History of soap making dates back to as early as 19th century, where soaps were largely made at home. Since fat was the main ingredient in soap preparation, it was saved from cooking and butchering until there was sufficient amount of it to prepare a batch of soap. But things took a major turn in the year 1916 when suddenly there was a deficiency of fats at the time of World War I. In search of a substitute to fat, few enterprising companies made an initiative and developed the first synthetic soap called detergent.
But today, you have such wide variety of oils available in the market, making soaps at home is quite inexpensive. The best thing about homemade soaps is that you don’t have to worry about the quality, health related benefits, and the environment. You can use the best ingredients and your favorite fragrance to make soaps at home.
Also, you should thank to science and specially the department of chemistry that has made people aware about the process of soap making and people today understand the process in much better way. You can learn from the experience of others around. You can choose from wide range of ingredients. Comparatively the soaps of today are much milder and better suited for skin, all thanks to presence of vegetable and plant based oils.
In chemical terms, soap is a salt. When fatty acids react with a base and on neutralization forms a salt or soap. To put this explanation in simple terms, oil or animal fat or vegetable fat is mixed with Sodium Hydroxide or “Lye” and this process is known as saponification, which results in a soap.