# Homemade M&P Base



## Flutter (Sep 25, 2017)

Has anyone ever made their own M&P base?  I seen some mention that it is basically a HP soap with added alcohol and others say it is added glycerin and others say it is too difficult to make at home :-?


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## 0115d8cf (Sep 26, 2017)

I tried it once with the added glycerin, and I wouldn't try it again. It was nice to have control over the ingredients, which was why I tried, but to me it wasn't worth the extra step just to nix a few ingredients off a label. It might be for you, though!


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## Kittish (Sep 26, 2017)

I've tried it a couple of times, but haven't gotten anywhere near having a clear soap. The second try I made from the thread here, and it produced a pretty nice soap. It might have been sort of clear except I used cocoa butter as my hard oil. My first one was a failure. Tried to figure percentages from a recipe I found online, and wound up with too much glycerin, and it melted as soon as I tried to use a bar. I'm sure I'll try it again, being able to make a clear or even translucent soap is something I want to manage.


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## lsg (Sep 26, 2017)

Here is a tutorial with a recipe for a relatively clear soap.

https://youtu.be/xHS1V8HIwoE


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## Kamahido (Sep 26, 2017)

I did a cost analysis about a year ago and unless I bought everything in EXTREME bulk it was cheaper to just buy melt and pour base.


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## Kittish (Sep 26, 2017)

Kamahido said:


> I did a cost analysis about a year ago and unless I bought everything in EXTREME bulk it was cheaper to just buy melt and pour base.



Well, yea. Just like it's cheaper to buy commercially produced soap than it is to make your own. There's just something about the satisfaction of knowing you made a thing yourself and exactly what went into it that's worth the extra cost. Plus the challenge of doing something tricky and succeeding.


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## jcandleattic (Sep 27, 2017)

I made my own just to see if I could do it. It worked great, melted and remelted, no problems, and I LOVED the way it felt (compared to even SFIC M&P bases) - however, I live in a relatively low humid area (at tops we may see 25% here and there) and it still sweat profusely, so I have no idea how people in humid areas would use it. I had to wrap in tight cling wrap right after making or it'd be just slimy and gross, then when it dried out, it would be all crystallized. And I tried 3 times, and couldn't get it clear all the way through. 

Much easier for my applications and me just to buy the base.


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## [email protected] (Mar 27, 2018)

jcandleattic said:


> I made my own just to see if I could do it. It worked great, melted and remelted, no problems, and I LOVED the way it felt (compared to even SFIC M&P bases) - however, I live in a relatively low humid area (at tops we may see 25% here and there) and it still sweat profusely, so I have no idea how people in humid areas would use it. I had to wrap in tight cling wrap right after making or it'd be just slimy and gross, then when it dried out, it would be all crystallized. And I tried 3 times, and couldn't get it clear all the way through.
> 
> Much easier for my applications and me just to buy the base.


this may be because your homemade M&P has become dehydrated? either during your production, or in storage, or both.
Sweat is the glycerine in the soap drawing atmospheric water to the soap surface. If the glycerine is adequately hydrated, it won't draw so much moisture from the air.
I live in a very low humidity area too, and had lots of trouble with glycerine dew, until I worked to maintain the soap hydration.


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## earlene (Mar 27, 2018)

[email protected], how to you achieve soap hydration to prevent glycerin dew?


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## [email protected] (Mar 27, 2018)

earlene said:


> [email protected], how to you achieve soap hydration to prevent glcerine dew?


wrap well after I open a packet, and spritz well with water during melting


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## cmzaha (Mar 27, 2018)

When it comes to handmade m&p a lot depends on the ingredients. To much castor can cause profuse sweating. My daughter has always cured her m&p on racks just like cp soap. She never wraps immediately and her soap do not sweat even when she uses the m&p I make at times. Formula is most of the answer


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## lsg (Mar 27, 2018)

I have made both clear soap with alcohol and M&P with propylene glycol.  The base with propylene glycol melts much easier.  Here is a good tutorial:


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## jcandleattic (Mar 27, 2018)

For me, and what I use M&P for, the work involved vs. the results are just not worth it. It's easier, cheaper, faster, and just for me and my application more worth it, to just use a base. My bases never sweat, and I leave them unwrapped for the most part, work with them in CP, make sure they gel, and they don't melt, so a base is just better all around for me.


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## cmzaha (Mar 27, 2018)

jcandleattic said:


> For me, and what I use M&P for, the work involved vs. the results are just not worth it. It's easier, cheaper, faster, and just for me and my application more worth it, to just use a base. My bases never sweat, and I leave them unwrapped for the most part, work with them in CP, make sure they gel, and they don't melt, so a base is just better all around for me.


 My daughter also always used bases. It is much more cost effective. I just made an AVO base that she sold for a facial bar. Ours also did not sweat and she kept them on a rack until they were sold


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