Breast milk has so many incredible healing properties. For years moms have talked about putting it on skin to relieve rashes and eczema, or even dropping it around baby’s eye to clear up eye goop and even treat pink eye.
(In fact, many moms recommend freezing breast milk in these tiny syringes so that you don’t have to thaw out an entire bag when you just need a tiny bit. Genius.)
But I recently came across another application that makes it easier to use breast milk on skin — turn it into soap!
So naturally, I decided to give it a try. There are tons of recipes out there, but as a working mom with her hands full, I opted for the simplest recipe I could find, and one without Lye since that’s a “caustic chemical” and I don’t even know what that means…
First, gather your supplies. You’ll want a melt and pour soap base, breast milk (~ 1 cup per batch), soap molds, and scented essential oil (optional).
I opted for:
– Our Earth’s Secrets Organic Clear Glycerine
– Lavender Essential Oil (This is the same stuff I used for the DIY padsicles)
– I ordered two types of molds: a four pack of small animals, and one larger mold. I decided to experiment with the smaller one first, since the second set was way bigger than I was expecting and I didn’t have much extra milk to work with.
A note on breast milk for soap: I am an adamant believer of never wasting milk. I was always a “barely enougher” so I never had freezer shelves stacked with bags to fall back on, meaning there’s no way I’m ever going to waste that liquid gold. When it comes to alcohol, I don’t drink too much in general so I typically have no cause for concern, but if I am feeling worried about how much alcohol I have had before pumping, I simply mark the bags and use them for topical purposes, such as this! And Voila, no milk wasted!
Step 1:
Melt 1/2 lb of your soap base in the microwave. It helps to melt in 15-second intervals to reduce the chances of overheating the base, which can create bubbles that won’t go away once you pour them into the mold. No effect on quality, but certainly not the sweet soap mold look you’re going for.
Step 2:
Once melted, stir one cup of room temperature breast milk into the soap. Stir until well mixed.
Step 3 (Optional):
Add up to 10 drops of lavender essential oils. You can also add up to 10 drops of vitamin E oil (I didn’t have any and forgot to order, so I skipped this step).
Step 4:
Pour into your soap molds.
A tip: the molds I got are super flexible and I spilled soap evvvvverywhere when trying to pick them up to put in the fridge. So, before pouring the soap in, I’d recommend setting your molds on a small cutting board or tray that will make transporting them before they’ve hardened, much easier.
Step 5:
Refrigerate for a couple of hours, until hardened. I refrigerated over night and then popped them out in the morning and stored them in a tupperware in my fridge/freezer, grabbing one for bath time whenever baby has a rash coming on or skin is looking a little chapped. I find that one of the tiny soaps lasts a couple baths for a baby, but for toddler bath time when he’s playing with the soap, it’s a one and done situation. It goes quickly–another reason I like the tiny molds over the big ones. I do recommend rinsing after use as the glycerine can be dehydrating if left on the skin.
One of our Work & Mother members tried a similar, oatmeal honey recipe:
Honey is another ingredient that can enhance your homemade soap by making it more moisturizing. Our Earth’s Secrets have some base with honey already in it.
For honey oatmeal soap:
1/2 lb organic soap base
1 cup room temp breast milk
10 drops vitamin E oil
2 tbs raw organic honey*
1/3 cup rolled oats
Another simple and effective way to use your breastmilk can be to use straight breast milk on the wash cloth when giving baby a bath. It is easy, no prep work involved. Just a little breast milk and water to rinse!
Breastmilk Soap Storage: You can store as you would any soap—similar to a goat milk soap; however, I chose to store mine in the refrigerator until I needed one, and then once I used it I kept that one on the edge of the tub (this is also why I liked the mini soap molds, so you only had a small amount out at a time). We recommend refrigeration just out of an abundance of caution; however, the soap base hardens and encapsulates the milk so it should preserve it and not need to be refrigerated in between uses after it has hardened. If you detect any foul smell or color change in your soap, do not use and discard it.
Have you tried it? Send us your pics!
*The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that you do not give honey to a baby younger than 12 months. Honey is safe for children 1 year and older. Consult your pediatrician if you have concerns about honey consumption.
*This post makes no medical claims or recommendations. For any questions or concerns related to your situation, please contact your pediatrician and/or IBCLC.