Even after I first got married we still did the bar soap thing...because I remember trying to convince the hubster that Dove soap was better than Irish Spring. lol. (I still try to convince him of that, but to no avail.)
But somewhere along the way...we completely stopped buying bar soap (except for the stuff I buy for making Homemade Laundry Detergent) and made the switch to body wash exclusively! Apparently we're not alone either. Since 2003, the year Old Spice entered the body wash market, sales of deodorant bar soap have plummeted nearly 40%!
So this week when I was shopping for the family staples...two things HIT me: 1) how much body wash we go through! And 2) body wash ain't cheap! As I mentioned, I am a Dove girl from WAY back. I have been using it for as long as I can remember. So that's what I like to buy for body wash. A bottle of it sells for almost $6.27 at our local grocery store. I knew I had to be able to do better than that by making my own.
Problem was...there are hardly any "recipes" out there for homemade body wash! Believe me...I've looked! I was actually quite surprised by this!
I did manage to find a couple of blog posts from people who had made their own organic body wash. Sounded like it was worth a try to me!
Here is the recipe I found at HomemadeBeautyProducts.net:
Easy-As-Apple-Pie Body Wash
2 cups grated bar soap (use an organic soap--Dr. Bronner's castile soap works great.)1/2 gallon distilled water
2 Tbsp. vegetable glycerin
15 drops skin-safe green apple fragrance oil (or other essential oil of your choice.)
Few drops organic green food coloring (optional.)
Mix first 3 ingredients together in a large pot. Set over low heat stirring occasionally until the soap has dissolved. Add essential oil and food coloring if using and mix well. Transfer to a jar and cover tightly.
Here is the final product. It's a pretty thin consistency. I thought it might "set up" overnight. But it really hasn't so far.
I decided to give it a test run in the shower and while I loved the soft, soapy feel of it...it just wasn't moisturizing enough for me. I have VERY dry skin!
However, this is supposed to be excellent for people who suffer from eczema.
I decided after this to continue searching to see if I could come up with anything closer to my beloved Dove. Well guess what? I found something EXACTLY like my beloved Dove...because IT IS Dove! :-)
After MUCH SEARCHING I found Stacy at The Brady Bunch website had figured out how to take the Dove BAR SOAP and make it into a BODY WASH simply by grating, adding water, and heating to make a liquid form.....ie. Body Wash! Now this sounded more like what I was looking for....all the things I liked about Dove Body Wash...but a much cheaper price.
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6 cups water
3 bars of soap, grated
Put into a pan on the stove on medium heat, stirring occasionally until all the soap is dissolved.
Transfer to a glass jar or bowl and allow to cool, then pour into a plastic bottle for shower use! (It will thickens as it cools).
Update: This is what it looks like after 24 hours....
It's the PERFECT consistency!!!
Here is the price breakdown:
I bought a six pack of the Dove Beauty Bars (got plain WHITE) for $6.88.
I used 3 of the bars at a cost of $3.44. This made approximately 48 ounces....or....$1.72 for a 24 ounce bottle!
I have to say....I'm pretty thrilled with how this all turned out. Especially after the initial version wasn't really "my cup of tea". I love that I can make a "homemade" version of my favorite body wash in less than 30 minutes for almost 75% LESS!
I might just have to try making some Irish Spring body wash for the hubster. ;-)
How to make your own bar soap body wash is today's.....
Love all of your great ideas. I will be trying this today.
ReplyDeleteVery cool! I'm waiting for a time I can be alone in the house to try out all those DIY soaps. We are renovating and my husband is not ready for my way of thinking, in large doses. Baby steps, and a great collection of recipes!
ReplyDeleteThanks! What a great way to use my collection of hotel soap!
ReplyDeleteJillee.... you are a genius!!! I am so doing this!!
ReplyDeleteHi Jillie,
ReplyDeleteI started following you on pinterest, I love your one good thing ! For your other followers I made this reciepe with Neutrogena clear bar soap. Works the same way. I doubled the reciepe & cut down on the water. Ummm fail :) I'm constantly adding water to the bottle lol, but I do get a thicker bodywash out of it.
Try adding about 1/2 tsp table salt after soap has nearly cooled, mix til dissolved.
ReplyDeleteShould make your soap thicker & skin smoother.
My doctor told me to STOP using Irish Spring, or similar antibacterial soaps, because they KILL the natural antibodies that fight infection on our bodies. She said to use Dove exclusively to allow the balance of nature to work properly, especially on our private parts.
ReplyDeleteI'm a Dove person too. This is a must try for me! Just think of the $$$ saved on this... WOW!
ReplyDeleteYippee, what a absolutely fabulous idea...I even showed my daughter(36 yrs. old). It looks like whatever soap you like grate it and cook with the 6 cups of water! I wonder if you had used more bar soap would it thicken it up? Thanks for the great idea!
ReplyDeleteCindy Lou...I COMPLETELY understand! lol! Sometimes men NEED baby steps! ;-)
ReplyDeleteHotel soaps! GREAT idea! I just picked up a BUNCH of those at the thrift store last week that smelled SOOOOOOO good! Hmmmm...I think some cute gifts could be in order.
1/2 tsp table salt! I'm trying it! Thank you!!
I agree with your doctor about Irish Spring ...I don't like it at all! Now need to convince the hubster of this.
Chickie...I know! Amazing how much we pay for the bar soap companies to grate their soap and add water to it! ;-)
Deebi27...see comment above about adding 1/2 tsp of table salt for thicker soap! Worth a try! :-)
Jillee,
ReplyDeleteHave you considered not using strictly Dove bar soap, but adding a bar of Goat Milk Soap? I believe that would thicken the resultant suspension a bit ... which appears to be the prime complaint.
Since you are using essentially a 2 to 1 mixture, you could make a very small batch by using 1/2 bar of Dove, 1 cup water and one of those teeny tiny things of goat soap you can get from the hotels. The worst that happens is that you get stuck with about 10 of the small goat soap thingies.
Google "goat soap" and you'll find loads of websites. Most of them have Clearance or Grarage Sale type pages where you can get 15-50% off.
First you have all these great ideas, I check in with you daily now... but then you start reading my mind! I have been thinking how great all the home made things you have are but I really want a home made body soap, and here it is!! You're great =)
ReplyDeleteIt might be thicker if you add just one more bar of Dove. Im going to try it today!
ReplyDeleteOK, I tried this, can barely get it out of the bottle it is so thick, when I did get some on my scrubby it didn't lather. What do you think I did wrong? It looked good in the beginning.. nice and creamy but I am going to have to start over or find a new recipe. Kinda disappointed :(
ReplyDeleteWonderful!! I'm a strictly Dove person as well, so this is right up my alley!
ReplyDeleteMade this today, and now it's cooling. I seem to have 2 distinctive layers - a creamy/foamy layer and then a clearer layer, which is more abundant at the bottom. What do I do?? whisk it??
ReplyDeleteJust finished making this and is now cooling. I even added a few drops of almond scented oil and it smells divine!
ReplyDeleteI found this recipe on pinterest: http://www.thefarmersnest.com/2011/11/liquid-hand-soap-diy.html. This recipe is the same, but has glycerin in it, which hopefully makes it thick enough. I haven't tried it yet. Also, btw, I use the chrome browser on my computer and it won't let me choose a profile for some reason.I'm commenting now with my smart phone, lol. Just wanted you to know.
ReplyDeleteCheck out two new pictures I just posted this afternoon! After setting up for 24 hours....it is the PERFECT consistency! It is creamy, smooth perfection. :-) I'm super happy with how it turned out.
ReplyDeleteTracy....did you make sure ALL the grated soap was COMPLETELY dissolved?
Heather...yes...shake/whisk those layers together!
Awesome discovery!
ReplyDeleteDoes this lather as well as store bought body wash? I've made a batch with a different recipe and it doesn't later well at all.
ReplyDeleteHmmm salt ??? Guess I'm going to try what can it hurt ??? Normal reciepe is to thin for me & does not lather as much as I like. It does seem to help using more soap & cutting back on the water, but also gets too thick doing this. So going to try the salt. Made some disposable facial wipes with extra wash I have made. So will be trying to make this again & tweaking it.
ReplyDeleteStacy...how long since you made it? It took mine almost 24 hours before it got to its' thickest consistency...and then in was perfect! (for me.)
ReplyDeleteAnony....mine lathers as much as the kind I used to buy in the bottle.
ReplyDeleteDerFarm...I haven't heard of the "goat soap" before. I'm definitely going to look into that. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteDo you cover the glass bowl while it is cooling?
ReplyDeleteJillie,
ReplyDeletemade mine a month or so ago. Used 3 bars & cut back on the water. Way too thick. Used a different reciepe, but basically same concept. Going to try your reciepe next time exactly & see if I get the same results.
Awesome, thanks! :)
ReplyDeleteYes, it was all dissolved, I ended up putting almost 2 more cups of water in it, now it is creamy and easy to use but still no foam, maybe I need to try a certain kind of soap?
ReplyDeleteFound this on Pinterest and I will be trying it out! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteSo, when I was in the shower about 20 minutes ago I was thinking to my self, I need to go online and find a recipe for making my own body wash for when I run out of my back stock of Bath and Body Works that I won't be using once I run out. Three articles into my rss feed and I find this! Yay. Thank you for sharing, I can't wait to try.
ReplyDeleteTracy...I definitely think it would be worth a try with another soap. I liked mine so much I went out and bought some of the Men's Dove Bar soap to make some for the hubster. I thought I might have to twist his arm to get him to use it...but he actually seemed excited about it! lol. Go figure. :-)
ReplyDeletemelizajane20...well, what a happy coincidence! I love when that kind of thing happens. :-)
My Boyfriend LOVES Irish Spring (and I enjoy the smell so bonus there). This will definitely be part of his Valentine's gift. Thanks for the ideas.
ReplyDelete(First time commenter, by the way. LOVE your blog.)
Great idea, I love Dove! Did you use distilled water? I wonder if that makes a difference if you have hard water...Thanks for wonderful ideas!
ReplyDeleteI have really dry skin too, so I use Dove as well.
ReplyDeleteIf you have a Costco membership, I find their Kirkland Brand moisture bar soap, which is basically their version of Dove, works just as well! AND, it's around $10.99 for 15 bars, so that would bring down the price to $1.10 per 24 ounce!! :)
This is a great idea but I'll try it with a different brand of soap. Although I love Ivory, I realized after using it for many years that it causes more build-up in the shower than any other brand I've tried. Anyone else notice this?
ReplyDeletemade a batch of this for the guys using Iris spring, followed the recipe to a T, the next morning after it was cooled, it was back to a solid form?? added a cup of water and melted it in the microwave...its sumwhat better but still pretty thick? doesnt lather well according to the guys? i wonder if it depends on the soap your using and should i add even more water?
ReplyDeleteI am loving these ideas on your soaps. Can you please tell me how you are grating the bars of soap?
ReplyDeleteI have a question on the very watery soap. Did you try putting it into one of those foaming dispensers? The recipe I was going to try this week was very specific about two things on the soap. First was that it absolutely must be 8 ounces of soap per gallon of water. Second was not using Dove or other soaps with extra moisturizers as they end up too thin. You are very right, we also go through a LOT of body wash.
ReplyDeleteAnony...it DOES thicken up quite a bit (I haven't tried the Irish Spring myself). I would just keep adding water until it's the desired consistency. You might have to USE more...but there's more water in it...so it kind of evens out. I plan on making some "manly" body wash tomorrow...I'll let you know how it turns out.
ReplyDeleteTektak...I grated my soap with a simple box cheese grater. Some people have used their food processors. The Dove soap was actually pretty easy to grate. MUCH easier than the Fels Naptha I use for my laundry soap! :-)
ooooh my I made this awhile ago and have two large bottles. It does not lather up and it is the consistency of mucus. I used caress with glycerin. may have to try the dove soap and see how it works. I also made hand soap i like it however it does not lather up either. I also want to say i just sbscribed to your post. everything I love on Pinterest leads me back to you. so might as well stick around!
ReplyDeleteA woman after my own heart.LOL I couldn't get a gallon of water & ONE bar of grated Ivory to stay liquid. everytime I let it cool it thickened up again :-) SO my oldest daughter said to mix with an electric mixer, worked like a charm :-)Plus I added 2 T of glyserin to each gallon .
ReplyDeleteLOVE your blog.. always such great info .
Lisa
www.gracielynns@blogspot.com
I love your bolg I came across it three days ago on Pinterest and I love it!! I had tried the soap with glycerin and did not like it! The soap did not lather, was slimey, and was really runny. So I have been looking for something else. Then I came across this recipe. So I tried it! AND I AM HAPPY!! I followed the recipe with Irish Spring (for Hubby) with 8 cups of water and for my daughter and myself, I used Yardley soap (exactly as you say with Dove). Both came out really thick. I had to add some water to thin out. But love it lathers really well, smooth, and feels great!!! How is it so thick though???
ReplyDeleteLove this one. I'll be making some for myself this weekend. I've made the first recipe you used for hand soap and for my girls-- they have horrible excema. I've found that saving the pump and bottle for an inexpensive foam soap works great for that watery consistency--it helps them to not overuse too much of it too. I thought about buying bottles and pumps for use at the sinks and in the shower that the girls share --pft, too expensive with shipping. I'm just going to slowly collect more of the off brand of foam soaps and re-use those bottles and pumps.-- Michele Edenfield
ReplyDeleteHi, i thought this was a great idea! But when i tried to make it my "body wash" just turned into a huge bar of soap. Am i doing something wrong? help please :)
ReplyDeleteEu amo esse blog e já estou divulgando os posts no Brasil. Eu testei a receita e funcionou perfeitamente. Sucesso!
ReplyDeleteMuri [Ateliê na Varanda]...que é tão grande! Muito obrigado por espalhar as coisas boas. :-)
ReplyDelete(I hope that's right...I used Google Translate! lol)
Curious as to how well adding finely chopped herbs during the cooking process would work and how it would affect the consistency. For example, blending up some fresh lavender. Or maybe adding oatmeal for more of a scrub? Though that might be added later...
ReplyDeletewhere does everyone get their essential oils?
ReplyDeleteI did 3 bars of soap and 12 cups of water. It's still cools to solid form. Guess I'll just keep reheating it and adding more water? I guess the price per ounce sure goes down!
ReplyDeleteI noticed that the recipe up top calls for distilled water. Is that also what you used in the Dove recipe?
ReplyDeleteI tried making this, but mine also became like a solid gel. I took another look at the recipe, and the orginal one calls for 2 bars, and 1/2 gallon water (which is 8 cups). The Dove recipe calls for 3 bars and only 6 cups water. By the original recipe 3 bars of soap should have 12 cups water. Anyway, I've reheated and added another 4 cups of water to make 10 cups total. It's a fairly nice consistency right now, hopefully it stays that way!
ReplyDeleteSo cool!! I love dove as well! BUT I always buy the Wal-Mart generic brand because I couldn't justify spending that much for body wash. I just ran out of body wash today and was going to have to use my hubbys bar soap :(. I do have some Dove bar soap (because that's what I wash my face with!) so I am going to try it! Thanks for posting this!!
ReplyDeleteI love thi recipe! However I allow it to cool fully in the bowl before transferring to another bottle. It will thicken up and I actually had to add more water and use a mixer because it was almost solid again.
ReplyDeleteCurious it is sounding like to get right constistency dove is the prefered brand. I used neutrogena before & still thinning down when refilling my shower bottle. Toss up here .... Debating on using dove next go around. Anyone having issues with breakouts etc?
ReplyDeleteI have been doing this for years. And I don't heat it. I take the small bit that is left in the shower and replace it with a new bar. I put the small bits in a container with water and let it melt itself. I always have some in the making and transfer it to a pump bottle for use at the sink. I can only use regular Dove bar, everything else makes me break out.
ReplyDeleteI have a question........I have Castile soap, but it's liquid. Can this be used? If so, how much?
ReplyDeleteThanks.....love your site.
June
Jillee, I love love your Blog, on and on. The love started with Pinterest! Thats where I found and made the laundry soap (which is my couponing addiction #1) Score!!! Fatric Softener another Score and now the Body wash! I think I love you. You have become such a wonderful asset to my money saving household!!! Thanks soooo much for taking the time out of every day to give us "one good thing". I wish I could find the time to catch up on all of your "one good things". My baking sheets are gross, but being a "cookie mom" and a Girl Scout Troop leader I don't have much extra time to enjoy until 4/1.Anyways sorry for the Blah, Blah Blah... And Thanks Again! *:)
ReplyDeleteSo I had to share my experience. I tried first using an off brand soap and it turned out hard as a rock!!! So I took the $1.60 loss... :) I then did it with dove...wow Perfect. It is so perfect, thank you!! I made my second batch today!
ReplyDeleteheather
Made this tonight and as it's cooling it's getting thanks!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tip, with a coupon I got 4bars for $0.35!!! Love that
I think the key to having it turn out great is to use a creamy/moisturizing type soap bar (ie Dove and NOT Ivory which is very pure)
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to use up my stockpiled body washes and try my hand at this. I am definitely saving the old bottles!
I made the second recipe last night with 6 cups water and 3 bars of castile soap and nothing happened by the next morning it never set up so what am i doing wrong??? Please give me ideas. I did although just use what I made in the shower but it was liquid form and I want the creamy!! Thanks ladies
ReplyDeletePlease let me know what size of bar soap I should be using!I used 3-3.17 oz(90g) bars of soap. they came in a four pack. Should I have used the larger individual bars? I'm really hopeing this works- thanks for the great money saving ideas!!!
ReplyDeleteI love making homemade cleaning supplies. I know it seem silly, but it has really empowered me. It makes me feel good to know that I am taking control and saving money, and it's so easy. I've also started hanging my clothes to dry. This also saves.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, I'll have to try this! Looks wonderful.
ReplyDeleteI used the "sensitive skin" bars and since the ratio was two cups of water per bar of soap and I bought a four-pack of soap...I used 8 cups of water and four bars of soap.
ReplyDeleteIt worked great! By the next morning, about 18 hours later, it was the PERFECT consistency! However, it seems to be a tad less moisturizing than its liquid counterpart and I miss the scent...so I might try using half regular bars and half sensitive...or something like that, for next time.
I am surprised that less-sudsing doesn't bother me like I thought it would-in fact, I haven't noticed that big of a difference. It's perfect, relatively easy (my hands hurt, though...) just all around amazing!!! Thanks for this wonderful recipe-it's a lifesaver!!!
Sincerely,
~ Coco ~
Olive Oil Does anyone use this? How much?
ReplyDeleteThought this was really cool. We buy Trader Joe's Tea Tree Tingle liquid soap, 16 oz for $3.99. The tea tree bar soap is $1.99 (I think, may be less) for two bars so I thought I'd give this a try. Used four cups of water to the two bars, it melted down easily, though looked more clear that white. Set it aside to cool in a glass bowl and when I came back to check it had completely solidified. Now I have a giant bowl shaped chunk of tea tree soap. Anyone else have this happen to them I am thinking of nuking it in the microwave at short intervals to make it liquid again then adding more water. What do you think?
ReplyDeleteI made hand soap and body wash today using 1 8oz. bar of french soap, 1 gallon of water and 2 T. glycerin. Worked wonderfully. Thick and creamy, and smells good too.
ReplyDeleteI ended up microwaving the bowl od hardened soap on half power for short times, 3-5 minutes at a time, then stiring. When it was almost all liquid again I added two more cups of water and placed in micrwave for five more minutes on power setting 3. This worked. I also added some lavender essential oil. Thanks for this recipe, I am going to experiment with other essential oils. We used to love Trader Joe's rosemary mint body wash that they discontinued. Going to try and recreate it.
ReplyDeleteHey! Thanks for trying out my recipe. I just found this today. I also just posted an update on my post because a lot of people were trying to use other types of soap and not Dove. Dove has a lot of moisturizer in it which makes the ratio to water perfect. Other soap will turn out too thick with only 6 cups of water. I use the men's dove for my husband. He now loves it too and he's a pretty manly man to be using a loofah!
ReplyDeleteStacy! Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing this info. I will have to update my post as well.
ReplyDeleteI did a SECOND post about this including the MEN'S version as well, because I love this stuff so much! Thanks for sharing it!
http://www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com/2012/03/his-and-hers-no-grate-homemade-body.html
Thanks for posting this. I am going to try this with the Do Go Fresh Grapefruit and Lemon grass scented bars. Since Dove has discontinued the body wash in that scent I have yet to find anything that is as good. Luckily they are keeping the bar and other products in that scent. It's my favourite scent!
ReplyDeleteI made this with a similar recipe used olay soap for me ... Dove men care bars for hubby and my son and a dial for hand soap... It's a little thin but when you use a lofa it works awesome.....think it's great I use almost every recipe I have seen on your website... Even have the hubby getting on pintrest now.... He thinks it interesting....
ReplyDeleteI'm using a clear dial soap, it's my favorite. Hope all works out well. Wish me luck and love the blog!!!
ReplyDeleteBTW, I'm using six cups water to 2 bars of soap.
i tried this with irish spring. Started with 2 cups water per bar. stayed thick so i tried adding more water. ended up with a GALLON from 2 bars & it's still a little like homemade silly putty. i'll probably have to add water as i put it in my dispenser.
ReplyDelete