Five tea infusions to try…
When creating a batch of soap, I love to create a story. By combining beautiful ingredients a feeling can be evoked in the user - perhaps it could be the initial anticipation of the feeling they will get when they take time out to use the soap or it could be the joy and appreciation of the gentle soap qualities when in use.
Tea infusions are an easy way to bring in a botanical element to your soap story. Oils can also be infused with teas, herbs and petals however I will leave that story for another day. Today I want to chat about replacing the water you use to dissolve your sodium hydroxide with a tea infusion. It is as simple as it sounds, start by brewing your tea to the strength you desire. I tend to make mine quite strong, leaving the infusion bag in as the water cools, then removing and squeezing out the excess tea once completely cool.
Once brewed and cooled, I will then use the tea instead of water to dissolve the sodium hydroxide. In other words, weigh out the amount of tea instead of water, then weigh out the sodium hydroxide needed for your recipe and dissolve this into the weighed tea using your normal safe technique. Let cool, and then soap as normal.
You can use any tea or herbal blend for this technique. My favourite five to incorporate into my soap stories are:
Earl Grey tea
Camomile infusion
Rose hip tea
Green tea
Black tea
Things to note:
dissolving the sodium hydroxide into tea will create an unusual smell as the botanical elements in the tea react with the alkalinity and heat. This is normal and will not come through in your final soap. Making sure the tea is nice and cool, perhaps even popping in the fridge beforehand, will help reduce the smell.
the tea can impact the colour of your final soap. For example when using black tea, I find my final soap has a caramel tone. Just something to keep in mind if you are seeking a particular colour for your final soap.
To further grow my soap story, picking a fragrance to complement my tea is a wonderful way to add an extra dimension. Here are some suggested fragrance pairings to get you thinking about the possibilities:
Earl Grey tea - a bergamot essential oil blend
Camomile infusion - unscented is lovely, to support sensitive skin or perhaps a bright note such as Eroma’s Chamomile and Grapefuit
Rose hip tea - a rose geranium essential oil blend
Green tea - a lovely pairing is Eroma’s Green Tea and Lemongrass
Black tea - the elegant Lychee and Black Tea from Eroma is delicate and elegant and works beautifully with a classical black tea infusion.
I would love to hear your thoughts on tea in soap!
Have you used a tea soap before and how did you find it?
Perhaps you have used tea in your soap making, what tea did you choose to use?
Do you have a favourite tea or herbal blend you are drinking right now? What is it called?
References:
https://www.eroma.com.au/
Photo by Alice Pasqual