Natural soap making has increased in popularity in recent times. Good soap requires the right combination of ingredients in just the right amounts. Here are some hints for making better soap.

Use the right basic ingredients. You don’t need high priced ingredients, but you should have good quality ones. High priced ingredients can’t make up for an inferior recipe or the wrong balance of ingredients.

A simple soap recipe using coconut, palm and olive oils is the best. Sugar isn’t a necessary ingredient in soap. Expensive exotic oils are also not necessary and are often added to try to improve a poor recipe.

Coconut oil in natural soap making creates a rich lather with lots of big bubbles. It should be used in the right amount. Too much coconut oil cleans too well and dries out the skin.

Use plenty of fragrance. You want to be able to smell the scent when the soap is used, or the money you spent on the scent oil is simply wasted. Many recipes don’t call for enough scent oil, so make sure to add plenty.

Palm kernel oil is also a key ingredient of natural soap. It takes the place of animal fats such as beef tallow or lard. Palm oil makes a hard soap that is mild, but only has fair lathering qualities.

Use olive oil for moisturizing the skin. Unsaturated oils such as olive oil act as moisturizers in natural soap making, atracting moisture to the skin and giving the soap a luxurious feel. Soap made with only olive oil doesn’t lather as well as soap that also contains some coconut oil, so a balance is needed.

Exotic ingredients aren’t necessary for a good natural soap. The right blend of simple ingredients that clean the skin without drying it is the ultimate goal of natural soap making. With the proper recipe, all natural soaps can be a wonderful addition to your bath.