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Soothing calendula-infused foaming hand soap is made with just a few ingredients and is excellent for dry or sensitive skin. Made with calendula tea and calendula-infused oil, this herbal DIY uses liquid castile soap as the cleanser and is simple to make.
How to Make Foaming Hand Soap
Foaming hand soap is easier to make than you might think. The secret to making foaming hand soap at home is in the dispenser: you must use a liquid soap dispenser with a foaming pump that injects air into the soap as it is pumped from the bottle.

This is key to excellent foaming hand soap. Even if you follow the recipe exactly, you will NOT have soap that foams as it is dispensed without a foaming soap dispenser. I’ve purchased and like this soap dispenser. It works well and looks nice next to a sink; what more could you ask for??
Liquid castile soap is the perfect base for DIY foaming hand soap. It is foamy on its own, and technically you could fill your foaming soap dispenser with pure castile soap and be good to go. However, I find mixing it with a water base (or calendula tea, like this recipe) and a touch of glycerin makes it even foamier, and you get more bang for your buck with the castile soap.
Why Calendula Hand Soap
Calendula is a wonderful herb that I use in lots of homemade DIY recipes for its soothing properties. My family (myself included!) have a variety of skin types and sensitivities. For this reason, I prefer to use ingredients that are safe for everyone, and I use lots of herbs that are appropriate for sensitive skin.

As a new mom, a homemade calendula oil infusion is one of the first herbal concoctions I made many years ago as a new mom. It is soothing and gentle for new baby skin and has very little natural scent. This recipe includes calendula-infused oil, but you may substitute with a plain liquid oil if you prefer.

Calendula is particularly nice as a hand soap because hands can get so dry from constant use and washing. This soothing soap is mild and nourishing for dry, overworked hands. It’s also made with kid-friendly ingredients and is great for sensitive skin (like many products with calendula are!).

More ways to Use Calendula
If you’re new to calendula, it is such an easy herb to work with! Plus, it lends a beautiful golden color to anything you make with it. It is edible (try it in a salad for a beautiful pop of yellow) and can be made into tea for drinking. It has a mild floral taste and is a beautiful evening drink to wind down at the end of the day.
Do yourself a favor and buy more calendula than you need so you can try out a few other calendula recipes:
DIY Calendula and Chamomile Bath Bombs
How to Make Calendula Infused Oil
Calendula Infused Body Butter Sticks
Calendula Fizzy Bath Powder Recipe
How to Make Calendula Foaming Hand Soap
- Brew a strong calendula tea infusion. Use 1/3 cup of dried calendula flowers with 1 cup of hot water. Let sit for at least 10 minutes.

- Strain the flowers out of the tea.

- Pour the calendula tea into your foaming hand soap container

- Add castile soap, calendula-infused oil (or liquid oil of your choice), and glycerin to the soap dispenser

- Put top on your soap container and give it a good shake.

DIY Calendula Foaming Hand Soap Recipe
Soothing DIY calendula-infused foaming hand soap is made with just a few ingredients and is excellent for dry or sensitive skin.
Ingredients
- 6 ounces brewed calendula tea
- 2 ounces unscented liquid castile soap
- 1 tablespoon calendula-infused almond oil
- 1 tablespoon glycerin
- 5-7 drops of essential oil (optional)
Instructions
- Brew a strong calendula tea. Use 1/3 cup of dried calendula flowers with 1 cup of hot water. Let sit for at least 10 minutes.
- Strain the flowers out of the tea.
- Pour 6 ounces of calendula tea into your foaming hand soap container.
- Add castile soap, calendula-infused oil (or liquid oil of your choice), and glycerin.
- Put the top on your soap container and give it a good shake.
- Soap may separate in between uses. Just give it a little shake, and it’s good to go.
Notes
- Makes 10 ounces of foaming soap.
- Use within 2 weeks.
- May separate in between uses. Just give it a little shake, and it’s good to go.
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How to make it Scented
I’ve chosen to leave this recipe unscented to eliminate any possibilities of reactions from sensitive skin. The finished product has a slightly herby, floral smell from the calendula infusion. However, if you prefer a stronger scent for your foaming hand soap, you can add essential oil.
5-7 drops of your favorite essential oil is all you’ll need for the entire container. If you’d like to keep it kid-friendly and sensitive skin safe, go with something gentle like lavender or chamomile.

Make sure to add the essential oil to your infused calendula oil before mixing it in with the tea. Essential oil does not mix well with water-based ingredients, but mixing it with oil before adding to the water will ensure it is evenly distributed throughout the final product.
You may also opt to use a scented version of Castile soap, like this lavender version. It is lightly scented with essential oil to give a mild scent to your finished soap.
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