This is my first “salt bar” made with Himalayan rock salt.  Since I am a big fan of Himalayan rock lamps, the next step was to make a salt bar.

There has been handmade soap made with Dead Sea salt, Hawaiian sea salt, and Himalayan rock salt in the market.  They all say it’s great for people with problem skin such as eczema and psoriasis.  I figure it must be good overall, even if you have normal skin.  You would think the salt would sting any cuts, but I think it helps it heal faster.

It’s not the most beautiful bar of soap, but does look like a piece of granite and feels just as heavy. So maybe it’s not that bad if you’re into collecting rocks. 

Himalayan salt is mined by hand from the deep salt range located at the foothills of the Himalayan Mountains. Unlike regular table salt, Himalayan salt is not chemically processed.  And unlike sea salt, it is free from pollution and contains 84 trace minerals.

If you have chunks of Himalayan rock salt, you can make sole (pronounced So-lay) out of it.  Sole is a mixture of the Himalayan salt in water.  You only need to take 1 tbs of sole daily, first thing in the morning, to feel it’s benefits. There are instructions on how to prepare it here.

The other thing I did different with this bar was use lard. I have bought handmade tallow soap and thought it was nice soap.Some people don’t like using animal by products for soap. Even though tallow (and lard) have always been a common ingredient in soap making. I also think it’s great to learn the art of soap making with different types of oils and ingredients.

Beside adding the beneficial power of Himalayan rock salt, I’ve also added cinnamon powder and Chinese Kaolin Clay.  The salt granules are fine, so you can’t feel it too much. And the clay allows for it to be smoother bar.

Since I made this soap using the hot process method, I was able to use it within a couple of days. Hot process doesn’t look too pretty and difficult to mold. But this was more of a test batch and I won’t be listing it for sale.

I’ve since used it as a bath bar and as “tooth” soap. Foams up fine in the mouth and leaves my teeth and toothbrush very clean!

I would have added peppermint oil, but I didn’t have any at the moment. So I used French Vanilla fragrance oil, but just not enough of it.

There is a scent I can’t put to word (it’s not a bad smell, but not fragrant either). I’m just going to use it as tooth soap and should probably last me the rest of the year. And lucky for me, M (my soap tester)  loves this soap.  It doesn’t bubble up to much, but if used with a body scrub or loofah then you’ll get a nice lather.

Ingredients: Lard, soybean oil, olive oil, sesame oil, Himalayan rock salt, Kaolin clay, and cinnamon powder.