BASIC SOAP RECIPE

So you want to make some soap?

Just like consulting a cookbook, starting out by using a recipe from a book or website is great. It's good to learn the craft of soap making by using a tested recipe at first. But think of those recipes as just a starting point because there's nothing like creating your own recipe from scratch. Whether it's because you only have certain oils on hand, or you're looking to create the perfect bar of soap, creating your own recipe allows you to control each and every ingredient.

Though you can make soap using only one oil, the best soap recipes have a balance of oils.

Each oil will contribute a different quality to the final bar of soap. The qualities can be categorized in four ways: 
Hard, stable, long lasting - (palm oil, beef tallow, lard) 
Lathering - (coconut, castor, palm kernel) 
Moisturizing/Conditioning - (olive oil, canola, sunflower, soybean) 
Luxury/Super Moisturizing - (cocoa butter, shea butter, almond oil, hemp oil, jojoba)
(Many oils will have multiple characteristics - e.g. shea butter is super moisturizing and makes a very hard bar of soap as well. Coconut is primarily used because it makes great lather, but makes a super hard bar too. Tallow is primarily used as a base oil (hard), but it makes really creamy, moisturizing lather. Etc.)

A basic balanced recipe should have some of at least the first three oil categories - hard, lathering, and moisturizing. So a basic recipe could be: 
30% tallow 
25% coconut oil 
45% olive oil
That would be a great, balanced basic bar of soap. 

(Note: I'm using percentages instead of measurements. If this is confusing, or to scale your recipe to any size, read Measurements vs. Percentages in Soap Making.)

Now, if you wanted to use only vegetable oils, you could use: 
25% palm oil 
25% coconut oil 
25% olive oil 
15% canola oil 
10% sunflower oil
This is a great, basic recipe for soap.

Note: Many soapers also swear by adding 4-6% castor oil to their recipes. I'm one of them. It increases the lather and gives the soap a nice creaminess.

So...an even better great, basic recipe for soap would be: 
25% palm oil 
25% coconut oil 
25% olive oil 
10% canola oil 
10% sunflower oil 
5% castor oil
See how it's balanced with a combination of hard, lathering and moisturizing oils?

After you have decided on a balance of oils, you just need to run your combination of oils through a lye calculator of your choice and you're ready to go.

My best advice is to not be afraid to experiment. Share your experiences with others in the soap making community. Take good notes in your soap notebook, and above all, keep on soaping!

HOW TO MAKE SOAP

These are the instructions for making your own gentle hand or face soap. It's work, but worth the effort!
Difficulty: Average
Time Required: 1 Day
Here's How:
If you are using a pure fat, such as coconut oil or olive oil, you can skip to step 5. Coconut oil yields a soft, quick-lathering soap. Olive oil and other vegetable cooking oils yield a soft soap that never completely hardens.
Render the tallow by cutting it into chunks, placing it into the large pot, covering it, and heating on medium heat until it is melted. Stir occassionally.
Cool the fat to below the boiling point of water. Add a volume of water equal to that of the fat. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover and remove from heat. Let sit overnight.
Remove the fat from the pot. Discard non-fat gunk (scrape it off of the bottom of the fat) and any liquid.
Measure 2.75 kg rendered fat. Cut the fat into tennis-ball size chunks and place the pieces into a large bowl.
Set up all of your materials. Ventilate the area (or work outside), put on safety gear, and open all containers.
Make soap :-) Pour the water into a large glass or ceramic bowl (not metal). Carefully pour the lye into the bowl and mix the water and lye with the wooden spoon.
The reaction between water and lye gives off heat (is exothermic) and vapors that you should avoid breathing. The spoon will be somewhat degraded by the lye.
Once the lye is dissolved by the water, start adding the chunks of fat, a bit at a time. Keep stirring until the fat is melted. If necessary, add heat (put on a low burner with ventilation).
Stir in the lemon juice and fragrance oil (optional). Once the soap is well-mixed, pour it into molds. If you use glass baking dishes for molds, you can cut the soap into bars after it has become firmer (not hard).
The soap will harden in approximately an hour.
You may wrap the finished soap in clean cotton rags. It can be stored for 3-6 months in a cool, well-ventilated location.
Wear gloves when washing your equipment, as their may be some unreacted lye remaining. Wash in very hot water to help melt away the residue.
Tips:
Adult supervision required! Wear gloves and protective eyewear and cover exposed skin to avoid accidental exposure to the lye. Keep out of reach of children!
If you get lye on your skin, immediately wash it with lots of cold water. Read the cautions on the container before opening the lye.
Don't measure the lye. Instead, adjust the soap recipe to accomodate the container size of the lye.
Cooking oils are sensitive to air and light, and soap made from cooking oils will spoil in a few weeks unless it is refrigerated.
Volatile fragrance oils or even dried herbs or spices may be added to the soap to scent it. Fragrance is optional.
What You Need:
4 kg (9 lb) suet (tallow)
350 g (12 oz) lye
750 ml (3 C) water
500 ml (2 C) lemon juice
7.5 ml (.25 oz) fragrance
gloves
wooden spoon
ventilated work area
molds/glass baking dishes