Easy to Make Liquid Hand Soap with Only 4 Ingredients

Making your own liquid hand soap is one of the easiest cost-saving projects for the home. With a homemade solution, you can refill your own dispenser in minutes instead of buying plastic bottles over and over. Here's how to make an olive oil and lemon liquid hand soap that's made from four simple ingredients.

Castile soap creates a gentle sudsing action in liquid hand soap while lemon provides natural antiseptic power, cuts grease and gives it a fresh scent. Repeat washing can dry out our hands so a small amount of olive oil will soothe and moisturize.

1. Measure out the water and pour it into the soap dispenser. Equal parts soap and water will give you a good amount of suds while still being gentle on your hands. If you want to dilute the soap more, you can add more water until you find the ratio that works for you.



Tip

If you're using a foaming hand soap dispenser, it's even easier to make. Start by adding the soap first. Pour one to two tablespoons of Castile soap into your dispenser and then fill the rest of the bottle with water.

2. Measure and add the Castile soap to the container. Gently swirl the soap and water to combine the ingredients without activating too many bubbles.



Tip

Every container is different, and it's helpful to know much liquid it will hold before starting out with a soap recipe. To easily find out how much your container holds, fill up your soap container with water and pour that into a measuring cup. Then divide that in half to customize the amount of water and soap you'll need for a full batch of liquid hand soap.

3. Add one tablespoon of olive oil. Adding a small amount of oil helps protect and moisturize your hands. Olive oil is a mild oil that's suitable for all skin types, and it's a common staple in most kitchens. You can substitute another favorite oil like sweet almond, grapeseed or jojoba if you prefer.



4. Add 20 drops of lemon essential oil. Lemon oil is powerfully astringent and antiseptic, and its aroma is uplifting and cleansing.

5. The olive oil also acts as a carrier oil to disperse the lemon essential oil. And ​because oil and water don't mix, you need to swirl the soap to combine the ingredients before each use.​



6. To use, dispense one to two pumps of soap into your hands and lather them up. Rinse thoroughly with water.