Goats, Milk, Soap and a Book

Milk is an incredible liquid to use in soap for a variety of reasons. The extra fats make a creamy, luscious lather and the natural lactic acids in the soap help to promote cellular turnover, helping to unveil fresh, soft skin.

All the way back in 2007 and again in 2008, I taught goatmilk soapmaking at the National Dairy Goats Association. I also judged the top goat milk soap in the nation, and that was quite an experience. I loved being around all the dairy goat farmers and learned so much about the entire industry. It was fun to teach a brand new group of soapmakers how to make yet another commercial product with their goat milk.

While I didn’t get to milk a goat at the show, I have strong memories of the last night: the cheese competition. Goat milk isn’t just for soap; it’s used in cheese. This convention had at least 200+ cheeses out to try for their formal social. It was amazing. They even gave me a to-go container, so I could take cheese home. This little serendipity ended up saving me when my flight ran out of gas in the air and had to make an emergency landing, adding hours to the trip. Thank goodness for the stashed goat cheese!

I love milk soap so much that I wrote an e-book after I taught milk soapmaking for the Handcrafted Soap & Cosmetic Show in 2012. And I made a  Soap Queen video on making goat milk soap.

Now it’s time to take that love of all things lactic acid and alternative liquids in soapmaking to the next level. I’m so excited that Storey will be publishing my 3rd book on soapmaking, Milk Soapmaking, in the spring of 2018. It has meant experimentation, trial and error and lots of new color schemes.

I know the end result will be worth it though. The book will focus on nut milks as well as all of the animal milks that I can get my hands on (including donkey milk!). I’ve been playing with flax milk, chia seed milk, oat milk and more. The book is at least 50% palm free soapmaking recipes and at least 50% all natural (essential oils, oxides, clays, and herbs).

The entire book process usually takes over a year from start to finish to write the manuscript, do the photoshoot and then work with editors and copy editors. It’s been fun to push the envelope on design and technique, and I can’t wait to show it to you.

Here are some sneak peeks of what I’ve been working on.  And in the meantime, here is a beginner tutorial on Soap Queen to start learning all about milk and soapmaking.