Help with my hearts? (pic added)

[TuxedoKat]

I'm really excited to try and make some Valentine soap with heart embeds. I have two question though and I hope someone can help.

I'm going to start on the little heart embeds today and then the finished project on Monday. I have some pink mica that is rumored to be beautiful in cold processed soap. Does it matter how much mica I put in or is it just until I see the colour I like?

And I bought a candy heart mold today that holds about twenty hearts that I could use, but I also bought a little heart cookie cutter. The cookie cutter might be aluminum or some sort of mystery metal. It's definitely not stainless steel. If I pour my base into a long flat mold, can I use this mystery metal cookie cutter to cut my hearts in 24-48 hours? Or am I going to get a nasty reaction?

 

[TuxedoKat]

So I did some more research and I'm still not sure sure on the cookie cutter but I'm thinking it should be just fine. And the mica seems to be a free for all, but one should be careful not to add so much that it stains things?

I'm going to go with that and hope I get some cute valentine day soap to post photos of!

 

[Sunny]

I would avoid the cookie cutter if it was me just because, if you are not sure what metal you are using, you can't be sure what will happen to the soap! And better to be safe than sorry!

You can usually just add the amount of mica you want, yep, until you get the color you want. It will change a little bit depending on whether you gel or not. I add a little pinch at a time (1/4 tsp, or half of that to start) until it's what I think I want.

 

[Fragola]

I have used mystery metal cookie cutter and it didn't cause nuclear meltdown.

Worst case, it will slightly stain your soap or you'll have to throw away the cutter after few uses.

The tricky part is working with soap "dough" - sticky, loses shape when handled, etc.

 

[ToniD]

I use a cookie cutter after a week, no problems. Naturally, the recipe has to be soft enough to cut that much later. I pour pretty thin to cut then.

 

[green soap]

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000M9 ... os_product

This product might work for you?

 

[reallyrita]

Green soap: that red heart silicon muffin mold is a great one to have. I have it and have used it dozens of times to make really cute soaps. If I fill almost but not quite to the top of each heart I get a nice thick soap that feels good in the hands. I have never had the color come off on my soaps from the red silicon but then, I have had this mold for a very long time. It holds not quite a lb of soap batter.

 

[TuxedoKat]

I have used mystery metal cookie cutter and it didn't cause nuclear meltdown.

 

[TuxedoKat]

Thanks for all the feedback! I was actually looking for that silicone heart shaped mold when I went to get my supplies, but they were all sold out at Michaels. That's when I picked up the plastic candy mold and the cookie cutters.

I just finished making the batch! I added the mica 1/4 tsp. at a time and I think it turned out to be a nice colour. I've popped the candy mold into the fridge and have wrapped the flat mold that I'm going to use the cookie cutter on.

The candy mold looks so cute. I love soaping.

 

[green soap]

Tuxedokat, we are all soap addicts here, show us some pictures of your hearts!

Green soap: that red heart silicon muffin mold is a great one to have. I have it and have used it dozens of times to make really cute soaps. If I fill almost but not quite to the top of each heart I get a nice thick soap that feels good in the hands. I have never had the color come off on my soaps from the red silicon but then, I have had this mold for a very long time. It holds not quite a lb of soap batter.

Thanks so much for the feedback reallyrita. I looked for silicon molds to make face soaps with salt, found some mini loaf ones that are 2x3x1 inches, I thought why not? This way I don't have to cut them like my regular loaves. Then I saw this other mold and of course could not resist. I want to use it for my rose scented soaps and color them pink. If you don't mind saying, how many lbs or grams of soaping oils do you use to fill all six heart molds?

 

[green soap]

I forgot to mention these are in transit, I don't have them yet. Otherwise, there would be soap in them already!

 

[sosocal]

FYI I found love heart ice cube molds at Ikea this week for $1.99.

 

[Sunny]

They also have small silicone heart molds at Target in the dollar section.

 

[IrishLass]

Worst case, it will slightly stain your soap or you'll have to throw away the cutter after few uses.

I'm with Sunny on this one. Worst case can be worse than that if one uses mystery metal cutters that turn out to be aluminum and you use them cut when the soap has not tested out tongue neutral yet. The formation of DOS is also a possibility.


IrishLass

 

[TuxedoKat]

Worst case, it will slightly stain your soap or you'll have to throw away the cutter after few uses.

I'm with Sunny on this one. Worst case can be worse than that if one uses mystery metal cutters that turn out to be aluminum and you use them cut when the soap has not tested out tongue neutral yet. The formation of DOS is also a possibility.


IrishLass

Ack! Ok that worried me. So I went and got the package (that doesn't say anything about what type of metal it is) then went to the manufacturer's website and it says under the web description that they are stainless steel. YAY!

But now, why didn't I just do that in the first place? We'll never know.

 

[Tabitha]

Wise choice checking it out, Tux. The word mystery and soapmaking should NEVER be in the same sentence.

 

[reallyrita]

Green Soap, in answer to your question about how much oil for the red heart mold, I guess I have to admit that I am not that precise about it. I make either one lb. batches or two lb. batches. That is what my formulas are for and when I use the red heart mold, I make up my one lb batch. So, I have 16 ounces of oils all told, then of course, the lye-water mixture, an ounce of FO and any colorant (mica or clay or oxide) that I am using. I fill each heart almost to the top and I have about 6 ounces of mixture left over and I fill up two indie molds with the left over. Of course, if I have taken a water discount then I usually can only fill one indie mold (you know, like the plastic MandP molds).

 

[green soap]

Green Soap, in answer to your question about how much oil for the red heart mold, I guess I have to admit that I am not that precise about it. I make either one lb. batches or two lb. batches. That is what my formulas are for and when I use the red heart mold, I make up my one lb batch. So, I have 16 ounces of oils all told, then of course, the lye-water mixture, an ounce of FO and any colorant (mica or clay or oxide) that I am using. I fill each heart almost to the top and I have about 6 ounces of mixture left over and I fill up two indie molds with the left over. Of course, if I have taken a water discount then I usually can only fill one indie mold (you know, like the plastic MandP molds).

Thanks reallyrita, this is helpful. 454g soaping oils gives you one or two soaps left over (over the six hearts). I have been making 1640g, 1200g, 1000g, 820 and 600g batches. Sounds like my best bet is to halve the 820g recipe (410g which is less than a lb) and this should fill all 6 molds, good!

My molds should arrive later this week.

 

[reallyrita]

Have fun, Green Soap! I just made my pink, rose-scented Valentine's Day
soap in my heart mold. I wish I had two of them!!

 

[youreapima2]

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000M9OBPY/ref=ox_ya_os_product

This product might work for you?

I found similar item at Target in the $1.00 section. The entire mold holds approximately 12 oz, and they create approximately 1-1.5 inch deep hearts

Target also had smaller heart silicone molds (like ice cube type) in the $1.00 section.