfatting, thickening (if by glycerin), and sequestering agents. Scent: Add fragrance or essential oils, if desired, at 2-3 percent of your diluted soap. Coloring: You can dye your soap with specially prepared liquid soap dyes or use food coloring from the grocery store. (No, this won’t cause staining.) Fabric dyes are not recommended for liquid soap.

Add color gradually–a few drops can color a lot of soap! Take into account that you are, with most clear liquid soap recipes, starting with a light to dark amber natural color. I did color experiments in small samples, just for fun. I usually prefer my homemade soaps in their natural color. Superfatting: Sulfated castor oil is the only recommended oil for superfatting liquid soap because it is completely water soluble. Other oils will cloud your liquid soap. Superfat at 1 percent of the diluted liquid soap weight. Thickening: For thickening purposes, add 1/2 to 1 ounce per pound of a 33 percent borax solution per pound of diluted soap. (Add to cold–aka room temperature–diluted soap.) If your soap is cloudy, do NOT use a borax solution for thickening until after sequestering. (This is more borax solution than used in neutralization and can interfere with clarity before sequestering.) If you don’t want to use borax to thicken, add 1-2 ounces of glycerin per pound of diluted soap instead. Glycerin will also add moisturizing, lather, and emollience.

You can add glycerin for thickening before sequestering as it is also a sequestering agent. Start with 1 ounce per pound diluted soap. Don’t expect to see the results of the glycerin until the soap cools and sequesters. After sequestering, if it’s not as thick as you like, you can add more. Sequestering Agents: You will already know from your test sample if your soap is slightly cloudy–and you can fix it now. (This will NOT fix milky liquid soap!) To clarify slight cloudiness, you can use isopropyl or ethanol alcohol, a sugar solution, or glycerin–or a combination of all three. Whatever mixture of sequestering agents you choose, add them at no more than 5 percent of your diluted liquid soap weight. To make a sugar solution, bring 1 pound of water to a boil. Add 1 1/2 pounds of sugar. Bring to a boil again and cook until the sugar dissolves. Sequestering is the time the liquid soap sits before it clears. Some soaps are clear immediately. Others take days or up to 2 weeks to clear.

Your liquid soap is ready to use immediately after you finish making it, but you may want to sequester some recipes for added clarity. I transfer my liquid soaps to quart jars for sequestering and storage. You may want to use something else, but clear glass enables you to see the soap as it’s sequestering, which is handy if you are looking for clarity. Save your empty water jugs and, after sequestering, transfer your soap to them for longterm storage and use to refill your dispensers. You can print this page: Printer-Friendly Recipes: The Failor book is a fantastic resource and I highly recommend it. The book’s drawbacks are the way the information is organized and the lack of detail presented with the recipes. You have to flip back and forth hunting all over the book to find what you need when you need it, and recipes give no hint to suggested soft oils, recommended dilution rates, probable cook time, likelihood of cloudiness, etc. I’ve done my best with this tutorial to present the information as you need it, and to specify exactly how I made each recipe. These recipes are all adapted from the Failor book.

You can replace the olive oil in these recipes with another soft oil (or combination of soft oils) and alter the dilution rate and other matters to your liking. If you do so, your results may be different. Feel free to experiment! For even more recipes and a lot of great resource information, get the Failor book. You can also create your own recipes using a liquid soap calculator. Each of these recipes, the way I made them, yielded about 6 quart jars of liquid soap. Each quart jar of liquid soap weighs approximately 2 pounds, so that’s 12 pounds of soap! I didn’t superfat any of these recipes, but you can. Remember also that if you want to dilute at a different rate, you could dilute all of these recipes at 30 or even 35 percent if you don’t mind emulsifying with a borax solution to the fullest recommended emulsification allowance. Homemade liquid soap is typically thinner than store-bought liquid soap. (Store-bought liquid soap is thickened.) How you make your recipes is all about what you want–do it your way. How much did these soaps cost to make? I don’t know.

I don’t like math and I didn’t figure it out. If you want the cheapest liquid soap possible, you can buy store-bought liquid hand soaps and shampoos for a dollar a bottle. You may not be able to make homemade liquid soap for that–but then, you might not want to know what’s in your cheap store-bought liquid soap. If you want to make homemade liquid soap for frugality purposes, find the best deals on lye and coconut oil. Use the cheapest soft oils you can find. Use borax to emulsify and thicken (borax is cheap) and don’t use any essential oils. If you want to make homemade liquid soap out of an interest in the craft or to provide the most natural, quality product you can for yourself and your family, then you will choose your ingredients with those goals in mind. (And your soap won’t be quite as inexpensive.) How much your liquid soap costs is up to you and it’s all about your perspective. Moisturizing Hand Soap with Jojoba: Notes: This recipe yields an initially slightly cloudy soap due to the jojoba.

You’ll need to use sequestering agents to clear it up, and it will require sequestering time to clear and thicken. It also takes a very long cook time–but it’s worth it! Oils Neutralization: 33 percent borax solution, 1 1/2 tablespoons per pound finished paste Sequestering Agent: sugar solution, 5 percent per pound diluted soap Thickening: 2 ounces glycerin per pound of diluted soap Scent: 3 percent fragrance or essential oil per pound diluted soap Moisturizing Shampoo with Lanolin: Notes: This one also resulted in an initially slightly cloudy soap due to the lanolin, but not as cloudy as with the jojoba in the previous recipe. You can clear it up with sequestering agents. Even at 20 percent, it wasn’t completely diluted. Rather than dilute further, I added a reduced measure (1 tablespoon per diluted soap weight) of the 33 percent borax solution. If you prefer to not do that, you may have to dilute to 15 percent and increase the thickener. Since I emulsified slightly with the borax solution, added neutralization wasn’t necessary.

If you don’t emulsify, neutralize. This soap was clear immediately after adding the sugar solution, but required sequestering time to thicken. Oils Emulsification: 33 percent borax solution, 1 tablespoon per pound diluted soap weight Sequestering Agents: sugar solution, 5 percent per pound diluted soap Thickening: 2 ounces glycerin per pound diluted soap Scent: 3 percent essential oil per pound diluted soap All-Around Home Cleaning Soap: Notes: This recipe is the easiest one to make. (It’s a good one to pick to practice on first.) It cooks relatively quickly and is clear immediately. I used the highest proportion of borax solution recommended for emulsifying so I didn’t have to dilute further than 25 percent. The high olive oil content in this soap would make dilution difficult even at 20 percent. Since borax is a detergent agent and I intended this soap for home cleaning, I went right ahead with lots of borax. No further neutralization or thickening was needed.

Oils Emulsification: 3 tablespoons of 33 percent borax solution per pound diluted soap Scent: several drops fragrance or essential oil per pound diluted soap For laundry, I use this at 1/3 cup per load and add some washing soda and baking soda with a splash of vinegar. (How much washing soda and baking soda per load is up to you. You can find per-load recommendations on the side of the boxes. I use less than the manufacturers recommend because I think they recommend too much.) You can use it straight up for washing dishes in the sink. It cuts grease! For the dishwasher, fill your dishwasher cups almost completely with it and add a little borax for detergent power. Resource List (not exhaustive, but will get you started) Supplies: All My Soapmaking Posts and Tutorials Soap Math If you have trouble with all this soapy math (I do), here’s a tip. If you want to figure ounces for anything that’s in pounds, change the pounds to ounces (multiply the pounds by 16). To find a percent of anything, move the decimal two places to the left and multiply it. 2% = .02. Pounds times 16 times the percent (in a decimal).

For example, say you want to fragrance six pounds of liquid soap at two percent. What is two percent of six pounds? 6 times 16 equals 96, and 96 times .02 equals 1.92 ounces. You’d add 2 ounces of fragrance. You can print this page: Printer-Friendly Happy liquid soaping! Update five years later: If you got this far without running away screaming, congratulations. If you want an easier method that doesn’t involve math, see how I make liquid soap now, the easy way, here . Soap Base Policies Soap Base The soap base available at Soap Making Resource is 100% all natural and is, SLS free, detergent free, paraben free, alcohol free and cruelty free. It's the best stuff on the market and we guarantee that you will love it! I am confident that your family, friends and customers will love this natural soap base as well. It is manufactured by SFIC corporation; the most highly rated manufacturer in the melt and pour soap industry. click here to see our selection! We have a large selection of melt and pour bases for you to choose from, so be sure to check them out below.

You can purchase each base in conveniently wrapped 1lb individual logs. Our soap base has a high glycerin content which means that it offers wonderful emollient properties and feels great on the skin. Melt and pour soap is really a blank canvas for you to express your creativity! Simply melt down the unscented base in your microwave or double boiler and then add your colorants , fragrance or essential oils and even additional carrier oils for an extra super-fat. Once your desired additives are incorporated into the batch, pour the soap into your mold of choice and let it harden. You will be left with a pure and natural bar of custom soap that you created. Very cool! We have 15 different soap bases for you to choose from! Everything from Clear to Shea butter to goat's milk melt and pour soap base can be found right here at Soap Making Resource. Each one offers its own unique look and feel. Here is a list of the bases that we carry in alphabetical order: White Melt and Pour Base Clear Soap Base (Low Sweat) OUT OF STOCK The skin loving ingredients used to make our melt and pour soap base can actually attract water from out of the air and onto your soap. This is what makes our soap base so incredibly moisturizing!

If you live in a very humid climate, over time beads of water may eventually appear on the surface of your product. Keep in mind that water beads can easily be wiped away and I think they actually present a great demonstration on just how moisturizing your product is! Most of you probably won't need a low sweat melt and pour base, but for those of you who live in very humid climates, this product is a great solution if you want to keep water beads from forming on your soap! It is transparent and, like all our soap bases, has a wonderful lather! Ingredients include: Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher, of vegetable origin), Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifier), Soy bean protein (conditioner).

1 Pound: $4.52 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $40.14 ($4.01/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $139.50 ($3.88/lb) Out of Stock Low Sweat Clear Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. Hemp Seed Oil Soap Base OUT OF STOCK Hemp seed oil soap base is unique in both feel and color. Hemp seed oil is a wonderful moisturizer and will leave your skin feeling hydrated. This soap has a beautiful natural forest green hue do to the addition of hemp seed oil. If you are looking for a unique soap base that may separate you from the crowd and excite customers; this is it!

Ingredients include: Olive Oil (Grade A extra virgin), Palm Oil, Coconut Oil, Safflower Oil,Glycerine (kosher, or vegetable origin), Hemp Seed Oil (unrefined), Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol ( moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifer), Soy bean protein (conditioner). 1 Pound: $5.38 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $48.86 ($4.89/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $170.90 ($4.75/lb) Out of Stock Hemp Seed Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. Olive Oil Soap Base OUT OF STOCK This soap base is made with 20% extra virgin olive oil. It's a wonderful well-balanced soap with a full lather and awesome moisturizing properties. This base has a beautiful golden hue that just screams all natural!

Ingredients include: Olive Oil (extra virgin), Palm Oil, Coconut Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher, or vegetable origin), Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifer), Soy bean protein (conditioner). 1 Pound: $4.96 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $44.57 ($4.46/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $155.45 ($4.32/lb) Out of Stock Olive Oil Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. Aloe Vera Soap Base OUT OF STOCK This soap base has natural aloe vera gel added to its formula. It has a beautiful green hue because of this wonderful ingredient addition. Take advantage of the beneficial properties of aloe vera in your melt and pour soap today!

Ingredients include: Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher, of vegetable origin), Aloe Vera Gel, Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifer), Soy bean protein (conditioner). 1 Pound: $4.52 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $40.14 ($4.01/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $139.50 ($3.88/lb) Out of Stock Aloe Vera Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. Honey Soap Base OUT OF STOCK This honey soap base has a beautiful amber color and robust lather. Honey has been used for centuries as a natural beauty remedy and is a great addition to melt and pour soap! Only 100% pure grade A all natural honey is used in our bases.

Ingredients include: Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher, of vegetable origin), Honey, Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifer), Soy bean protein (conditioner). 1 Pound: $4.52 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $40.14 ($4.01/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $139.50 ($3.88/lb) Out of Stock Honey Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. Cocoa Butter Soap Base OUT OF STOCK This is a beautiful melt and pour soap base with lots of creamy lather. The addition of cocoa butter even gives this soap the faint aroma of chocolate. Wonderful stuff!

Ingredients include: Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher, of vegetable origin), Cocoa Butter (unrefined), Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifer), Soy bean protein (condition), Titanium Dioxide (mineral whitener used in opaque soaps). 1 Pound: $5.38 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $48.86 ($4.89/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $170.90 ($4.75/lb) Out of Stock Cocoa Butter Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. White Soap Base (Low Sweat) OUT OF STOCK This low sweat melt and pour soap base is the same as the clear low sweat soap base, only formulated to be white. The moisturizing ingredients used in standard melt and pour formulas attract water from the air and may form water beads on your product if conditions are extremely humid.

These water beads, of course, can easily be wiped away. Most of you probably won't need a low sweat melt and pour base, but if you live in a very humid climate, this product is a great solution if you want to keep water beads from forming on your soap. This is a melt and pour soap base, but out of all the bases we carry, this one looks the most like cold process soap; another great benefit if that is the look you are going for. It is white in color and like all our bases has a wonderful lather and great conditioning properties! Ingredients include: Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher, of vegetable origin), Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifier), Soy bean protein (conditioner), Titanium Dioxide (mineral whitener used in opaque soaps).

1 Pound: $4.52 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $40.14 ($4.01/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $139.50 ($3.88/lb) Out of Stock Low Sweat White Melt and Pour Soap Base (1lb wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. Oatmeal Soap Base OUT OF STOCK This oatmeal soap base is a must try. Oatmeal is a great soothing skin care ingredient and a perfect addition for melt and pour soaps. This soap base will produce a wonderful lather and has great exfoliating and moisturizing properties. Ingredients include: Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher, or vegetable origin), Purified Water, Oatmeal, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifer), Soy bean protein (conditioner),Titanium Dioxide (mineral whitener used in opaque soaps).

1 Pound: $4.60 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $41.00 ($4.10/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $142.60 ($3.96/lb) Out of Stock Oatmeal Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. Shaving Soap Base OUT OF STOCK This shaving soap base will produce a thick luxurious lather that is absolutely perfect to shave with! It's also a great soap base for people who just enjoy more bubbles, whether you use it for shaving or not. Ingredients include: Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher, of vegetable origin), Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifier), Soy bean protein (conditioner), Wheat Protein (conditioner).

1 Pound: $4.60 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $41.00 ($4.10/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $142.60 ($3.96/lb) Out of Stock Shaving Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. Crystal Clear Soap Base OUT OF STOCK This base is the clearest soap base out there on the market. It is the only melt and pour base we carry that has a mild surfactant in its makeup which is necessary to create such amazingly transparent soap. Ingredients include: Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher, of vegetable origin), Purified Water, Coco Amidopropyl Betaine (surfactant made from coconut oil), Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifer), Soy bean protein (conditioner).

1 Pound: $4.60 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $41.00 ($4.10/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $142.60 ($3.96/lb) Out of Stock Crystal Clear Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. Goat's Milk Soap Base OUT OF STOCK This is one of our most popular soap bases that we carry. It is formulated with the addition of 10% real goat's milk which is added to each and every batch. Everyone loves goat's milk soap and I think that you will too! Our goat's milk soap base has a wonderful lather and great conditioning properties. It is a beautiful off-white cream color. You'll love it!

Ingredients include: Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher, of vegetable origin), Goat's Milk, Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifer), Soy bean protein (conditioner), Titanium Dioxide (mineral whitener used in opaque soaps). 1 Pound: $4.60 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $41.00 ($4.10/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $142.60 ($3.96/lb) Out of Stock Goat's Milk Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. Castile Soap Base OUT OF STOCK This base is manufactured with at least 25% olive oil and mimics the soap from the "olden days". Unlike some castile soap, this base has been formulated to be extremely hard and not slimy. Very nice!

Ingredients include: Olive Oil (extra virgin), Palm Oil, Coconut Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher of vegetable origin), Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifer), Soy bean protein (conditioner), Titanium Dioxide (mineral whitener used in opaque soaps). 1 Pound: $5.16 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $46.57 ($4.66/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $162.65 ($4.52/lb) Out of Stock Castile Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. Clear Soap Base OUT OF STOCK This base is beautiful clear all natural melt and pour soap. It has a whopping 20% glycerin content! It's translucent design is perfect for making pretty handcrafted bars.

Ingredients include: Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher, of vegetable origin), Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifier), Soy bean protein (conditioner). 1 Pound: $4.26 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $38.43 ($3.84/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $133.35 ($3.70/lb) Out of Stock Clear Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. Shea Butter Soap Base OUT OF STOCK Shea butter is one of the most highly regarded skin care ingredients on the market. Try it today in your melt and pour soap! Our shea butter soap base has a generous portion of natural shea butter added to every batch. It offers a rich lather and great moisturizing properties. It's one of our most popular bases and I think you will see why!

Ingredients include: Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher, of vegetable origin), Shea Butter (refined naturally crushed), Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifer), Soy bean protein (condition), Titanium Dioxide (mineral whitener used in opaque soaps). 1 Pound: $5.16 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $46.57 ($4.66/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $162.65 ($4.52/lb) Out of Stock Shea Butter Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. White Soap Base OUT OF STOCK This basic white melt and pour soap base is a wonderful blank canvas for melt and pour soap making. Each batch has 20% added glycerin giving it great moisturizing properties. It also offers a wonderful robust lather.

Ingredients include: Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Safflower Oil, Glycerine (kosher, of vegetable origin), Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifier), Soy bean protein (conditioner), Titanium Dioxide (mineral whitener used in opaque soaps). 1 Pound: $4.17 Out of Stock 10 Pounds: $37.57 ($3.76/lb) Out of Stock 36 Pounds: $130.25 ($3.62/lb) Out of Stock White Melt and Pour Soap Base (1 pound wrapped logs) - Choose Quantity: * If you need to purchase a higher quantity than what is offered above, simply change the quantity in your shopping cart. Thank you all for taking a look at our large selection of melt and pour soap bases. You will love this high quality product! Have fun exploring your creativity by making unique melt and pour soaps!

If you have any questions about this product, or any of the other products available at Soap Making Resource, feel free to use this contact form to shoot us a message or call our warehouse at 717-875-8670. We are happy to help! Free Soap Making e-Newsletter Plus instantly receive one of my own personal soap recipe formulas using a combination of sweet almond oil, avocado oil, olive oil, coconut oil, palm oil, castor oil and shea butter scented with an intoxicating essential oil blend. This recipe is explained step by step in full detail. you're going to love it! Instantly receive one of my own soap recipe formulas. $5 Coupon off your first purchase of $30 or more! Access to more exclusive subscriber coupons. Future Soap making recipe tutorial announcements. How to make lotions, bath bombs and more! Interviews with successful soap makers. Contests with awesome prizes. Revealing soap making poll results. New product announcements, demos and reviews. Unbeatable Soap Making Resource Sales! Sign Up Today! What is Transparent Soap? (with pictures) What is Transparent Soap? Written By: J.S. Metzker Erdemir Edited By: W.

Everett Last Modified Date: 05 January 2017 Copyright Protected: Adorable animal families that will make you "aww" Transparent soap is clear soap with a high glycerin content. Often referred to as “ glycerin soap ,” transparent soap is less drying than opaque soap, and can have additional emollient oils added to it, such as shea butter or jojoba oil. The first mass produced clear soap was Pears® brand, introduced in 1807 and still available as of 2010. Glycerin is a humectant, which means that it attracts moisture. This property of glycerin soap is what makes it more moisturizing than opaque soaps that contain less glycerin. Referring to transparent soap as glycerin soap is slightly misleading because all soap contains glycerin, a sugar-based compound found in all animal and vegetable fats. Whether it's clear or opaque, homemade and handmade soap usually has all the glycerin in it. In commercial soap-making, the glycerin is extracted and used in more expensive soaps and creams.

Transparent soap is so gentle that it is often recommended for people with very sensitive skin, such as babies, small children, and people with allergies or dermatitis. Soap with a high glycerin content rinses more easily from the skin and doesn't leave a film that could cause irritation. Additionally, glycerin soap is generally less expensive than other moisturizing or anti-aging beauty bars. Ad Soap is made from lye mixed with an animal or vegetable fat, such as tallow or olive oil. This is called cold-process soap-making, where the fatty acids in the soap react with the alkali in the lye. The oils become hard in a process called saponification. To extract glycerin, hardened soap is shaved and melted again. Salt is added, which causes the soap to curdle and separate from the glycerin. Glycerin can be added to soap to make the bar clearer and more moisturizing. To do this, the soap-maker melts soap shavings, then adds high-proof alcohol, sugar, and glycerin. The soap is allowed to harden, and then is melted several more times to remove any extra water that causes the bar to look cloudy.

It can be challenging to learn how to make soap with the cold-process method, so many craft stores sell blocks of “melt-and-pour” soap. These blocks contain varying amounts of glycerin, and some are already transparent. Melt-and-pour products are cold-process soaps that can be re-melted to add additional ingredients, such as essential oil , coloring, or other decorations before pouring them into attractive molds. Glycerin can also be added to melt-and-pour soap to make it even more transparent. Ad

Question: What is added to soap to make it clear?
Answer: Alcohol