Am I missing something?...

[SoapLushie]

Hello all,
So, my first soapmaking attempts were according to "Melt and Pour Soapmaking" by Marie Browning. I love the ideas and the info, but I am a bit confused. One recipe has you add 1 Tbs. olive oil to 6 oz. of base. I did this, and it was way too much. I've also seen recipes that call for 1 Tbs. honey to 3 oz. of base. I'm sure Ms. Browning wouldn't publish a recipe without testing it, but I'm confused by the presence of this 'misinformation'. So, is there something I'm missing? I.e., 15 years ago, were commercial soap bases more 'absorbent'? Could you add more oils and butters without losing lather? Would that much honey not affect the finished consistency of the soap? I really like a lot of the recipes, and I'm excited to try them, but I'm a bit hesitant. Why would the recipe call for way too much of an additive? Any thoughts for me? Thanks!
-Lushie

 

[AnnaMarie]

I'm not a melt and pour soaper, but I would definitely question the book you are using because at least one recipe failed and the book is apparently 15 years old. I like older books myself, but unfortunately the ideas don't always translate well. Have you seen any reviews for this book to see what other soapers are saying? Soap making is expensive enough without the "misinformation". So sorry for your trouble. Good luck to you!
Cheers!
Anna Marie

 

[lsg]

Here is my favorite book on using M&P. This lady does add extra ingredients. I have tried several of her recipes and they work wonderfully well. I think the most fixed oil she lists as an addition is 1 tsp of sweet almond and that is for 1 lb of M&P base. One of her recipes does have the addition of 2 tsp honey for 2 lbs. M&P base.

Soapmaking the Natural Way by Rebecca Ittner.

 

[lisamaliga]

'Melt and Pour Soapmaking' is a wonderful book but there are a few mistakes in measurements--usually tablespoons and teaspoons getting mixed up. I guess someone got them confused when they were editing the book. I recall the first time I noticed the mistake and thought, I hope a beginner doesn't add 1 T shea butter to 4 oz. of soap base because they'll have a mess. 1 teaspoon of shea butter to 4 oz. of soap base is the correct amount although you can actually add 1/2 teaspoon and it'll be fine.

The general rule of thumb in M&P soap crafting is that you can add up to 1 Tablespoon per pound [16 ounces] of additives.

Also, the soap bases from 2000 weren't any more absorbent then they are now!

 

[SoapLushie]

Thank you so much for your insights, everyone! They are most helpful AnnaMarie, I checked the reviews on Amazon, but nothing definitive - is there actually a soap-making book review website I am unaware of? Because that would be amazing!
lsg, your post made me smile because I *just* picked that very book up at the library! It IS quite nice - thanks for the recommendation!
lisamaglia, that explanation makes perfect sense! I remember triple-checking to make sure I was reading it right A lot of good that did me, right? ;-) Thank you for a reminder of the rule of thumb, too! A bit of belated searching of the archives taught me a lot. And I didn't truly think that bases would be more absorbent, but I AM a newbie, so.... ;-)
Anyways, everyone, I just wanted to thank you for your input! I love how helpful folks are on this website, and how incredibly much I am learning here. Thanks again!
-Lushie

 

[AnnaMarie]

Soaplushie, there is no website that I know of just for that purpose (although that would be great). I use Amazon myself for book reviews, but if there's nothing definitive, well..... Good luck on soapmaking!
Cheers!
Anna Marie

 

[SoapLushie]

Thanks, AnnaMarie! I appreciate your help and suggestions Have a great week!
-Lushie

 

[soapballs]

From my research and only from what I read since I am new to this and learning right now before I dive in head first and spend a bunch of money on supplies...so with that in mind I read this earlier and thought it was well worth making note of:

Extra oils added to your m&p base will decrease the lather, thus taking away bubbles. It is not recommended to add additional soap making oils and/or butters to m&p soaps as they will remain unsaponified.

Maybe someone with experience can touch on this as this seems to not be the case since I have read here people do use additives to the bases besides clays, colorants and FO etc. and have no problems.

Just thought I would add what I read earlier and also would like to know if this is not the case after all.

 

[lisamaliga]

As I stated above:

The general rule of thumb in M&P soap crafting is that you can add up to 1 Tablespoon per pound [16 ounces] of additives.

However, many people are happy to use a soap base as is or only adding color and fragrance.