Handmade Soap for Sensitive Skin

As a result of having friends and family with eczema and sensitive skin, I got into making products at home with a view to helping to soothe and heal their skin complaints as I hated to see the suffering that eczema causes and how over the counter products and even many prescription medications seemed to add to the problem rather than solve it.  

Here is a great soap made with the melt and pour method.  SLS is an ingredient found in the majority of shop bought soaps as its used to give soap its lather, but its a detergent and so can easily irritate the skin.  This doesn't make sense to me so I use SLS free soap.  I also use the following essential oils: Camomile (because it soothes and calms), Lavender (because it helps to heal sore skin) and Tea Tree (because it is antibacterial and fights infection).

The soap base is inexpensive to buy online and for the molds I recycle food packaging although the heart shapes were silicone molds found in a post-Valentine day sale!

These are the ingredients I used ...

• 450g of SLS free clear glycerin melt and pour soap base
• 3 tsp (15ml) olive oil
• 1 tsp lavender flowers (crushed with a mortar and pestle)
• 6 drops camomile essential oil
• 5 drops lavender essential oil
• 5 drops tea tree essential oil
• 3 drops blue soap dye

And this is how I did it ...

• I cut the soap up into small cubes (just smaller than a cube of jelly) and popped them into a double boiler (bain-marie) for them to slowly dissolve.  (Don't allow the soap to boil)
• Once the soap was melted, I removed from the heat and quickly added the olive oil and dried lavender flowers
• Then I stirred in the soap dye and the essential oils
• I then quickly poured the soap into the molds, before it had a chance to start setting.
• I left the soap in a cool place to set for an hour before removing from the molds

This is an easy recipe to try if you are new to soap making, but please be aware that some essential oils can be an irritant to the skin and some oils should be avoided in pregnancy.  I have chosen the 3 "safest" oils and used them in small quantities but you can experiment with different oils and quantities as you gain experience in soap making