Gearing up for batch #1!

[Luv2Soap]

Hi soap friends! First please let me say how inspired I am by seeing all of your beautiful creations - thank you! I'm planning my first soap and wanted to run it past you guys. I'm planning on doing CP soap first because I really want to get to doing those colorful swirls that I see many of you doing.

Here's what I'm thinking:
55% lard
20% olive oil
20% coconut oil
5% castor oil
Superfat: 8%

I wasn't planning on putting any fragrance in my first attempt, but I'm not sure how the soap will smell naturally. I'd appreciate any advice or suggestions you guys may have to help make this first batch a success! Oh, I plan on taking a video of my soaping so I can keep track of my progress and to have some laughs at the hiccups

I already have my coconut & olive oils so I just need to pick up the lard at the supermarket and the castor oil from CVS. I have an old stick blender that has been gathering dust for a few year which I'll use. I'm also planning on getting a 1-3 gallon bucket from the hardware store to use to mix my batch and a pyrex measuring cup for the lye mix. Getting Excited!!!

 

[Seawolfe]

I have a recipe similar to that, and I love it. I buy a lard that has no scent, and my unscented bars made from up to 80% of it have no scent as well - just soapy.
I think you will really like it Good luck and don't stress the temps, but don't soap too hot - If it were me I would aim for about 110-120 deg F.

Todays pyrex will etch from the lye - use a plastic bucket instead.

 

[cmzaha]

Rubbermaid pitchers work very will for lye.

 

[Dorymae]

To me all unscented soap smells a bit like oil. All soap whether made with lard or made with cottonseed oil, it doesn't matter. Open a bottle of corn oil and smell it, that is what soap smells like to me, only lighter.

 

[snappyllama]

Congratulations in advance on making your first batch!

You might want to do a 2lb recipe to start with. It's small enough not to worry about losing a batch but big enough that you can measure without sweating. You might want to go for the 2qt sizes of buckets. You want your container full enough so that your stick blender's head stays under the batter and doesn't whirl in a bunch of air.

 

[Luv2Soap]

Congratulations in advance on making your first batch!

You might want to do a 2lb recipe to start with. It's small enough not to worry about losing a batch but big enough that you can measure without sweating. You might want to go for the 2qt sizes of buckets. You want your container full enough so that your stick blender's head stays under the batter and doesn't whirl in a bunch of air.

Thanks for the congrats! I think this is a great suggestion. I was going to ask my husband to make me a 2 pound mold - just model the size after Brambleberry's 2# wood mold. I may or may not pick up a silicone mold to go inside to make soaping faster. Lining a mold seems really difficult to me.

 

[Luv2Soap]

To me all unscented soap smells a bit like oil. All soap whether made with lard or made with cottonseed oil, it doesn't matter. Open a bottle of corn oil and smell it, that is what soap smells like to me, only lighter.

I hear you. My husband and oldest son are scent-sitive They don't like too many smells so I was trying to go for something neutral for my first try.

 

[snappyllama]

Lining can be a pita. I love my silicon liners but have a slab mold that needs freezer paper. I must have failed the 'cut in a straight line' class in kindergarten, so I minimize the cuts I have to make. This is how I do it though there is probably a better way...

Hold my piece of freezer paper firmly over the mold and crease on the inside edges to give me a guide.
Fold the paper. On two sides I do it exactly on the crease lines - on their opposing sides I go in just a tiny bit.
Hold the paper lengthwise away from myself. I make two cuts on the lines facing towards me, turn the paper and make two more.
It looks like an upright box with flaps. I put it in the mold - flappy sides out/shiny side in. I trim down the edges so the sides can be folded over and secure with tape.

The first time it took me about 10 minutes to figure it out. Now I do it without thinking or measuring.

 

[Luv2Soap]

That doesn't sound as scary to me as I thought it was I feel better knowing that eventually it will come naturally. Thank you so much for the lining tips!

 

[Luv2Soap]

I am thinking of using Brambleberry's Lemon Verbena FO. I see that people report that it really speeds up trace so I'm planning on keeping my water % at 38%. I'm not doing any colors or swirling ...just pouring it into a 2 lb mold, covering it with a towel and letting it sit for 24-48 hours. Any other advice using a FO that speeds up trace? Should I alter my recipe at all?

 

[Rowan]

IMHO if your fragrance speeds up trace it would be better to add it to your oils before you add your lye water. It should give you a bit more time to get it in the mold.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

I would go for a single eo that does not speed trace for the first time

 

[Susie]

Good recipe. Gives a good firm bar with no bad habits. I am going to second TEG here on the EO. Do ONE EO(not FO, in case that would trigger issues in your guys). I would use Lemongrass, but that is my favorite EO. I also think it is gender neutral, so your guys should not mind.

 

[Luv2Soap]

I think you guys have a good point about the FO and switching to an EO instead. My family - immediate & extended - are probably going to be my soap test subjects so I need to find an EO that's not overpowering but still masks the scent of the lard, which I've heard can be stinky sometimes. Lemongrass sounds like a really good option Susie - do you have a particular brand that is better than others? Thanks to everyone by the way, for helping me. I feel my addiction growing already and I haven't even made my first bar of soap yet

 

[Luv2Soap]

Hi soap friends! First please let me say how inspired I am by seeing all of your beautiful creations - thank you! I'm planning my first soap and wanted to run it past you guys. I'm planning on doing CP soap first because I really want to get to doing those colorful swirls that I see many of you doing.

Here's what I'm thinking:
55% lard
20% olive oil
20% coconut oil
5% castor oil
Superfat: 8%

QUOTE]

How long would you expect this to take to harden enough to remove from a 2# soap mold?

 

[Seawolfe]

How long would you expect this to take to harden enough to remove from a 2# soap mold?

I would guess 18-24 hours if you gel and more if you don't. It also depends on the water amount, soaping temperature, phase of the moon and your planetary alignment.

 

[SoapSap]

I have a recipe similar to that, and I love it. I buy a lard that has no scent, and my unscented bars made from up to 80% of it have no scent as well - just soapy.
I think you will really like it Good luck and don't stress the temps, but don't soap too hot - If it were me I would aim for about 110-120 deg F.

Todays pyrex will etch from the lye - use a plastic bucket instead.

What brand of lard have you found that does not have any scent?

 

[Susie]

That recipe is what I use all the time. I gel my soap, and I can remove it from the mold at 16-18 hours. Sometimes I let it go to 24 depending on what is going on in my life. I have used lemongrass EO from most of the major suppliers, and love them all. I usually order it from whomever I order other items from as it is usually reasonably priced, and I save on shipping that way. I use a LOT of lemongrass, you see.

Most people can't smell lard in CP soap. I have a very sensitive nose, and can smell it UNLESS I use some sort of EO. And not more than usual amounts, or even super strong scents. Just the normal 0.5 oz/PPO.

 

[Seawolfe]

What brand of lard have you found that does not have any scent?

It's not a type, just Manteca at the local supermarket. But I hear the other kinds are good too.

Hubby insisted on an unscented batch, neither of us can smell anything in the soap, just soap.

 

[Luv2Soap]

Over the weekend I was able to buy a bucket of lard from Walmart and I found some awesome little plastic measuring cups that I plan to use when I begin swirling colors! I'll order my mold on Friday and I'm picking up the lye from Ace Hardware sometime this coming weekend. I'm so excited - next week sometime I will be making soap!!!