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Loving the updates! I've been in a soap rut for a few months, and haven't ventured out with new blends for a while. This thread reminds me there's so much out there to try (and then I get overwhelmed again - lol). Here are a few of my updates: Fallen: just gifted the last bar from a batch...

@KiwiMoose your syndet bars are beautiful! I love the color. Did you use a press with them? @Misschief, do the bars from the recipe you purchased get mushy in the shower (especially toward the end)? I switched from making liquid shampoo to shampoo bars a few months ago and all was going well...

Yes, I replaced it entirely with soy wax. I used to use beef tallow at 20-25% of the recipe (early on when using it went as high as 30-35%, but found the soap smelled too beefy) and now don't use it at all.

This is a pretty typical recipe for me nowadays: 30% Olive Oil 25% Soy Wax 20% Coconut Oil 15% Sunflower Oil (high oleic) 10% Shea Butter 38% Lye concentration 5% oil weight sugar added (dissolved in water taken from batch total, then added to lye) I also soap in the 120-130°F range and...

Hi JohnnyM, Your recipe in the original post is very similar variation of a recipe I made for a few years (although I no longer use castor oil), until I decided to check out soy wax a year ago. I have to say, I haven't looked back (nor do I miss rendering beef tallow). The soap stays...

Thanks so much for the update and work put into this!

@Mobjack Bay, I tried French Kiss in a soap a couple years ago and really liked it. Your description of the soap smelling nice, with no particular note dominating, was exactly my experience. Just a nice, almost subtle, blend. It's also one of those things where if I think of it, I can still...

Oh, no, it was my fault! I have a fear of moving batter past emulsification, which gets me into trouble time and again (wait, muddled colors again?). You'd think I would learn. So while I KNEW I should have SB more to get it thicker, I didn't. Next I threw in another perilous ingredient...

Wow, a lot of really good information has been added here! @Jackie Tobey, Boheme Dream sounds so interesting and not one that would have caught my eye. Thanks for the recommendation! That's a shame about Serenity (or Serenity Now?), as it sounds like had it been a sticker the scent would...

I really appreciate your efforts, szaza, as well as your taking the time to share the results!

...And now I have a couple more blends to add to my ever-growing list of things to try (especially the Highbrow and Whisper - they sound incredible). Thanks, @szaza!

Thanks, Mobjack, for the detailed explanation (although I must say that my eyes glazed over at some of the math... lol). I'm one that has been using "Soybean, fully hydrogenated" on SoapCalc (SAP 0.137 for NaOH), and I have been absolutely loving the soap with it. My skin has never felt...

Thanks for sharing, and I've added it to my ever-growing list of blends to try!

It's strange, isn't it?! A few years ago I tried my hand at an Auntie Clara Ghost Swirl, and was pretty shocked to see how slowly the low water portion of the soap came to trace. Since that time, I now typically soap between a 36-40% lye concentration and the biggest issue I have is getting...

Thanks for the update, @szaza ! I just scrutinized a bar of Orchard Plow that was made on August 6, 2019 (with adjustments; see Post #1), and it seems to be still going strong! It's interesting, szaza, how we are having different experiences with this one. Could it be storage? Each batch...

Hooray - it worked! (we'll celebrate even if it was only for a little while, and call it progress. Plus, it made a nice product while it lasted - yay!) Since you hadn't been aware of Chemists Corner before, I need to apologize for the many hours you may spend in reading it now. It's a rabbit...

I feel your pain in working with a tricky ingredient (HEC, looking at you!). Unfortunately, I've never used Sucragel, but there is a great forum called Chemists Corner that may have some useful information, in case you aren't already aware of it...

I make small batches of soap (usually 20-28oz oils) and a few years ago got a 3-tier baker's cooling rack that I line with parchment paper (looks just like THIS one) . It can fit about 4-6 batches, and I like it because it gives vertical storage on the countertop. I've also seen some 3-tier...

Haha - yes, I will close my eyes and pretend I'm in a flower patch! I used it again last night, and while the first whiffs are overwhelmingly like wet dog, after my brain focuses on the fact it is ORANGE! ORANGE! I do definitely smell orange peel. As for the color of yours, that is super...

That's interesting! I noted that the melted oils were 127°F prior to adding the orange wax and stirring it in, so by the time the lye was added I would guess everything was in the 117-123° range (I've been soaping a little warmer due to the soy wax). Orange EO will slow trace so maybe the...