Beauty, Health and Living

In addition to the Peppermint Poppy soap, I also made another batch of hot process soap. It’s made with fresh goat milk and scented with a sweet floral scent of Bali jasmine blossoms.

jasminegoatsoap2

This batch was much easier to work because there are no sea salt or other extra ingredients. It’s also a much smoother bar too.

Sometimes exfoliating soaps are nice, but some days you just want a smooth bar of soap. But each type of soap has their own benefits. And most of all, handmade soaps leave your skin well moisturized and clean.

Once the soap was done cooking, I poured them into my empty (clean) goat milk carton. After letting it cool down for 24 hours, I sliced them into medium sized bars.

The bars are pretty and a good size too. With fragrance, there are variations and difficult to describe. So I went with a lighter jasmine scent that is not overpowering. But it’s a nice sweet scent that reminds me of someplace tropical and breezy.


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Another new soap I like to introduce for March is something more floral.

It is made with goat milk and scented with the sweet smell of honeysuckle.  I thought it would be nice to imagine being in summer when it’s barely spring.

honeysucklecn1Notice the speckles?  They are from the Himalayan pink salt.  You may wonder if the salt would sting any cuts or rashes.  But I personally think the salt offers a healing component.  Just give it a try and see for yourself!

This soap also has skin loving oils such as avocado and rice bran.  And finally a good heaping of fine pink Himalayan salt.

I’ve always loved Himalayan salt, as I am slightly obsessed with the salt lamps.  Himalayan pink salt is mined from the pristine Himalayan mountain range.  It has 84 trace elements and iron.  Not only is it great for cooking, it’s also great for skincare.


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Since I just love the creaminess of milk soap, I decided to make another goat milk soap, but this time adding wine. I was inspired by the wine soaps of Napa County.

Instead of California wine, I used sangria. This was a bottled sangria from Spain. I also added sweet orange essential oil to enhance the citrus factor of the sangria.

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Photo: My handmade sangria wine soaps posing along with two pretty snapdragon blossoms. The little speckles are from beet root powder. It’s another ingredient to add to the antioxidant mix.

Before adding the wine, many soap maker would recommend cooking out the alcohol part of the wine. But I just pour the wine and let it sit for a while.

The steps are like making regular CP soap. But near the end, I added 2 oz of wine. The mixture started heating up really fast. Even after I poured into the wooden mold, it stayed warm for some time. Because of this, you don’t have to insulate the soap mold. Just let in sit (in the closet) undisturbed for 24 hours.


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I’ve always wanted to try commercial goat milk soap from the brand Canus.  I’ve seen them at our local drugstore many times, it has a cute picture of a happy goat on the box.  But luckily I’ve had the chance to try another goat milk soap from Canada.  It’s by Natura, a brand I’ve never seen here in the U.S.  But it would be great to find a local retailer that does sell them.

naturasoap

Goat milk soap.  Savon au lait de Chevre.  Made in Quebec, Canada.

Goat milk contain capric and caprilyic acids, which reduces the alkalinity of the soap and brings it closer to the PH of normal skin.  And the goat milk’s rich emollients can be absorbed without stripping away your skin’s natural protective oils.  Dermatologist like to recommend skincare products containing goat milk for those suffering from eczema, acne and psoriasis.

The quality of this soap couldn’t be any better than my handmade soap.  It’s possibly one of the best manufactured soap I’ve ever used.  Even better then Burt’s Bee Buttermilk soap or Basis soap.  I’ve used it for a couple of days and don’t want to speak too soon, but so far it’s been really great for my skin.  It lathers up really smooth and creamy with big bubbles.

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