Search results

I just made my first batch of pine tar soap - 20% pine tar. They are definitely more oily and mushy then my normal bars. It would have been a great experiment to wait. Maybe I'll try this next time I make pine tar soap! Sent from my iPhone using Soap Making

1. There is really no difference when you add your FO. One benefit to adding it before the lye is that you will remember it. Sometimes if things get going you might forget to add it later. 2. Letting the oils and lye water cool gives slows down the reaction (I think) and basically gives you...

Yeah, any soap high in olive oil should have a long cure (6 months minimum is best but I prefer a good year). Salt can help make the bar harder. Not sure what other properties it would add though.

Okay, I cut the soap last night and took some pics. They were still incredibly soft but after a day of sitting they are noticeable harder. Yay! I'll be honest, I haven't zap tested yet. They were too mushy and frankly I was afraid to try. I'll wait another day or so for them to firm up then...

I just want to ask about your first bar, the olive oil soap. How long did you let it cure before using? High olive oil soaps need a long cure (upwards of 6 months is best) for a really good bar. They still aren't the best lathering soaps but after a good cure they are incredibly hard, very...

Yeah I used the Bickmore brand from the local TSC and I think I'm going to be one of those weird people who like the smell. I haven't cut it yet, it's still a bit soft. It's really dark, almost black color, though it was more a milk chocolate color when I first poured. I didn't see an...

I'm another filtered tap water user. Last place I lived had very hard water and yet I never had any issues soaping. Now I live in a place with really soft water and again, no issues (though my soaps lather like crazy now!).

There are four measures. it does give a value but it's it's not really in relation to anything like soapcalc. The measures are harness, fluffy lather, stable lather, and moisturizing. The numbers it give are on a scale of 1 to 10. It has a set benchmark for each value but you can adjust...

Exactly! And the little plastic bucket thing that came with it is perfect for storing the blade until I clean it. I practice the let it sit over night until it's soap, then just rinse it method. With my other blender I was always afraid it would fall over and spill the little bit of soap...

I vote for Tooti-Frooti Monkey Dooti! Had me rolling!

First Pine Tar - Updated - Pics page 2! So I made my first batch of pine tar soap for my husband's skin issues (he finally started using my soap!!!! YAY!!!!). I did a lot of research first and the biggest thing seemed to be how fast it moved so I was prepared. I mostly used the Soaping 101...

I bought the "lite" version (non-professional - no sales) and I've enjoyed it so far. Honestly, I still use soapcal every now and then to check numbers since it doesn't have the same "measuring" system (hardness, bubbles, creaminess, etc). But I do like that I can store tons of recipes, add...

I am never going to get swirling down! Gah!!!! I thought today would be no sweat. I made Genny's shampoo recipe, minus the shea butter so it was all soft oils. Let the lye cool to almost room temp, mixed to very light trace, divided the batter and when I was adding my pre-mixed color I...

I followed Amanda's recipe and HP'd the soap. She actually mixes the pumpkin with the lye like you would a milk soap (freeze it if you are going to do this!). I also used a pumpkin pie FO from Brambleberry. They have a few and so does Peak. I can't really speak to which ones stick the best...

Yes, the milk/lye solution will get a bit thick. My understanding is the lye is beginning to saponify some of the fats in the milk. Just give it a good stir before you pour it in your oils. I usually add the oatmeal and honey after I add the lye but before trace (emulsified). You can really...

Brambleberry has a few pumpkin fragrances. I think I used this one last autumn. Dumb tip: make sure your HP soap is BELOW the flashpoint temp of the FO before adding it. Ask me how I learned that one! They've got a few others also. Peak also has a few pumpkin scents. Mind you, these tend...

Does the "use by date" on the oil not correlate to DOS? I'm just confused because I just bought a bottle of safflower oil today and the "use by date" is June 2015. That seems like a long shelf life to me! I can't tell on the bottle if it's high oleic or not. Where would one look? The...

Yup. I made a 100% coconut oil soap, 0% superfat. haven't started using it yet but the laundry soap we were using before is almost gone so probably another few weeks and I can begin using it.

In this video she explains horizontal cutting starting at minute 6. She uses a cheese cutter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AqRcmQVnBg

About a week and a half ago I made liquid soap using the glycerin method: 185 gr Olive Oil 22 gr Avocado Oil 22 gr Castor oil 43 gr KOH (0% superfat) 129 gr glycerin Didn't have any problems making the soap, let it dilute overnight. The next day I scented and bottled once cooled. I stuck...