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Homemade Liquid Herbal Hand Soap and Body Wash: Eucalyptus and Mint

Homemade Liquid Herbal Hand Soap and Body Wash: Eucalyptus and Mint 7
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Homemade Liquid Herbal Hand Soap and Body Wash: Eucalyptus and Mint

Homemade liquid hand soap — the kind you make from grated bar soap — isn’t really a new concept.

Pinterest is loaded with tons of really great tutorials from bloggers like these:

So, when we used up the last batch of homemade liquid soap the other day, I thought I’d inject a bit of herbal goodness — just to spice things up — and see how it turned out.

The results…amazing!

I’m in love with my new herbal hand soap and body wash!

And here’s how it happened.

Homemade Liquid Herbal Hand Soap and Body Wash

Ingredients

-1 4-5 ounce unscented handmade bar soap, grated
-6-8 cups pure/filtered water
-1 ounce dried eucalyptus leaf
-1 ounce dried peppermint leaf
-essential oils of eucalyptus and peppermint

Method

Homemade Liquid Herbal Hand Soap and Body Wash: Eucalyptus and Mint

1. Grate your bar of soap. I use my own handmade bar soap. Note: If you’d like the recipe perhaps I could share it…is anyone is interested!?! 

Homemade Liquid Herbal Hand Soap and Body Wash: Eucalyptus and Mint

2. In a large pot, bring 6-8 cups of pure/filtered water just to a boil then remove from heat. Infuse the dried eucalyptus leaf and peppermint leaf in the water for 10-15 minutes. Strain and compost the plant material. Note: I like to use 6 cups of water. Using the lesser amount produces a thicker liquid soap…more appropriate for use as body wash. Not to mention, we waste less when the soap is thicker.

Homemade Liquid Herbal Hand Soap and Body Wash: Eucalyptus and Mint

3. Return the eucalyptus and peppermint infused water to pot. Bring just to a boil once again then reduce heat to low.

Homemade Liquid Herbal Hand Soap and Body Wash: Eucalyptus and Mint

4. Add grated bar soap.

Homemade Liquid Herbal Hand Soap and Body Wash: Eucalyptus and Mint

5. Stir continuously until soap is completely dissolved. Note: Be patient, this could take a while.

 Homemade Liquid Herbal Hand Soap and Body Wash: Eucalyptus and Mint

6. Remove from heat entirely and allow mixture to cool — stir occasionally throughout the day. Note: I leave the pot on the kitchen counter and stir the soap whenever I walk by throughout the day. It can take 8-10 hours for the soap to thicken. 

7. Add essential oils until desired scent is reached. Note: For a batch this size, I generally add 1/2 teaspoon of each eucalyptus and peppermint.

Homemade Liquid Herbal Hand Soap and Body Wash: Eucalyptus and Mint

8. Pour into storage containers and/or a soap dispenser. Note: A glass mason jar is appropriate for storage in the cabinet, but for use in the shower…we’ve always just reused an old body wash container. Glass in the shower makes me nervous with the little ones! Something like this is perfect.

Note

-I choose not to add additional vegetable glycerin — as many of the recipes call for — because I use my own handmade soap. Handmade soap is rich in the natural glycerin that is produced through the soap-making process.

-Eucalyptus and Mint is an invigorating herbal combo. It’s a great way to get going in the morning and great for the respiratory system. You’ll want to keep this blend on hand during the cold and flu season for sure!

-Get creative! Experiment with other herbs and essential oils that you already have on hand.

Now it’s your turn! Have you made liquid soap from grated bar soap? Have you made it with herbs? What’s your favorite method?

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Comments

  1. I’m interested in your own handmade soap. I have limited access to “fancy” oils, do you use basic oils in yours?

      • Hi Emma!
        I couldn’t find it at first either! I was looking for an email button with all of the other social media buttons. The email subscription option is just below all of those buttons, in a brown’ish orange box that is also to the immediate right of the first picture of this lovely looking soap!
        Cheers!
        Angie S

        • Perfect, thank you so much! I’m so excited about everything on here I just can’t wait to get started.

  10. Would love to know more about making soap!!
    how much time
    $$
    are there a lot of steps

    Love your posts!! Keep up the great work!
    with love from Minnesota

  12. I am just getting curious and brave about making my own soap. I loved your sunscreen recipe, so I’d love to try your soap recipe too! Thanks for all of the frugal and herbal tips you share to make my home better!

  17. I do believe there are quite a few of us who are interested in your homemade soap . I would love it as well !!=)

  18. I would love to know how to make your bar soap. I had decided a while ago that I was going to start making my own soap. Love to find a natural receipe.

  19. I too would LOVE it if you would share your homemade bar soap recipe! Thank you for making things look SO easy with your amazing tutorials!

  20. LOL….duh…..hee, hee….OF COURSE we want your handmade soap recipe…..actually, can I just come visit you and follow you around and write down all your recipes and tips? Btw, your tumeric milk has become a night time ritual already….. 🙂

  23. I hope you can help me. I got a recipe to make liquid castile soap by grating an 8oz. bar and adding 32 oz. of water, stir and let sit. After a day it was very thick so kept adding water. I now have it in a gallon bucket and it’s STILL very thick. Any idea’s?

    • 8 oz castile soap you probably need two galon of water :)) after adding it mix it with whisk 🙂

  25. I am making soap on Monday with a group of friends and colleagues from Kufunda Village, a learning village in Zimbabwe into sustainable ways of living. We would love your soap recipe before then!

  26. I would love your homemade bar soap recipe. My mom recently moved in with us and we have started to make our own cleaners and soaps! Would be helpful to know if you can add things to your recipe, like oatmeal?

  27. I love your site….you have so many great ideas! Would love the bar soap recipe!!! Thank you for all your knowledge shared!

  29. Another vote here for your homemade bar soap recipe! I’ve just started getting the courage to start making some, and I know I can trust your recipes and tutorials, Angela! Thanks for always looking out for us and sharing your wealth of info 🙂

    • P.S. I’ve also made homemade liquid soap this way and love it – but the idea of infusing it with herbs sounds lovely! I’m pinning this to try after our current batch runs out . Thanks again!

  32. Wow! I have been a soap chicken!

    I thought liquid soap had to be made with Potassium Hydroxide, not Sodium Hydroxide. I heard unpleasant descriptions of the texture of liquid soap made from solid soap. Have I ever actually tried it myself to see what I thought? Nope. Bwak bwak bwak.

  33. Me too…Me too…I want the soap recipe too! Can’t wait to make this! I absolutely love your blog. You are my number 1 with Crunchy Betty coming in at 1.5…I love both sites and am so thankful you guys are out there making our lives better. I can’t thank you enough.

  35. I would love to see your bar soap recipe.
    I’ve made liquid soap with Potassium Hydroxide, but so far haven’t been 100% thrilled with it, but I do like it better than when I’ve made liquid soap from a bar of soap.

  36. I’m inspired to make some now. I love your blog and you are so wonderful to share all that you do! Thank you!

  40. I love this recipe, and can imagine how lovely it smells. I follow via email, and have SO enjoyed your posts. I would love for you to share your homemade soap recipe.
    -Revi

  41. I wish you taught local classes for us who live within driving distance. I would love to listen and learn. Or maybe not give a seminar persay but have a Frugally Sustainable “party” like you would for candles or tupperware!!! Or maybe publish an e-book – I would definatly buy an e-book!!!
    Watch, learn and purchase!!! Love your FB page, blog and Etsy store!
    ~Amanda

  42. Hi! Would love your homemade soap recipe!! Is it the same one as the shampoo bar perhaps? Someone above said its in the archives and I checked and only found the shampoo bar.
    Thanks for great info!

  43. Yes! I want your homemade soap recipe! I was just chatting with a neighbor the other night about making some soap!

  45. I am curious if using homemade soap makes the texture better. I have made liquid soap from bar soap and my husband refuses to use it due to its “mucusy” texture. I have also heard concerns about bacteria growth with no preservatives. What are your thoughts on this? Thanks! I am also a huge fan and am very curious to hear what you think.

  46. Would love to have the soap recipe! A friend & I are going to start making our own soaps because of you! Keep up the good work. Love reading all you put out there….

  47. I was planning on attempting your vegan bar soap recipe tomorrow! I just make the acne bar, I think it turned out pretty well.
    but, please, please! I’d love your exact recipe.

  50. I would also love your bar soap recipe. I’ve tried a few of your recipes and your ideas and I love them so far.

  51. In the past you have tried liquid soaps and said you didn’t like them (a recipe from someone else) . Why is this one different?

  52. No dried herbs, so used a large handful each of chopped fresh rosemary and fresh mint leaves in the infusion water. Used (2) 3.1 oz Ivory soap bars, scented variety and total of 9 cups of water. Hint you know your soap is well dissolved when the liquid turns very clear. The finished soap was a light tan-pearl color and about 70 oz. Used 15 drops each peppermint and eucalyptus essential oils & 1/2tsp TeeTree Oil. Added contents of 12 Vit. E capsules. Poked and squeezed them in, but that was quite messy. The soap had a nice fresh scent and tingle in the shower, but not too much. Not a lot of lather, but some. Rinsed easy and clean. No scum. Once off the heat, I stirred the cooling product from time to time. At one point, it totally gelled as one piece in the pot. I blended it with a stick blender till back to thickened liquid and smooth, but it was slimy and stringy. I dissolved 1 TBL salt in 1/3 C boiling water. I blended this into the liquid soap with the stick blender. It became creamier and less slimy. Thinking that the oils should act as an antibacterial and the salt perhaps a preservative. Thanks for this tutorial, it was fun to try and I’ll enjoy the product.

    • salt with water helped the slimy problem? after sitting for a while did it go back to slimy?

  54. I would love the Soap recipe too! I love your blog and you inspire me:) Thanks so much for all you do.
    Pam

  59. I have tried this and it did not work. It was much too liquidy and never thickened. It also did not sud at all. I tried adding another bar of soap and it made a bit of suds but was still very watery. I also used my own bar of soap from my small business of soap making. I use the same ingredients in my recipes so I know its not the soap. I have even tried with extra glycerin. Its too bad because I would love a liquid soap in the kitchen especially.

  60. Not sure about this recipe. Perhaps it was the soap I used but mine thickened very quickly into a gel like mess. Another commentator mentioned using a hand mixer and adding a salt water mixture to it and I did that and it did help smooth it out a bit. I have a ton of it so won’t be making again too soon but I definitely want to try again, perhaps with a castille soap based bar.

  63. I subscribe through email. I just made both your laundry detergent, and also your Eucalyptus Kitchen and Bath Cleaner. I love all the recipes that you share…please share your soap recipe too. Thanks for sharing with us 🙂

  65. Hi Andrea,
    Thanks for the link to Homestead Revival… How ever did I miss this earlier?? Your herbal combination of Eucalyptus and Mint sounds heavenly! Love both of those. I think I may take your tip on skipping the extra glycerine next time and see what happens. So far, I really like how mine has been working for me, but who knows… I might like it even better!

  67. This looks like a great recipe, and I’m going to give it a try! Yes, I would love to see your soap recipe. I started cold process soapmaking last year and am still collecting recipes.

  68. Am making the soap right now. I used only one oz peppermint leaf. The water was dark green, once I added the soap it turned brown! We will still use it but it’s not pretty!

  69. An update. It gelled in an hour maybe two! I broke it up, set back on stove, added two cups of water and used my boat motor mixer thing to loosen it up. Then added the EOs. Turned out nice and tingly, but not a nice color at all.

  70. I tried this recipe using two different kinds of soaps that I make by hand using the cold process method. The first was a Mango Butter Soap and the second was my Whole Milk Yogurt Soap. The batch using the Mango Butter Soap was ok, but the batch using the Whole Milk Yogurt soap turned out wonderful-it has a luxiurious, creamy, almost decadent consistency which I adore. I might even add some of this homeade body wash to my shop on Etsy-thanks for the inspiration!

  71. This sounds so luxurious! I cannot wait to give this a try with one of my bars of soap. Thanks for sharing.

  73. Like others mine hasn’t thickened at all. I used a bar of homemade soap I bought at the market…mango, cocoa and shea butters. It’s also a brownish color. I only had peppermint, but also added dried orange peel. I love the orange, peppermint scent. Any suggestions?

  74. I have also had a problem with this soap. I made it yesterday, exactly to the instructions except that I already had an infusion of lemongrass and lemon peel going, so I used that instead of the mint / Eucalyptus. It did not thicken up… I even left it over night. This morning still very watery. I added another bar of my homemade soap this morning and re- heated until it melted. I even added a little aloe vera gel.
    The color is a burnt orange…probably because of the lemongrass infusion. So I have left it cool again. Any one have any suggestions…. I really don’t want to throw it away. But can’t use it in it’s current state.

  75. I made this today using Kirks Castile bar soap (we have very hard water).
    it has been cooling for close to 12 hrs and it still hasn’t thickened.
    Could I have done something wrong?

  76. I love the scents & just started making this recipe. After I drained the leaves from the water, the color of my water looked Brown/green. It lightened up to a coffee w/creamer color after adding the soap. Did I do something wrong? Yours looks like a nice creamy white but mine looks more like something I’d drink thanwash my hands with. Lol

  77. I want to try to make this, I love the smell of Eucalyptus. I do not know where to but it, I’ve tried to find it just to have it around as an air freshener. I would be very grateful if you could tell Mr where I can it and also the oils.

    • I get mine at my local health food store… there are a lot of places you can get it online also… I have not tried these places yet

  82. I make goat’s milk soap. Can that be used? Also, asking because I want to understand the chemical composition of this recipe: Is it necessary to use the eucalyptus and mint, or is that done for fragrance purposes? It sounds great! (If I use the goat’s milk soap, would I then need to add glycerin? If so, how much?)

  84. I’m making this as I’m writing this. 🙂 I’m also adding Spearmint just because I LOVE Spearmint added with Peppermint and Eucalyptus. Karla: I’m sure you can add ANY essential Oil. This is a great one for the Flu/Cold season but as usual, with Andreas recipes, you can interchange any EO! 🙂 Use what you like!