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| Francois
Lake Soap Maker |
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by
Bonny Remple |
“We were trying to live the
homesteader lifestyle,” she explains. “We had
a big garden, chickens, pigs, and even a couple of cows.” With
the help of a book entitled “Carla Emery’s
Old-Fashioned Recipe
Book” she tried very rudimentary soapmaking using rendered animal
fat as
one of the ingredients.
“It was a little harsh for hand soap but it did
make great laundry soap,” Liz-Anna
says, adding that she used it for washing diapers.
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Soap
making corner with blenders, kettle and moulds
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After those first
efforts Liz-Anna didn’t make soap again for a number
of years. Then, about 10 years ago, she found another book
on the subject which renewed her interest in the process.
This time, however, she focused on vegetable-based oils
in the soaps. She describes her early attempts as “trial
and error”. “Soapmaking is part chemistry
and part creativity,” she explains. “Although
it is a craft, it is science-based.”
Two key ingredients in the soapmaking process are fatty
acid, either animal or vegetable fat, and alkaline, quite
often lye. When these two are combined in the right quantities
and at the right temperature a chemical reaction called
saponification occurs.
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