first real seize --pics added

[ilovedoxies]

Everything was going great until I added the Just Scent Applie Chai fo. Seized up right away. I put it in the mold anyway and it was firming up really quick. I did my best to smooth it with a spoon but had to use plastic wrap to smooth the top some more.

Checked on it 20 minutes later and it's gelled. Looks like do-do.... wth?

 

[ilovedoxies]

It's oily but it smells good. Any ideas on what I can do with this?

LOL!

 

[Overthemoon]

If you don't like how it looks, never fear the rebatch. Mind you this comes from an hp'er and rebatching is pretty easy for me.

 

[ilovedoxies]

Tried the rebatching once and I made a bigger mess than I started with. I put it in a freezer bag and cooked it in a pot of simmering water. Looked like vasaline.

Do you have a special re-batching technique?

 

[Overthemoon]

I just grate it up and put it into a casserole dish and put it in the microwave. I stir every 30 seconds to a minute until tbe soap is pourable and voila.

 

[ilovedoxies]

That sounds easy enough, I may give it a try this evening. How long over all do you have it in the microwave? Does it turn back into a liquid?

 

[Overthemoon]

Depending on how much soap you put in, I usually only need 3 minutes for 5 smaller bars of shavings. Stir often.

It won't turn into a liquid but sort of a thick mash potatoe consistency.

I'm heading off to do a rebatch now. I have shavings from my 10min cook batch and I want to use up the trimmings while I'm feeling frisky.

 

[dandelion]

At least once you should try to stir beyond the "seize", I was using some tricky fo's and decided to beat the batter into submission. It went from soap on a stick to liquid to something that l;ooked like hp. The bar turned out really good.

After that I started adding the fo to the oils before the lye for cp.

 

[Overthemoon]

I almost forgot to mention. Put a lid on the casserole. Soap volcanoes can certainly happen in a microwave rebatch and the lid keeps the mess to a less disasterous level. I have my rebatch solidifying right now. Sodium lactate is amazing, even my rebatch was pourable.

 

[ilovedoxies]

Interesting. I thought for a split second to keep on mixing but I just gave up.

I may try that microwave re-batching this weekend. After you cook it, do you just spoon it over into a mold, let it cool and take it out like normal?

 

[Overthemoon]

Exactly. I cool my rebatches the same as I cool the original batches.

This is my latest batch.

The heart is a rebatch of the scraps of the slices.

 

[ilovedoxies]

I'm happy to report that my re-batch went well. I cut it into small pieces using my cheese cutter and used a double boiler on the stove. I couldn't find a microwave save dish big enough for all of it. It melted nicely and even retained it's FO. Granted it doesn't look nearly as good and smooth as yours but it is a 100% improvement upon what it looked like before.

Thank you for your advice!!!

 

[Overthemoon]

I'm happy to have helped at all. Glad you like your soap better now.

 

[madartist]

I had a large 8lb batch sieze because I used an oakmoss fragrance from Wellington. I managed to get it into a couple of molds. One came out fine, but the other was very rough around the edges. I chunked it up and made a second batch in red (subbing a southern soapers fragrance) then randomly arranged the chunks in my mold, pouring the red batch all around it. The irony is that I used the fragrance "Stonehenge" from SS (now called Lavender Twilight) and when I cut it up, several of the slices looked like this. It started out a mistake, but I LIKE it and plan to make more exactly the same way (well I'm not going to try to deliberately make my soap seize, I'll just make a batch, chunk it up and then put it in another batch)

 

[ilovedoxies]

That did turn out very nice!

I got a nice oakmoss from soapsupplies.net last summer, didn't seize at all. Smells WONDERFUL.

 

[madartist]

Thank you, that is very good to know. I love the oakmoss fragrance and was bummed that I couldn't use it. I originally asked a question on another forum, as to why this soap seized, and the general consensus was that (A) oakmoss is one fragrance that causes seizure (and they directed me to The Scent Review Board) and (B) Wellington's fragrances are always troublesome in CP. If you've had good luck with this brand of oakmoss, then I would love to try it!

 

[ilovedoxies]

It didn't seize at all. I bought a very small one ounce bottle. It's kind of on the expensive side. I used 1/2 oz per lb. It's very strong.

The first batch was a whipped soap and the last batch was shaving soap and both turned out just fine.

 

[ilovedoxies]

Here is an updated pic after the re-batch.


Looks good but it's still a little soft. Haven't used it yet.

 

[SoapyMom]

It looks good! I actually LIKE the look of a re-batch ... I purposely re-batched my unscented soap and left it a little chunky looking. I think it makes it gives it character!

See? Here's mine!

 

[agriffin]

THis is why I have a crock pot. Right after I mix my soap if I get a seize or anything else looks off... I just dump it in my crock pot and HP it. Usually turns out just fine.