I had planed to be making our own soap this week as I'm still supposed to be resting my foot, however this has turned out to be a non starter as it seems impossible to get all the necessary ingredients locally, essential oils are quite limited and as I have found in the past not that good a quality, also expensive. Caustic soda was easy to find but coconut oil was in a small bottle and again expensive, so good old Google was called for. I found a great site, with everything that I need including recipes, oils and natural colourants at reasonable prices,
http://www.thesoapkitchen.co.uk/
supplies everything that is needed for soap making , natural cleaning products and even candle making equipment. I would have preferred to have bought locally, or at least Spanish, but it was not to be. Gone are the days when I could just go to one of Ireland's many health shops and get everything I needed.
Not to be thwarted by lack of products I have gone back to making my all purpose burn and cut ointment, I would normally have just used Calendula but we have so many lavender flowers I thought I would add some to the potion, this seems to have worked very well and has maintained the perfume. I was unable to find white fat so have used pork fat, again this is know for it's healing properties, some olive oil in which I infused the herbs in a bain-marie , rendered the pigs fat, cooled and then added some of the coconut oil, this should cover most household injuries.
Hopefully I will soon receive my soap making order and do what I have wanted to try for so long.
, http://www.thesoapkitchen.co.uk