Liquid soap is always a lie. I don’t care if it’s transparent or lotion-y looking. It always boasts about its amazing moisturizing properties. It never, ever lives up to its boasting. It is always mediocre and also kind of snot-like in texture. I can do better. And I did.
What makes this liquid soap different from ever other liquid soap on the planet is that it is lotion first, soap second. It is primarily an emulsion spiked with all kinds of great, moisturizing oils, and then the water has soap dissolved in it. Brilliant, if I do say so myself.
I used a bunch of soap scraps—predominantly coffee soap, which explains the final colour and little flecks of coffee grounds.
This comes together pretty easily. The only challenge is making the emulsion without getting the soap too foamy. Just be gentle and work slowly—there’s nothing to it. I used some tiny little scraps of soap I had leftover in my basement from my soapmaking. The scraps were all around a year old, so they were nice and dry, which is just what you want, otherwise the soap will gum up your coffee grinder. If your soap isn’t dry enough, dry it out in the oven at 200°F for a while.
Now you’ve got the best moisturizing hand soap you’ve ever had. You’re welcome 😉
Please don’t make this recipe. It’s an old one, and no longer lives up to my quality standards. If you want a creamy, gentle cleanser, check out this recipe!
Moisturizing Liquid Soap
13g avocado oil
5g olive oil (pomace) (USA / Canada) (I used calendula infused)
7g e-wax
2g Vitamin E MT-50 (USA / Canada)72g distilled water
20g solid soap, chopped and then finely ground
3g vegetable glycerine (USA / Canada)Broad spectrum preservative of choice (why?)
Melt the oils and emulsifying wax together in a small pan over low heat. Remove from heat when the wax is melted.
In another pan, heat the water and glycerin. Dissolve the soap into the water, keeping the pan over low heat. Don’t let it boil, or it will foam up. Slowly squash and mash the soap that needs help being dissolved.
Once the soap is dissolved, remove the pan from the heat and let cool. Re-melt the oils if needed and begin slowly whisking the soap water into the oils, taking care not to suds it up.
Once all the soap water is incorporated, decant into a soap pump bottle or just a normal bottle. Use like normal soap. Voila!
The soap you made in one of your previous posts is still the best soap I have ever used! Home made soap is no comparison to the store bought stuff!
Aww, thanks Alex! Once you run out you should try making your own 🙂
I have been trying to make liquid shampoo. I have given up. It just doesn’t work the same as the bar and is just making me frustrated. I may try your liquid hand soap and if it works I will try it with shampoo.
I feel your pain, Jennifer. My previous efforts to create liquid soap have left me with coagulated, gelatinous messes that slipped through my fingers and squiggled off down the drain whenever I tried to use them. If you’re planning on using this for shampoo, you might consider lighter oils than avocado and olive; something like grapeseed or safflower might be a better choice depending on how dry your scalp/hair gets. And be sure to let me know how it works out!
How wonderful! I will try this very soon. May I ask what machine you are using to grind your ingredients?
Mims—I’m just using a cheap $5 coffee grinder I got at Value Village for the exclusive purpose of grinding up non-food-stuffs. It’s easily been one of my best DIY investments!
Do you use KOH or NaOH when you make liquid soap? I’ve read you need to use KOH (Potassium Hydroxide) to have it be liquid, and not just slimy bar soap in a bottle.
I use NaOH to make bar soap—I’ve never made true liquid soap with KOH; I’ve always figured I only need one kind of corrosive chemical booting around in my cupboard. That, and I find bar soap to be a lot more interesting than liquid soap. Anyhow, I’ve definitely found that just dissolving shredded bar soap in water does make a slimy concoction. Hence, the lotion-like solution here, which creates something that’s nice and smooth and creamy.
I just made liquid soap with KOH recently, and it turned out pretty well. It was made only with fresh tallow so it had a pretty strong smell but I’ve been adding oils to it as it cures. I find liquid soap interesting because you can make your own KOH by concentrating an ash solution (if you are allowed to have fires in your area) and you can use a dilute solution of liquid soap made with KOH as a plant-friendly/non-environmentally-destructive pesticide (NaOH based soap kill plants).
Highly recommended, and something else to play with! Here’s a link to making your own KOH http://www.frontierfreedom.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=105
Very cool, Liz! I’ve bought some KOH so I can make liquid soap… eventually. I’m just so darn busy these days I barely have time to eat, let alone babysit a batch of soap in a slow cooker for a day 🙁
What is e-wax? XD I’m sorry I’m new to this and trying to find all the ingredients… probably a stupid question but…
E-wax is emulsifying wax. It’s a waxy substance (it usually comes in little white pellets), and when used in concentrations of 5–7% it causes water and oils to easily emulsify (it’s pretty much foolproof). The ingredients vary depending on which kind you buy—I’m currently using New Directions Aromatic’s Polawax, but I probably wouldn’t buy it again as I prefer some stuff I bought at a local shop (the texture and shelf life of the finished product are better).
Marie, I’ve been reading your entries for a while now, but since I’ve only dipped my toes into the diy body care world, I haven’t really been leaving comments.
However, I did want to ask, similar to another commenter above – If I wanted to modify this recipe for shampoo, and the only wax I have is the beeswax, how much would I have to play around with the proportions of oil to water? I know I would have to use more oil than is listed in your recipe here, but am not certain how much more… I would use a lighter oil, like an almond or sunflower…
Hi Alina! Thanks for reading and dipping your toes in 🙂 Unfortunately you really cannot substitute beeswax for emulsifying wax—they have nothing in common other than having “wax” in both names 🙁 Emulsifying wax serves to emulsify the soap water and the oil together—beeswax would just give you a thick, gelatinous mess, with water floating on top. I also would definitely not use more oil than for hand soap—I would actually consider using less. Your hair simply cannot absorb oil the same way your hands can (no matter how much I try to convince it to, lol), and I’d be afraid you would end up with oilier hair after washing than before (yuck, lol). A lighter oil is definitely a good idea, though—avocado would be too much for hair.
So, the summary there is that I’d dissolve the soap in more water (maybe 30–50% more), increase the e-wax by that same percentage, and then leave all the other amounts the same 🙂 Have fun!
Have you tried a shampoo bar yet? I luuuuurve mine 🙂
Any issues with spoilage?
As with anything that contains water, this will eventually go bad on you. This recipe makes about half a cup/100mL of soap lotion. I’d recommend storing it in a pump-top bottle to avoid additional contamination with dirty fingers. After that, watch for signs of spoilage like mold, colour change, texture change, or a funky smell. Toss it when that happens. You should have a month or two, though—my lotions generally last at least three months in a relatively cool environment in a pump-top bottle 🙂
Hi Marie 🙂 I’m wanting to make a liquid soap (without actually making liquid soap – not ready for KOH!), I was wondering if this lotion soap method produced bubbles/lathered up?
I’m thinking of doing something similar except using soap nuts simmered in water for the lotion. I foresee a lovely facial milk cleanser in the works 🙂
I’ve also diluted some CP soap to a rather useless watery consistency (don’t ask why, big mistake) and was thinking to use that in a lotion as a body-wash, which is very similar to what you’ve done here. Either that, or just squirt on to a shower puff and use.. but that’s not as fun as tinkering 😉
Hi Fatima! This was a pretty low lather project with a tendency to split after a few days from what I remember. I’d recommend your soap nuts method instead 🙂 Your body wash lotion sounds similar to this, so I’d make a point of using it quickly in case it splits 😛
Hi Marie just thought i’d update you with my soapnuts adventure. I used about 80% liquid – 77% soapnut simmered water and 3% rosewater. Then for my oils used coconut and hazelnut. The soapnuts themselves smelt quite bad, but the smell of the coconut oil and rosewater completely got rid of it. Smells amazing! But as for it’s cleansing properties, i’m not quite sure it’s as good as regular soapy cleansers (I doubt it would be able to get a full face of foundation off). To my surprise, my face wasn’t left feeling oily at all (once I patted it dry), and on days where i don’t need a deep clean, this would work great!
This sounds lovely! It sounds like you’ve wizard-ed up a nice, gentle facial cleanser—perfect for people with dry skin 🙂 I really must find myself some soapnuts!
Hi Marie!
Does the ground bar soap add grittiness (for scrubbing action) to the final product?
I have some NDA liquid castile soap leftover from another project. I might try replacing the soap base of the recipe with the castile and add the oils, ewax and vitamin E.
What do you think?
Liz
Hi Liz! Since you have some complete, true, liquid soap I’d recommend just adding some oils of choice straight to that—I find liquid soap to be an effective emulsifier on its own for applications like this 🙂
How much coconut and jojoba oil, and homemade liquid castile soap. How much oil should I add to my castile soap? Great post thanks!
Hey J! I don’t recommend making this anymore—it’s not very good, really. If you’re looking for a less drying hand/body wash I’d recommend something made with surfactants. You can learn more here and here 🙂
I live in a desert climate, and after reading the affects that glycerin can have when there is not enough humidity in the air, is it possible to remove glycerin from your recipe? Also, would it be overkill if I were to add Argan oil to the recipe? I’m new to all of this and I’m unsure of which oils would work for my skin, so I’m thinking of just throwing everything into the pot. lol
Thanks
Hi Pam! I live in a very dry climate as well and have never encountered any negative effects with glycerin, so I doubt you need to leave it out. And you can add argan oil, but remember that you will be washing it down the drain, and it’s pretty pricey just to be washed down the drain 🙂 I’d stick to something cheaper!
Hello – I am trying to save an ugly milk soap from being a complete misadventure, so I am going to try this!
I only have one question, though. Do you weigh all your ingredients, as in, are all ingredients here listed in weighed amounts?
Thanks so much!
Bobbie
Hi Bobbie! Grams are exclusively a weight measurement, so yes, all by weight 🙂
I have just made this liquid soap and its absolutely fantastic Marie. I used a castile plain bar soap I had so I could add essential oils of choice. I’ve tried all sorts of liquid soap and ended with a gooey mess.So hat’s off to you for this.
Woohoo! Enjoy 🙂
Hi Marie i have since trippled this recipe and although it’s thick and soapy in my hand wash bottle ,when I press the plunger it comes out watery and not white. I’m wondering why ? Any ideas please.
Hey Lynn! I don’t use this recipe anymore and haven’t made it in years, so I’m afraid I can’t comment. It sounds like it’s separating a bit. I now make proper liquid soap—you can learn more about that here 🙂
Why don’t you need a preservative in this recipe is it has water in it? I’m afraid of it growing bacteria in it
It should have one, so I’ve added it. Honestly, though, this is a really old recipe, and it’s not that great. I wouldn’t make it or recommend that anyone else does, so I’ve added a note to that effect as well.
I love that you chose to leave the post, and admitted that it was a learning step while linking to a better option. In my view, that makes you a more reliable source, and me a better soaper. Thank you for blogging well!
Thanks so much, Katie! I’m sure more recipes will begin to sport this note as I continue to learn and grow 🙂