Molds?

[One_Shining_Star]

I want to make my first batch of soap, and I'm wondering about molds. I want to use some kind of reusable tray and cut the bars of soap.

How's about this one? http://www.goplanetearth.com/molds_slab_misc.html It's just a little down the page "18-bar Rectangle Grid Slab Tray $19.95
Item 111"

And where do you buy your fats, oils, and fragrance oils?

 

[heartsong]

x

hi there!

that seems like a nice enough mold, tho i've never tried one of those. are you sure you want to start with something that large? i know when i first started out i had a few flops before things started evening out. also i liked a smaller mold so i could try many recipes without a ending up with a gazillion bars-some good, some so-so.

i started out using the 1 quart waxed paper milk cartons-i cut the top off and after the soap processed all i had to do is tear the paper away. pringles chips also make great molds lined with wax paper. and the large velveeta cheese box works well, too.

walmart has olive oil-great value brand-i personally like it better than virgin, lard, crisco, coconut (louana). you might check to see if you can get lye locally.

i buy a lot of fragrance oils from www.soapsupplies.net there is a flat $7.95 shipping rate. i love her mandarin II orange!

i buy most of my oils from www.soaperschoice.com they have wonderful service and you can buy all the oils by the gallon.

look in the soapmaking recipes and tutorial forum here-there is a recipe for "walmart soap" which makes a very nice soap to get you started.

hope this helps a bit. have fun soaping!

 

[One_Shining_Star]

Thanks, I bookmarked those websites. And I'm now considering a loaf mold, that looks pretty easy to use.

 

[heartsong]

x

almost forgot!

this is a great site for info, ideas and inspiration:
www.soap-making-essentials.com

i like the wooden loaf molds. if i had my druthers, i'd get one that had the bolts and wing nuts on the ends so you could slide your soap out easily. don't have a site-just google "wooden soap molds" and start looking. you can line the molds with contact shelf paper or waxed butcher paper.

happy soaping!

 

[rubyslippers]

Hi & welcome One_shining_star!
I've had good luck in ordering supplies from wholesalesuppliesplus - they have really competitive prices on their oils, butters and essential oils. Shipping is kinda high but they have fast service. I'm new to soaping so have not invested in a lot of molds yet (I only have one Milky Way mold); generally use a good sturdy cardboard box lined with freezer paper. It really works great.

 

[One_Shining_Star]

Thanks!

 

[gekko62]

This thread has some good ideas

http://soapmakingforum.com/forum/viewto ... hlight=box

Do a search for molds & heaps will come up.Search is yr friend~Someone last week mentioned a range of very reasonably priced wooden molds in the US.

Or you could try your hand at making one wood/glue/screws...voila!!

Most of mwm's trays hold 1lb approx,so they're quite a good choice too

Good luck with your 1st batch.We'd all love to see the piccies when yr done

 

[artisan soaps]

..

 

[xyxoxy]

Yes for your first couple of batches you can probably find something suitable around the house to use. There will be lots of time and temptation later on to spend money so save where you can now.
For my first batches a friend loaned me 2 plastic containers that formerly held Hershey's cocoa powder. They had a hole cut in the bottom to pour in the soap and the lid popped off for unmolding. I also had some scrap PVC pipe that I used and have since used variations of PVC almost exclusively.

And smaller batches are better to begin with. My first batches were 8# each because I didn't know better. You waste lots of materials that way if you make a mistake... ask me how I know.

 

[soapbuddy]

Chase Soap molds and Spinning Leaf have some nice plastic molds too. Be aware that the plastic molds in that link that you posted don't work in the oven. They will warp.

 

[ChrissyB]

For my first batch of soap I used an empty washed out milk carton. It worked great.