Four Week Cures??

[dubnica]

I sometimes use soap that is 2-3 days old. I just cut the end in half and use it in my kitchen for hand washing. I do this mostly when I want to try if the soap bleeds or when it smell too good and I can't resist
But for shower use I wait till it cures. I have plenty of soap now but when I forst started it was hard to wait.

 

[calico21]

I sometimes use soap that is 2-3 days old. I just cut the end in half and use it in my kitchen for hand washing. I do this mostly when I want to try if the soap bleeds or when it smell too good and I can't resist
But for shower use I wait till it cures. I have plenty of soap now but when I forst started it was hard to wait.

THIS!

 

[opalgirl]

I always wait 4 weeks but my daughter recently grabbed a bar that was only 5-7 days old and we all used it. All of us were itchy and dry. This has never happened before. It is my same recipe that I've used for years with an FO that I've used at least 8-9 times. I'm convinced we are itchy because it didn't cure long enough. I will wait. I definitely feel a difference between fresh soap and fully cured soap.

 

[jcandleattic]

I always wait 4 weeks but my daughter recently grabbed a bar that was only 5-7 days old and we all used it. All of us were itchy and dry. This has never happened before. It is my same recipe that I've used for years with an FO that I've used at least 8-9 times. I'm convinced we are itchy because it didn't cure long enough. I will wait. I definitely feel a difference between fresh soap and fully cured soap.

This happens to me if I shower with a bar that isn't a fully cured as well... My skin will actually flake it gets so dry if I use a bar that is less than 3 weeks old.
Now, I will try it on my hands if I just cannot resist the scent, but even that is only with the scraps and only after at least 4-5 days.

 

[SideDoorSoaps]

We do a water discount and wait at least 2 weeks to cure and then test for zap. No zap, we use! But usually we only use the cut end scraps for personal use and they don't last long to begin with. But I like how hard the soap is with the WD and even after only 2 weeks.

 

[nattynoo]

Usually - a few days is all I wait here but appreciate the soap ALOT more in a few weeks. More bubbles & alot smoother. I'm with Lyn & find it hard to resist a lovely new smell.

 

[kelleyaynn]

You think waiting 4 - 6 weeks for soap to cure is hard? Try waiting for wine to age! I also make wine, and whites need a good 6 months to be good (some longer), and red wine is pretty much 18 months to a year. There are reds you CAN drink earlier, but they are better when they hit the two year mark. You end up drinking of lot of "young" wine until you build up your cellar.

 

[soapbuddy]

I always wait 4 weeks but my daughter recently grabbed a bar that was only 5-7 days old and we all used it. All of us were itchy and dry. This has never happened before. It is my same recipe that I've used for years with an FO that I've used at least 8-9 times. I'm convinced we are itchy because it didn't cure long enough. I will wait. I definitely feel a difference between fresh soap and fully cured soap.

I've had the same problem, so I just wait.

 

[evatgirl73]

I've tested ends before the cure is done, but I very rarely use the actual soaps before 6wks is up, and never sell or gift them before that. I know the soaps would be safe, just wouldn't be at their best (and for some formulas, I prefer to wait even longer for more hardness) and therefore not reflect favorably on me as a soaper.
If I try really fresh ends or even from cutting fresh logs, my skin gets a distinct unpleasant feeling, almost tingly... definitely is the fresh soap (and I always superfat at least 8%) and it stops happening around 1-2wks cure.

 

[Dennis]

C'mon, be honest. Sure, the bars stay on the shelf for weeks but are you sure you don't take some scraps when you're finished with a batch and wash your hands just to see how it feels? Sure you do. I do. My curiosity makes me check immediately. Still have all my fingers. :wink:

 

[LadyM]

Thank you Dennis, I was feeling so alone in my early soap use haha

 

[naturesphilosophy]

I usually use small scraps to wash my hands with new soap, but I have some soaps that I only love after a 12 week cure (50% OO).

HP, I wait about 2 weeks.

 

[Wilster98]

Zapping?

I'm a newbie, What is zapping?[/quote]

 

[AmyW]

Zap:
The easiest way to test soap to make sure the lye is no longer present in your bars is to touch your tongue to the bar. If there is lye present, your tongue will feel a "zap" similar to touching a 9 volt battery. It's harmless - your tongue won't be damaged or burned but you should wait at least 24 hours before testing for zap. If you don't feel a zap or tingle, there's no lye left.

 

[Healinya]

I don't share my soap until it is about 6-8 weeks old.. I want the recipients to be impressed and I think an 8 week old bar is amazing compared to a four week old bar... However, for personal use - I can't count how many times I have sliced a day old loaf and used that end piece in my next shower.

 

[dcornett]

Waiting is not a problem when you have tons of soap ready already.

 

[Maria]

I make HP and often use it the next day. When I made CP I had to wait about a week to try it or it left my skin dry.

 

[GreenScene]

I don't share my soap until it is about 6-8 weeks old.. I want the recipients to be impressed and I think an 8 week old bar is amazing compared to a four week old bar... However, for personal use - I can't count how many times I have sliced a day old loaf and used that end piece in my next shower.

Yep! That's me, exactly (although I don't wait as long as you do to share - usually 4-6 weeks). I just can't resist trying it myself sooner than that. What can I say, I'm impatient.

 

[GreenScene]

Waiting is not a problem when you have tons of soap ready already.

Oh, not for me! I could have (and have had) a ton of bars on the rack and still not be able to resist using the end piece the day after cutting. Well, I don't really try very hard to resist in the first place...

 

[dcornett]

Waiting is not a problem when you have tons of soap ready already.

Oh, not for me! I could have (and have had) a ton of bars on the rack and still not be able to resist using the end piece the day after cutting. Well, I don't really try very hard to resist in the first place...