Rather recently, I began trying to make all kinds of household things using essential oils. There are some things that I will venture into experimenting with, and there are other things that I am not ready to take on yet!
One household item I found rather simple to duplicate is hand soap. I did some research for recipes and ratios. (You can find anything on Pinterest!) I found many of the same ratios, so that made me feel confident that all the recipes I was finding were accurate.
I also did some research on the antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal properties of various essential oils and I encourage you to do the same. (I am most certainly not an authority on essential oils! This is why I depend on professionals who do the research and report it.) I recommend reading some information from Dr. Josh Axe’s website or Dr. Joseph Mercola’s website. I trust the information that these men make available to the public.
Many essential oils contain germ killing properties. For me, it was mainly a matter of what oils I have available in the cupboard!
So, my adventure today was replenishing the soap in the bathroom, which was pretty much all gone. I washed out my mason jar and pump, (which you can find here), and then gathered my ingredients. All I needed was unscented castile soap, which I ordered from Jet.com, (when you sign up, your first three orders are 15% off!) distilled water, and whatever oils I wanted to use. Today, I chose lavender, tea tree, peppermint, rosemary, and sweet orange.
First, I poured ¼ cup of castile soap into the pint mason jar. There are little markings on the side of the jar, and the bottom line shows ¼ cup.
I then added my oils. I added 5 drops of lavender, 5 drops of tea tree, and two drops each of peppermint, rosemary, and sweet orange.
I gave the mixture a little bit of a swirl in the canning jar, and then topped it off with some distilled water. I added ¾ cup water, making one cup of soap total. This filled half of the jar. There is also a little marking on the side of the jar to measure one cup, if you are looking to be precise.
The only thing left to do is screw the lid on tightly. Yes, it really is that simple!
When I made soap before, I used the same amount of castile soap (a quarter cup), but then filled the rest of the jar with water. This is what the majority of the recipes on Pinterest called for. My husband did not like this one bit! He said it was too watered down and it wouldn’t suds up for him when he scrubbed. So I decided to adjust the ratio on my own. He hasn’t tried it yet, but hopefully he likes it a little better! I tried it out, and it made way more suds than the first batch!
One thing to keep in mind when using essential oils is that they separate from water, so if you use them in your soap, you will need to shake the jar each time before you squirt some into your hand.
That was a pretty easy mixture! Go ahead and try it on your own! Feel free to experiment with your own concentrations of castile soap! Research some essential oils on your own and create a pleasant smelling, germ killing blend! I would love to hear about what works for you and your family!
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