Teach Soap

So I've given out soap samples to friends and family and everyone has loved them. Almost. I had one person who freaked out when she found out my cold process soaps began with lye. I tried to explain the whole lye thing to her but I don't think I did a very good job.

In case I run into this again, are there any web sites out there that do a good job of calming people's fears about using a soap that begins with lye?

Well Midnightstorm, you are certainly making good use of the forum.

I think all soapmakers have run into this dilemma at one time or another. Without having to write a book in this post with an explanation, try using the search feature and read some of the previous posts about this topic. In short, the best you can do is to educate yourself then educate your customers. There's a saying "No lye, no soap....and that's no lie."

One game down, 1 to go. I'm a previous football player so this is a big weekend. Two games tomorrow. Pick your team and stick with them. I used to play for Chicago so I expect all here to pull for them. Thanks.

And I'll pull for Chicago to get a lot of homeruns. JK

Does Ivory soap start with lye? Here is an interesting Wiki article on Ivory soap but I didn't see Sodium hydroxide listed on the ingredients.

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

Google is a most convenient tool when studying any subject. Some say google is your friend.

That's how I found the Wiki article on Ivory soap (by Googling). Believe me, I use it all the time. Love it

Midnightstorm !
Questions like lightning !
Illuminating the darkness of soaping for lurking newbies !
I've read questions you've asked and thought "Oh right, I hadn't even thought of that yet."
I think you are very thorough.
Thanks to all who question and all who share their knowledge !
And thanks to this Forums' hosts and moderators !

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

Here's what I did when I first started...it'll take a bit of time but well worth it. I did some reseach by going to the websites and finding an ingredients list for each of the common used bars soaps...Ivory, Zest, Irish Spring, Dove...etc. I copied the ingredients to one main word sheet and went through and highlighted sodium hydroxide or sodium tallowate, etc. Then I could actually show them. When this idea first came to mind I just kept a box of soap with me and showed them but them people went to "oh that's Caress, I use ____ and it doesn't have lye" This way I had every common soap I could think of on that sheet and it really did help.

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April

nonaut: I don't think lightning strikes this fast.

Great suggestion, indulgentcreations! I think I will steal that idea. And, nonaut, you made me laugh out loud!

Thanks for putting up with me everyone and for answering all my questions. Soaping is new to me and I am obsessed with it right now. A couple of people have gently pointed me toward Google but I google everything as well. But it takes a lot of time to weed through all the stuff on Google and sometimes that just makes me think of new questions. Nothing beats asking experienced soapers! Especially since I tend to a worrier and I want my soap to be very safe for my friends and family.

Still, having said that, I was very embarrassed when I opened the CP Forum page the other day and saw ONLY my name plastered everywhere That's when I made a mental note to go on one of the other soap forums soon to give you long-suffering people a rest

Soap is like cake - something more than the sum of it's parts.Who'd want to gobble up JUST flour, or JUST sugar, or JUST butter etc.?But chemistry, time, and heat create YUM!Problem is there's many like me - un-informed and victims of misconceptions. (And marketing spin.)Now I know lye is our friend !  Not some old-timey devil fit only for drains. But I had to be educated.I like indulgentcreations idea too, it would likely be an eye-opener for one, and calm people about lye for another.No one should ever be embarassed about trying to learn.In the last couple of weeks - my entire history of soap-learning ! - whenever I see "Midnightstorm" on a new Topic I figure I'm gonna learn something new...and I do. It's like you are doing the heavy lifting for who knows how many newbies who don't post ! Even when "Search" is up, it regards a lot as too common and ignores. So I just took to reading the archives a page at a time - phew - lots of good stuff - long way to go.

Hopefully your soaps are saponified oils and not lye heavy. If that is so your friends shouldn't be afraid of the lye in your soaps as it has all been digested so to speak, neutralized in your process, depending on your process and length of cure.

I'm sure that the books you have give wonderful explanations about lye and how it's properties change during the process. It all takes a while to understand and experiment, note and adapt. When the lightning strikes too fast, well it leaks thru with the crackling and as knowledge and instant gratification might not last. JMO

Lye reacts with oil and you get soap. I asked a chemist at work for another reaction like this that people could understand. His answer.......rust.

Rust occurs when oxygen comes in long-term contact with certain metals. Over time, the oxygen combines with the metal at an atomic level, forming a new compound............rust.

Soap occurs when alkali comes in contact with fats. Over time, the alkali combines with the fats at an atomic level, forming a new compound............soap.