In Spain, all of the Marseille soaps that I have encountered have a unique smell to them and I thought that´s what they´re supposed to smell like. The scent is added to laundry detergents, softeners, dish washing soaps and even shower gels.
So when I got into soaping, I read up on the coveted Marseille soap. It turns out, the true Marseille soap is unscented. There are a couple of requirements though. The oils used need to be only vegetable based and at least 72% of it needs to be olive oil. I have also read that Mediterranean sea water was sometimes used and some artisans would add essential oils from local flowers and leaves found in the Southern region of France like lavender and azhar. I´m convinced that´s how the characteristic aroma came to be in Spain. When the Marseille soap was introduced into the Spanish market (I couldn´t find a more accurate time frame, but I am estimating it to be after WWII), it was already perfumed. The soap industry continued to produce soaps with this perfume and slowly the aroma became ingrained into the population´s recognition for the Marseille soap.
Here I am, with some knowledge of soaping and some on the history of this soap, working out a recipe that could replicate the "Savon de Marseille" right here in the Canary Islands, Spain.
72% olive oil, infused with orange and lemon zests
10% coconut oil
13% palm oil
5% sweet almond oil
NaOH
distilled water and sea salt (to imitate mild sea water)
rose essential oil
lavender essential oil
lime essential oil (to further accentuate the citrus zest)
pine essential oil (I figured there must be some pine in Southern France also; I used equal parts for each essential oil, fearing too much pine will make it smell like floor cleaners.)
olive leaf powder (to help it attain the green color I´ve seen in photos of this soap)
It started out greener but turned slightly light brown as it cured. I am guessing the orange specks are from the zests not completely ground with the stick blender; I didn´t remove the zests from the olive oil. The top photo was taken with sunlight and the bottom photo was taken in the kitchen with fluorescent lighting.
It has a wonderful citrus floral aroma and I am very happy to how close I got to the target scent. It is a firm hard bar with creamy lather and the pH tested to be about 8.5
The olive leaves were ground superfine using an electric coffee grinder so it is not scratchy at all. As a side note, the olive leaves are blessed and were used in Easter mass 2013 in Jaen, the capital city of Andalucia Province, the largest olive oil producing region in the world. No kidding. It´s really incredible to stand there and turn 360º to only see olive trees or their specks in the distance.
Here I am, with some knowledge of soaping and some on the history of this soap, working out a recipe that could replicate the "Savon de Marseille" right here in the Canary Islands, Spain.
72% olive oil, infused with orange and lemon zests
10% coconut oil
13% palm oil
5% sweet almond oil
NaOH
distilled water and sea salt (to imitate mild sea water)
rose essential oil
lavender essential oil
lime essential oil (to further accentuate the citrus zest)
pine essential oil (I figured there must be some pine in Southern France also; I used equal parts for each essential oil, fearing too much pine will make it smell like floor cleaners.)
olive leaf powder (to help it attain the green color I´ve seen in photos of this soap)
It started out greener but turned slightly light brown as it cured. I am guessing the orange specks are from the zests not completely ground with the stick blender; I didn´t remove the zests from the olive oil. The top photo was taken with sunlight and the bottom photo was taken in the kitchen with fluorescent lighting.
It has a wonderful citrus floral aroma and I am very happy to how close I got to the target scent. It is a firm hard bar with creamy lather and the pH tested to be about 8.5
The olive leaves were ground superfine using an electric coffee grinder so it is not scratchy at all. As a side note, the olive leaves are blessed and were used in Easter mass 2013 in Jaen, the capital city of Andalucia Province, the largest olive oil producing region in the world. No kidding. It´s really incredible to stand there and turn 360º to only see olive trees or their specks in the distance.
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