Yes, you read that right — soap, not soup. And you can cook one right in your own home (again, you read that right). Soap box prince Dr. Alvin M. Matulac of A.R.M. Skin Essentials shows how in this crash course on Soap Making 101, as demonstrated on Page H-5:
Basic supplies:
Clear glycerine soap
Food colorant
Essential oil
Sharp smooth knife
Stirring rod
Molds (plastic soap, candy or plaster molds all work; so do small bread pans, cookie cutters, gelatin molds and PVC pipes)
Plastic wrap
Note: They’re mostly available at crafts stores and supermarkets.
Instructions:
• Use a sharp, smooth knife to cut the soap into 1/2" pieces for easy melting.
• Heat the soap in a microwave (40 sec. on high, then at 10 sec. intervals until melted) or on a stove using a double boiler. Stir slowly to encourage melting.
• Add colorant (any food colorant will do) Stir slowly to prevent bubbles and make the color even.
• Add fragrance a few drops at a time until the desired level of scent is reached. (If the soap starts to solidify, gently reheat it.)
Choose from the following essential oils:
Peppermint oil — mood uplifting
Lavender oil — relaxing
Ylang-ylang oil, rose oil — sensuous, stimulating
Lemon oil, eucalyptus oil, lime oil — refreshing
Tea tree oil — anti-bacterial
• Pour into the mold and let cool for 20-40 mins. before turning out.
• Use your thumbs to apply gentle, constant pressure to release the soap from the mold. If soap is difficult to remove, it can be placed in the refrigerator or freezer for 10 mins. To prevent the soaps from sticking, lightly coat the mold with cooking oil.
• Polish — wipe the soap with dry cloth before wrapping it in wax paper or plastic wrap to keep the soap from glistening while it comes to room temperature.
Alternatives:
You can put your favorite toys inside the soap. Or you can put oatmeal in the soap for extra scrub, and honey to increase its moisturizing effect.
Fact is, this young doctor entrepreneur with a big heart and his company have given jobs to scores of marginalized housewives. They’ve provided not just livelihood but also a new lease on life for some battered women in Kamias, Quezon City. No more sad stories for these women — just happy sud tales, according to Dr. Alvin Matulac. "There are labanderas who come to us, looking for something to augment their meager family income," he says with a big smile. "Now, they’re all doing well, and most of these housewives are able to help their husbands provide for the needs of the family, and much more."
They buy a papaya soap, for instance, for only P20 at Skin Essentials and then sell it for P40. "You can buy glycerine for only P120 per kilo at any crafts store, and with this you can make as many as 10 bars of soap," says Alvin.
Even the soap shavings can be sold by putting them nicely in a soap bag made of cheesecloth. "This is what the battered women of Kamias do for us," Alvin tells us.
Clearly, it’s a clean way to make money.
Glycerine soap, which is valued for its moisturizing properties, sells for only P35 at Skin Essentials. Elsewhere, it easily costs P70 up. "Our pumice stone made of terra cotta, which costs only P35, is sold at thrice the price at branded stores," Alvin points out.
A few years after he donned his medical garb, Alvin buried his nose in studies and decided to put up a business that would take care not only of the body but also of the mind, and the sole as well as the soul. He only had P5,000 in his pocket, but he sure was armed with pocketfuls of bright, bubbly ideas. The first million he earned he put back into the business. "I just kept rolling it over," says this wise young man.
Now in its fifth year, Skin Essentials carries 88 different kinds of soap (yes, you read that right). Here, choose your scent or flavor:
• Avocado soap — contains avocado extract and vitamin E for stressed and irritated skin. Has moisturizing and soothing properties, and best for dry and wrinkled skin.
• Black pearl soap — an all-natural bleaching soap, it helps maintain clearer and fairer skin, and prevents skin pigmentation.
• Calamansi soap — contains Philippine lemon extract with a high amount of alpha hydroxy acid that acts as an astringent, skin lightener and deodorant as it gets rid of skin pigmentation, especially in the underarms and inner thighs.
• Carrot soap — its carotene derivative acts as free radical scavenger and antioxidant. Recommended for the natural control of wrinkles.
• Collagen soap — contains collagen to help prevent moisture loss and increase skin elasticity to fight off signs of early aging.
• Cucumber soap — contains natural extract of Philippine cucumber for stressed, damaged and irritated skin.
• Feminine hygiene soap — a glycerine-based feminine wash, it contains tea tree and lactic acid to gently cleanse delicate areas without drying.
• Glycolic soap — contains AHA derived from sugar cane and multi-fruit acids to exfoliate dead skin cells, dry pimples, and remove skin blemishes.
• Mushroom soap — a natural beauty aid for whitening skin.
• Papaya soap with vitamin E — contains papaya enzyme and extract, which is known for its powerful lightening effect on blemished skin.
• Tea tree soap — combined with tea tree oil and tea tree leaves, it’s got antiseptic properties and excellent for acne.
• 4-1 soap — a multi-action soap, it contains four different extracts (papaya, avocado, carrot and tawas).
• Caffe soap — a rich coffee bar that gets rid of unwanted odors.
• Olive oil Castille soap — a traditional recipe from Castile, Spain that’s formulated to regenerate the skin.
• Banana soap — good for dry, irritated skin or acne-prone skin
• Ginger soap — with natural extracts of ginger to smooth over rough areas of the skin.
• Mango soap — its fruity, delicious mango scent refreshes.
• Rice bran soap — increases levels of moisturization and improves skin elasticity.
• Chocolate mint soap — a sweet chocolate bar with a twist of mint for a delicious smell all over.
• Tomato and milk soap — a rich, moisturizing soap, it’s made of goat’s milk to soften and nourish skin, while the naturally occurring AHA in tomato aids in skin rejuvenation.
• Green tea soap — rich in antioxidants and vitamin E to keep skin looking young and smooth.
• Sulfur soap with salicylic acid — a medicated soap that’s best for oily and acne-prone skin.
• Vitamin E bar — an anti-wrinkle soap with vitamin E and plant extracts.
• Vanilla and cinnamon bar — for that luxurious hot bath with the rich aroma of vanilla and cinnamon.
• Oatmeal soap with honey — a good cleansing soap with natural oatmeal kernels that serve as body scrub, and honey that acts as skin moisturizer.
• Almond milk soap — a rich, moisturizing soap made of almond milk with ground almonds.
"We make use of herbal ingredients; our products are biodegradable," asserts Alvin. "While all our products are manufactured locally, we use only quality materials sourced from Europe, particularly France."
Today, Skin Essentials’ multitude of product lines fall under these categories: Hair care (shampoo, conditioner, hair gel, hair spray, hot oil, hair creme, hair shine, scalp cleanser), facial care (facial cream, toner, astringent, facial mist, mud pack, eye gel, lip balm, facial serum), body care (hand and body lotion, hand and body gels, body wash, body oil mist, massage oils, milk bath, bubble bath, fizz bath, bath tea, body scrub, shower cream, hand and nail cream, deodorants, colognes, perfumes, sunscreen), spa products (Dead Sea bath salts, foot soak, foot scrub, foot spray, foot lotion, foot gel, salt scrub, salt glow), accessories (aromatherapy oils, aromatherapy candles, massagers, pumice, loofa, soap dish, scrubs, bottles), and raw materials (glycerine for melt and pour soaps, vegetable bars, essential oils, fragrance oils, carrier oils, herbs and extracts, colorants, lotion base). It’s got a factory in Bulacan that churns out these products by the tons, under the strict supervision of Skin Essentials’ team of pharmacists and chemists. If you don’t find anything you want from the one thousand and one products in the store, you can always have one custom-made just for you. We found a very handy hand gel made for TV personality Ces Drilon. TV couple Tintin Bersola and Julius Babao as well as Noli de Castro have had some products personalized for them by Skin Essentials.
These products have also found their way into spas all over the metro. "We supply 40 spas in Quezon City alone," says Alvin. "With the proliferation of spas today, our massage oils, foot spa sets, bath salts, among others, are doing very well. Incidentally, these bath salts come from the Dead Sea and are used on shell-shocked soldiers to calm their nerves."
Adds Alvin, "You can call us a direct-selling company engaged in toll manufacturing. I constantly update myself on market trends through traveling and participating in expositions abroad. In fact, tomorrow, I’m leaving for Korea to exhibit our products there. My last trip was to Singapore to train with the aestheticians there. It’s got great products but nothing beats Bangkok, which produces a lot of these body care products. I think the leading markets for this kind of products are Bangkok and Hong Kong."
Chocolate soap, anyone?