# Close to giving up soap making



## Kandacee (Jul 11, 2020)

I’ve spent hundreds of dollars trying to creat my own soap bar, but they all come out bad. How long did it take you to make a good bar of soap ? I’m getting frustrated and don’t want to keep wasting money


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## cmzaha (Jul 11, 2020)

Posting your recipe to start would help. Also, what are you calling bad, does the soap feel bad on your skin? Is your batter thickening up to fast? Just saying your soap is bad is absolutely not going to help us help you.


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## Obsidian (Jul 11, 2020)

It took me about two years and a couple thousand dollars. In the end, the best for me didn't have any fancy oils or butters and can be made cheap with grocery store ingredients.


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## amd (Jul 11, 2020)

On the other end of that, I spent 9 months tweaking a formula before I found one I liked. I have tweaked it a few times since then as well. I started with a very basic recipe and changed it from there (I also had almost 2 years of research at the time I started making soap so that helped). I only made 1lb of soap uncolored, no fragrance, and no other additives (only lye, water, oils), let it cure for 6 weeks and then tried it. I was able to tweak based on what I knew was in the soap and what I knew I wanted the soap to be. I made soap about once a month, a different recipe every time. It cost me very little money to start that way, maybe $100. I bought one milkyway mold for $8 (or something like that) and used Pringles cans for molds.


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## sarahmarah (Jul 11, 2020)

I got into soaping after tons of research and reading. It’s all trial and error and what works for others may not work for your skin. I tried a 100% coconut bar with a 20% SF that I made a couple months ago in the shower today and my skin did not like it one bit! Now I know.
Write everything down and make small test batches. Tweak it. Soaping can be an expensive hobby but it doesn’t have to be. Every batch you make is an investment into furthering your education.


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## cmzaha (Jul 11, 2020)

I did not mention I also did not spend a lot of money when I first started. My first soaps were made from recipes found on Miller Soap's site which has been around a long time, but you still need to run them through a soap calculator. I will say none were ever a failure, but after a few /many years I have settled on my main go-to recipes.


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## BattleGnome (Jul 11, 2020)

Save your “bad batches,” you never know when they might suddenly become good.

my favorite recipe needs a 3 month cure. when I first made it I tried a bar after 4 weeks, decided it didn’t suck but wasn’t amazing, then forgot about it. A few months later I picked it up as a random bar from the stash and it was the best soap I had ever used, I just needed to figure out minimum cure time so I could plan when I needed to make soap.


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## amd (Jul 11, 2020)

BattleGnome said:


> Save your “bad batches,” you never know when they might suddenly become good.


This too! I kept all the soap I made even if I didn't like it. Keep notes and label your soaps according to the the notes. There were some soaps that weren't awesome, but 5 years later I loved


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## TheGecko (Jul 11, 2020)

Kandacee said:


> I’ve spent hundreds of dollars trying to creat my own soap bar, but they all come out bad. How long did it take you to make a good bar of soap ? I’m getting frustrated and don’t want to keep wasting money



I gave myself a $1000 budget....I have spent twice that in the past year when you add in equipment. 

It's not a race, it's a process. Even though I started selling soap six months after I started...local craft fair. And even though I did pretty good, I realized that I wasn't ready. It wasn't until recently that I decided that I was ready. Not only did I have a product that was better than just 'good', it was a product that I could be proud of. 

You are welcomed to try my recipe if you would like:

35% Olive Oil
20% Coconut Oil
20% Palm Oil
10% Cocoa Butter
10% Shea Butter
10% Castor Oil

33% Lye Concentration
5% SuperFat

1 tea Kaolin Clay PPO
1 tea Sodium Lactate PPO

I melt my Hard Oils/Butters on the stove at med heat, turn off when halfway melted...residual heat will melt the rest.
I use frozen distilled water to make my Lye Solution...cuts down on the fumes and the temperature.

I soap warm (90F-120F), but not hot.

I stick blend in short bursts and stir to emulsion.


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## IrishLass (Jul 11, 2020)

Kandacee said:


> I’ve spent hundreds of dollars trying to creat my own soap bar, but they all come out bad. How long did it take you to make a good bar of soap ? I’m getting frustrated and don’t want to keep wasting money



Hi Kandacee....I just wanted to clarify......   In all your other posts on the forum, you mentioned that the soap you are making and having problems with is melt & pour soap using Stephenson goat milk base and mixing additives like butters, etc., in it. Is that the same kind of soap you are asking about here in this thread, or are you referring to soap made from scratch (aka lye-based CP or HP)? I ask because all of the advice that has been given to you so far in this thread is in reference to lye-based soap made from scratch, and that might not be what you are asking for.

IrishLass


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## linne1gi (Jul 11, 2020)

Kandacee said:


> I’ve spent hundreds of dollars trying to creat my own soap bar, but they all come out bad. How long did it take you to make a good bar of soap ? I’m getting frustrated and don’t want to keep wasting money



The best advice I can give is to make small batches. I see a lot of new people make enough to fit into a 5 pound mold.
1 to 2 pound batches until you know what you like. Otherwise it’s like you said, you’ve spent tons of money and you’re just not happy with the soap.  It took me at least 2 years to come up with a recipe I like.


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## Jillyb (Jul 11, 2020)

I started originally with recipes I found online and made them until I was  comfortable enough with the process and had quite a number of successful batches. Adding natural colors etc.
Then I started formulating recipes making small changes at a time. Rather than learning the process and recipe formulation at the same time.


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## silaba (Jul 11, 2020)

Kandacee said:


> I’ve spent hundreds of dollars trying to creat my own soap bar, but they all come out bad. How long did it take you to make a good bar of soap ? I’m getting frustrated and don’t want to keep wasting money


I am working on my own recipe without using any Palm oil. That feels as good a using Palm oil,   Do not want to copy anyone. But finding mine are a little oil heavy, and not much bubble.   I think that soap calc is starting to go into melt down. (been testing quite a few recipes on it)  All I can say to you is keep at it, only make VERY small batches, enough for two small bars. one to try and one to keep. If it loos and performs good, Then make another small batch and send out to testers.


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## bookreader451 (Jul 11, 2020)

I have been making soap for one year now and have spent at least a couple of thousand dollars in equipment FO, mica and supplies.  I have tried so many different formulas and have finally found a couple I love. 

I found the following very helpful in making up recipes to try:









						How to Better Understand SoapCalc's Soap Quality Numbers • Modern Soapmaking
					

Having a hard time understanding SoapCalc's Soap Quality numbers? Let's demystify them by talking about how they are calculated and what they really mean.




					www.modernsoapmaking.com
				











						The Most Popular Fatty Acid Profiles in Soapmaking
					

Want to learn how to formulate the best soap recipe ever? Learn your fatty acid profiles and you're golden! Curious about what fatty acid profiles are the most popular?




					www.modernsoapmaking.com


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## atiz (Jul 11, 2020)

Well.... of course, you can spend a lot of money on equipment etc., but you don't have to. When I started, I did not acquire anything new -- just used my old kitchen stick blender and some cardboard box for mold, got my oils at the grocery store and/or Walmart, and the only real "specialty" thing I got was some fragrance. (Actually, at first not even that -- just used some left-over EOs.) 
I have since then I acquired some soapmaking stuff, but I really think it's a good idea to first figure out what you like, and then invest -- otherwise you'll end up with a bunch of things you'll never use. (Like me with a flower mold...)
You can make pretty good soap without all the fancy stuff. Try a recipe that other people have liked -- you can find many of them here. Once you have something you are at least okay with, it is easier to experiment.


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## math ace (Jul 12, 2020)

TheGecko said:


> I gave myself a $1000 budget....I have spent twice that in the past year when you add in equipment.
> 
> It's not a race, it's a process. Even though I started selling soap six months after I started...local craft fair. And even though I did pretty good, I realized that I wasn't ready. It wasn't until recently that I decided that I was ready. Not only did I have a product that was better than just 'good', it was a product that I could be proud of.
> 
> ...


My Dear, It is AWESOME that you are willing to share so much of your hard earned information 

I started out using BB's Lot's of Lather recipe which is:
32% Coconut Oil
32% Palm Oil
32% Olive Oil 
4% Castor Oil 

33% Lye Concentration
5% Super Fat

1 tea Sodium Lactate PPO

I found this recipe to be slightly drying to my skin.  However, this is still my friend's favorite recipe despite having tested 25 other recipes that were gentler and less drying.  

For my personal use,  I discovered that a SF of 5% is too much for my bath tub.  The oil ring is much less when I use a SF of 3%.  I, also, prefer the gentler bar of soap that is achieved when the coconut oil is at 20% in the recipe.  

For really small batches, 1 to 1.5 lbs, I think using a whisk, instead of the stick blender works better.  The exception would be if you were wanting to do a spoon plop design.



silaba said:


> I am working on my own recipe without using any Palm oil. That feels as good a using Palm oil,   Do not want to copy anyone. But finding mine are a little oil heavy, and not much bubble.   I think that soap calc is starting to go into melt down. (been testing quite a few recipes on it)  All I can say to you is keep at it, only make VERY small batches, enough for two small bars. one to try and one to keep. If it loos and performs good, Then make another small batch and send out to testers.



IMHO,  if we post the recipe then it is being SHARED, not stolen or copied LOL.   There are only so many recipe possibilities out there using the typical ingredients - Lard, Palm Oil, Coconut oil, Olive Oil, Castor Oil, Shea Butter, Cocoa Butter.  If soapers don't want you to copy their recipes, then they will keep them private and not post them!



IrishLass said:


> Hi Kandacee....I just wanted to clarify......   In all your other posts on the forum, you mentioned that the soap you are making and having problems with is melt & pour soap using Stephenson goat milk base and mixing additives like butters, etc., in it. . . .
> 
> IrishLass



This will change the answers given here.  Melt and Pour is ready to use soap and really shouldn't have additives added to it.  If you don't like one Melt and Pour, then try another, BUT skip the recipe changing!  My friend and I LOVE the Stephenson's Triple Butter melt and pour.   Our husbands can not stand it because it leaves a coating of something akin to a mosturizer. They prefer SFIC ALOE melt and pour.  Different Strokes for Different Folks!

If you want to add things to your soap,  then you need to change over to the dark side of soaping called "Cold Process".  Trust me on this one,  the money you spent with melt and pour will be NOTHING compared to what Cold Process will cost you!  Half of your favorite fragrances aren't going to work in CP.  Your scale needs to be more accurate with CP.  You need personal protection - gloves, safety glasses, etc with CP.


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## Jersey Girl (Jul 12, 2020)

math ace said:


> My Dear, It is AWESOME that you are willing to share so much of your hard earned information
> 
> I started out using BB's Lot's of Lather recipe which is:
> 32% Coconut Oil
> ...



I totally agree. That’s the first soap I made and it was a total success. It’s not a terrible soap either. My husband LOVES it. It’s easy and pretty fool proof!  it’s a perfect starter recipe IMO


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## TheGecko (Jul 12, 2020)

math ace said:


> I started out using BB's Lot's of Lather recipe



I started with BB's recipe from their Beginner's Cold Process Soap it; same ingredients, but more Olive Oil.  It produced a really good bar of soap, but I wanted something...'more' (don't we all) and so I started tweaking the recipe until I found the above.  It produces a nice solid bar and I have plenty of work time if I want to play around with layers and swirls.  I've even been able to make a 14 lb batch and then divided several times to fill 2-1lb molds (2 different fragrances, 3 layers and hanger swirl), 2-2lb molds (same fragrances, 2 layers) and 2-4lb molds (2 different fragrances, drop swirl, chopstick swirl).  It started to thicken up towards the last, but it was still fluid enough that I didn't have any air pockets.


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## MGM (Jul 12, 2020)

I agree that OP needs to clarify if she's messing with M&P or formulating CP for us to really help with the question. But I wanted to pop in to say that, maybe I'm just easy to please, but I like MOST of my soaps for one reason or another. Sometimes I'm extra impressed by a creamy lather (and for some reason, one of my soaps is more noticeable for that [even though I have many with that recipe], but maybe because it's always in the shower) and sometimes I'll think that the lather is pretty skimpy but, man alive, is this 100% lard bar lever asting a long time. Nine times out of 10, my favourite thing is a a fragrance. I try to pay attention to which soaps leave my hands feeling tight (so far, the only ones I remember are the sample that my soap workshop teacher gave us, although I've made dozens of soaps with the recipe she gave us in the workshop, and Zany's No Slime Castile, which perhaps just needs a longer cure). And of course most of my soaps have downsides, too, primarily, bright colours gunking up the sink.
So long story short, either I'm a glass half-full kind of girl, or I'm just not as picky about soap as some people!


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## SPowers (Jul 12, 2020)

I just added up my soapmaking expenses to date and I'm around $1200 (if I'm honest) and I just started in early May.  I did break down and but a decent cutter plus a small trolley to put a lot of my tools in.  But other than that it's mainly the cost of oils, colorants and fragrances.  Plus I spent a fair bit on e-books as well.


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## Tais (Jul 12, 2020)

I know you haven't told if you are trying MP or CP, but either way, I would suggest to look any your failures as part of the learning, compare if they always look the same and what you have done differently.

It seems tedious maybe, but instead of just write the amounts you used, write everything you did during the process, how you mix the ingredients, how cold/hot they were before and after, what was the order you add your ingredients, how a fragrance smelled before and after, how was the weather conditions, write down every single detail and you might find that maybe there is something in there, a clue, that might lead you to what is not going right in your soaping.

And start simple too, I know with the amount of oils out there, it is overwhelming and put a little bit of them in one recipe is tempting  But less is more when learning  Don't give up and maybe try to follow other soap makers recipes and then tweak them later and see how you go 

This guide might be a good guide for you if you're making CP, good luck on your next batch 









						The Secret to the Absolutely Best Handmade Soap Recipe
					

The best soap recipe ever is the holy grail of soapmaking, and if you are on the hunt for it, I've got the secret to formulating the perfect soap recipe.




					www.modernsoapmaking.com


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## sarahmarah (Jul 12, 2020)

SPowers said:


> I did break down and but a decent cutter plus a small trolley to put a lot of my tools in.


I broke down and got a cutter too. After trying to unsuccessfully use a $20 wire cheese cutter lol. Wasn’t happening


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## linne1gi (Jul 12, 2020)

SPowers said:


> I just added up my soapmaking expenses to date and I'm around $1200 (if I'm honest) and I just started in early May.  I did break down and but a decent cutter plus a small trolley to put a lot of my tools in.  But other than that it's mainly the cost of oils, colorants and fragrances.  Plus I spent a fair bit on e-books as well.


Soap making is not a cheap venture at all.  And an expensive hobby.


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## bookreader451 (Jul 12, 2020)

linne1gi said:


> Soap making is not a cheap venture at all.  And an expensive hobby.


I was already making MP, scrubs and lotion bars so I had the basics but once I started it became an addiction. I am never one to go halfway in on something so I kept buying stuff to try this and that.   I am a hobbyist and I am sending my son home this weekend with a box of soap for his girlfriend, his dad and step-mom, plus his majesty himself.   I also donate to the homeless shelter outreach.  I give it to coworkers, at this point anyone of my friends who will take it!


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## SPowers (Jul 12, 2020)

I did some M&P one Christmas but didn't really get into it.  So I had a  few individual molds from that, but I also did some body butters, and other DIY items so had some oils/butters, beeswax, EO's etc. This did not become an obsession/addiction til I started on the CP soad road!


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## SPowers (Jul 12, 2020)

sarahmarah said:


> I broke down and got a cutter too. After trying to unsuccessfully use a $20 wire cheese cutter lol. Wasn’t happening



I feel your pain!  I just used a knife but couldn't for the life of me cut a straight line.  I bought one of those wooden soap cutters that has the slats for cutting different widths but it was really narrow - maybe 3" - only a tall skinny loaf would fit.  It was a pain plus $25 down the drain!


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## shunt2011 (Jul 13, 2020)

She's been on a few times since she posted.  Don't know if we'll get answers.


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## mishmish (Jul 13, 2020)

I know someone who invested in lots of top-of-the-line equipment before they had even made a bar of soap with the idea of selling, and ended up having all her oils go rancid and selling her equipment at a loss because she didn't actually like making soap. She liked the idea of making soap. If you are just getting started, I'd recommend starting out with ingredients that are readily available at the supermarket and homemade improvised molds until you get your recipes nailed down and your hobby begins to pay for itself, in whatever way you can justify it (giving soap as gifts, not buying soap in your family, whatever).


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## Kandacee (Jul 13, 2020)

TheGecko said:


> I gave myself a $1000 budget....I have spent twice that in the past year when you add in equipment.
> 
> It's not a race, it's a process. Even though I started selling soap six months after I started...local craft fair. And even though I did pretty good, I realized that I wasn't ready. It wasn't until recently that I decided that I was ready. Not only did I have a product that was better than just 'good', it was a product that I could be proud of.
> 
> ...


I will try this.thank you so much


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## Kandacee (Jul 13, 2020)

Thank you everyone for your feedback.


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## shunt2011 (Jul 13, 2020)

Nope, no answers to any of the questions.


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