Having Trouble With New Recipe

[Maink]

I wondered if anyone could provide some tips on this soap recipe.

I made it yesterday and today when I cut it, it was not a happy sight!

Dark brown oil had pooled at the bottom of the mold with streaking layers of the same oil through the bars when I cut it.

I was highly disappointed, but I thought perhaps someone could point me in a better direction.

Here's the 2 pound recipe:

Sweet Almond - 10% (3.2 oz)
Coconut - 25% (8 oz)
Olive - 10% (3.2 oz)
Lanolin - 5% (1.6 oz)
Shea Butter - 5% (1.6 oz)
Avocado - 10% (3.2 oz)
Palm - 35% (11.2 oz)
Water - 12.2 oz
Lye - 4.4 oz
EO - 2 oz
% of Oils - 38%
Super Fat/Discount - 5%

Thanks so anyone with some advice!

 

[Laurie]

Just looking at it and without entering it into soapcalc it looks like your lye is way too low. I would run it thru a calc if I were you. Do you know how?

Laurie

I ran it thru soapcalc and you are right on. I have never used avocado or lanolin, so don't know what they are like. Maybe your eo wasn't incorporated very well. Not sure. Maybe someone else can help you out.
Laurie

 

[mandolyn]

Actually, according to soapcalc.com, the lye amount is correct.
soapcalc - 4.449.

How are the batteries in your scale? Are you sure you measured correctly?

What EO did you use?

Did you mix by hand or with a SB?

At what temp did you mix?

Separation can occur when there's not enough mixing, fragrances can cause it, pouring before reaching a true trace can cause it, & of course measuring wrong or leaving something out.

Is your lye ok? Did it heat up properly when mixed with water? Did your mixed soap heat up after you poured it?

 

[cdwinsby]

The lanolin may be the reason.

As I understand it, lanolin can cause a premature emulsion. Your soap would look like it had reacted trace when in fact it hadn't.

Lanolin is a form of wax and with all waxes, you have to be careful how much you add to soap. Usually about 1 - 2% wax works well in a recipe. Maybe 5% was too much?

 

[Maink]

I'm guessing it was the lanolin as well. It was my first time using lanolin and I didn't realize you had to treat it differently. I did the recipe again without the lanolin and it turned out perfectly. I'll keep in mind the 1-2% tip on waxes for next time, though. Thanks!

 

[Barb]

my first thought would be that it seperated in the mold.

hope you didn't toss it, i would have tried to salvage it by dumping it back into my soap pot and trying to hot process it. may not be the best looking soap when you finished but it would have be n ok for hand soap at the sink.

 

[Maink]

That's exactly what I did...and yes, it was quite unattractive! I poured off the excess oil before melting it down. It's perfectly fine now and smells nice, it's just brown.

 

[digit]

It's perfectly fine now and smells nice, it's just brown.

Uuummmmm....brown soap is good, isn't it? :roll: 'Cause I gots lots of brown soap.

Hijack here - Some FO's make me nuts, but they smell sooooo good. I just got some of the vanilla stabilizer from BC, have not tested it out yet.

Digit

 

[cdwinsby]

If it ever happens to you again, save the excess liquids and rebatch those with it. Nothing wrong with your recipe so you really want to keep all the ingredients. They just failed to stay together. Brown soap can be quite lovely and it's great to use as 'bits' in other soaps as well.

I just came across an idea I'm going to try. Take small square pieces of the brown and roll them into balls. Put them in a nice white or cream batch that has thickly traced. When you cut the bars, you'll have brown circles. Cool huh?

 

[Maink]

Oh, that is cool! Thank you for that tip! What a great idea!!

 

[digit]

Brown soap can be quite lovely and it's great to use as 'bits' in other soaps as well.

I just came across an idea I'm going to try. Take small square pieces of the brown and roll them into balls. Put them in a nice white or cream batch that has thickly traced. When you cut the bars, you'll have brown circles. Cool huh?

Excellent idea! I have some Pink Sugar that I tried a reverse swirl in. Knowing the Pink Sugar would turm brown, I took out some to color pink with no FO. Did not work out, all turned brown. It is cured now.

I wonder if I could incorporate it in a new pink base. Any thoughts on how the new uncured pink soap would react with cured pieces?

Digit

 

[cdwinsby]

I think for best results, I'de use fresh soap but you could try warming the 'soap balls' gently on really low in the oven before putting them in the new base. Make sure you get full gel as well so that the new and old soap bond well.

 

[digit]

Thanks Cathy, I will give it a try. Those sweet smelling ugly brown bars sit there, mocking me, day after day.