Today I made soap – “Citrus Fresh” (orange and lemon). I took photos, but will wait until the soap is ready to be cut tomorrow morning to get the last pics, then I’ll post them here.
Emily and Christine, I’m happy to share my Tea Tree Soap recipe. I usually use the same two base recipes all the time, then I change the essential oils, and any other (healthy) additions such as extra Sweet Almond Oil, or oatmeal for exfoliating. This recipe is similar to the one I often use - you can get the ingredients at any grocery store, so it is an easy one for beginners to “dive in” and get started. It fits fine in a 9 x 5 loaf pan. When figuring out my recipe, I rely on advice from other soapmakers and a handy program called SoapCalc. All measurements are by WEIGHT.
2lb Basic Soap
Water 12.2 oz
Lye 4.5 oz
Olive Oil 22.4 oz
Coconut Oil 9.6 oz
At trace add 4 Tablespoons Tea Tree Essential Oil. This is more than most recipes call for, but it is the amount that works well for us.
I sometimes make my soap with Olive (50%), Coconut (30%) and Palm Oil (20%). You can plug those percentages in for any amount of soap you are wanting to make using the SoapCalc program. There are also many websites (just do a search for “cold process soap recipe”) with free recipes. Your library probably has books on the subject as well. If you haven’t already, I highly recommend watching online videos, visiting websites and reading as many books as you can get your hands on. Soap making is not terribly difficult, but there are lots of great tips, recipes, and instructions available, so why not take advantage of them 
My son recently requested I make Tea Tree – Peppermint, so that’s what I’ll make next. Two pound batches work well for us – we get about 10 bars per loaf. I have a few people who buy soap from me, so I’m finding that making one batch a month is enough to supply my family and keep up with orders. The soap I made today was a special request by a friend/customer – my house smells yummy!
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OH MY GOSH – I am So excited. I need to order more Tea Tree oil. But I want to try your recipe with Rosemary and Mint first. (need to order that too!) The recipes I have tried are Olive Oil, Coconut and palm. the other one Olive, Rice Bran and Coconut. I have been reading everything I can on line and looking at recipes on line too. I don’t understand what “superfat” means. I have used the soap calc to give me water and lye amounts, but I don’t understand the relationship between the oil quantities – like you mentioned 50-30-20% – does that mean something when choosing and combining oil? I am going to use your recipe as is and add my Rosemary EO and mint EO and run with it. I will use the loaf pan I have and Wait for my husband to be home long enough to help me make a wood mold like yours too (or tackle it myself)……Thank you SO much for the info. I look forward to photos. (I think my comment is turning out to be as long as your blog – ha) Emily
Emily,
Superfat is when you add additional oil near the end of the mixing process (I usually wait until I reach a thin trace). I add about an ounce of additional oil – usually sweet almond or avocado. The addition of the oil at the end allows more of the benefits of the oil to come through. I find it helps the bars be even more moisturizing.
Rosemary and Peppermint EO are stronger than citrus oils, so you might not need as much for a two pound batch. 2 – 2 1/2 tablespoons total would probably suffice. Don’t forget to line your loaf pan
The combination of your base oils is important. Different oils contribute different attributes to the soap. Some are great for lather, others for bar hardness, others for moisturizing, etc. I find that the percentage mix I use gives me a good, hard bar, with great lather and moisturizing.
Let me know how your soap turns out!
I have a lot to learn! Thanks for the additional information. Another question. I know you can basically use the soap just a few days after it is made (but it is softer and will not last as long). When you are giving it to friends and selling it – typically how long are you waiting for it to cure? The last batch I made has been curing 6 weeks and I like the hardness of the bar and I know it will last longer. but I know at 4 weeks it was nice and hard and probably would have lasted nicely. Emily
I usually let the bars cure for at least 3 weeks before giving/selling.
I’m working on getting those soap pictures up today!
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