There’s something incredibly satisfying about crafting your own cleaning products.
I vividly remember the first time I made a foaming hand cleanser–I felt like a sorceress when the fragrant foam came out.
Considering how dirty our hands get doing all the things on our farm, hand soap doesn’t last long around these parts.
To wit, I regularly find myself pouring my preferred recipe together. My favorite base recipe comes from Jade Shutes of The School for Aromatic Studies: it includes a hydrosol in the mix which brings beautiful dimension to the soap.
Because I’m a truly lucky duck, I’m using special hydrosols for today’s batches: Rose Geranium and Grand Fir, respectively.
Both of these sublime hydrosols were lovingly distilled by Kendall Wishnick Adams of Crafted Botanicals. You can, of course, use any combination of hydrosol and essential oils you like. I chose the essential oils shared here to celebrate the hydrosols I have from Kendall. I’ve paired a gorgeous rose and geranium co-distilled essential oil from Aromatics International with refreshing lemon essential oil in the blend with Rose Geranium hydrosol. With the amazing Grand Fir hydrosol, I’m celebrating fir trees: silver fir, white fir, and Douglas fir all came to the table to play.
Note: Liquid soap on its own does not typically need a preservative, but the addition of hydrosol and aloe vera gel in this recipe make a preservative a good idea, especially if you won’t be using the soap in the near term. Since I make larger batches that aren’t always used immediately, I prefer to be safe than sorry. I add a water-based, paraben-free preservative to my liquid soaps in keeping with the manufacturer’s guidelines (1%)–the amount will vary based on the preservative you choose if you choose to use one. To learn more about preservatives, check out Brambleberry’s awesome post on preservatives.
Rose Geranium Lemon Foaming Hand Soap
A luxurious, fragrant hand soap featuring rose geranium hydrosol
Ingredients
- 6 oz organic liquid Castile soap
- 2 oz Rose Geranium hydrosol
- 1T organic vegetable glycerin
- 2T organic liquid aloe vera gel
- 30 drops Rose and Geranium co-distilled essential oil (Rosa damascena and Pelargouium Roseum X Asperum) (Pelargoneum graveolens)
- 15 drops Lemon (Citrus limon) essential oil
Directions
- Step 1 Measure all ingredients separately and combine in a large (2 cup or more) Pyrex measuring glass.
- Step 2 Stir gently to combine completely.
- Step 3 If adding preservative, determine percentage needed per manufacturer instructions, weigh to obtain total weight of liquid soap, measure and add appropriate percentage of preservative. Combine thoroughly.
- Step 4 Pour into one 250 ml foaming pump dispenser or (5) 50ml foaming pump dispensers leaving a little head room to accommodate the large pump.
- Step 5 Cap and enjoy!
Fragrant Fir Foaming Hand Soap
A celebration of evergreen conifers in a sublime foaming hand soap.
Ingredients
- 6 oz organic liquid Castile soap
- 2 oz Grand Fir hydrosol
- 1T organic vegetable glycerin
- 2T organic liquid aloe vera gel
- 15 drops Douglas Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) essential oil
- 15 drops White Fir (Abies concolor) essential oil
- 10 drops Siberian Fir (Abies siberica)
Directions
- Step 1 Measure all ingredients separately and combine in a large (2 cup or more) Pyrex measuring glass.
- Step 2 Stir gently to combine completely.
- Step 3 If adding preservative, determine percentage needed per manufacturer instructions, weigh to obtain total weight of liquid soap, measure and add appropriate percentage of preservative. Combine thoroughly.
- Step 4 Pour into one 250 ml foaming pump dispenser or (5) 50ml foaming pump dispensers leaving a little head room to accommodate the large pump.
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