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Made lots of stain sticks and this time I SBed until it traced (haha) and they came out just fine. This time I let the batter tell me when it was done instead of the clock. 🕒 I don't understand why 100% CO takes sooooo long to trace, but it sure does.

Thanks for the support. I've got a real thing about waste and didn't need to carry guilt for tossing this icky batch. Most citrus slows trace, so it makes sense the limonene would too. Wouldn't have thought only 2% would be that dramatic, but "soap do what soap do!"

I thought long and hard (all night when I shoulda been asleep) about it, but I've got commitments today and tomorrow so the rebatch would have had to wait 3 days. Grating the solid hard chunks that had been sitting in the still liquid oil just didn't entice me to keep at it, and the limonene...

Thanks for the encouragement, but after stewing over it for much of the night, my DH kindly offered to put it out in the trash that's being picked up this morning so I don't have to look at it again. Sometimes it's cheaper and wiser just to start again with lessons learned. "Gotta know when to...

Is it better to do it in the oven than in a crock pot? Whichever I do, it will be on the morning when I'm not still so aggravated at myself for messing up 🤪

I calculated the lye based only on the coconut oil, so there should have been enough to saponify the batch. The limonene was added in more like a fragrance.

I mixed up coconut oil and limonene for a 4 lb batch of stain sticks today. Added the lye water and expected all that coconut oil to trace quickly. It didn't. I stick blended and blended, but it was taking a long time. It appeared emulsified and thicker, so I went ahead and poured into the...

Much more my style! :hippo:

I can get palm shortening at a great price at the ChefStore (Cash 'n' Carry) but it doesn't say it's RSPO. People around here are really fussy about the use of palm oil, and I couldn't vouch for it being sustainable without that certification. Frustrating.

Kudos in advance to everyone doing the Layer challenge. I tried my hand at a 6-layer Pride soap and have a new respect for the difficulty and patience it takes to get perfect layers. Good luck to all!

After 3 years, my old faithful Chefman SB developed a loose shaft and was creating air bubbles. I found this Cuisinart Smart Stick on Amazon Renewed for $29.99! It's being delivered this morning. I'm a happy camper :-) There are several more available at this great price...

And what was this next-to-you vendor vending? Tin foil hats, spy cameras, anti-venom food capsules? :goodbye1:

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll check that one out. I could detect the slightest hint of mango in my soap under the hot water, but the dry bar itself seems unscented to my nose. Frustrating, the FO smelled so delicious OOB.

Took a shower with my new coconut milk soap today. It's only 2 weeks old but I couldn't wait to try it. Loved it -- super sudsy, bubbly with rich lather. But so disappointed the coconut-mango fragrance has almost completely faded. Forever in search of a good coconut FO.

So many terrific entries this month! Congrats to the official winners, and I think they're all winners! 🏆

This is the article I ran across recently that talks about the 2 ways of making colloidal oats, the Dry Way and the Wet Way. Interesting read! BTW, Bob's Red Mill Oat Flour is made from the whole grain including the bran.

@Ephemerella That is the saddest funny story I've heard in a long time! I've had batches go like that, except for the bear part. You pulled it all together in the end -- impressive! I wonder if you could have used all that bear slobber as a water replacement in a future batch?

Not only does EOcalc do the calculating for you, all of their blends I've tried have been hits! It's a treasure of a tool!

Which recipe did you settle on using? Would you mind sharing it? I made one with just the CO and 0%SF, but I'd like to add some oomph to it. I've got limonene on order. Not sure yet about using borax and/or washing soda, or maybe citric acid.

PS-80 usage is confusing to me. It is water soluble, yet Humblebee & Me says, "Include polysorbate 80 in your oil phase; it can be hot or cold processed." Seems like it could be a useful ingredient in a stain stick but I'm not sure of the best way to incorporate it. In water (as part of the...