Made first Batch yesterday!

[Kittish]

I'm not getting a picture, just this. Is it my phone?

It's Photobucket. They recently changed their terms so to be able to use them for 3rd party hosting, you have to pay them something like $300 or $400 a year.

 

[wickedblonde]

It's Photobucket. They recently changed their terms so to be able to use them for 3rd party hosting, you have to pay them something like $300 or $400 a year.

That's just peachy I'll have to wait on more pictures. What's everyone using now?

 

[penelopejane]

That's just peachy I'll have to wait on more pictures. What's everyone using now?

You can directly upload images to this site using the "manage attachments" button on the bottom of a reply screen. Scroll down a bit.

 

[SaltedFig]

That's just peachy I'll have to wait on more pictures. What's everyone using now?

wickedblonde, Angie from admin has posted up a patch that's available for the Chrome web browser, so we can peek at your photo with that until you can re-post it.

Angie's link to the patch is here:
http://www.soapmakingforum.com/showthread.php?t=64189&page=2

Uploading is the easiest way to display your photo; then it becomes a permanent part of your post as well (instead of getting lost if some third party decides to change the rules ...)

 

[wickedblonde]

It's been a week now. I cut into it...it's not ready I thinks...it gelled, didn't it?

 

[penelopejane]

Yes it looks like it gelled.
The texture is a bit odd. I don't think it's the oatmeal or the clay (although I think you added too much) I don't think you soaped hot enough because it looks like there are little bits (white clumps) of unmelted hard oils in there.

 

[wickedblonde]

The pictures are not showing what I'd like them too, bah. Anyway, it's still sticky where there is a different color (off center). Those white clumps are just oatmeal that got cut. I poked them out to see!

So since it looks reasonable gelled for sure. How long will it be before I should cut the rest of it? I feel like I will be cutting it every week to test it?

Edit: another question; I read that clay can give a false trace. Could that still happen after 1.5hrs?

 

[penelopejane]

If it's sticky in patches it wasn't properly mixed.
It might cure at different rates and have sort of sunken patches.

When you use oatmeal process it in a food processor
Until it's like flour.

I have no idea how 1 1/2 hours compares to 5 mins SB except to say this wasn't mixed properly.

 

[wickedblonde]

I did process the oatmeal in my coffee grinder. One was super powdery and the other was a little more course.

Not mixed properly...it was all melted and no clumps. That would have left the temperature of the oil as being my possible issue. No I didn't use a thermometer, but figured it being rather warm through my container and pants to be sufficient. I had to go hot to melt the beeswax.

So what does that leave me with? Rebatching?

 

[SaltedFig]

Ok, just a couple of thoughts (it's 8am on Saturday here), just about to finish making my coffee ...

It looks like you have partial gel. That's the ring in the middle, where the green is intensified and there is a slight mottled look. The outside ring looks a little more opaque and less green.

You used quite a lot of water in your recipe, by the look of it. You didn't post your water information in the original recipe, what was it?

The soap will lose it stickiness as it cures, the stickiness is from cutting too early. Now that it is out of the mold, it should dry out a little quicker. Try again in about 12 to 24 hours.

With the speckles (not the oatmeal bits, the white spots), to me they look like "stearic spots", which do happen at cooler soaping temperatures. You might have started out warm, but with 1 and a half hours stirring, the soap would cool, leading to the speckled look.

You have a soap that you will be able to use. You don't need to rebatch. If you wanted to, you could also form it into other shapes with your gloved hands in a day or three (it could make some cool looking soap rocks too!).

Let us know what you think of how it feels, once you try it out :smile:

 

[penelopejane]

I did process the oatmeal in my coffee grinder. One was super powdery and the other was a little more course.

Not mixed properly...it was all melted and no clumps. That would have left the temperature of the oil as being my possible issue. No I didn't use a thermometer, but figured it being rather warm through my container and pants to be sufficient. I had to go hot to melt the beeswax.

So what does that leave me with? Rebatching?

No this will be fine! It may just still be soft and cure perfectly. It's difficult to tell exactly from photos.

If you like the clumps then keep doing what you are doing.

Yes bees wax and other hard oils (cocoa butter, coconut and shea) you used need heat to keep them from saponify too early and making dots (stearic spots) the soap. Even if they look clear when you melt them
when you add them to room temp oils they can go "hard" again. You won't see it until you cut the soap- it will look perfect as you mix it. Just soap a little hot next time if some of the spots are not oatmeal.

It looks great in the photos. You can cut when the knife goes through nicely without sticking.

Posted at the same time as salted fig!

 

[Obsidian]

I don't think there is anything wrong with your soap. The white bits look like oatmeal to me, I've seen bigger pieces show like that when cut.

If its firm enough to cut, cut it now. The sooner it can start drying and curing, the sooner the sticky will go away. I've had sticky soap like that when gelling a high OO soap and using a high amount of water.

You mentioned you added the oatmeal at the wrong time but there really isn't a wrong time. As long as you can get it completely mixed into the soap, its good. I prefer to mix all additive into the oil before the lye but at trace is fine too.

 

[SaltedFig]

I don't think there is anything wrong with your soap.

^^^ This!

 

[Relle]

No, I see the same thing as you. The picture was there yesterday...

You can't link to Photo bucket anymore, there's no 3rd party uploading.

 

[wickedblonde]

Sooooo...it's been about 6 months! My bf got too anxious back in January and had to use one then! I don't think he'll go back to any sort of store bought unless Lush brings back the mud one I had him using! I understand the "slimy" bit about now lol

Here are some updated pictures! And yes I know the bar has that lye Ash on it

 

[SaltedFig]

Oooh~ ... I missed your update photo's!

Your bf's conversion to your first soap is a total compliment, congratulations!

What did you end up thinking of it?

 

[Relle]

Oooh~ ... I missed your update photo's!
Your bf's conversion to your first soap is a total compliment, congratulations!
What did you end up thinking of it?

SF, wickedblonde hasn't been in, in 2 months.

 

[SaltedFig]

Missed that, thanks for the heads up Relle.