gelling milk soaps

[dragonmaker]

Does anyone have experience gelling a milk soap? I have not found much info on it.

 

[lsg]

The sugars in the milk will promote gelling which turns the soap a beige or tan color.

 

[shunt2011]

I make mostly milk soaps and always gel my soaps. I do soap just warm and lightly insulate. I do check it if it’s a new recipe. My regular recipes I know how they behave for the most part.

 

[dragonmaker]

How does milk soap look when it's in gel phase? Does it get that translucent look at all like I've seen in pictures, or does it stay creamy looking? If it stays creamy or matte, how can you tell when it enters gel phase?

@shunt2011 Do you happen to have pictures you don't mind sharing? I'm a visual learner, so a picture would help.

Also, @shunt2011 how warm is your warm soaping?

 

[shunt2011]

This is a couple of them. Stay light beige. By warm I just touch the side of the container. I don’t take a temperature. Maybe 80 degrees. But that’s just guessing.

 

[dragonmaker]

Those are gorgeous!

 

[bonnyny]

Yes, Dragonmaker, some of my milk soaps turn a translucent color when gelling (heating), but then go back to the creamy opaque when cool.

 

[dragonmaker]

Cool! I want to try it sometime, then!

 

[Krboggs]

I force gel all my milk soaps and they are all a beautiful white. I usually do an all lard or tallow soap with milk, but sometimes will use other oils and then the soap changes to a creamy color. That usually depends on the essential oils and lipid oils used.

 

[dragonmaker]

@Krboggs Can you tell me more about your methods and what form of milk you use? I've never seen a white milk soap. I'm wondering how you manage it.

 

[IrishLass]

I gel all my milk soaps, too. Mine turn out a light, creamy, off-white/ ivory color like the pics in Shunt's post above. I can get them even lighter by adding some TD.

For what it's worth, I use the split method of milk soaping, which completely bypasses dissolving the lye into the milk.




IrishLass

 

[dragonmaker]

Thanks, IrishLass!

 

[Soapydaze]

Hi Irish lass. What exactly is the split method? Is it make lye as usual with water but less and add the milk into the oil I love all yere comments

 

[JillGat]

I force gel all my milk soaps and they are all a beautiful white. I usually do an all lard or tallow soap with milk, but sometimes will use other oils and then the soap changes to a creamy color. That usually depends on the essential oils and lipid oils used.

What superfat do you use with a lard/milk bar? Sounds lovely.

 

[IrishLass]

Hi Irish lass. What exactly is the split method? Is it make lye as usual with water but less and add the milk into the oil I love all yere comments

Hi Soapydaze. With the split method, I mix my lye with an equal amount of water by weight (a 50/50 solution), then add the remaining balance of my required liquid amount as fresh milk (either room temperature goat milk or coconut milk) to my oils. That will make about a 30%-ish milk soap. When I want to make a 100% milk soap with the split method, I proceed as mentioned above, but I add enough powdered goat milk or powdered coconut milk to the fresh milk portion to bring the milk concentration up to what would be 100% for my total required liquid amount for my batch.


IrishLass

 

[Catscankim]

I force gel all my milk soaps and they are all a beautiful white. I usually do an all lard or tallow soap with milk, but sometimes will use other oils and then the soap changes to a creamy color. That usually depends on the essential oils and lipid oils used.

I am curious about your lather on these. Can you share your recipe

 

[Krboggs]

1st, your oils will depend on the color of your final soap as long as you don’t scorch your milk.
2nd No, I won’t share my recipe, because it isn’t a recipe. It’s just 100% lard
3rd, you freeze the milk and Ever So Slowly add your lye.
That’s it’s, no colors added. I do full water replacement, get Amazing bubbles at 5% superfat. I use a local dairy’s raw milk.

 

[dragonmaker]

Adding lye slowly is so hard, though! I can be so impatient when I can hear the baby screaming inside. (She's going through a no-one-is-as-good-at-holding-me-as-Mom-is phase)

 

[Soapydaze]

Hi Soapydaze. With the split method, I mix my lye with an equal amount of water by weight (a 50/50 solution), then add the remaining balance of my required liquid amount as fresh milk (either room temperature goat milk or coconut milk) to my oils. That will make about a 30%-ish milk soap. When I want to make a 100% milk soap with the split method, I proceed as mentioned above, but I add enough powdered goat milk or powdered coconut milk to the fresh milk portion to bring the milk concentration up to what would be 100% for my total required liquid amount for my batch.


IrishLass

It sounds really interesting Irish lass I’ll have to get my head around the math. I’ve gone back to making white.. ish non scented soap with collagen I extracted from Wexford seaweed recently and can’t wait to try one out. I love the idea of making it purely natural with no added fragrance
Have you done anything like that?
Soapydaze

 

[Roisin]

It sounds really interesting Irish lass I’ll have to get my head around the math. I’ve gone back to making white.. ish non scented soap with collagen I extracted from Wexford seaweed recently and can’t wait to try one out. I love the idea of making it purely natural with no added fragrance
Have you done anything like that?
Soapydaze

This sounds fab, love the sound of the collagen from seaweed, the gel stuff inside the bubbles of fuccus viculous?