CaliChan
Well-Known Member
o.o I saw a BUNCH of loofahs at the health foods store, I dont think I could be more in love with that place. I dont know why my mom didnt shop there more often. So much neat stuff!! and so many goodies for my soaps 
loofa... in soap?
- Thread starter CaliChan
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I whole heartily agree with Paillo. Loofah are so easy and fun to grow.
I live in Zone 7 and really don't think you can kill them. They thrive on neglect!
If you have a fence or any type of trellis, they'll do great.
It's so fun to harvest them. I let the grand kids bang them into the next week (a southern term)
to remove the seeds. Once that is done, I soak them in a little clorox and water, and remove the outer skin. Dry them, and they are ready to go. If you're using them in soap, you can skip the clorox.
I live in Zone 7 and really don't think you can kill them. They thrive on neglect!
If you have a fence or any type of trellis, they'll do great.
It's so fun to harvest them. I let the grand kids bang them into the next week (a southern term)
to remove the seeds. Once that is done, I soak them in a little clorox and water, and remove the outer skin. Dry them, and they are ready to go. If you're using them in soap, you can skip the clorox.
I have some seeds to plant this spring. I hope they grow. I am ordering from BB there 12 flat round indivual mold just to do loofah.
I am in zone 6 and planted these last year. I put in 6 seeds. These things grow like pumpkins!! Make sure you have a super tall trellis! Mine was only about 5 feet. They were up, over, then out! :roll: Fun to add to CP in PVC molds, great for scrubbing those little feet and dirty hands. Just made some CP from our very own grown loofa last week. I use an electric knife to cut it! Doesn't look too neat but gets the job done.:grin:
glassfishy
Member
Hey Everyone...
I've been making Loofah soap for about 2 years now. I am now starting to have issues. Here is what I have always done.
I have (2) approximately 12-16" piece of PVC Pipe (not sure of diameter. I'm thinking it's 2". I do Cold Process so it makes it a bit tougher.
Anyway I have always bought my Loofahs from:
https://www.naturalbathbody.com/loofah-in-the-raw.html#product-details-tab-description
(no affiliation, but they have great loofahs and you can buy them sliced already. Plus they have all the different types of Loofahs.)
I use the hard loofahs because I like how exfoliating they are in the shower.
So this last batch I bought them they had a larger diameter. I am completely unable to get them in my PVC pipe. And if I force them I'll never get them out of the pipe. So my last batch I experimented with putting them in my loaf molds with a bit of the loofah sticking out. One batch was too thick of a trace and did not permeate the loofah. The other had so much soda ash and was brittle when I cut them.
I also tried putting pre-sliced loofahs into a silicone mold and they also were rittled with soda ash.
Does anyone have a better method?
I like the thought of using my loaf mold so they are easier to get out of mold and slice. I've seen a couple of videos where people did CP in silicone molds and they turned out nice. Just didn't know if the trick was a super light trace. Or if maybe pre-soaking them would work better.
I've been making Loofah soap for about 2 years now. I am now starting to have issues. Here is what I have always done.
I have (2) approximately 12-16" piece of PVC Pipe (not sure of diameter. I'm thinking it's 2". I do Cold Process so it makes it a bit tougher.
Anyway I have always bought my Loofahs from:
https://www.naturalbathbody.com/loofah-in-the-raw.html#product-details-tab-description
(no affiliation, but they have great loofahs and you can buy them sliced already. Plus they have all the different types of Loofahs.)
I use the hard loofahs because I like how exfoliating they are in the shower.
So this last batch I bought them they had a larger diameter. I am completely unable to get them in my PVC pipe. And if I force them I'll never get them out of the pipe. So my last batch I experimented with putting them in my loaf molds with a bit of the loofah sticking out. One batch was too thick of a trace and did not permeate the loofah. The other had so much soda ash and was brittle when I cut them.
I also tried putting pre-sliced loofahs into a silicone mold and they also were rittled with soda ash.
Does anyone have a better method?
I like the thought of using my loaf mold so they are easier to get out of mold and slice. I've seen a couple of videos where people did CP in silicone molds and they turned out nice. Just didn't know if the trick was a super light trace. Or if maybe pre-soaking them would work better.
This post is 4 years old. The OP and many others have not been here in a long time. You would do much better at getting a response by starting a new thread.
glassfishy
Member
Thanks. I was hoping to just hop onto an old threat and not start another. Will do. Thanks!!!!
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