advice

[Noreen Moore]

The old boy made me a nice oak soap slicer!! Looks super professional! Then he stained the wood.
Does polyurethane hold up to lye?

 

[Relle]

No, issues here, from my homemade one, dh varnished mine, with what I don't know. I cut my soap maybe 3 days after pouring.

 

[Noreen Moore]

AWESOME! Thanks so much!!!! Can't wait to use this!

 

[Kcryss]

What did he use for the wire? I watched a video where she used 24 gauge from home depot, but a commentor recommended using piano wire.

 

[Noreen Moore]

Banjo strings! My son kindly donated to the cause!

 

[Relle]

Dh used MIG (metal inert gas) wire on mine, it's S/S. No complaints.

 

[Relle]

The old boy made me a nice oak soap slicer!! Looks super professional! Then he stained the wood.
Does polyurethane hold up to lye?

Just asked dh, Noreen and it was polyurethane that he used. I've had mine a few years now and still as good as the day it was made. I'm sure yours will last the distance too.

 

[Noreen Moore]

Wow! What a nice slicer! Woke up @ 5 this morning to the old boy slicing an oops bar into miniscule little pieces! The addiction has now spread to the household! The son has helped pour, old boy too! The boys cut my 2 foot PVC pipe in half for me! One is full of soap we poured last night and the other lined and ready to go!
Now to try to instill patience into these people is a chore! It has only been 12 hours since the pour! Not time to unmold!

 

[CathyB]

Long time guitar play here, new to soaping. Find a player, and ask for the E and B strings when he/she changes them. Maybe put a post on Craigslist. Make sure you get steel or phos bronze, not wrapped, and not gut. Couple of pieces of wood or dowel, and a cutter is made.

Another idea I haven't tried: You can "recycle" your strings at Music Center. They collect them then send them back to the manufacturer who does some magic to keep them out of landfills. I wonder if they would be willing to give a person one or two. No sale loss to them. Do orchestra kids change strings? So many options now that I think of it!

 

[TheGecko]

The addiction has now spread to the household!

When I first started, my youngest daughter was fairly ambivalent about it. Then came that first bar of Chocolate Espresso and she, who doesn't even drink coffee, stole my sample bar at four weeks ("I just I would test it for you Mom." In return for a regular supply, she washes up the last batch of soaping equipment AND returns it to my cart ( have a rolling kitchen island for soaping). I did note that my last two fragrance orders, I barely got the box opened before she was opening and sniffing bottles and providing suggestions for colorants and designs. And I have noted that the sample bottle of Dragon's Blood is sitting in the center of my cart.

My husband had been quietly supportive...happy when I was happy when things went right, sad when I was sad when things didn't go right...hauling in boxes of ingredients without a word. He helped me pick out a rolling kitchen island and even put it together as a surprise; he went out and bought me several restaurant quality tarys for curing soap; he put up a shelf over the island for colorants and scents; he bought and set up and even moved all my soaps and supplies to a new shelving unit in the garage. Then I made a test batch of Cantaloupe Soap and he started looking at a soap cutters and log splitters and 25lbs molds and..... I just cut an entire 2lb batch of Cantaloupe yesterday for him with my new (to me) soap cutter.

 

[Noreen Moore]

 

[Noreen Moore]

Now known as "The meatloaf slicer" by the old boy!

 

[Noreen Moore]

@TheGecko
I am really surprised how "into" this the old and baby boy are! My son posts pics on Facebook of my Soaps and now his friends are asking how much, can they buy, are they vegan? And everyone thinks I am starting a business! I get a good chuckle! I'm just playing!
Now a box came yesterday! Old boy bought me 3 lbs of Kokum butter and more sodium lactate! Then he tells me 2 lbs of NaOH is coming and a whole pound of titanium dioxide!

A whole pound?????

 

[pacchiraku]

A thought on wire for soap cutters: The wire potters use to cut through clay are a nice heavy gauge. I have a few lying around I will use as soon as I can find “plans” to build myself a cutter.

 

[dixiedragon]

Gorgeous. Stop bragging about your handy husband

 

[cmzaha]

It is probably better he sealed the wood. Oak is one of the woods, if I remember correctly, that turns dark from soap. I think it has to do with tannins in the wood. Since I am not a woodworker I am not positive but I know for sure Black Walnut is a wood you do not want to use for anything soap.

 

[TheGecko]

A whole pound?????

It'll last you a while for sure.

 

[dibbles]

I know for sure Black Walnut is a wood you do not want to use for anything soap.

Why not Black Walnut? Because of damage to the wood, or a problem with the soap?

 

[Millie]

Ok Noreen, I'm totally jealous of your awesome husband and son. Happy soaping ♡

 

[dixiedragon]

Why not Black Walnut? Because of damage to the wood, or a problem with the soap?

I think I've heard of the color leaching out of black walnut. Also, it's expensive stuff!