Metaphysical Farms - How-to

Summer Illusions Soap

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 18:59:57 -0500

This video talks about some tricks you can use to preserve the oils that you use to make soap. You can use Vit. E, BHT, Rosemary oil or just put the oil in a fridge. Here is the recipe: http://metaphysicalfarms.com/r/3e

Buy a download of this video here.

Making Laundry Soap

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 11:50:24 -0400

If you are a soap maker, you have at some point come across the controversy of soaps verses detergents. Many see soap as a natural product whereas detergents are synthetic creations coming from a lab. In reality, both soaps and detergents are synthetic products that take naturally occurring chemicals and synthesize them into a new product. The big difference for soapers is that soap is easy to make at home while detergent is far too complex. Soap and detergent, while both good at cleaning, have different properties when placed in different environments. The biggest difference is that when soap is placed in hard water or an acidic solution, it forms a scum that is difficult to get out of clothes (if using for washing). Detergent does not suffer from this problem. The other major difference is that detergent works as efficiently in cold water as in warm. It is really these two reasons that detergent has taken over the laundry soap business.

The basic ingredients you will need to make your own laundry soap are:

3 oz soap (preferably homemade)
half a cup washing soda
half a cup borax

Soap: You really can use any bar of soap you like for this. I tend to like to use a simple soap that is made of 1/3 olive oil, 1/3 palm oil and 1/3 coconut oil that has been made with very little superfat discount. You will need to use about 3-4 oz of soap for this recipe.

Washing Soda: The biggest supplier of washing soda is Arm and Hammer. Because of this you might get confused between this product and their baking soda product. They are not the same! Washing soda is sodium carbonate whereas baking soda is sodium bicarbonate. This powder will give your soap a boost in removing dirt and odors.

Borax: This ingredient is a naturally occurring mineral that helps remove various forms of oils and dirts as well as deodorizing the laundry. Borax is just another name for sodium borate and can be found in most grocery stores in the laundry aisle.

The process of putting these ingredients together is not very time consuming and is well worth the cost savings per load of laundry (it costs about a penny a load). Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan. Add 6 cups water and heat it until the soap melts. Add the washing soda and the borax and stir until it is dissolved. Remove from heat. Pour 4 cups hot water into the bucket. Now add your soap mixture and stir. Now add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir. Let the soap sit for about 24 hours and it will gel. You use half a cup per load. You now have homemade laundry soap!

When you use this soap, you will notice it does not act like laundry detergent when cleaning your clothes. The homemade soap will be a little thiner of a gel than detergent and you will not notice as many soap bubbles when washing. This is perfectly natural and in fact, the bubbles do not indicate any type of cleaning properties. Now enjoy your freedom from the laundry detergent companies!

Making Caustic Potash

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 09:28:37 -0400

One of the major ingredients in soap making is Caustic Soda or Lye. Most soap-makers use industrial grade Sodium Hydroxide as their Caustic Soda but really any strong base would work in the soap making process. One such caustic that can be produced at home is Caustic Potash, or Potassium Hydroxide. While potassium hydroxide is often used to make softer bars of soap or even liquid soap, the type of wood ashes that are used can be selected to impart extra properties to the soap that would not be available to industrially purified chemicals. What every lye you choose to use the metaphysical farms lye calculator lets you choose either sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide when making soap. If you want to know how to make your own lye you will need the following equipment:

Equipment Needed

The first ingredient you will need is soft water. You can obtain this by buying soft distilled water (no mineral water), getting water from a dehumidifier or the traditional way is to collect rain water in a barrel. This ingredient by far is the most important to get right to ensure a good leaching of lye. Next you will need a container with a spout at the bottom. Traditionally this has been a wooden barrel with a hole drilled on the bottom big enough for a cork but if you don't have access to wooden barrels, you can easily use a cooler with a spout at the bottom. You will also need rocks and straw or cheese cloth to filter the ash. The final ingredient you need is wood ashes. The best ashes to use are hardwoods and you want to avoid evergreens (like pine and fir). Other things you can use are ashes of herbs and flowers to add a special touch to your lye.

Quick Reference

Soft Water
Rocks
Straw, grass or cheese cloth
Container with a closable spout at the bottom
Wood ash
A wood, glass or plastic bucket to collect the lye water. (no metal)

Continue reading "Making Caustic Potash"

Hot Process Soap Making

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 09:49:20 -0400

The process for making soap via the Hot Process method is quite similar to the Cold Process method. In fact many of the same recipes can be use interchangeably between the two methods. In the extended entry below, I have listed the materials needed to start the soap making process. The basic premis behind soap making is to take an acid (fat) and mix it with a base (lye) to form a salt like product that is able to change the surface tension when mixed with water making it ideal for whisking away particles of dirt and oil.

Safety Equipment
Safety First! You will need a pair of safety goggles and a pair of safety gloves. Lye is extremely caustic. You'll notice just how caustic if you leave it open on a humid day. You might want to also consider an apron specifically for making soap. Unless you're like me and you think holes in your jeans are cool.

Continue reading "Hot Process Soap Making"

Kidney Cleanse

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 10:44:36 -0400

A kidney cleanse is a great way to avoid kidney stones, but how do they form? If you are dehydrated or have consumed lots of toxic substances, the urine that passes through the kidney can crystallize, forming mineral deposits or kidney stones. Drinking lots of sugary sodas adds to the stress of your system. If the stones become too big they can block urine flow, causing extreme pain in your lower back. A kidney cleanse helps these stones to dissolve, easing your pain, and can also prevent them from forming in the first place.

How the Kidney Works

The duties of the kidneys are best described by calling them the filters of the blood. Your blood flows constantly through your kidneys to be purified or filtered. You might be surprised to learn that more than 500 grains of waste matter, acids and poisons have to be moved from the blood through the kidneys every 24 hours. You can easily see, therefore, that on this filtering and eliminating depends your health, to a very great extent. Let the kidneys fail to function properly and nature will call your attention to it right away. When your kidneys fail to function correctly you will feel depressed and tired, restless at night, and pains in the back will show up. There might be scanty urine or a desire to urinate frequently. Your head will ache and many other aches and pains will be making their appearance. You really cannot be surprised that you do not feel well. Just figure your kidneys would do only half the work and eliminate only 250 grains of waste, what will become of the other 250 grains? They will be carried back into your blood and poison your system. Watch, therefore, your kidneys and deal with even minor irregularity promptly.To avoid trouble be careful with your diet. Americans consume daily 80 grams of meat or nearly 3 ounces more of proteinthus attempting to dispose of about 35 grams more than we have capacity for. This overload gradually smashes the kidneys and throws them out of commission.

How to do the Kidney Cleanse

The kidney cleanse is a 3-day fast during which you must drink large quantities of distilled water and apple juice. You can drink up to a gallon of each, separately or mixed together. If you haven't tried a fast before, don't worry this cleanse is perfectly healthy. You may be a little hungry, but the apple juice will give you energy and help you feel more full. You can start checking for kidney stones immediately after your first drink of apple juice. Use a simple tea strainer to look for them - they might be very small so look carefully. Not everyone passes kidney stones on this cleanse, but even if you don't its very healthy and will prevent any future problems.

Continue reading "Kidney Cleanse"

Meditation Techniques Overview

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 11:16:19 -0400

As I indicated in my previous post Meditation Changes the Brain, there is scientific evidence that meditation has beneficial effects not only on your mood and outlook on life but actual physical changes in your brain that increase your capacity to think and reason. Then question then becomes, "How do I meditate?" or even, "What is meditation?" Merriam-Webster defines the act of meditating as engaging in contemplation, reflection or a similar mental exercise. Some of the simplest exercises can be considered meditation. Many people subscribe to the simple 5-10 minute breathing meditation where you simply focus all of your attention on the act of breathing (usually focusing on the breath entering and leaving your nose) and counting those breaths with one count being an inhale and an exhale. Another meditation for those that have trouble sitting still is paying attention to the act of walking--when your foot hits the ground; what parts hit first, next and last. Another meditation technique that helps those that are easily distracted is lighting a candle and focusing on the flame. A good addition to this exercise is to have a paper and pen ready and just mark down each time your mind wanders. When your mind wanders, simple put the mark on the paper and refocus on the flame. Do this for as long as you can muster. With this technique you can keep track of your focusing progress and how disciplined your mind has become.

These practices can help us understand our own minds. With the fast paced nature of modern western culture, often times we don't have time to examine who we are as human beings and our relationships with others around us. As you grow in your meditation practices, more advanced techniques can be employed involving mantras and focusing on ideas instead of physical objects. You might even find you can meditate on your morning commute (if you don't drive and take a train!) filled with the hussle and bussle of people. Outside distractions will no longer bother you. Good luck on your practice!

Fresh Verdant Soap Recipe

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 09:17:27 -0500

Lipids
Lipid	Amount in oz	Percent
Coconut 76°	13	20.97
Palm	12	19.35
Soybean	10	16.13
Olive	8	12.90
Hemp	5	8.06
Castor	5	8.06
Green Tea Butter	3	4.84
Shea Butter	2	3.23
Meadowfoam	2	3.23
Rosehip	2	3.23
Total Weight	62

Fluid (mint tea) needed:
17.36 - 22.94 fluid oz

green coloring, rosemary for preservative and lilac and sage scents

Lye (NaOH)
Superfatting Percent	Amount in oz
0	9.01
1	8.92
2	8.83
3	8.74
4	8.65
5	8.56
6	8.47
7	8.38
8	8.29
9	8.20
10	8.11

Printer Friendly

Handmade Fragrances

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 11:16:42 -0500

The use of flowers as perfume dates back too far to be traced by man. At one time diseases were thought to be transmitted through bad odors, which led to the use of flowers and scents to purify the air. Religious ceremonies using herbs and resins have been used since Egyptian times. Over the centuries flowers have taken on a special meaning. In soap making, these fragrances are prized and often times hard to come by when looking for the perfect scent.

Today, most of the fragrances you buy are synthetic and do not come from flowers themselves. If you do find a pure flower extraction, it is often times very expensive. But using a technique known as enfleurage you can extract some of the scents of flowers right in your own home. To begin this process you will need to melt down enough solid unscented oil to cover the bottom of at least two large shallow plates. Each plate should have approximately 1/2 inch of the melted substance. The plates need to match so you can place them upside down on top of each other without any gaps. When the fat has solidified, score it in crisscross patterns and fill the space between the plates with the petals of highly scented flowers. If you would like you can add a bit of citrus peel, herbs or spice to accent the scent. Be very careful not to allow any of the plant parts to drop on the plates since they can introduce fungi that will spoil your perfume.

Seal the plates together with tape and put them aside for two days. After this time you should remove the wilted petals and repeat this process using fresh petals. After eight changes of flowers cut the lard and place it in several small sterile glass bottles, filling each half full. Top this off with pure ethyl alcohol or if cannot get ethyl alcohol that is pure, you can use rubbing alcohol as well. Close each of the bottles tightly and shake them thoroughly. Then place them in a dark area for about 12 weeks. You will need to shake each bottle daily if possible to blend the ingredients. When the 12 weeks are up, use a funnel with a piece of muslin placed over it to pour the perfume into a bottle. The muslin will strain out all the fat globules. Next you should add a very small amount of fixative oil as a preservative. If you prefer to measure the amount of fixative it should be approximately two drops per 1/4 cup of perfume. In this process the aroma of the petals you have chosen are absorbed by the lard and held by the alcohol. The best aromatic flowers to use are gardenias, roses, honey suckle, lavender and carnations. Any aromatic mixture must be composed carefully to achieve the perfect blend. It is best to choose one ingredient for the primary fragrance and then add small amounts of other scents to get the best results.

Honey Mask

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 10:59:17 -0500

Honey has a long history in human societies around the world. It is used in various foods and beverages as a sweetener and flavoring. What is more interesting is that it also has a role in religion and symbolism sometimes being called the nectar of the gods. It is also used in various medicinal traditions to treat ailments. In fact recent studies of honey have indicated that these traditional uses actually have scientific merit. Antibacterial properties of honey are the result of the low water activity causing osmosis, hydrogen peroxide effect, high acidity, and the antibacterial activity of methylglyoxal. Because of all of that honey makes an excellent face mask.

To get the most out of your honey mask, you will want to add an exfolient to the honey. I have always found that adding sugar to the honey is ideal because of the small size of the sugar grains and the fact that the sugar dissolves and washes away cleanly with just simple water. The ratio is up to you but a nice ratio of honey to sugar is 2-1. You want to wait to make the honey-sugar mix until you are ready to scrub your face as some of the sugar will dissolve in the honey if you put it in beforehand. Once you have scrubbed you face with the honey-sugar mix, let the honey sit on your face and go to work on your pours and any acne you might have. When you are done a simple wash of water will clean off the goopy mess and you will be left with a radient face.

Lip Balm Emulsions

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 10:04:00 -0500

There are a lot of different things you can do with the various oils that are used in soap making. One of the easiest things is to turn a few of the best oils into an emulsion for a lip-balm or body moisturizer. The process really is simple and actually has fewer steps than making your own soap.

For anyone who has made a salad with an oil and a liquid, you know how oil and water can be combined into a new product. The basic process is to melt the solid oils and add them to the fluid oils. Once you have combined the oils then you can start adding different flavors or sweeteners (like honey) which have water in them. If you just want the lip balm to be plain, just add water. At this point you need to stir the fluid/water vigorously as you slowly drizzle the oil into the mixture. This should create the perfect emulsion and you will be able to chill the emulsion to form an even more solid lip balm.

Here is a simple olive oil and beeswax recipe:

2 Teaspoons Olive Oil
1/2 Teaspoon Beeswax
1/2 Teaspoon Shea Butter
Any Flavored Oil To Taste
2-3 drops of Vitamin E (as a preservative)

Continue reading "Lip Balm Emulsions"

Simple Castile Soap

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 10:07:18 -0500

Lipids
Lipid	Amount in oz	Percent
Olive	43	66.15
Palm	11	16.92
Coconut 76°	11	16.92
Total Weight	65

Fluid (water) needed:
18.2 - 24.05 fluid oz

Lye (NaOH)
Superfatting Percent	Amount in oz
0	9.40
1	9.31
2	9.21
3	9.12
4	9.03
5	8.93
6	8.84
7	8.74
8	8.65
9	8.56
10	8.46

Castile soap is just another name for an olive oil based soap. The major feature of these soaps are the moisturizing qualities attributed to the olive oil. When you make this recipe, be sure to use a stick-blender, otherwise it will take a very long time for the soap to reach trace. I've added some palm oil and coconut oil to harden the bar a little bit.

Continue reading "Simple Castile Soap"

Saponification of Oils into Soap

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 07:21:00 -0500

The processes of making soap are all centered around the chemical process of saponification. Soap makers have for years had huge lists of SAP (saponification) tables that describes the basic process of converting fats into soap. For new soap makers, the process may seem almost like magic because of all the mathematical formulas and conversions. Really, what every soap maker is doing when he or she makes a batch of soap is stepping into an organic chemistry lab and forcing a chemical reaction to take place.

The Chemicals Involved

The basic ingredients in any batch of soap are a strong base (lye, caustic potash, etc), water and an oil of some kind. When you put the lye into water, the water molecules ionize the bond between the sodium and hydroxide forming: Na⁺_(aq) + OH^-_(aq). The final ingredient is where the complexity and the artistry of soap making enters the equation. Most oils are comprised of triglycerides. This basically means that oils are made up of three fatty acids with a glycerol backbone. The glycerol molecule has three hydroxyl (HO-) groups. Each fatty acid has a carboxyl group (COOH), a central long unbranched aliphatic chain (saturated (CH₂)_n or unsaturated (CH₂)_nCH=CH(CH₂)_n) and an omega carbon at the end that has 3 hydrogens (CH₃). It is in the middle chain that the properties of the oil come from. Because of the limitless number of repeats and configurations of this middle chain, there are literally an unknown number of fatty acids in the world. Fortunately for us, when mother-nature finds a formula she likes, she reproduces it quite a bit in different places. The most common fatty acids that make up vegetable and animal lipids (at least the ones soap makers are interested in) are Lauric, Linoleic, Linolenic, Myristic, Oleic, Palmitic, Ricinoleic and Stearic acids. So, it are these three ingredients, when broken down to their base molecules, that form the palette for a bar of soap.

The Saponification Reaction

As any kid playing with vinegar and baking soda knows, when you mix an acid and a base together, you get a reaction. When soap makers mix their lye water into a vat of oil, what they are doing is really just this simple process of mixing a base with an acid. The first thing that takes place, is that the hydroxide (OH^-) attacks the carboxyl group of the fatty acid which is attached to the glycerol. This causes the carboxyl to break away and form carboxylic acid. The lye base is attracted to the carboxylic acid and forms a salt with the aliphatic chain hanging off the side. At this point a single molecule of "soap" has been formed. This chemical reaction continues until all the lye or fatty acids are spent. Soap makers can play with this knowledge and discount/superfat the soap. That is to say, they can reduce the amount of lye they add to the oils so that the reaction stops before all of the oil has been converted to soap. While this saponification process is going on, a lot of heat is released during each of the reactions. This is why soap goes through a "gel" phase before it hardens into its final product.

Woody Suspend Soap

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 23:40:34 -0500

Continue reading "Woody Suspend Soap"

Adding Fragrance to Homemade Soap

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 15:54:44 -0400

In a lot of my soap making videos, I simply show myself adding a particular fragrance to the soap without explaining much about the different options there are to making your soap smell like it just came out of a designer spa but at a far cheaper price. In this article I hope to explain some of the basics to adding fragrance to your soap so that you can feel more confident to experiment with your own scents as you join the wonderful community of soapmakers.

There are basically two chances you will have to add fragrance to your soap. The most common way is to add either a fragrance oil or a pure essential oil to your soap. The second way in which to add scent to your soap is to use various aromatic liquids like tea or coffee. There is a third way that is sometimes suggested by adding herbs or flowers to your soap but I have never had much luck with this method and if the cuttings are not heat safe, you will find most of the time they end up being burned by the saponification process.

Continue reading "Adding Fragrance to Homemade Soap"

Crazy Woody Soap

nospam@example.com (David DeLauro) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:38:00 -0500

Lipids
Lipid	Amount in oz	Percent
Coconut 76Â°	15.2	24.72
Palm	15	24.39
Soybean	12	19.51
Olive	8	13.01
Hemp	6	9.76
Castor	3.3	5.37
Shea Butter	2	3.25
Total Weight	61.5

Fluid (water) needed:
17.22 - 22.755 fluid oz

Lye (NaOH)
Superfatting Percent	Amount in oz
0	9.14
1	9.05
2	8.95
3	8.86
4	8.77
5	8.68
6	8.59
7	8.50
8	8.41
9	8.32
10	8.22

Continue reading "Crazy Woody Soap"