I chanced upon a "Patchouli shampoo bar" whilst shopping just the other day. I was pleasantly surprised when it was printed on the box that the product is a "cold process soap". In soap making jargon, this means that it is a handcrafted shampoo bar.:) Furthermore, at a selling price of around S$3 per bar, that made the soap a MUST-BUY and MUST-TRY, right?
NOPE.
The soap was nothing like the shampoo bars I have grown to love. First, the colour. It was a deep shade of tyan/ dark green. I wondered what was used to colour the soap as it was not stated on the packaging. The smell was also not the herbaceous, woody scent associated with patchouli. The most disappointing part was the actual application.
The bar lathered quite well and gave my hair an overall squeaky feel at first use. I did not mind that too much as this can happen when you switch between shampoos. Hence I did my normal vinegar rinse and tried to comb my hair afterwards. That was when I started to have doubts about the shampoo bar. For the first time in a long while, my hair was tangled and knotted! I had a hard time combing through my long hair and was really pained to see all the strands of hair coming away on the comb.:(
Well, everything deserves a second chance right? So, two days later, I tried it again. Guess what? History repeated itself. Naturally, I was upset with the shampoo bar, but well... I only had myself to blame. I believed the advertising on the packaging and should have realised that S$3 is seriously too low a price to pay for good quality handcrafted soap. I guessed the soap probably consisted primarily of coconut oil which is known to be drying.:( Oh well... I am just glad that my hair is alright now and that I have a new bar of hand soap! :P
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Monday, August 1, 2011
Me and My Trusty Shampoo Bar
My love for handmade shampoo bars began about 4 years ago and had been going strong since then. Family and friends often wondered why I went out of my way to use and even make these handmade shampoo bars when there are so many easy-to-use mainstream haircare products claiming to get rid of dandruff, have hair fall control, extend your dye job and makes your hair stronger.. yada yada..
Well, everyone is entitled to their own preferences. To me, I felt that the benefits of using handmade shampoo far outweighed the adjustments I made to incorporate them in my cleansing regime. In addition, the shampoo bar also doubles up as bodywash and face soap. Oh, not to mention that they can be brought onto the plane as carry-on luggage.*hee* All-in-one convenience.:)
What prompted me to try handmade shampoo was largely an itchy and flaky scalp resulted from several dye/perm and rebond chemical treatments I had subjected my hair to. Prior to handmade shampoos, I had tried a multitude of commercial treatment shampoos, conditioners, hair masques, leave-in treatments etc, with temporary or meagre effect. Not only that, I had also spent a relatively large amount of money and time in haircare products to try and maintain the dyed hair colour, permed curls or straightness of my rebonded hair.
That is until I stumbled across an online website for homemade soap. The website not only sold handmade soap bars but also (solid) SHAMPOO! I was intrigued by the portability, eco-friendly aspect and positive user reviews on the website. Hence, I went ahead to buy a set of shampoo and rosemary infused vinegar rinse. Well.. I have to admit that I was doubful and unsure when the shampoo bar came in the mail. It looked just like any old bar of soap with a rustic brownish hue and mild rosemary fragrance. And vinegar rinse? (Erm.. oh well)
At first use, my hair felt gunky at the crown and squeaky at the ends. Apparently, that is because the shampoo was helping to get rid of the product build up and other gooey gunk that I had deposited on my scalp all this time. Surprisingly, the vinegar rinse was a godsend! The gunky, squeaky feel was removed after one rinse and after 2 weeks of this regime, I noticed considerable improvement in my scalp condition. My scalp din itch that badly, lesser flakes. My hair was also silkier with lesser "flyaways" and smelt great (no residual vinegar smell!)
Since then, I have tried out several brands of shampoos and conditioners but ultimately, I still turned to my trusty shampoo bar and a weekly vinegar rinse as my favourite hair cleansing and conditioning regime:)
Well, everyone is entitled to their own preferences. To me, I felt that the benefits of using handmade shampoo far outweighed the adjustments I made to incorporate them in my cleansing regime. In addition, the shampoo bar also doubles up as bodywash and face soap. Oh, not to mention that they can be brought onto the plane as carry-on luggage.*hee* All-in-one convenience.:)
What prompted me to try handmade shampoo was largely an itchy and flaky scalp resulted from several dye/perm and rebond chemical treatments I had subjected my hair to. Prior to handmade shampoos, I had tried a multitude of commercial treatment shampoos, conditioners, hair masques, leave-in treatments etc, with temporary or meagre effect. Not only that, I had also spent a relatively large amount of money and time in haircare products to try and maintain the dyed hair colour, permed curls or straightness of my rebonded hair.
That is until I stumbled across an online website for homemade soap. The website not only sold handmade soap bars but also (solid) SHAMPOO! I was intrigued by the portability, eco-friendly aspect and positive user reviews on the website. Hence, I went ahead to buy a set of shampoo and rosemary infused vinegar rinse. Well.. I have to admit that I was doubful and unsure when the shampoo bar came in the mail. It looked just like any old bar of soap with a rustic brownish hue and mild rosemary fragrance. And vinegar rinse? (Erm.. oh well)
At first use, my hair felt gunky at the crown and squeaky at the ends. Apparently, that is because the shampoo was helping to get rid of the product build up and other gooey gunk that I had deposited on my scalp all this time. Surprisingly, the vinegar rinse was a godsend! The gunky, squeaky feel was removed after one rinse and after 2 weeks of this regime, I noticed considerable improvement in my scalp condition. My scalp din itch that badly, lesser flakes. My hair was also silkier with lesser "flyaways" and smelt great (no residual vinegar smell!)
Since then, I have tried out several brands of shampoos and conditioners but ultimately, I still turned to my trusty shampoo bar and a weekly vinegar rinse as my favourite hair cleansing and conditioning regime:)
Monday, July 18, 2011
Brief History of Soapmaking
There are many versions on the history of soap making. A common thread that seems to run through most of the stories involves a certain Sapo hill, washer women and mixing of ash with animal fats.
So here goes...
Based on Wikipedia, the earliest recorded evidence of soap like materials dated back to around 2800 BC in ancient Babylon where a recipe for soap using ash, cypress oil and sesame oil was found.
In addition, a formula for soap consisting of water, alkali and cassia oil was written on a Babylonian clay tablet around 2200 BC. Moving on from there, it was discovered that Egyptian documents mention a soap-like substance used in the preparation of wool for weaving.
A popular belief encountered by some claims that soap takes its name from a supposed Mount Sapo, where animal sacrifices had supposedly taken place. It was believed that fat/ tallow from these sacrifices would have mixed with ashes from the sacrificial fires and water, thereafter being converted to soap. However, Mount Sapo DOES NOT EXIST. In fact, the Latin word Sapo simply means "soap"
So here goes...
Based on Wikipedia, the earliest recorded evidence of soap like materials dated back to around 2800 BC in ancient Babylon where a recipe for soap using ash, cypress oil and sesame oil was found.
In addition, a formula for soap consisting of water, alkali and cassia oil was written on a Babylonian clay tablet around 2200 BC. Moving on from there, it was discovered that Egyptian documents mention a soap-like substance used in the preparation of wool for weaving.
A popular belief encountered by some claims that soap takes its name from a supposed Mount Sapo, where animal sacrifices had supposedly taken place. It was believed that fat/ tallow from these sacrifices would have mixed with ashes from the sacrificial fires and water, thereafter being converted to soap. However, Mount Sapo DOES NOT EXIST. In fact, the Latin word Sapo simply means "soap"
The Chemistry of Soap Making
Soaps are salts of fatty acids. In general, it can be obtained by treating plant-based oils or animal fats with a strongly alkaline solution.
Quick science class revision.
Fats and oils are composed of triglycerides. This means that 3 molecules of fatty acids are attached to a single molecule of glycerol (alcohol).
The alkaline solution, often sodium hydroxide or commonly called lye, brings about the chemical reaction known as saponification.
In saponification, the fats are first hydrolysed and will liberate the fatty acid chains. The free fatty acids would then react with lye to form soap.
Glycerol, or often called glycerin(e) is liberated during soap making. This precious humectant is either retained in handmade soaps or washed out and recovered as a useful by product in commercial soap making.
Quick science class revision.
Fats and oils are composed of triglycerides. This means that 3 molecules of fatty acids are attached to a single molecule of glycerol (alcohol).
The alkaline solution, often sodium hydroxide or commonly called lye, brings about the chemical reaction known as saponification.
In saponification, the fats are first hydrolysed and will liberate the fatty acid chains. The free fatty acids would then react with lye to form soap.
Glycerol, or often called glycerin(e) is liberated during soap making. This precious humectant is either retained in handmade soaps or washed out and recovered as a useful by product in commercial soap making.
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