Shanghai Lil and the Scarlet Fez

Spearmint Julep and the Five Best Qualities of Soap

Depending on the mix of oils you add, soap will take on a range of desirable characteristics.  A hard bar is not only long lasting but tends to have a higher moisturising quality.  

A cleansing bar will, you got it, cleanse.  I wouldn't want this quality to be too dominant as it would perhaps be too successful in removing the oils on the skin and result in dryness.  That doesn't mean a soap with a lower cleansing characteristic will leave you dirty!  The dirt on your skin sits on the top with the outer layer of oils, so ideally, you only want to remove this layer.  Anything stronger may wash away your healthy skin oils you want to keep!

People love bubbles in soap, which accounts for the high bubbling you'll get with supermarket soaps (which are mainly detergents really, stuffed with sodium laureth sulphates and similar surfactants.  I don't want this kind of thing in anything I use on my skin).  I'm not a big fan of a lot of bubbles - some, but just not a lot.  We have very hard water in Adelaide, so getting all-natural soap to froth up is a challenge.  A good dose of coconut oil is the answer here.  

Creamy soap is my favourite.  I tend to think this feels more luxurious, but it is ultimately a preference of bubbles vs creaminess.  Something in between is ideal.  

Conditioning is probably the most desirable.  It refers to the emollient qualities, or moisturising qualities of a soap.  A good conditioning soap will leave some oils on the skin, helping it to retain moisture.

So this leads me to my latest batch of soap - Spearmint Julep!  The star of this little number is apricot kernel oil, a soothing and skin-nourishing oil.  It also has rice bran oil - abundant in vitamin E and a key to a good lather.  Spearmint Julep is an excellent conditioning soap, just what I want!  With it's super fresh spearmint scent (natural essential oil, of course!) this soap is a household favourite.

Here is a montage of Spearmint Julep coming to life.  The ingredients, the colour, the oils and finally the soap in the mold.  Due for release in 4 weeks!