1960 workbasket: make your own laundry soap

How To Make 1960 workbasket: make your own laundry soap

• Step 1
  Melt the fat in a large iron or enamel pan (do not use aluminum). When it is melted there should be 6 3/4 pints. Set it aside to cool at 80 degrees F. Combine one (13 ounce) can of lye with 5 cups of water in an enamel pan and stir slowly with a long, wooden paddle until the lye is dissolved. Along paddle is necessary to keep the splashes from burning the hands. Cool to 70 degrees F. Add the lye water gradually to the fat, stirring slowly with the paddle for at least 10 minutes. Continue stirring until mixture is creamy, then add the borax, sugar and ammonia. Mix well and pour into shallow pans or molds.
• Step 2
  Good molds are hard to find. As a substitute, use heavy cardboard boxes. Cool the mixture slowly (without moving the mold) for 24 hours. When the soap is firm, remove from the molds and cut into bars with a string. Stack the bars in rows and allow plenty of space between the cakes for air to circulate. The soap should be dried at least two weeks befoe using. It will harden and dry out. If properly made and dried, the soap will be white and will float.
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