# First Soap



## Kristus_Apollo (Jun 29, 2016)

dixiedragon said:


> Pics or it didn't happen!
> 
> Welcome to the forum and the hobby!



Ha, I like the way you think. Here you go, a few pics though crappy as they were taken with my cell phone.

Soap after cutting loaf into 1" thick slices then cutting those in half






A slice after cut in half





The top of the soap after cutting into 1" square columns





This was a test batch for personal use and to hand out to friends/family which is why I cut each slice in half.


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## dixiedragon (Jun 29, 2016)

Looks good! What fragrance did you use?


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## earlene (Jun 29, 2016)

Welcome, Kristus_Apollo.  They look great!   After the cure, it looks like you are going to have some really nice soap for a while!

I like some of Anne Watson's recipes, too.  She has a lot of recipes.  I have usually made a change or two to fit my needs or ingredients on hand, always running it through a lye calculator first, of course.  But one soap I make based on one of her recipes is my absolute favorite for hand washing, so I am glad I read her book.


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## Steve85569 (Jun 29, 2016)

Welcome to the forum and to soap making.
Your first batch turned out looking nice. Now for the long wait on the cure.....


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## Kristus_Apollo (Jun 29, 2016)

dixiedragon said:


> Looks good! What fragrance did you use?


I used "almond pastries" from Peak Candles. I love the smell of almonds.

One thing I forgot to add in my first post especially for anyone starting out like me. There are two essential pieces of equipment that'll make your life much, much easier: a stick blender (~$25 US) and a digital laser IR infrared thermometer temperature gun (got mine from Amazon for $13 US).


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## shunt2011 (Jun 29, 2016)

Congratulations on what is the first of many I'm sure.   Welcome to the addiction!   Nice looking soap for sure!


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## Kristus_Apollo (Jun 29, 2016)

shunt2011 said:


> Congratulations on what is the first of many I'm sure.   Welcome to the addiction!   Nice looking soap for sure!



Thanks! It turned out better than I expected. I thought I had distilled water but I didn't so I had to use Brita-filtered water instead. Then during the mixing process the stick blender slightly popped above the mixture a couple times introducing air into the mixer. 

After pouring into the mold I bounced it a few times on the work bench to try to get the air out. Guess I got lucky as not one of the cut pieces have any bubbles.


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## IrishLass (Jun 29, 2016)

Welcome, Kristus_Apollo! :wave:

Looks like you are well on your way to becoming a soaping addict! Muahahaha- our plan is working! 


IrishLass


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## Kristus_Apollo (Jun 29, 2016)

IrishLass said:


> Welcome, Kristus_Apollo! :wave:
> 
> Looks like you are well on your way to becoming a soaping addict! Muahahaha- our plan is working!
> 
> IrishLass



lol! Thanks, I think  But I guess you're correct as I'm already pondering what to make next...


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## Seawolfe (Jun 29, 2016)

Hey those are nice looking soaps!!


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## mzimm (Jun 29, 2016)

Mighty fine looking first soap!  Welcome!


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## JuneP (Jun 29, 2016)

Good for you for diving right in! Nice looking soap and I'll be it smells wonderful. (another almond lover)


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## Kristus_Apollo (Jun 29, 2016)

JuneP said:


> Good for you for diving right in! Nice looking soap and I'll be it smells wonderful. (another almond lover)



Thanks! Oh, it does, it does smell amazing. I just hope after curing that it's still quite fragrant.


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## snappyllama (Jun 29, 2016)

Howdy and welcome!

Congratulations on your first soap! It looks really great for a firstie.


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## TheDragonGirl (Jun 29, 2016)

Welcome to the forum! Thats a great looking first soap


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## KristaY (Jun 29, 2016)

Welcome to soaping and the forum Kristus_Apollo! :wave: That's some very handsome soap you've got there! Good choice on the Peak scent too. You certainly made a nicer looking batch than my first one so, well done you!


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## jules92207 (Jun 30, 2016)

Hey welcome to the group! Your first batch looks a lot better than mine did, you are off to a great start!


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## Susie (Jun 30, 2016)

Kristus_Apollo said:


> I used "almond pastries" from Peak Candles. I love the smell of almonds.
> 
> One thing I forgot to add in my first post especially for anyone starting out like me. There are two essential pieces of equipment that'll make your life much, much easier: a stick blender (~$25 US) and a digital laser IR infrared thermometer temperature gun (got mine from Amazon for $13 US).



Wonderful soap!  

I agree about the stickblender, but I never check my temperatures any more.  Neither do most of us.  You get to where you can feel if the temperature is too hot or not.  And it really does not matter if the oils and lye are within 10 degrees of one another.


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## IrishLass (Jun 30, 2016)

Susie said:


> Wonderful soap!
> 
> but I never check my temperatures any more. Neither do most of us. You get to where you can feel if the temperature is too hot or not. And it really does not matter if the oils and lye are within 10 degrees of one another.


 
Not that I'm trying to be disagreeable, but I just wanted to point out that there are times when temps do matter. For example, when it comes to my formulas that contain a higher proportion of hydrogenated PKO, hard fats and butters, I always check the temps. Basically, if the temp of my batter with those formulas goes much below 110F, I end up with pseudo-trace, and then stearic spots in my finished bars..... which I'm never happy with. So, with those formulas, I manipulate the heat of my oils and my lye solution so that my batter never goes below that sweet spot of 110F.


IrishLass


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## Kristus_Apollo (Jul 11, 2016)

It's been about two weeks so I decided to try one of the sticks of soap I cut from my first batch ever. It lathered up very nicely and quickly and left a wonderful soft feeling because of the shea butter. As long as I didn't let it set in a puddle of water it dried right up. Not bad after two weeks 

One question though. The amazing smell from the almond fragrance is all but gone. I can still smell it on the soap directly but it's weak. After washing there's almost no almond fragrance on my hands.

Is there a better method for allowing an FO or EO to bid better to the soap so that the fragrance lasts through and after curing for a CP soap?


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## Susie (Jul 11, 2016)

Fragrance from soap will not linger long on your skin after rinsing.  After all, the fragrance is washing down the drain with the suds.  If you want some fragrance left on your skin, think about making a lotion, body butter, or other leave-on product.


IrishLass said:


> Not that I'm trying to be disagreeable, but I just wanted to point out that there are times when temps do matter. For example, when it comes to my formulas that contain a higher proportion of hydrogenated PKO, hard fats and butters, I always check the temps. Basically, if the temp of my batter with those formulas goes much below 110F, I end up with pseudo-trace, and then stearic spots in my finished bars..... which I'm never happy with. So, with those formulas, I manipulate the heat of my oils and my lye solution so that my batter never goes below that sweet spot of 110F.
> 
> 
> IrishLass



^^This is very true!  However, the the belief that you* absolutely* need for the temperatures to be within 10 degrees of one another is not true.  You do, however, need your oils to be warm enough to stay liquid and not get false trace.


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## Kristus_Apollo (Jul 11, 2016)

Susie said:


> Fragrance from soap will not linger long on your skin after rinsing.  After all, the fragrance is washing down the drain with the suds.  If you want some fragrance left on your skin, think about making a lotion, body butter, or other leave-on product.



Susie, that totally makes sense but what I'm trying to reproduce is a small commercially manufactured hand soap I found at a bed and breakfast that left a wonderful almond aroma on my hands even after washing off the soap and drying.


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## jules92207 (Jul 12, 2016)

I'm not familiar with the fragrance you used, but you may want to try a few almond scented fragrances to see if one sticks better for you.


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## sue1965 (Jul 13, 2016)

Great looking start...congrats!  They look very smooth and uniform.  Welcome to the addiction


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## dibbles (Jul 13, 2016)

You might want to try Intense Almond from Majestic Mountain Sage. It is STRONG! The first time I used it, I just used at my usual rate and it was so overpowering I really couldn't stand it (this was MP - I haven't tried it in CP). It took me forever to use up a 4 oz. bottle. 

Nice first soaps, by the way and welcome!


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## Kristus_Apollo (Jul 16, 2016)

dibbles said:


> You might want to try Intense Almond from Majestic Mountain Sage. It is STRONG! The first time I used it, I just used at my usual rate and it was so overpowering I really couldn't stand it (this was MP - I haven't tried it in CP). It took me forever to use up a 4 oz. bottle.
> 
> Nice first soaps, by the way and welcome!



Thanks! And thanks for the tip on the fragrance, checking it out now.


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## queennikki (Jul 21, 2016)

Very good first soap, much better than my first few!


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## LisaAnne (Jul 21, 2016)

Beautiful soap!


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## rosemaria (Jul 22, 2016)

Looks good!! and congratulations!!


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