Soap-making has a rich history and is a blend of art and science. While traditional soap recipes call for ingredients like oils and lye, innovative crafters have been exploring natural and ...

Area park guide Ellen Cox, knowing the many merits of lye soap, will be the first to tell you, "It's one of those old heritage crafts that we want to make sure continues." While it may take some ...

I have been asked if I wish that I had lived in the old days. While I do love collecting some of the things that my ancestors used in the early 1800s, I have no desire to live like they did.

Making soap seems like an arcane, ancient craft that few people know how to do. But the secrets of how to make soap are more within reach than you may think. Many do-it-yourself projects aren’t worth ...

SCOTT -- The first thing one learns when making soap is that there is a lot of stirring involved. And trickling. And waiting. And hoping not to blow anything up. But, boy, does it smell good. An eager ...

Today I put a thin layer of wood ashes over my vegetable garden, trusting that the potash will enrich the soil with the winter rains. Our Arkansas ancestors did the same thing, but generations of ...