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LOL when I was at the "scared to pour oil directly in the soap batter" stage, I would fill disposable cups with 2 oz increments of colored and uncolored oil. That made it easy to see how much I had used and how much I had to go. Any I didnt use went back in their containers.

I really like that soap wearytraveler! I think the colors are lovely and I can see why you don't like the air pockets from a technical point of view, but aesthetically I think it makes them really interesting - like geodes. Anyway here was my attempt ages ago in a poor quality pic - I was...

Here is a funny suggestion for eating out with kids, but my nephew loved it - sushi!! Small plates that come quickly, lots of different things to try. Even the edamame and soup are kid friendly. If anyone doesn't like raw fish, get tempura rolls, if anyone doesn't like seafood, get tamago (egg)...

In general - they have good prices, usually decent quality, but they aren't known for their customer service. That's been my experience anyway. I liken them to Fry's Electronics here on the US west coast - if you know exactly what you want and are knowledgeable about it you can get great deals...

I always use litsea with my orange mixes, but citruses will always fade. My advice is to be sure to use a good base note, and I find that mixing the EO's with clay helps (though others say it doesn't). Also bear in mind that a soap that seems "scentless" can reclaim much of its scent in a hot...

I have a sneaking suspicion Susie and I share a brain, our soapy ways are the same. With natural colorants, you will never get an exact recipe that will work the same for you, there's to many variables. So create a method with that in mind.

This is what I do when trying a new color. Plus I dont add the regular OO until I get the shade that I like. So 1 oz, mix, check color, add another oz, mix and check. When you get the shade you want, you can add the rest of the uncolored OO. I hope that makes sense...

I've made some very nice soaps without castor oil, but the only soap I've not used coconut oil in is a true OO castile. I dont know where you are, but if there is an asian community anywhere near you, I would haunt their markets looking for coconut oil. I found a sweet deal on two liters of it...

Its nice receiving validation, but this is a hobby - you don't have to please anyone but yourself :)

They were quite soft, I puréed the flesh though a sieve and froze it to slushy consistency before adding the lye. If the purée seems dry you cal always add water or ice.

If I had a bottle of avocado oil lying about I would either bump that 5% to 10% (lower the Olive oil if you do) or take it out altogether and use it for a lotion or sugar scrub. But that's just me - it seems that 5% seems too little to let it shine. Otherwise I think that looks like a fabu...

I've always just figured that since they don't sell lard, they ignore it? Or maybe there's a country bumpkin non-vegetarian stigma attached to lard amongst the soaping fashionistas?

I think it also varies person to person - I have a 12 month old castile that I just love as a gentle facial bar. I detect no sliminess from it. I made a soaper friend try it and she went "ew slimy". I just think of it as really slippery :)

I got the purple below by infusing alkanet in olive oil (I think it was 2 tbsp per 8 oz mason jar, warmed in slow cooker a few hours, then cooled and strained the next day). I failed making the pattern I wanted (trace was too thick), but the color turned out nice. The batch required 11.6 oz...

Try it as written first - I think it would be nice too. I made a soap with OO 45% Palm 20% Coconut 20% Shea 10% castor 5% 4% SF With avocado pulp instead of water and french green clay, and its a really really nice soap that I am hoarding now. So I think you're onto something. Though given the...

Carolyn made a nice chicken fat soap that, to me, was similar to lard in feel. I just hate the thought of wasting the delicious duck fat on soap! I braised some cabbage in duck fat Saturday night and mmmmm.

In my head she also says it only needs a one week cure? Im with Gerry in that would make an ok laundry soap, or patio cleaner... If the Asian soapers only get 85% purity that might explain it - but my friend in China did not mention this problem when making his lard soaps (a crazy superfat...

Weeeee - I remember my first "base" recipe: 30% coconut oil, 70% Olive oil at 6% superfat. I was SURE it couldn't get any better than that. And you know what? With a good long cure it is a sweet little soap. Then I added 5% castor oil for the bubbles - oooooo. And THEN I discovered the joys of...

Those are just lovely!

I think its more about soaping and resting temperature, water amount and whether or not you gelled. I had one loaf that was full water and I didn't gel and it was 5 days before I could unmold it! For individual molds, I don't think there's any harm in just leaving them until they are ready.