I had a commenter ask about soapmaking earlier today, and — come to think of it — it’s been a while since I’ve blogged about the process, so people may not know exactly what it is or how I came to be involved.

I learned cold process soapmaking in preparation for my 2005 mission trip to Kenya, so that I could teach it as a cottage industry. Our LEAMIS trip was split that year between two different locations. Carolyn Schussler, who had taught soapmaking in 2004 in Nairobi, would teach a more advanced class in Nairobi in 2005, so someone else was needed to teach the class in Keumbu. Carolyn gave me a quick lesson during our pre-field orientation, and then I went to visit her and her husband in Bay St. Louis, Miss., just two months before Katrina devastated the area, for some followup training.

Soapmaking requires combining a fat with an alkaline substance, usually lye. Most hobbyist soapmakers learn using lard, because it’s inexpensive and makes a good, basic bar of soap. As you get into the hobby, you begin experimenting with different combinations of oils — this one for lather, that one for skin conditioning, another one for a nice hard, long-lasting bar.
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Attention, west coast relatives:

The soap you have requested was made and poured into molds this evening. I cannot guarantee that the blue color (which I really like) will survive; frequently, colors added during the soapmaking process fade from the alkalinity of the lye during the next day or two, before the vast majority of the lye has had the chance to saponify. But we’ll see how it goes.

It will be about a month before the soap has cured sufficiently and I can ship it to you; by that time, you will be looking forward to your move and I will consult with you further about whether to send the soap or save it for you to pick up in Tennessee on your way.

That is all.