# My First Groupie Soaps



## Tienne (Jan 3, 2014)

Pasito is my soap hero and last night I tried for the first time to make a pair of Pasito inspired soaps. These soaps are not my own design, but merely a crude copy of one of his fabulous soap sets. (He has 5 holes in his version.) These are my first attempt and I still have a _lot_ to learn. To begin with, I am concentrating on getting some of the techniques in place that I need to be better at before attempting anything more difficult, so I chose one of his simpler designs to start with. I am practicing  getting edges and cut-outs clean and sharp. It's harder to do than it sounds!

There were a few annoying streaks in my soap batter that didn't show up until I planed the soaps and that's what those couple of whitish lines are you can see in a few places. It's not a big deal since these are just practice soaps, but it's still annoying, but that's how it goes with soaps. There are always imperfections... unless you're Pasito, of course. His soaps are always so perfect. 

Anyway, here's my feeble attempt at emulating the Master. 

Thanks for looking!

EDIT: Here's a link to Pasito's blog and to the original version of the soaps:
http://elomar-pasitoapasito.blogspot.se/2010/08/mini-serie-miguel-angel-y-yo.html


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## Hazel (Jan 3, 2014)

I think you did an excellent job. I'm impressed by how well the cut outs look.


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## Pepsi Girl (Jan 3, 2014)

WOW!  That's pretty cool!  You did a great job!

But I have to ask Who is Pasito?


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## Derpina Bubbles (Jan 3, 2014)

They look awesome.  Googled Pasito. Think I'm a groupie now too.


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## Pepsi Girl (Jan 3, 2014)

I did no soap I'll try again


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## Obsidian (Jan 3, 2014)

Your soaps look very good. Nice cut outs. Pasito is only the best soap designer ever http://elomar-pasitoapasito.blogspot.com/


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## Pepsi Girl (Jan 3, 2014)

Ok you have to google Pasito soap!  Duh! 
That's some fancy soap!


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## hlee (Jan 3, 2014)

Love those.! <going to check out Pasito now>


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## Khanjari (Jan 3, 2014)

I had heard about Pasito in an earlier forum! His soaps are really fancy! 

Nice work! I love the cut outs! Very clean and crisp!


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## MzMolly65 (Jan 4, 2014)

OMG .. why did you have to show me that link??

 .. what's crazy is .. all the random internet soap pictures I found and saved for inspiration originated from that webpage.  I'm grateful to finally know the true maker.

ETA: anyone know how he does those cutouts?


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## CaraBou (Jan 4, 2014)

You're on your way to your very own fan club!  And we'll all be like "Yeah, I remember Tienne when she was just embracing the ash!


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## TVivian (Jan 4, 2014)

MzMolly65 said:


> OMG .. why did you have to show me that link??
> 
> .. what's crazy is .. all the random internet soap pictures I found and saved for inspiration originated from that webpage.  I'm grateful to finally know the true maker.
> 
> ETA: anyone know how he does those cutouts?




I'm sure he has a workshop full of tools that most of us only dream about! 

Those are great Tienne!


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## seven (Jan 4, 2014)

Yay! You did it! I'm in love with them, Tienne!!

Are you planning on filling the holes? I reckon it looks awesome as it is. I like how you make the curve cut. I know it aint easy to make it smooth like that. In his tutorial, the master used a guitar string to make the cuts. The photos make it look so easy, but boy, try it and you'll see the opposite!


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## grayceworks (Jan 4, 2014)

MzMolly65 said:


> ETA: anyone know how he does those cutouts?


 

There's tutorials on several of his posts. Also, if you go alllll the way back on the blog, you see the very first posts of much simpler soaps. It's fun to see how it progressed! 

And the comments he makes in his blog are amusing (and thought inspiring) too... Like from the above posted blog entry: "I have had the great fortune of seeing the wonderful work that is David. Michelangelo missed my soap, for dying prematurely. " 

or: 
"The big difference is that his work persists and will persist until who knows when and mine is ephemeral and will disappear for a drain. That's so sad! "  (this made me crack up laughing at work)


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## grayceworks (Jan 4, 2014)

Tienne said:


> Pasito is my soap hero and last night I tried for the first time to make a pair of Pasito inspired soaps. These soaps are not my own design, but merely a crude copy of one of his fabulous soap sets. (He has 5 holes in his version.) These are my first attempt and I still have a _lot_ to learn... It harder to do than it sounds!
> 
> There are always imperfections... unless you're Pasito, of course. His soaps are always so perfect.


 
I think they look amazing! My hands would never be steady enough to do anything that intricate! If that's your first attempt, then you'll be on his level in no time! 

And in reading his blog, I noted that he comments more than once on how something didn't turn out how he wanted or expected. 

It's interesting to note that the title of* Omar Lopez's* blog,  *"Pasito a Pasito",* literally means *"small steps" or "very leisurely or gently" *and if you look at his blog from start to finish, that's what it really is... baby steps to his goal...


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## Tienne (Jan 4, 2014)

CaraBou said:


> You're on your way to your very own fan club!  And we'll all be like "Yeah, I remember Tienne when she was just embracing the ash!



OMG, that made me laugh bigtime.   That is SO kind of you to say, but I think it's going to be quite some time before I can even begin to reach Pasito's level of expertise, if ever... but his blog does shows what's possible and it gives you something to strive for and it sort of forces you to try new and harder things. 

It's particularly great for me to try, because I'm just a little home soaper and there are only so many loaves you can make and give away before you're drowning in soaps. This way, I can soap all I want and hone my skills at the same time, plus I get to spend a lot of time with my soaps, holding them and polishing them and coddling them and all that other crazy obsessive stuff that goes with being a soap addict. LOL

I have just gotten a new little two-soaper mold, that can make anywhere from just 2 to 6 flat soaps and as soon as I have gotten the basics down, I want to try and make some of my own designs. They are next on my list. 

@Seven. No, I'm not going to fill the holes on this one., but just leave it as is. I will be trying that soon, though. It'll be a lot easier now that I have my two-soaper. I made these ones out of some of my months old Dead Sea Mud bars and those things were rock hard, which didn't make it any easier, but I reckon it's good to learn how to do things when the going is really tough. Doing it that way should make it easier to make the designs when the soap is at a more optimal consistency. Anyway, I love a challenge so it was a fun experiment. 

Thanks everyone for your very generous and kind comments. I really appreciate it. It gives me courage to try even harder. You guys are the best!  

(I've added a link to the original soap set on Pasito's blog up in the  first post. I just took it for granted that the whole universe knew who  Pasito was so didn't think to add it. LOL)

Here's my new two-soaper:


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## seven (Jan 4, 2014)

btw, what did you use to carve the soap? i imagine a month old soap will be a tough one to carve/cut.


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## Tienne (Jan 4, 2014)

^^^ The soaps were hard as a brick! I don't have any punch tools or a wirecutter tool yet, so I just split apart a ballpoint pen and used the casing to make the holes. For the bigger side cutouts, I just cut them out using the same casing. I just took a little bit off at a time until the semi-circle was big enough. That was a challenge in itself, getting it to end up perfectly round. The casing wanted to slide off all the time and because the soap was so hard, it wanted to flake, so I had to be really careful and do it ever so slowly, so the soap had time to think and know what I wanted from it.  (So to speak  )


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## Derpina Bubbles (Jan 4, 2014)

I was already impressed with how well you made them. Now knowing how you got there, I'm even more impressed!  I can picture the soap trying to crack and flake when you cut it. Love the new mould too.  Can't wait to see your designs.


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## The Efficacious Gentleman (Jan 4, 2014)

Looking at his soaps, I think he uses very intricate molds rather than carving.  I might be wrong (it happens now and then).  There are posts on the blog that seem to show wooden molds for the inserts


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## gurdeep (Jan 4, 2014)

I know that the soaps are awe aspiring but would you use them? In the real world


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## Lildlege1 (Jan 4, 2014)

Wow I love it !!! So so awesome!!


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## Tienne (Jan 4, 2014)

gurdeep said:


> I know that the soaps are awe aspiring but would you use them? In the real world



Well, I usually save at least one of each of all the batches I have ever made for nostalgic reasons and to see how they hold up over time and also so I can go back and see how my skills improve over time. Soaps like these aren't really all that practical, but if I had several sets and not a hundred other soaps that need to be used up as well, then sure, I'd use them. Some other designs I have in mind are even less practical, but that's not why I want to make them. I like them for the artistry. For the challenge and for the skills and knowledge I can gain from attempting to do more and more. These particular soaps I will probably save and label them as "Groupie soaps #1", and see how and if I get better over time, but if I make these again, I will probably give them away and leave it up to the receiver if they wanted to use them or not. I wouldn't be offended if they used them. *They are "just soaps" after all. 

*Please forgive my blasphemous statement, but that _is_ pretty much the long and short of it.)


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## Ancel (Jan 4, 2014)

Beautiful! Really pretty, and the patience you must have is impressive. Love the look of the edges. Looking forward to seeing what's next.


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## MzMolly65 (Jan 5, 2014)

Tienne said:


> I just split apart a ballpoint pen and used the casing to make the holes. For the bigger side cutouts, I just cut them out using the same casing. I just took a little bit off at a time until the semi-circle was big enough.



I think your soaps are gorgeous.  The more I look at his blog the more I suspect he doesn't cut out the holes so much as leaves them vacant during the pour.  His system of rubber bands and sticks could easily support some type of rod or straw that would be pulled out later and this photo in particular





with the 1/2 circle at the bottom left reminds me of your 1/2 circle cut out.  

For carving .. have you ever seen potter's carving tools?  They might be ideal for carving soap.


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## lsg (Jan 5, 2014)

Great looking soap.


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## Tienne (Jan 5, 2014)

@MzMolly65  
He does cut out shapes too and often reuses the parts he removes as embeds. If you take a look at the star soaps, you can see that the shapes are indeed cutouts and he even shows and states how he does it. He says:

"To remove the forms use two templates.  Placed one above and the other below, making them match as closely as possible.  You go through the soap with a guitar string, going through the edge, in this case the star and cut well.  It remains only to remove it carefully from bending. "










On these soaps here you can also see how the semi-circles are cutouts. He also often uses cardboard dams to help make curves and colour partitions and such in the soaps beforehand:











He's a man of many talents! LOL Unfortunately I don't have a wire cutter tool yet, so I had to make do with what I had at hand. (He has a pic somewhere showing what that tool looks like to cut the side cutouts. It's just a wire with a stick tied to either end. ) The "secret ingredient" is the wooden templates. 

I do have some potter's carving tools and have actually thought that they might come in handy. Maybe I should dust them off and see how I can make use of them until I get a wire cutter tool. I also have some small chisels for leather working. I have some guitar string too, so... sooner than later, I'll get around to making myself one of those "magic" tools, but it was fun going my own way and getting my rip-off soap to at least resemble his with what I had at hand. I didn't really plan to make those soaps. It was just a spur of the moment thing. You know how that goes. Just like with regular soaping! Sometimes you just gotta do it! LOL


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## MzMolly65 (Jan 5, 2014)

Tienne said:


> @MzMolly65
> 
> He also often uses cardboard dams to help make curves and colour partitions and such in the soaps beforehand:



Cardboard dams .. what a perfect description.  

That's what he's using in the pic with all the rubber bands holding things in place.  I just wasn't sure if he was filling the cardboard pieces up and then pulling them out (like a two colour vertical bar) while all the soap was wet or if he was leaving them empty to creates gaps in the main bar.

Either way he's a true artists who inspires.

Now he's got me wondering if a scrollsaw would work on soap, LOL!


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## Tienne (Jan 5, 2014)

You would not *believe* the amount of stuff I look at through a soaper's eyes and wonder if it in ANY way, shape or form could be used for soaping. Or the number of fix-it's and workarounds I come up with. Soaping sure is a creative sport in more ways than one. It sure does give one's brain a heavy workout, that's for sure!


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## MoonBath (Jan 5, 2014)

Wow. Pasito. Those are some amazing soaps.


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## renata (Jan 6, 2014)

Awesome! You are the next Pasito


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## Tienne (Jan 6, 2014)

:shock:  I almost spat coffee all over my keyboard when I read that. So funny.   I _highly_ doubt that, but that was an incredibly sweet compliment of you to give nonetheless, Renata. Wow. Thank you so much for your confidence in me! Yikes, there's no way I can live up to that, though. Pasito is a demigod and I am after all just a mere mortal! *sigh* LOL


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## Hazel (Jan 6, 2014)

Tienne said:


> Thank you so much for your confidence in me! Yikes, there's no way I can live up to that, though. Pasito is a demigod and I am after all just a mere mortal! *sigh* LOL



You don't give yourself enough credit. Even demigods had to start somewhere and practice to perfect their creations. Give yourself time and a lot of experimenting. I think you'll be able to challenge Pasito eventually. 

Someday, a person may join the forum and say "I was inspired by the demigoddess, Tienne".


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## Tienne (Jan 6, 2014)

The demigoddess Tienne??  Aw, com'on Hazel! Now you're just being silly. LOL!

But seriously... thanks, everyone. From the bottom of my heart, thank you all so much for your super nice and encouraging comments. It really means a lot to me... *now quit it!!* 

... And now this up and coming demigoddess needs to go rebatch a stupid soap that riced on me. Yes, my latest soap was a big fat fail. That's how awesome I am! 

Now go away. LOL


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## renata (Jan 7, 2014)

You are very welcome Tienne. I give compliments only when I mean it  And I agree with Hazel.

Now go away, make a rebatch and post some photos!


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## seven (Jan 7, 2014)

The Efficacious Gentleman said:


> Looking at his soaps, I think he uses very intricate molds rather than carving.  I might be wrong (it happens now and then).  There are posts on the blog that seem to show wooden molds for the inserts



Yep you're right. He always uses molds made from thin woods as a layout. Two of those, one on each side.


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## shunt2011 (Jan 7, 2014)

What an awesome job you've done.  Impressive.  Kudos to you for having the patience to even take this on.

Can't wait to see what other awesome things you do next.


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## neeners (Jan 7, 2014)

SUPER impressive soap!  so beautiful!!!  I agree, I think you're taking your soaping to the artistic level, and maybe SOME DAY have a gallery exhibition of your soaps.  believe!


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## Hazel (Jan 7, 2014)

Tienne said:


> Now you're just being silly.



No. Not silly...sincere. Admittedly, it's hard to tell the difference with me. 



> The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. ~ Eleanor Roosevelt


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Now I will go away but not far.


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