Milk Soaps

Faiola, Anne-Marie. Milk Soaps: 35 Skin-Nourishing Recipes for Making Milk-Enriched Soaps, from Goat to Almond. North Adams, Massachusetts: Storey Publishing, 2019.

If you are interested in making soaps, look no further than this guide by Anne-Marie Faiola. She gives step-by-step instructions, each of which is accompanied by a photographic illustration. The soaps range in creation difficulty from fairly simple to very complex. She explains differences in ingredients and explains chemical reactions and textures that might be achieved. She even includes a section at the end which anticipates questions users might have, such as the need for distilled water versus tap water. The milks used in recipes include mammals, such as cows and goats, nuts, and grains. She explains the process of creating milk from the last two sources. She discusses molds, from simple disposable ones to more elaborate ones. She provides lists of "kitchen tools" soapmakers need. The soaps are lovely and would make wonderful gifts. It's a fascinating book, but I'm a bit intimidated by it, probably because of the complexity of some of the more advanced recipes. Workman Publishing sent me an email offering me an egalley of the book which was offered through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.