Is soap fine in the mold for a week?

[Ugeauxgirl]

I meant to make soap today but didn't get to. Tomorrow is the day before we leave on a trip. I probably won't have time to unmold it before I go. Will it be okay for a week in the mold?

I can't think of why it wouldn't be, but I've never been able to wait much longer than a day before!

 

[TheGecko]

Yes. I'd place a tea towel over the top to keep out any dust.

 

[Obsidian]

The only issue I could forsee is the soap getting too hard to cut

 

[cmzaha]

I agree with Obsidian. The soap will be fine, but depending on your recipe, you may not be able to cut it, I know I would not be able to cut mine after a week. But you could try to soften it in the oven before cutting.

 

[Ugeauxgirl]

Soap turned out fine and was easily sliced with my wire cheese cutter. It was fun to have soap to slice when I got home!

 

[Zing]

I like both of them but especially that blue! What were your colorants?

 

[Ugeauxgirl]

I like that color too. The blue is Siren's Song mica from Nurture Soap. The yellow was yellow vibrance and the green is savage garden both from NS.

 

[squarepancakes]

Late to the party, but I usually have my soaps in the mold for 1 to 2 weeks as I soap at a studio only on weekends. My country is rather warm and humid so depending on my recipe, sometimes the loafs are still a little soft and tacky when trying to unmold.

 

[Zany_in_CO]

sometimes the loafs are still a little soft and tacky when trying to unmold.

Even in a humid climate like Singapore's, your batch shouldn't be soft and tacky after a week in the mold... unless you're making a recipe with a high % of liquid oils like olive oil???
To adjust your recipe for a more balanced bar and better results:

BASIC TRINITY OF OILS

 

[squarepancakes]

Even in a humid climate like Singapore's, your batch shouldn't be soft and tacky after a week in the mold... unless you're making a recipe with a high % of liquid oils like olive oil???
To adjust your recipe for a more balanced bar and better results:

BASIC TRINITY OF OILS

Thanks for your concern, that said, I'm not sure how familiar you are with my climate? We have an average of 80% humidity daily year round. In fact, last month there were a couple of weeks where it rained almost daily bringing the humidity up to about 95%. My recipe is a tried and tested one, with 30% of OO so when I say the only variable is the weather, it really is. Same recipe, same batch of oils etc.

Interestingly enough, from my observation, even bars that are 8 weeks into curing that were dry and hard can get affected by the humidity with some of them ending up getting a slight sticky layer on them due to rainy weather.

 

[Zany_in_CO]

I'm not sure how familiar you are with my climate?

As it happens, I've been to Manila and Baguio to visit friends while we were living in Hong Kong '68-'70 and '88 - '89. I wasn't making soap at the time but what I do remember most about the humidity is that, within minutes of going outside, DH's shirt became dripping wet with persperation.

That's what I was thinking about when I suggested re-formulating.

I'm lucky. I'm in Colorado where we have the opposite problem -- dry climate, low humidity. I often wonder what people in high humidity areas like yours do to keep their soaps from getting sticky? Maybe @Dawni will pop in with some advice...

 

[squarepancakes]

As it happens, I've been to Manila and Baguio to visit friends while we were living in Hong Kong '68-'70 and '88 - '89. I wasn't making soap at the time but what I do remember most about the humidity is that, within minutes of going outside, DH's shirt became dripping wet with persperation.

That's what I was thinking about when I suggested re-formulating.

I'm lucky. I'm in Colorado where we have the opposite problem -- dry climate, low humidity. I often wonder what people in high humidity areas like yours do to keep their soaps from getting sticky? Maybe @Dawni will pop in with some advice...

It's interesting how our weathers and climates can make even the exact things require so much more subtle thought! Yes the humidity here can be a bit crazy to deal with - I was a professional baker years back and we would somedays adjust our recipe depending on the weather. Even when I bake macarons at home, I usually need to turn on the air-conditioner and wait almost 8 hours before my macarons air-dry.

I appreciate your feedback regarding my recipe but I do notice that my experience is similar to others who soap in my studio - rainy weather after pouring tends to cause soaps to take longer to properly unmold. That said, it's nothing some cure time can't solve. Most of us usually have a fan or a dehumidifier in the room where we cure my soaps. Some friends also suggested to shrink wrap the soaps that are ready to prevent the humidity from getting to them after.

I'm itching to try making castile soap but for the reasons you mentioned (soft oils taking long to harden) have yet to do so.