Somebody's Dinner: Dove Body Wash DIY

I love dove body wash. It's especially nice on my sensitive skin--I have hay fever and so my skin has a few complications. Need a recipe?

And how much better is it to make your own? It only takes 25 minutes or so, and you can save a buck!

Here's what you need

I know what you're thinking. It's the same thing I was thinking when I saw recipes online for body wash--
Ummm, you're making soap out of ... soap? That seems... less impressive.

But when you take into account making soap from scratch means using lye, it makes sense. Lye made into soap is very safe. Lye before it's soap is very caustic and smelly and a bit more than I wanted to tackle, taking all day to cook and what-not.

This week I noticed 2 coupons at Safeway: $5.99 for 6-ct Dove Bar Soap. Also, save $1 on the same.
So, rounded, that's $5 for 6 bars of soap, or $2.50 for 3 bars.
I have been using Walmart's Equate "compare to Dove Body Wash" at $3.44 for 24 oz. This recipe made about 58 oz for $2.50.
Or it would have been if I hadn't got this ad just an hour after returning from Walmart. I paid about $3.24 for my 3 bars.

The only somewhat difficult part of this project was grating the soap. I have actually never grated soap before, despite seeing accounts of others doing it. Just do it. Three bars isn't too bad, especially if you have a big box grater.

Next you add the 3 bars of grated soap to 6 cups of water and cook in a large saucepan on medium heat until dissolved, 10-15 minutes. Mine never came to a boil, and it never needed to. It mostly just needs a little heat and time to dissolve.

Let cool in the pot so you don't melt your plastic containers. The consistency will look thin, but it will thicken over the next 24-36 hours. I mention this because I tried it out just 3 hours after making it and was pretty disappointed. But the next day was better, and here's 2 days later.

I gathered all my empty bottles. I filled up the 3 plain containers completely. This little one I couldn't get the label off of it 2/3 full. This means I'm going to have body wash basically forever. It made about 54 oz.

This is 2 days later, with a thick enough consistency. I do think it's slightly thinner than regular, so if you want to cut the water by 1/2 cup, I won't judge you.

The other brainstorm I had: Dove soap is good for washing your face! This means I can just have 1 bottle for my body and my face. I love simplifying my life!

In another note, I'm sure you can imagine me washing the grater, cutting board, and sauce pan, really well. I really didn't want to eat soap later, even moisturizing soap.

What's your favorite skin product that you wish were cheaper? Tell me about it.

Based on this recipe by Jillee. She actually has another soap recipe there that's even less expensive to make, so head on over there.