Making Soap without Lye? It’s a Lie.

Posted by Rob on Jul 13th 2016

If it’s soap, it was made with lye. All soap is made with lye.

There’s a difference between a “soap” and a “detergent.” Many common store-bought soaps aren’t “soap” at all, rather, they are detergents made with chemical hardeners, surfactants, and foaming agents, and perhaps no lye at all. I’m talking about real soap here, and all of it is made with lye.

Many people think goat’s milk soap is made without lye, but that’s not true. Even goat’s milk soap is made with lye, the same amount of lye used in other soaps.

A good soapmaker will formulate his soaps so all of the lye is converted in the saponification process, and when the soap is ready to use, there is no lye remaining in it.

So, don’t fear the lye! It’s one of the ingredients that make your handmade soap so great.