Enjoy this recipe for homemade oatmeal soap for babies that is gentle enough for a young one’s skin.
Using olive oil infused with soothing chamomile, this unscented, uncolored oatmeal bar is gentle enough to cleanse and moisturize even infant skin. Chamomile is said to have calming, relaxing properties, perfect for baby’s bath time. This adorable stork stamp is the perfect touch for finishing the soap for gifting or selling.
Homemade Oatmeal Soap for Babies Recipe
Mold and Special Tools
- Silicone cupcake mold
- Stamp
- Rubber Mallet
Lye-Water Amounts
- 1.9 ounces lye (5% superfat)
- 4.3 ounces distilled water
- 1 teaspoon sodium lactate* (optional)
Oil Amounts
- 13.8 ounces chamomile-infused olive oil pomace (92%)
- 0.8 ounce shea butter (5%)
- 0.5 ounce castor oil (3%)
Additive Amounts
- 2 teaspoons bentonite clay
- dispersed into 4 tablespoons distilled water
- 2 tablespoons colloidal oatmeal
Place 2 tablespoons Egyptian chamomile into a small sealable teabag. Submerge the bag in 14.5 ounces olive oil pomace. (The amount of olive oil infused with the chamomile is larger than the recipe requires, to account for some oil that will be lost in the teabag.) Steep the oil with the teabag in a double boiler over medium heat for 2 hours before using.
Make the Soap Mixture
- Add the lye to the water (never the other way around) and stir gently until all of the lye is dissolved. If using sodium lactate, add it to the lye-water and stir to combine. Set the mixture aside to cool until it becomes clear.
- In a bowl large enough to hold all the oils and the lye-water solution, measure out the chamomile-infused olive oil. In a separate container, measure out the shea butter and castor oil and melt them together in a microwave. Be sure to heat these in 15-second bursts so as not to overheat the shea butter, stirring gently between each burst. Once the shea butter is completely melted into the castor oil, combine with the chamomile-infused olive oil in the large container.
- When the oils and the lye-water are both below 120 degrees F, add the lye-water to the oils, pouring it over a spatula or the shaft of the stick blender to minimize air bubbles. Tap the stick blender a couple of times against the bottom of the bowl to release any air that may be trapped in the blades. Do not turn on the stick blender until it is fully immersed. Stick-blend for 40 seconds, or until thin trace is achieved.
- Add the colloidal oatmeal and all of the clay mixture. Try to trap the additives under the stick blender, and stick-blend for 15 seconds until fully blended.
- Pour the batter into the mold, filling each cavity. Because this recipe has so much olive oil in it, it will be sticky for a few days. Spritz the top of the soaps with 99% rubbing alcohol to help prevent soda ash.
- Allow the soaps to set for at least 3 days before attempting to unmold. If you are having a hard time removing the soaps, you can place the entire mold in the freezer for about 4 hours, and then try again.
- After the soaps have been unmolded (and thawed if they were frozen), carefully line up the stamp on a bar of soap. Using a rubber mallet, firmly tap the stamp into the soap. It only needs to go in about 1/16 inch (1mm) to make a good impression. Repeat for each soap.
- Allow the soaps to cure in a well-ventilated area for another 4 to 6 weeks, turning them every few days to ensure that they cure evenly.
Excerpted from Pure Soapmaking (c) Anne-Marie Faiola. Used with permission of Storey Publishing. The book is packed full of information and recipes for everyone from beginners to advanced soapmakers. Learn how to create natural infusions, embeds, fruit and vegetable puréees and juices, and more.
