I Took The Plunge: Essential Oil Soap

About a month ago I blogged about how hesitant I was to use essential oils in my soap making. I don't know why. Part of it was ignorance and the other part was fear. Essential oils are not the same as fragrance oils. For one, true essential oils are not synthetic or man-made. They are derived from plants. They're called "essential" because they are the essence or the makeup of the plant from which they are derived. Essential oils should also not be applied directly to the skin in its purest form. They should always be blended with a carrier oil such as grape seed or sweet almond. More importantly, pregnant and/or nursing women should not handle or use certain essential oils as they could be toxic or irritating. Click here for more info on which essential oils to avoid if pregnant.

Okay, school's out. Let's play! This is my first soap scented with only essential oils. I haven't come up with a snazzy name for it yet, but it's scented with patchouli and bergamot essential oils. I'm loving the patchouli more now that I'm "cutting" it with sweeter EO's. The contrast is very striking and alluring. I've had this plastic tubular mold for about two years that I've never done anything with until now. Let me warn you: Un-molding CP soap from a plastic tubular mold aint no joke! You can line it with a piece of silicone liner or line a pvc pipe with a silicone liner, but that's too much work for me! I let this soap set in the mold for a full 24 hours until it gradually pulled away from the walls of the mold then I pushed it out with the end of a water bottle. I'm still thinking of names.