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Coffee Soap Recipe

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This soap recipe adds coffee ground for exfoliation and brewed coffee for color to well-balanced, moisturizing bar soap. Easy to make and beautiful.

stack of bars of soap

❤️ Why you’ll love this recipe

  • The coffee grounds provide exfoliation, while the brewed coffee gives the soap a beautiful brown color.
  • It’s super moisturizing. The coconut oil and shea butter make it rich and creamy, while the olive oil and palm oil ensure that your skin stays soft and smooth.
  • It’s easy to make! The brewed coffee will behave just like water.

This is an overview of the ingredients. You’ll find the full measurements and instructions in the printable recipe at the bottom of the page.

You’ll need the following for this exfoliating cold process soap:

  • cooled brewed coffee
  • lye
  • coconut oil
  • olive oil
  • castor oil
  • palm oil
  • shea butter
  • ground coffee
  • fragrance and color (optional, but espresso, vanilla, or mint would work well)

I recommend Nurture Soap for the best selection of colorants and fragrances.

  • stick blender
  • digital scale
  • goggles and gloves
  • pyrex measuring cup
  • old pot or saucepan
  • soap mold

🍴Instructions

Step One: prepare lye

lye and coffee on counter.

Using a digital scale, measure out the lye and coffee in separate containers. The coffee must be cooled to room temperature before adding the lye. Stir carefully until the lye is completely dissolved into the coffee. The liquid will shoot up in temperature and emit a burned-coffee scent. Place it aside to cool in a secure location out of the reach of kids or pets.

Step Two: Melt oils

pot of oils.

Measure the oils individually, then mix them together in a large pot. Melt them over medium-low heat until fully melted. Set aside to cool.

Step three: Blend and pour

pot of soap batter ready to pour

 Once the coffee solution and oils have both cooled to about 100-115 degrees, it’s time to blend. Get out your coffee grounds, soap molds, and any fragrance or color you’ll be adding. Pour the lye water into the pot with the oils and blend with your stick blender until you reach trace. Stir in coffee grounds once you’ve reached trace. If you’re using fragrance or color, mix them in by hand. Working quickly, pour into the soap mold.

Step FouR: Cure and cut

soap mold filled with soap

Allow the soap to cure in the mold for 24-48 hours before removing it. Cut into bars after slicing. Before using, let it sit for at least 3 weeks and store it in a well-ventilated area.

Storage instructions

Homemade soap is happiest in a cool, dark place with plenty of air circulation. I like to put it in a cardboard box with newspaper and tuck it on a closet shelf.

It will last basically forever if stored well.

🔍 FAQs

What are the best coffee beans to use for soap?

It doesn’t matter. Just use what you have on hand. If you have a type of coffee you don’t like anymore, use that!

Can I use instant coffee in this recipe?

Yes, you can!

Will the soap have a coffee smell?

Nope. The finished bar has no fragrance.

Will the coffee make the soap behave badly?

No, since there is sugar in the coffee it will behave just like water when you add the lye. You’ll notice the scorched smell and (obviously) the color, but that’s it.

👩🏻‍🍳 Expert tips

  • Make sure the coffee is cooled to room temperature before adding the lye
  • If you want a coffee fragrance, be. sure to add a fragrance oil at trace
  • The soap will be brown no matter what you do, but you can add a little titanium dioxide or black pigment to get darker or lighter swirls.

📘 Related Recipes

3 bars of soap on white cloth.

📖 Here’s the recipe

3 bars of brown soap.

Coffee Ground Soap

4.86 from 7 votes
A balanced cold process soap recipe with brewed coffee and coffee grounds for added exfoliation.
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Author: Katie Shaw
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Ingredients

  • 10 ounces cooled brewed coffee
  • 4.3 ounces lye
  • 9 ounces coconut oil
  • 9 ounces olive oil
  • 2 ounces castor oi
  • 8 ounces palm oil
  • 2 ounces shea butter
  • 2 tablespoons ground coffee

Instructions

  • Make the lye and coffee solution. Measure out the lye and coffee in separate containers using a digital scale. The coffee must be cooled to room temperatue. Carefully add the lye to the coffee and stir until it is fully dissolved. The liqiud will shoot up in temperature and give off a burned coffee smell. Set aside to cool in a safe place.
  • Melt the oil and butters. Measure the oils separately, then combine them in a large pot. Melt the over medium-low heat until the shea butter is fully melted. Set aside to cool.
  • Stick blend to trace. Once the coffee solution and oils have both cooled to about 100-115 degrees, it's time to blend. Get out your coffee grounds, soap molds and any fragrance or color you'll be adding. Pour the lye water into the pot with the oils and blend with your stick blender until you reach trace. Add fragrance and color if using, and quickly pour into the soap mold.
  • Cure and unmold. Allow the soap to cure in the mold for 24-48 hours, then carefully remove it. Slice into bars. Store in a well-ventilated place and let it cure more for at least 3 weeks before using.

Video

Notes

The burnt coffee smell will not be present in the finished soap.
Try adding an espresso, chocolate, or mint fragrance at trace.
Did you make this?Let me know how it was! Please see below for serving ideas, storage instructions, and substitutions.
Coffee Soap Recipe
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7 thoughts on “Coffee Soap Recipe”

  1. 5 stars
    Hi,

    I tried this recipe today—followed it as exactly as I could—meaning I didn’t sub out anything. However, not 15 minutes after pouring into the mold, it got too hot and cracked along the length in the center. I am sort of new to soap making; I’ve made around a dozen or so batches, and most of the other recipes have advised me to cover/insulate, or even place a heating pad under the mold as it goes through the gel phase. . . I noticed you didn’t give any direction along those lines, so could that be the reason it overheated and cracked?? If you could advise how to avoid that in the future, much appreciated! Crack or no crack—im looking forward to enjoying this soap! Thank you so much!

    Reply
  2. I am new to CP soaping ….. If I don’t have palm oil, do I need to reconfigure in a soap calculator if I wanted to sub it out for an avocado or hemp seed oil – to make sure the lye amt will still saponify correctly?

    Reply
  3. 5 stars
    I made this recipe last night at 8:00 p.m. I unmolded it this morning at 10:00 a.m. and cut it around 11:00 a.m. it is soft but I set it to cure. I grabbed an end slice and took it to the shower with me this morning. Not even 24 hours old yes I know I’m a bad girl. But let me tell you this was the most luxurious beautiful soap ever!

    Reply

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