How We Make Soap continued

Once they have set, or solidified enough to handle, our bars of soap are then removed from the mold and spread on baker's sheets lined with brown paper. Here they cure for another 3-4 weeks. During this time, the soap becomes milder, dry, and firm.

After curing, we trim each bar to remove the fine layer of ash that has formed on top. For this reason, no two bars will look exactly alike, although we try. We live in the country, and live a simple life. Glassine envelopes, to maximally preserve freshness, are our choice for wrapping. Each soap bar is folded into the envelope which is then ready for labels and raffia bows. All of this is done lovingly by hand.

Lotions and creams undergo a simpler process without lye or saponification, using borax as an emulsifier to keep ingredients from separating, and less curing.
It is only in the last few years that soapmakers have moved beyond traditional ingredients, lye with animal fats such as tallow, or a few of the more common vegetable oils. We at

Hummingbird use sodium hydroxide in distilled water and a mixture of high quality all natural oils. Our original intent was to use only vegetable oils, preferably organic. We soon learned that oils and other products sold as organic are often not truly organic, and those that are proved to be so rare that the supply was uncertain and so expensive that the price of the end product would be prohibitive for most people.