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  1. Charlie GYW

    Gel Candle Cloudy

    Hi everyone, I did a ton of research before making my first gel candles, to ensure I had the right temperatures, FO, wicks etc. Despite this, my first batch of 3 are cloudy when set - not freshly poured, but set/cured. There was a lot of air in them, so some online advice said to pop them in...
  2. MellonFriend

    How to Tell if it Gelled

    So, I'm having trouble understanding whether my bars gelled. The first batch, I know did because I checked on it hours after I put it in the mold and it looked wet all the way out to the edges. Now the second two batches, I'm just not sure. I checked on them about two-three hours after I put...
  3. E

    Would a preservative work in a completely water based formula?

    I’m talking about this recipe for oat hair gel. I’ve used it before and it’s wonderful, but before when I made it I knew nothing about preservatives and how refrigeration isn’t enough. Oatmeal Hair Gel Recipe For Curly Hair It’s completely “bug food,” meaning no oil, no regular water, all oat...
  4. Devivi

    Beginners gel phase question

    I’ve made two batches of cp soap so far so i am obviously still learning! Sorry this is kind of long... My first batch of soap (coconut sunflower and olive oil) i mixed when the lye water was still rather warm to the touch, placed the mix into a glass bowl (pyrex brand) wrapped in an old cotton...
  5. Zing

    First time it didn't gel, questions

    Soap people, I'm having a new experience and could use your wisdom. On Saturday I made soap using my long-time tried and true recipe including sodium lactate. Here's the ONLY thing that was different than other times: I soaped at room temperature (my normal is 100+ degrees F) and my soap did...
  6. Todd Ziegler

    Color disappeared

    Ok I did my first coloring of CP and it just disappeared. I used just a little over half a teaspoon of mica mixed with some of the oils I was using in the recipe but it just disappeared. I used a little sodium Lactate along with the recipe bellow and pumice. The soap looks just fine so far but...
  7. Anstarx

    Gelatinous lye water

    I made a batch of horse oil soap yesterday and used kumis (fermented mare's milk) as my water. Since it's an alcoholic drink, i boiled it down and threw in some sugar for lather. I froze it to a slush and added my lye. As soon as I added my lye it started to turn yellow and red. Eventually it...
  8. T

    Mixing natural colors/gelling goat milk and purple?

    Hi...newbie here. I have a two-fold (or 10 fold LOL)question. I want to attempt to make a white goats milk soap (main portion) with purple swirls (small portion). I have infused olive oil with alkanet root. I understand that when using color infused oils, I will substitute that for plain...
  9. F

    Help me with Shower gel please :)

    Hi, I would like to make my own shower gel recipe that has specific ingredients without all of the other nasty chemicals found in stor bought soaps. I specifically want to make shower gel/liquid soap and not bar soap since I don't like the thought of bacteria/mold growing on my soap overtime...
  10. K

    Do these look like glycerin rivers?

    hi! More woes with scaling up to large batches of goat milk soap. Had great success with 62 lbs batch, but now at 110 lbs, it looks like this (see pic). Here’s the backstory: I’m using Shea butter, olive oil, and coconut oil. The oils were 95* Lye solution is 2% superfat mixed with frozen...
  11. A

    Recipe Adjustments and Preventing Gel

    I prefer to prevent gel in my soap. I haven't managed to do it successfully (yet), but I'm still striving for that non-gelled look. I don't care for the translucent look of gelled soap - I really want my soap to look creamy. I have read and watched professional Soapers who say if you prevent...
  12. bizarrebunny

    preventing gel with water discount

    I just read somewhere that you can use a water discount to prevent gel. Does the same apply if I'm using coconut milk instead of water? Thanks Zoe
  13. bizarrebunny

    partial gel in cut soap

    I just cut a slice of my first soap in half to make it a better size and discovered that it looks like it partially gelled. But I'm confused because the gelled part is running down the centre of the sliced soap. There was no sign of gel when I first cut the soap, 24hrs after I made it, so the...
  14. E

    HP soap turned to jelly overnight :/

    I used canola oil, coconut oil, and olive oil at 12, 5 , and 15 oz then threw in lye at 4 oz. it came to a nice trace with temperatures around 120-125. Upon reaching trace, I added a tbs of dark cocoa powder and a tsp of cinnamon and stirred those guys in. Everything looked fine and creamy when...
  15. V

    For Crafts Sake Vertical Mold

    Is anyone currently using the vertical 25# mold? I have now made 5 batches in this mold and cannot get full gel. The center gets so hot it heaves up and cracks the top but the gel never reaches into the corners. After 18 years of soap making, I am truly frustrated. As recommended by the company...
  16. L

    Partial Gel Surprise

    Hi All, Here's hoping I can make more contributions to this great forum! I wanted to share a photo of a soap I made a few months back. It was made with: Cocoa butter, 5% Coconut oil, 20% Olive oil, 30% Sunflower oil, 45% I superfatted @ 5%, added no colorant, but did add Tahitian...
  17. S

    Liquid soap from paste - help.

    Hey everyone, This is my first post in the forums so you'll have to bare with me. I've been making soap since the start of the year. I make M&P and CP, and have also made liquid soap previously. This time I decided to use a store bought liquid soap paste from probably the most reputable...
  18. E

    CP Batch Not Heating Up - Will It Gel?

    Hello again everyone :) I've been looking forward to trying a swirl for SO long, and I finally attempted it this evening. I got to a light trace (I'm relatively new at this, but I'm pretty sure), added my essential oils, separated into containers to add colorants, molded it up (5 lb wooden...
  19. S

    Can anyone troubleshoot the dots and streaks??

    I have sucessfully made thirty or so batches of goats milk soap, but my last few are coming out with semi transparent streaks and dots. They appear more often in bars cut from the middle of the mold. There is no change in the appearance of the top surface. The soap's pH values are perfectly...
  20. M

    My soap exploded in the mold??

    Hello.. I made 4lbs of Gingerbread Pumpkin soap tonight. I poured half into a 2lb mold that I've used several times before with no issue and the other half into a cardboard box lined with parchment paper. I checked on it 25 mins after pouring into molds and the cardboard box mold soap looked...
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