This Black Soap and Citrus Cleansing Balm looks like a green smoothie, which is definitely a bit weird. I wasn’t expecting that at all when I measured everything out and got it melting, and then voila—green smoothie cleansing balm! It even smells pretty appetizing, thanks to a liberal dose of juicy orange wax. Healthy breakfast appearance aside, this creamy cleansing balm is lightly exfoliating and leaves your skin soft and hydrated. I designed it for use on the face, but I’ve found I love how it makes my hands feel as well.
I no longer recommend using alkaline cleansers like soap or baking soda on your face; read this for more information.
The soapy bit of this cleansing balm is African black soap, which I have a longstanding love affair with. It’s amazing stuff, and the only soap I use that I don’t make. It’s amazing for acne—especially body acne. It’s a traditional soap that uses roasted palm leaves and cocoa pods (which contain potassium carbonate and sodium carbonate) instead of potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide to saponify unrefined shea butter (USA / Canada) and cocoa butter (USA / Canada). The carbonates aren’t as basic as the hydroxides, and the roasting method isn’t as precise, so the entire process ends up being more involved than the cold processed soap making I do.
The resulting soap looks a bit like dirt clods, and I was surprised to discover it lathers the first time I tried it. It’s a brilliant cleanser and has cleared up my skin beautifully over the years. I find it to be a bit drying on its own, though, so I don’t use it all the time. That’s where this cleansing balm comes in—the soap is diluted in some extra hydrating oils so you can use it more often without drying your skin out.
In keeping with the butters black soap is made from, I used unrefined shea butter (USA / Canada) and cocoa butter (USA / Canada) to transform the soap dust into a balm. I also added some crazy fragrant orange wax to shift the scent to something yummy, as black soap smells pretty distinctly soapy—the sort of soap smell I’d associate with the Great Depression. A touch of candelilla wax helps everything set up.
To all that I’ve added a bit of bentonite clay for some added cleansing power and a touch of exfoliation. If you don’t have bentonite, rhassoul would be a good alternative. The smoother clays (French, Aussie, and kaolin) are so fine that they won’t have much of an exfoliating effect, so I don’t recommend those.
And there you have it! A bright black soap and citrus cleansing balm that looks like a smoothie and feels like a dream, leaving your skin gently cleansed, soft, and happy.
I no longer recommend using alkaline cleansers like soap or baking soda on your face; read this for more information.
Black Soap and Citrus Cleansing Balm
30g | 1.06oz black soap
15g | 0.53oz unrefined shea butter (USA / Canada)
15g | 0.53oz cocoa butter (USA / Canada)
10g | 0.35oz orange wax (can substitute 10g liquid oil + 30 drops orange essential oil) (learn more about orange wax)
4g | 0.14oz candelilla wax1 tbsp bentonite clay (learn more)
Place your black soap in a blender and blitz it into a fine powder. I used a coffee grinder, but I wouldn’t really recommend it as that ended up being difficult to clean up since you shouldn’t get a coffee grinder too wet as they aren’t sealed.
Transfer the black soap powder to a heat resistant glass measuring cup and add the unrefined shea butter (USA / Canada), cocoa butter (USA / Canada), orange wax, and candelilla wax. Place the measuring cup in a saucepan with about 3cm/1″ barely simmering water in it and heat through until everything has melted, stirring to combine.
Once everything has melted, stir in the clay. Lastly, transfer the mixture to a 90mL/3oz glass or plastic container to set up before using. This also makes a rather lovely hand scrub!
To use, scoop a wee bit out with a finger and work it into a lather in your palms before massaging it into your face. Take care not to introduce water into the container, which will cause spoilage.
Hi Marie, From where you got black soap? I can see black soap in lot of store, but can’t trust they are real black soaps.
i bought mine on exoticbutters.com it wont look “black” but rather brownish…
Thanks!
I got mine from Saffire Blue 🙂
Typo alert: 90 grams = 3 oz
: )
Fixed, good catch!
Can you clarify when you mix in the clay? Can’t seem to find it in the recipe. Thanks!
Fixed—thanks!
Great recipe. Please,I need to ask some questions;
1. Which one is better in using to make homemade oil extraction,alcohol or carrier oil.
2. If I use carrier oil to make my homemade essential oil,will istill have to silute with carrier oil again when am using it for beauty products.
Hi Bunmi! The choice between alcohol and carrier oil should be made based on the solubility of the compound you want to extract; check and see if it is alcohol soluble or oil soluble (it might also be water soluble). Different herbs contain different compounds that have different solubilities, so you’ll want to do some research.
You aren’t making essential oil if you’re using a carrier oil, that’s just an infused oil. Making essential oils involves TONS of plant matter and distillation, not just putting dried plant matter in oil and letting it infuse—that’s just an infused oil. You can use that infused oil straight if you want to, but check and make sure that the herb isn’t photosensitizing or not good for application to broken skin. Happy DIYing!
Hi Marie! When I tried this recipe, my black soap turned into a paste like substance instead of grinding into a powder? What are your thoughts on that? Is my black soap too moist? Thanks in advance
Hey Danielle! It sounds like your soap is too moist; you could dry it out a bit by crumbling it up and baking it in your oven at very low heat (~150°F) for twenty minutes or so, and/or adding a bit of kaolin clay to the coffee grinder to absorb any extra moisture and keep things crumbly 🙂
Excellent, thank you it worked like a charm
😀
When do you incorporate the bentonite clay into the mix? The end? i do not see it mentioned…
Oops—I’ve added it to the instructions. Good catch, thank you!
So my black soap is soft and dark brown, and not hard and crumbly. I’m wondering if using a liquid carrier oil instead of cocoa butter to make a smooth paste would work better (and possibly working by hand at first, this will gum up my motor til I get it minced).
Alternatively, I could try mincing it and leaving it in the sun to dry. We’ve had warm and mild weather here in Kansas. I’m lacking sunny a windowsill, as all mine are filled with potted plants or racks of curing soap, but I can squeeze a corner. No idea how long it would take to dry out but I’m a little curious!
Suggestions?
Hey Stephanie! In the interest of doing things more or less like I did so I can actually provide some solid advice, I’d recommend the drying route (you could try a 150°F oven as well) 🙂 You can also add a spoonful of clay to the grinder to help lubricate things and absorb excess moisture so you don’t end up making a gummy blob instead!
I LOVE this. I’m using it with my clarsonic face brush, and after just three or four days, my pores are visibly clearer. It’s also not drying — I’ve been using it every evening and following up with argan oil serum, and my face feels soft and moisturized without being oily.
I didn’t have orange wax, so I subbed in half castor oil and half camellia oil (I think), but I think next time I’ll leave the orange essential oil out — it feels a little tingly around my lips.
I also didn’t have candilila wax, so I used bayberry wax, which seemed the most similar that I had on hand. I’m planning to get candilila wax on my next order, so I’ll be able to compare the differences. I think I’m going to be making this often.
I had the same problem as another commentor with the black soap not crumbling in my blender, but instead of drying it out beforehand, I just heated everything in a water bath for a while, then broke out the immersion blender. It worked great, and made everything nice and homogeneous before I added the clay.
Thanks as always for all the great recipes!
Hey Diana! I’m so thrilled you’re loving this 😀 Because bayberry is quite a bit softer and tackier than candelilla I imagine yours is creamier than the original, so if you like that you might want to use less candelilla wax next time.
And thanks for the tip on the immersion blender—great idea!
I ran out of this before I had a chance to buy candelilla wax (or orange wax), so I made my second batch with rose wax (which is apparently pretty close to candelilla wax in properties) and argan oil. It feels a softer and just a little grainier than my first batch, and I feel like it’s a little easier to lather up. It still cleans great, though my skin is a little angry right now due to other factors.
Also, I’ve discovered that the tingly-ness that I thought was from the orange essential oil is actually just the black soap. 🙂
How interesting! Rose wax and candelilla wax are, well, pretty much nothing alike, so I’m curious as to what properties they have in common. In my experience it’s not smell, colour, texture, melting point, or hardness 😛 Rose wax is way softer so I can see how yours would be much softer than the original. Not sure about the graininess, though. And yes, isn’t the black soap tingle neat? That’s part of the reason I really like this balm—I find using black soap straight up can be a bit overwhelming/harsh for extended use, so it’s nice to dilute it 🙂 Happy making and thanks for sharing!
Yeah, I found an article that said they were similar, and now that I actually have candelilla wax, I don’t understand the comparison.
Anyway, I finally got both candelilla wax and orange wax, so last week I actually made your original version, and I like it better than my variations. It’s harder in the jar, but it’s easier to lather — the rose wax version took a lot of rubbing around.
So, overall, I’m sold on candelilla wax for this, though I might continue to swap out the orange wax for other oils in the future. I also just LOVE this scrub — I use it three or four nights a week and my skin feels pretty clean as a result.
Very cool! I love all the feedback on your various versions with various waxes 😀 I love the silky feel of candelilla wax. Something I love about orange wax is how it is so light that it feels like water on the skin (rather than an oil), but it’s still oil soluble. It’s fantastic for lightening up oil blends, but in this recipe (since we’re rinsing it off anyways), the carrier oils + EO swap likely won’t impact the experience of the product much. I’m so glad you’re continuing to love this—I have just re-ignited my love of black soap and SWOON. Why do I ever stray? Ha!
I only have beeswax in hand. Will that work or be too sticky?
You can certainly try it—I haven’t, so I can’t say for sure. Let me know if you do!
Hello, I have a diy question regarding black soap. I have been using it for years but overtime my skin has gotten irritated and sensitive. I would like to neutralize/reduce its ph content by adding vinegar or witch hazel. Since I don’t have ph strips here’s my question would adding vinegar or witch hazel work at reducing it’s alkaline ph and would it stabilize at that ph after months of use? Thanks!
Honestly, there is no way for me to predict this anymore than you have. Adding something acidic to something basic will pull the pH down. How much is impossible to guess without specifics, which neither of us have. I would be concerned that lowering the pH will negatively impact the efficacy of the soap, but I haven’t tried it, so I can’t say for sure. Hope that helps!
I see what you mean, when it comes down to it’s all about experimenting. I added some acv to some crumbs of black soap and it turned into a very nice paste consistency, after a few days of marinating. It seems to work just as well as before but I won’t know about the ph until I’m able to get my hand on some ph strips. Thank you for your response!
No worries! Happy experimenting 🙂
Hello
I have combination skin . can i use liquid soap like any (readymade) face wash in place of black soap . African black soap is too drying for my skin . Can i just mix some cosmetic butter with my liquid face wash in a 50-50 % ratio to create a cleansing face wash ?
Regards
Rhythm
Hey Rhythm! Black soap is a solid that transforms into a powder fairly well, so replacing it with a liquid isn’t going to work very well. Perhaps take a look at this recipe or this one instead?
Hey, Marie! Could I sub cera bellina wax for candillila wax? I just got two orders from suppliers but have no candillila. I can’t place another order for some time. My supply cupboard just gets bigger and bigger, but it seems that I am always missing something when I wan’t to make a recipe would appreciate your advice. THANKS
It’s definitely worth a try—my only concern is that cera bellina is quite thick and heavy, while candelilla is thin and glassy, so I’m afraid the cera bellina may not wash off as well as the original. I haven’t tried it, though, so that’s just a hypothesis 🙂
Marie! Thank you! Wgere have you been the past 2 months of my life?! Ok. Question. Can i pour the melted soap mixture into a soap mold? What can i do to achieve a harder soap that wouldn’t spoil upon contact with water like regular soap. More cocoa butter? More wax? Please don’t say a preservative.
Well… no. Sorry 😛 Soap is self-preserving because it has a naturally high pH, and as soon as you start adding a bunch of other things (like in this recipe), it is no longer self-preserving, so you’d need a preservative. Stearic acid would make it hard enough to use as a bar, but you would need a preservative. I’m not sure why you say “regular soap” spoils upon contact with water, though, because it doesn’t—it’s high pH keeps it from spoiling. Hope that helps!
The black soap doesn’t seem to dissolve into the butters… I’ve been heating it in a double boiler for over an hour with no progress.. anyone else have this issue?
It’s not going to dissolve; that’s why I have you grind it up. You’re basically making a suspended pastey sort of thing—the clay won’t dissolve, either 🙂
OK Marie, I’ve read all the comments and this one isn’t there. I love the idea of a cleansing bar but I don’t have black soap. Is there anything I can substitute? I have a castille type gel. I realize it will change the theme but I do want to try it anyway. Thanks much. Love ya!
Hey Denise! I’d really recommend checking out some of my more recent cleansing balm formulations that don’t use soap at all—they’re much more gentle on the skin due to their more skin-friendly pH 🙂 Happy making!
hey marie, is there any substitute for black soap ? thanks. xoxo
I would recommend making one of my newer cleansing balms instead—I love this one! Give this a read to learn why 🙂
Hello I wanted to make a cleanser with African black soap but I want it to be liquid, is it best to buy liquid version? Also wanted to k it if I add any fruit waters or alo vera, extracts do I need a preservative?
I have to say, I don’t recommend using black soap or other high pH cleansers anymore. Read this for more information 🙂
Hi Marie
I would love to make a product such as face mask, or bath bomb with black soap. I know you don’t recommend it as a cleanser, but what about in a mask?
How would I go about making it?
I’d actually recommend a mask LESS than I’d recommend it as a cleanser as the basic item is in contact with the skin for even longer.