Neem oil, if you believe all its fans are saying, will do anything and everything, and has done for millenia. For repelling insects, treating eczema, psoriasis, acne and dry skin, it has a league of admirers. Do a simple search and prepare to be amazed by the breadth of its curative wonders. If it does 1% of what is lauded to do, I’ll be happy.
I made up a recipe which is 8% pure neem oil. I added an insect repellent blend of essential oils and use it as dog shampoo. It would also be good for a hunter/fisherman/general outdoorsy soap. Use your favorites to suit your uses. As a dog shampoo bar, I like that I don’t have to wear gloves to wash my dog and wonder what the flea and tick stuff is doing to Rover and me. It helps, but doesn’t get rid of every sign of fleas. (However, I’ve had similar results with the most “extra-strength” commercial pet flea shampoo).
Neem Soap
60 oz. olive oil
25 oz. coconut oil
8 oz. neem oil
7 oz. castor oil
13.85 oz. lye
30 oz. water
Follow safe soapmaking procedures. I always refer people to Kathy Miller’s site, and there are many good forums and other helpful sites online.
I’ve always shied away from neem oil because of the ‘stink’ factor. It does have a very distinctive smell. Do you notice it in the finished product? Or is it like tea tree oil.. You either love it or hate it?
Diana–Yes, the smell is in the finished soap. It is sort of earthy, but it isn’t overwhelming. It is somewhat masked by the essential oils. I would probably go with more earthy essential oils like the pine, fir, cedar, etc.
How do you get that nice crickled/wavy surface on your soap?
where can i buy lye?
i’ve also wanted to make my own laundry soap, but am not sure where to buy some of the ingredients for that.
Ann–It’s a wavy soap cutter. Most soap suppliers sell them. It’s just a wavy blade with a wooden handle.
april–Lye is available online from soaping suppliers and lye suppliers. Just do a simple search in your favorite search engine and it will turn up several outlets. You will probably have to fill out an online form in addition to your order form, but it’s pretty painless.
Laundry soap ingredients, such as Fels Naptha and washing soda are usually in most large supermarkets in the laundry aisle, along with the more obscure products like Mrs. Smith’s Blueing. It just usually takes some hunting on those high (or low) shelves. Best of luck!
I’ll have to put this on my list of things to eventually get around to. My son has eczema and mosquito bites are my enemy in the summer. Thanks!
Just wanted to add that lye can be purchase at Colonial Hardware if you live in the Memphis area.
Pine tar soap is also recommended for eczema and psoriasis by some doctors. Lots of people swear by it, too. Offhand I can’t remember what neem smells like but these bars sure look pretty.
Carla–I have heard of making pine tar soap but I haven’t tried that one yet.
I would try to describe the smell of neem, but I really can’t think of anything to compare it to. . .
I have to say that you gals REALLY should sell your goodies on ETSY so I can be lazy and buy your wonderful products rather than trying to find extra hours in the day to make them. Love this page !
I have some pine tar bars drying. If you make it, T.L., do it outside if you can. The fragrance is… amazing. I had to open windows. Thankfully, it is already less intense than when first mixed and should morph into a traditional pine tar soap fragrance over its 12-week cure.
Do you mind if I use a variation of your recipe for a dog shampoo for my website?
Diana–Yes, of course, that would be fine. Woof!
I discovered neem oil a few months ago. It absolutely rocks! You will find more and more uses for it as you get into it. It seem to fix just about everything.
Neem plant is widely found in my country Nigeria. however research into its varied use is still at elemental stage. It is mostly used for desertification control as a plant, leaves are employed in traditional cure for malaria, there are ongoing research into its repenlant activities among others. I am really interested in its use for psoriasis, what are the success rate?If combined with coal tar will it be better? please reply.
cheers!
zicoman–The following article cites research studies (see below the article) and explains why it may and may not be effective:
http://www.discoverneem.com/neem-oil-psoriasis.html
It does not claim to be a cure, but rather a useful treatment without the side effects of some other treatments, including those of coal tar.
I discovered neem oil a few months ago. It absolutely rocks! You will find more and more uses for it as you get into it. It seem to fix just about everything.
I stumbled onto your website and I feel like I’ve found my home on the Internet. You guys are awesome.
My husband has psoriasis (mainly it keeps to his head, fortunately), and I had seen a lot of neem oil hype so I made him kind of an oil treatment he could rub in then shampoo out. He was delighted at first – and then lost his enthusiasm. His theory is that maybe rubbing any kind of oil into his scalp (and which doesn’t totally wash out) would soothe the itch but wouldn’t ultimately banish the psoriasis. That link from TL is helpful and kind of tracks.
Oh and the SMELL! It IS hard to describe because it is unique, but it carries and lingers – I always know when he’s been ‘using.’ I guess it’s kind of…garlicky?
I’m going to get over my fear of lye one of these days and try making this soap, on the ‘can’t hurt, might help’ theory.
Tasterspoon–Thank you and a warm welcome!
You’re right. I really can’t describe the odor of neem myself. Go ahead and give soapmaking a go. You’ll find it’s not scary at all. Let us know if you give the neem soap a try.
do you put the neem in with the other oils as part of the saponification process? do you leave any out to use as an extra nutrient at the end?
one more thing: in the saponification process does the neem retain it’s properties?
stephanie–I do. You can superfat with neem for extra oomph if you like. Whether or not the oils retain all of their goodness after saponification has often been the subject of debate. I don’t have a definitive answer for you, unfortunately. I can only say that it is common practice to saponify oils in the hope and expectation that they will provide the benefits of its non-saponified form.
When using lye, treat it with respect. It will burn your skin and it will plop out of the container you are using to make the soap. It really is easy tho. This is a wonderful website. It is going into my favorites.
May I ask what essential oil blend you use for dogs and how much for this recipe??
S Casillas–I used something called “Pet Safe” from Essential Wholesale. For this amount of soap I put in 3-4 oz. essential oils.
Hi, I really liked your post. I recently purchased neem oil because my husband has psoriasis and grandson eczema. I want to use your recpie for neem soap. My Q is, do you think this can be used for HP soap? Look forward to hearing from you soon.
Maria–Yes, it’s fine with HP. Hope it helps!
hello love your site . i live in quebec ,canada and i am trying to create a line of shampoo for dog and was wandering if you know good recipe for dog and where is pet safe essential oil i can buy thank you
julie–I’m glad you’re here! I found some links you might enjoy: http://www.usingeossafely.com/is-it-safe-to-use-essential-oils-with-dogs/ http://www.vetstreet.com/our-pet-experts/do-essential-oils-pose-a-risk-to-pets http://dogsaholic.com/care/homemade-dog-shampoo.html
Pet safe essential oils can also be added to homemade shampoo bars. We have several simple soap recipes on our site. Just search “soap recipes” in our search bar. Good luck!