I had been wanting to make soap out of Guinness for a while. I had done some research on beer soap and wanted to try it out not only to expand the inventory, but because of the benefits of using beer versus water. Beer is made from hops, hops is good for the skin, the beer actually helps to create a fluffier(yes, that term is scientific), more stable lather (or so I had read), and again who doesn't love to rub good ingredients all over their body!?
For any normal person, this process would prove to be no hurdle, but, not for me.
I haven't had a drink since March 23, 2010, and I quit taking pills that didn't belong to me shortly after that. This means I have not purchased any alcohol for myself in over 3 years. Aside from the one time I can remember that I purchased an alcoholic beverage for a friend's birthday I haven't even brought wine over for holidays or special occasions. That being said, I still work as a bartender, and, alcohol and it's consumption (outside of me) is a part of my almost every day life. I can swiftly make drinks and pour beers, that are not for me, with no emotion attached to the movement at all. I am also a grown ass woman, but I still got a bit nervous when asking my wonderful boyfriend to buy beer for me. I felt like I was 16 again, asking my older friends to buy me a bottle of Boone's Farm. "What kind?"-Them. "I dunno... peach?"-Me (with a shrug and quizzical look that meant, I have no idea... which ever one will get me fucked up the fastest). Matt also gave me a confused look when I asked him to buy me beer (sprinkled with the loving anger that said "If you drink again I will sick all of your girlfriends on you").
Fast forward to our grocery shopping trip and I saw him pick up the Guinness and put it in the cart, "You also wanted some apple cider right? Amber or Hard Crisp?"-Matt. Now, this is the part where my arms are crossed, my eyes are darting around the liquor aisle looking for the escape route, and my feet are shuffling with the anxiety of the aforementioned 16 year old girl. I reply with something that must have sounded like a high pitch squeal "Uuuummmm..... I .... Uuuugghhh". We go to check out and I make Matt handle the exchange of cash so I can still claim I have yet to purchase alcohol for myself. Throw all the beer in the trunk and in my head we are speeding off with the intensity of a beer run, euphoric recall is a bitch.
Matt opens all of the beers to let them flatten out so I can use them in the soap. I pour a Guinness into a cup to let it flatten out faster so I can use it in my next batch, then start the process of making the Guinness Shavin' Soap batch. After making the batch all of my flights of fancy about what other people would think about me making beer soap, if other people might wonder what I was doing with the leftover 6 pack, and any self doubt in my abilities to be able to put the bottle down and not touch the other 5 had diminished and I got back to doing what I love, which is creating something that feels and smells good. I am so blessed to have a hobby that I love doing, that helps me help other people, and continues to push my personal boundaries and creativity on a daily basis. I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed the entire process that went along with making it!
