Luffa

[Durgan]

18 October 2011 Luffa. 18 October 2011 Luffa

Some dried luffa were picked today and prepared for use. There are about 20 fruit on the three vines. Luffa take a long season and my area is at the limit.
The un-dried sponges will be left on the vine until dry, then processed.

The shell is removed from a very dry fruit, then the ends are cut off and the seeds shaken out. A fruit is considered dry when it is orange/yellow in color and it rattles when shaken due to the seeds being loose inside the shell. The prepared sponges are washed on a gentle cycle in the washing machine, or they may be washed in a bucket. If badly stained some bleach is beneficial. The sponges are then dried and later they will be impregnated with soap mold for washing the body. The gentle fiber impregnated with soap is a fine scrubber for removing dead skin, much in demand amongst my family and friends. The sponges last forever and is great for washing sinks and bathtubs. Some seeds previously collected have been viable for five years.

20 October 2011 Making Luffa Hand Soap 20 October 2011 Making Luffa Hand Soap

The dried luffa sponges were impregnated with glycerine soap and cut into hand cakes. The mould was made from two inch diameter PVC pipe with a cap to contain the liquid soap when poured into the mould. The glycerine hard soap is cut into small pieces and placed in the microwave for about 4 minutes until melted. Food dye, a few drops, is added to the liquified glycerine soap in some cases to make colourful cakes. The inside of the PVC mould was sprayed with silicon lubricant to make easy removing the soap impregnated sponge after hardening. This works well and the sponge can be hand pushed out the end of the mould easily. The mould is cooled for about 6 hours at room temperature, then placed in the freezer for adequate hardening. When removed from the freezer after a few hours the mould is run under hot water for a few minutes then the sponge is simply pushed out the end of the PVC mould. The finished product was cut into suitable hand sizes, using a fine tooth hand saw along with a mitre box to get a straight cut. The soap cakes are in great demand for washing and removing dead skin without too much abrasion. The necessary materials are available on the internet or a craft store, and any local hardware store.