DIY Natural Products: Body Wash & Hand Soap

After sharing the environmental + fertility posts and the website, Goodguide.com, I received quite a few e-mails with readers asking for the details on how to make their own personal care products. Today I’m sharing Body Wash and/or Hand Soap. This is chemical-free and much cheaper than buying body wash at the store.

Body Wash and/or Hand Soap

Ingredients:

• 1 Bar of Soap (I buy Kirk Castile Soap). You can find this at most Wal-Marts and Targets for around $3.50/3 bars of soap.
• 6 cups Filtered Water
• Optional: Glycerin (1 tbsp)
• Optional: Essential Oils

Directions:

• Grate the bar of soap.
• Boil 6 cups of water, turn heat to low, and add grated soap flakes.
• If desired, add in essential oils (I have never tried this, but can be used if you prefer scented soap).
• After flakes have dissolved, turn off heat and allow mixture to sit for 8 hours or overnight.
• Pour mixture into containers.

Things to note:

• The Glycerin helps thicken the soap. If you don’t use it, it will still work just fine, it will just be the consistency of water.
• This isn’t going to equate to your normal body wash, but we still love it. It takes a few days to get used to, but the fact that it’s SO cheap, easy, and chemical-free makes it all worth it.
• There are probably better options than Kirk’s Castile. This is the healthiest soap I have found so far, that is budget friendly. It’s made from coconut oil. Make sure to check the ingredients on your soap before purchasing.
•  If you want foaming hand soap, use a foam dispenser.

Cost:

• 2 Bars of soap made almost 100 ounces of body wash. Total cost is about 2-5 cents/ounce, depending on the cost of your bar of soap and the optional ingredients.