When you mix lye with water (as you will be doing during the soap-making process) the mixture becomes very hot and gives off a fume-ridden steam.
Depending on the method you use, you may need mixers, blenders, a microwave, pots and large vats or pots for mixing lye and fat.
Waterglass (if you can't buy this at your local store, you can make it yourself by mixing lye, crushed silica gel beads, and water).
Mix lye solutions only where you have good ventilation.
When you mix lye and water, it's important to use exact measurements.
Blend the lye with the oils.
Use the stick blender to blend the lye with the oils to make sure they get thoroughly combined.
Because soap making requires the combining of fats with lye, Fan realized that the fat in the cottonseed oil that contains the testosterone could be made into soap by simply mixing it with water and lye.
In an article for this magazine on the black hairdressing industry, I wrote about Malcolm's efforts, as a young man, to "dekink" his hair with homemade "congolene": half a can of Red Devil lye mixed with two sliced white potatoes and two well-beaten raw eggs, then worked through the scalp.
Use the meat thermometer to determine when the oils are ready to mix with the lye.
