How to Make an Exfoliating Lavender Cleansing Bar

There seems to be no end to this cleansing-bar-creating passion of mine. My (normal-to-dry, mature) skin absolutely loves these bars for a morning cleanse, and the lavender-fresh scent is a lovely way to greet the day. The blue swirly pattern on the top is due to the addition of (optional) jojoba exfoliating beads. If you don't want to add the beads, you'll still get a gentle exfoliating effect from the lavender.

For 2 Bars (plus a bit extra) You'll Need The Following

44 gr (1,6 oz) cocoa butter
40 gr (1,4 oz) shea butter
55 ml (1,8 fluid oz) almond oil
25 ml (0,8 fluid oz) castor oil
65 gr (2,1 oz) white clay
4,5 gr (0,15 oz) dried lavender
4 gr  (0,14 oz) jojoba beads (optional)
lavender essential oil (optional)

Measure out the lavender and crush it lightly by running a rolling pin over the bag a few times.

Melt cocoa butter slowly over low heat, then add oils. Stir the mixture until everything is melted. The trick is to keep the temperature just high enough to melt the butter – and no more. Cocoa butter has the highest melting point, so it is the starting point. Remove from heat shortly before the butter is completely melted.

Add lavender immediately and stir until the butter is completely melted. This will infuse the oil and soften the dried buds (prepare for a gorgeous scent).

Add shea and stir until melted. (note this beaker is not on a heat source - it's just standing on a wooden board). If the shea won't quite melt, reheat the mixture but be VERY careful and go slow or the shea risks going 'grainy'.

When the shea is almost melted, add clay, essential oil and stir thoroughly until the mixture is even and starts to cool.

Pour into mold and 'decorate' with a swirl of exfoliating jojoba beads. Refrigerate until the bars have set (a few hours).

I used a mix of white and blue beads to create a swirly pattern on the top of the bars. These are added last minute (when the mixture is at its coolest) because they have a very low melting point.

When the bars have set, unmold and store in an air-tight bag in the fridge. This portion turned out a bit bigger than usual because the lavender swelled up a bit more than expected.

To use the bars, please visit this post.

Visit the Cleansing Bar FAQ and Tutorial Page