# Goat Milk Soap Questions



## GSFarm (Aug 7, 2007)

Hello!

I'm entering my senior year of high school and am interested in making goat milk soap with the milk I get from my Ober to save a little money for college. 

I'm learning a lot through these board but I have a couple of questions. 

What exactly are essential oils? Are they needed with the milk base?

Is the lye needed with the milk base?

How long is the soap making process?

Is goat milk soap a cold process or a "melt and pour?" - whats the difference?

Thanks so much!
Sarah


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## Mistyf (Apr 4, 2008)

Essential oils are fragrances that are extracted from plant material. Goats milk soap can be made in the cp process, which means it is basically soap that you make from scratch. M & P soap is a soap base that is already made, that you melt down, and add fragrance and other additives. Some of these bases are goats milk.

You may want to start with an M & P base. Most soap supply companies carry these bases, and you could try a goats milk one. But, since you are trying to use your own milk, you really should study up on cp soapmaking. It does involve using lye. Milk would be used in the lye phase of making the soap. Usually lye is added to water to get the lye mixture, then added to your oils to make soap. When using goats milk, you would replace some or all of the water in your lye solution. Milk will heat up more intensely than water, so the milk would need to be very cold or frozen, to counteract the extra heat. 

Again, I would suggest doing some research and reading on the cold process method of making soap.


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

Good on your head, Sarah!

I have pictures making Cold Process milk soap on my soapmaking page. There are a few recipes, links to suppliers and a link to using natural items for colorants in your soap.

Enjoy the process. If you have any specific questions, please come back and ask!!


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