Commercial soaps are nothing compared to their homemade counterparts: commercial soaps dry out your skin and often leave a disgusting film behind. Homemade soap, on the other hand, is good for your skin and uses fewer chemicals. Although it might sound intimidating, homemade soap is very easy to make, and youall find that homemade soaps also have none of the problems associated with commercial soaps.

One problem with most store bought soaps is that they are not actually soaps at all, but are detergents, meaning they are petroleum based products. This means they tend to dry out the skin over time, leaving it dry and itchy. Homemade soaps can be made using skin friendly natural oils such as coconut, olive, and palm oils, which will effectively clean your skin, while moisturizing it at the same time.

Another of the huge problems with commercial soaps is the possibility that it was tested on animals, and whether such tests were conducted ethically. However, if you make your own soap, you know exactly whatas gone into making it, and often times you can make your soaps with environmentally friendly ingredients.

One of the most fun parts about making your own soap is that you can choose exactly what to put in it. You can put in any fragrance (after all, making vanilla- or cinnamon-scented soap is easyabut whatas the last time you saw a soap like that in the market?), and you can choose to specifically exclude materials that you find harsh on your skin.

Making soap can be a creative outlet for you, allowing you to experiment with different ingredients and produce wonderful smelling products, which just so happen to make great gifts. The process also allows you to learn a dying art. Most people these days, as is the case with so many things we use every day, take for granted the ability to simply purchase a common item like soap in the store, and do not know this skill that was once essential for every home.

One easy soap making recipe uses only lye, purified water, olive oil, coconut oil, and grape seed oil. The basic procedure is to make a mixture of lye and water, and a separate mixture of all the oils. The two mixtures are then combined when they are at the same temperature - about 110F. The lye-water mixture will require some cooling, while the oils will require some heating. Then the combined mixture is mixed with a blender until it is the right consistency and finally poured into molds.

As you can see from the above soap making recipe, soap is generally easy to make, although there are some risks involved, but these can be easily mitigated with some research and general care and common sense. The riskiest part of making soap is properly handling the lye. This is a very caustic substance and the skin and eyes should be protected while working with it.

Learning to make homemade soap can be a fun, creative process that offers many benefits for you and your skin. From being healthier for you, to being more environmentally friendly, this skill and art is sure to be a satisfying pursuit.

Jen Hopkins has worked in the skin care industry for years. She maintains websites about organic soap making, and natural soap making. If you want to contact her, you can use the contact form at one of her sites.