dxw
Well-Known Member
I am a brand-new noob soap-maker ... first cold-process batch last weekend, and second yesterday. I live near Wellington, New Zealand, with my wife, a variable number of children, and some dogs and cats.
My motivation to start was a "surely I can fix that" response to my wife suffering skin allergy problems with most laundry detergents, coupled with teen kids leaving home for tertiary studies and living on very tight budgets. I thought I'd try and learn about making soap so I could eventually replace some of our household cleaning products with my handmade versions
Having just started to dabble I find I am also loving the chemistry and learning so much about things I'd never given a thought to ... like grapefruitseed extract and anti-oxidation / rancidity prevention. I made myself a little mould from scrap timber ... awful mitred corners but it will do for the time being, and line it with baking paper to make the blocks. I have my eye on some of those nice silicone loaf moulds with wooden boxes, but freighting costs kinda double their price right now. That can wait.
I've tidied some bench area in our outdoor shed, scoured op-shops in the area for suitable utensils, and plugged-in an old rusty refrigerator. I now have power, equipment, bench and shelf space, storage but no running water. So far so good.
My first batch was a simple 70% olive and 30% coconut oil, with around 5% over-fatting. I clearly under-scented it, using rosewater, and am a little worried about the olive oil smell - just olive oil, not rancid. It might also end up being my first attempt at melting down and remaking, so I can add more fragrance. The olive oil smell seems to be waning as it cures, maybe the rose water will come forth over time.
This one (especially the smell) also got me wondering whether I could be selective with over-fatting, perhaps by adding the desired overfat oil later in the process (edit: hmphhh, one of the sites you referred me to has debunked that theory).
My second effort was 38% olive, 32% coconut, 15% sunflower, 10% castor, and 5% shea butter. I added the shea after trace, to see how that works. Both wife and daughter love Earl Grey Tea so I tried to make this an earl grey tea soap - bergamot oil and some ground-up tea. I only just cut it this morning but it smells fantastic and the bars feel quite creamy. Fingers crossed.
I'll be scouring these forums for knowledge and ideas, and probably asking lots of questions - hopefully not too many too stupid.
(edit: p.s. and now I have read the 'culture and tone' thread I will not mention my op-shop pyrex ... while I quietly replace it. Stainless steel?)
My motivation to start was a "surely I can fix that" response to my wife suffering skin allergy problems with most laundry detergents, coupled with teen kids leaving home for tertiary studies and living on very tight budgets. I thought I'd try and learn about making soap so I could eventually replace some of our household cleaning products with my handmade versions
Having just started to dabble I find I am also loving the chemistry and learning so much about things I'd never given a thought to ... like grapefruitseed extract and anti-oxidation / rancidity prevention. I made myself a little mould from scrap timber ... awful mitred corners but it will do for the time being, and line it with baking paper to make the blocks. I have my eye on some of those nice silicone loaf moulds with wooden boxes, but freighting costs kinda double their price right now. That can wait.
I've tidied some bench area in our outdoor shed, scoured op-shops in the area for suitable utensils, and plugged-in an old rusty refrigerator. I now have power, equipment, bench and shelf space, storage but no running water. So far so good.
My first batch was a simple 70% olive and 30% coconut oil, with around 5% over-fatting. I clearly under-scented it, using rosewater, and am a little worried about the olive oil smell - just olive oil, not rancid. It might also end up being my first attempt at melting down and remaking, so I can add more fragrance. The olive oil smell seems to be waning as it cures, maybe the rose water will come forth over time.
This one (especially the smell) also got me wondering whether I could be selective with over-fatting, perhaps by adding the desired overfat oil later in the process (edit: hmphhh, one of the sites you referred me to has debunked that theory).
My second effort was 38% olive, 32% coconut, 15% sunflower, 10% castor, and 5% shea butter. I added the shea after trace, to see how that works. Both wife and daughter love Earl Grey Tea so I tried to make this an earl grey tea soap - bergamot oil and some ground-up tea. I only just cut it this morning but it smells fantastic and the bars feel quite creamy. Fingers crossed.
I'll be scouring these forums for knowledge and ideas, and probably asking lots of questions - hopefully not too many too stupid.
(edit: p.s. and now I have read the 'culture and tone' thread I will not mention my op-shop pyrex ... while I quietly replace it. Stainless steel?)
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