1st time cp storing issue

[whitewitchbeauty]

Sunday i took a 4 hour CP Soap Making class. I made 4 different soaps. I was told to keep them sealed in their container mold in a dark covered place for 48 hours, i did. I took them out and uncovered, as taught in the class, and put them high up in my linen closet. Im to leave them there 6 weeks. Is this okay?

 

[IrishLass]

Just as long as they have some air circulation and they are not sitting on un-lined metal shelving, they should be fine.


IrishLass

 

[cmzaha]

If you are going to cut your soaps you will want to cut them when they feel firm. When curing for a min of 4 weeks it is best if they are somewhere where they will get airflow. Cookie cooling racks work well when you just have a few, but it is best to line the racks with even wax paper, some use needlepoint plastic, etc. I used to just put mine in shallow cardboard boxes when I first started and they would cure fine. Most important they need air and do not put on unlined metal racks. Some dollar stores have handy stacking shelves made from plastic

 

[whitewitchbeauty]

Ok. So i should take them out of the plastic container? I just removed the plastic wrap covering them. What about dust and cat hair?

 

[snappyllama]

You can put some cheesecloth over them to help with the dust/hair but still let them breathe.

 

[Seawolfe]

You can cover them loosely with mesh, paper or cloth, but they can't cure if they do not have air circulation.

Just to be clear, this is for cold or hot processed soap, melt and pour needs to be sealed from the air.

 

[Misschief]

You have taken the soap out of the molds, right? Just to be clear.

 

[whitewitchbeauty]

I haven't, i wanted to wait and see what advice i got from experienced before i made a choice. Im taking them out, one is soft still but the rest are hard. Im putting them on card board and a cheesecloth tent. Little campers Thank you!

 

[Susie]

If this is indeed CP soap, it is almost too late to unmold and cut. Are they loaves or bars

 

[whitewitchbeauty]

Oops

 

[whitewitchbeauty]

oat and honey aka gloopy red ****oo

the gentle face soap. Looks ok

the beeswax soap aka The Blob

vegetable soap aka Purple Monster

 

[whitewitchbeauty]

I was told to leave them in exactly in their molds wrapped up in the dark for 48 hours.

 

[not_ally]

What was your recipe? Except for the face soap, these all look pretty soft after 48 hrs, although that is not unheard of. I would have waited for longer to unmold to see if they firmed up. In addition, the vegetable soap and the beeswax soap seem to have little dots/blobs of unincorporated stuff in them, was that on purpose? Also, I don't get the keeping them in the dark thing. You don't want them to be exposed to direct sunlight when curing, but the focus on the dark seemed odd.

Where did you find this class? I am surprised to see a beeswax soap included in a beginner class, that is something that takes a bit of experience and not something I would think would be necessarily good.

ETA: above was rushed b/c I was late to get take-out before the restaurant closed. Changed a bit.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

I was more amazed at four soaps in four hours! But still......

So are these individual size soaps, or should you cut them at some point? If the "teacher" was using such soft recipes then the suggested waiting times would make sense.

It's such a shame that a lot of what I see from soaping classes seems to do more harm than good

 

[whitewitchbeauty]

Here are the recipes we were given.



I want to learn and get awesome at this. Seeing so many posts with beautiful soaps, some of these are artistic and mastered- it is inspiring. I like seeing the mistakes and debates, all good things. I don't see them as mistakes just part of the learning process. Peace!

 

[whitewitchbeauty]

Some of them have additives like herbs the instructor brought in. He wanted us to try so we could learn from doing. I had fun and met a few nice people.

 

[lenarenee]

Well I'm glad you met some great people and enjoyed the class. With some research and more practice you soon be making great soap.

I suggest you start with the idea that soap recipes need to be in grams, and using a soap calculator is a must. I use soapcalc.net.

Another must is to learn more about soaping from qualified sources - Youtube has Soaping101 videos which are very well done, and this forum has lots of information - and even more talented soapers who are eager to help you learn.

I know that soon - one of those talented and more experienced soapers will be along soon and give you more detailed info than I have. Sorry, but I've been up at 4:30 the past several mornings and my brain has stopped cooperating with me!

Don't give up - research, ask questions and soon you'll have soap you're proud of!

 

[Susie]

First off, soaping does not have to be in grams. It is much more precise than ounces for fine measurements, that is true, but ounces are fine as long as one uses a good digital scale.

The second issue is this: you absolutely can NOT make substitutions on oils without running the recipe back through a lye calculator. I recommend you use Soapee.com. Gives all the info SoapCalc does with a more user friendly set up and flow. Run those recipes through it and see how much lye and water you should have used for them. That recipe with 4 oz castor will take a VERY long time to firm up. I would not consider that anything resembling a beginner recipe.

Thirdly, the beginner forum here is chock full of great info. I, too, would suggest you watch some Soaping 101 videos. Good Earth Spa is also a good one to watch. Stay away from any videos that tell you that Hot Process soap is ready to be sold in less than a week. It is not, and her other practices are not safe.

 

[whitewitchbeauty]

Should i throw it all away? Or just the one's I substituted ingredients with? Thanks for the advice and links.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

With that much water, any excess lye is likely to go away over time so you aren't likely to have to throw them away (although you might not like using them).

Will echo the above - start off with

60% lard or palm
20% olive oil (or 25% if you don't use castor)
15% coconut oil
5% castor (if available)

run that through a lye calc and then have at it! From this base you can learn HOW to make soap while still having usable soaps. Then look at how to formulate recipes and the world is your soapy oyster