Coffee Soap and Coffee Scrub DIY

If you have been following this blog, you already know how much I love coffee. Not only to drink the wonderful elixir, but also for coffee skin care products. I recently purchased a few coffee and coffee-related fragrance oils and the most wonderful coffee oil. In this article, I share how I used these products in a cold process soap and in a melt and pour soap.

In this article, I share two DIYs. First, how to make cold process coffee soap, and then how to make melt and pour coffee soap scrub. The recipe that I used for this cold process coffee soap is the same recipe I used in my Kiss Pour Technique cold process soap article. It’s a wonderful cold process soap recipe and perfect for this wonderful coffee soap. The fragrance that I decided to use states that it discolors to a brown. I decided to use activated charcoal to turn about a third of the soap black and let the rest of the soap turn brown from fragrance discoloration. For the melt and pour soap, I decided to add some coffee grounds to make a coffee soap scrub.

I’ve made other coffee skin care DIYs, such as coffee butters and coffee sugar scrub soap.

DIY Coffee Body Butters and Sugar Scrub

How to make whipped coffee body butter

Turkish Mocha – triple butter body butter

Coffee and sugar scrub whipped soap

These soaps are a great ideas to pamper yourself or to make as a gift for friends and family. For more gift ideas for the coffee lover in the family head over to my Top 10 Gift Ideas for the coffee lover article.

Benefits of coffee in soap

Some research suggest that due to the caffeine in coffee and the coffee oil it can help reduce the appearance of cellulite. It may also help refresh your skin after a long day of sun exposure. It is also a way to naturally nourish your skin since the coffee oil is full of vitamins and antioxidants. For me, the lovely aroma is just enough to convince me to use all coffee skin care products.

How to make cold process coffee soap

Cold process coffee soap recipe ingredients

• 2.1 ounces Avocado Oil (10%)
• 2.1 ounces Shea Butter (10%)
• 9.45 ounces Olive Oil (45%)
• 6.3 ounces Coconut Oil (30%)
• 1.05 ounces Castor Oil (5%)
• 2.93 ounces of Sodium Hydroxide (lye)
• 6 ounces Distilled Water – or 6 ounces of strong brewed coffee

Additives

• Kaolin clay
• Colloidal oatmeal
• Coffee bean oil
• Activated charcoal (as colorant)

This recipe has a 6% superfat, and the water to lye ratio is approximately 2:1. My favorite lye calculator is soapcalc.net. Below is a snapshot of the recipe in SoapCalc.

If you have never made soap before, be aware that handcrafted soap uses lye. Lye is caustic and can burn your skin in contact. Before you try to make soap, make sure to use the proper safety equipment. Use gloves, safety glasses, long sleeves, long pants, and closed-toe shoes.

Now on to the coffee soap making process

1. Weigh and melt the oils and butters, and set aside to cool to room temperature. I recommend soaping at room temperature rather than hot. This will give you a bit more time to create swirls. For the experienced soaper, most of us have a specific range that we like to soap at; for me, it is between 80 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Add the kaolin clay and colloidal oatmeal and mix well.
3. Weigh out the water and NaOH (lye) in separate containers. Then add the lye to the water (never the other way around) and mix well until the lye is fully dissolved. Set aside until it cools down to room temperature.
4. Once the lye water solution and the oils have reached the soaping temperature, add the lye solution to the oils.
5. Mix well with a whisk for several minutes or an immersion blender for a few minutes to achieve a thin trace.
6. Add the fragrance oil and the coffee oil and mix well.
7. Split the batter and add the activated charcoal, and mix well to incorporate.
8. Pour the soap batter into the mold using the in the pot swirl or your favorite swirl and allow the saponification process to take place.

This recipe can be unmolded and cut after 24 hours. Allow the soap to cure for six to eight weeks and enjoy!

There is something so luxurious and refreshing about a Coffee soap bar….

Cold process coffee soap additives

My two favorite additives for cold process soap are kaolin clay and colloidal oatmeal. I add both to all of my soap. In this recipe, the additional additive is the super luxurious coffee seed oil. This oil has wonderful antioxidant properties and a lovely coffee aroma.

How much kaolin clay do I add to cold process soap?

The recommended usage rate for kaolin clay in cold process soap is one teaspoon to one tablespoon per pound of oils in your cold process formulation or soap recipe. I use one tablespoon, and this gives just the perfect feel and slide on the skin.

How much colloidal oatmeal do I add to cold process soap?

Colloidal oatmeal usage rate is one tablespoon per pound of oils. I love this additive in my formulations because oatmeal has so many skin benefits. Colloidal oatmeal also gives a luxurious, silky feel to the soap.

Simple Melt and pour coffee soap

I love making melt and pour soaps because, unlike the cold process soap above, you can use them right away. Melt and pour soaps are very simple to make, and they also allow you to experiment and be creative with the product.

For this melt and pour soap, I am using a sand dollar mold. You can use any mold you have on hand, or even a milk carton box will work.

There are so many wonderful melt and pour bases. I’ve listed some below. For this melt and pour coffee scrub soap, I chose the oatmeal melt and pour base. This base has oatmeal already included in it, which has wonderful skin properties and provides a very mild exfoliation.

Melt and Pour soap bases that are great to work with and perfect for handcrafted soaps

• Oatmeal soap base
• Goats milk soap base
• Shea butter soap base
• Honey soap base
• Aloe vera soap base
• Cocoa butter soap base

Coffee soap scrub ingredients and materials

• 8 oz oatmeal melt and pour soap base
• 2 tsp coffee grounds
• 1 tsp coffee seed oil
• 2 ml coffee fragrance (optional)
• knife
• sand dollar mold (or your favorite soap mold)
• heat safe measuring cup

How to make coffee soap scrub with coffee grounds and coffee seed oil

The steps are very simple. Start by cutting the oatmeal melt and pour soap base into small cubes and melt in the microwave using 30-second intervals.

Once the soap base is melted, add the coffee seed oil, coffee grounds, and the coffee fragrance if using. Mix well for a few minutes.

Once all ingredients are fully incorporated, pour into the soap mold and allow to fully harden.

Remove the soap from the mold and use as needed.

This soap is not only gorgeous but a perfect scrubby soap with the added coffee grounds as a wonderful natural exfoliant.

Melt and pour soaps are just so much fun to make, and this coffee melt and pour soap is just lovely.

Let me know if you make these soaps. I would love to see your pictures.

More Cold Process Soap Making Ideas and Recipes:

Coconut Milk and Water Cold Process Soap