Hi,
I've just started making soap at home. I have a Lemon Myrtle bush & would love to know how to retain the smell in the soap. I've dried it & ground it & added it to a batch of soap but the smell didn't come through. I also steeped some in oil & added the oil but still no smell. Just wondering if you have any ideas.
Thanks,
Kerryn
ANSWER:
Hi Kerryn. Thanks for your question!
I am not an expert on making essential oils, that would give you the best results. You may find better instructions somewhere on the web, but I have looked into doing a simple EO distillation before and this is what I found:
EO distillation
I don't imagine you will get a lot of essential oil this way (I could be wrong). However, it will be really pure.
The other way I have seen is less like distilling an EO, and more like doing an oil infusion. I think I would try this first:
Using a ratio of 1/4 leaves to 3/4 oil by weight, (use one of the oils you plan to use in your soap...coconut for example), chop and crush the leaves and mix them with the carrier oil in a crock pot set on low overnight.
The next morning you should have a very fragrant oil. You can use the oil with the chopped leaves or strain them out. I believe this will work. Technically it is an infusion, and I have used Monoi de Tahiti oil, (which is also an infusion), in soaps that kept the wonderful infused fragrance just fine.
Let me know how this works out. I love Lemon Myrtle, and the EO is awesomely expensive!
Sydne
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