My soaping adventures!

[Hawksquill]

I was inspired by @KiwiSoap 's lovely idea to have a thread documenting their soaping journey. I've been using a Google doc and spreadsheet, but it's hard to keep track of my lengthy notes and match the batches with the photos on my phone. So I figured I'd put my thoughts, photos, and experiences here to bring together all my sloppy notes and also get feedback from you lovely people, who have been so helpful to me.

Context: I took a M&P soaping class last fall and had a lot of fun. The instructor originally planned to cover M&P, HP, and CP, but the school wouldn't let her use lye in the classroom because of safety/insurance concerns, so she encouraged us to explore other methods on our own. I started CP on my own and have made several batches, experimenting with colorants and fragrances, and just yesterday made my first attempt at layering. The oils I've primarily used so far are palm, CO, OO, sweet almond, castor, and cocoa butter. I'm potentially interested in trying out palm-free recipes in the future, but I'm a bit intimidated by the cost and making sure the soap is hard enough.

My soaping bucket list:
1. Zany's Castile recipe
2. Swirls
3. Experimenting more with natural colorants (have tried cayenne and paprika so far)
4. CP-stable mica (my very first CP batch, my husband bought me mica as a gift but didn't check whether it was CP-stable, so there was a lot of discoloration!)
5. Getting more complex with EO blends, as right now I'm only using 1-2 at a time
6. Trying palm-free recipes and potentially going palm free?
7. Experiment with shampoo bars.

 

[Nanette]

Let the Adventure begin!! Or I should say, continue!

 

[Hawksquill]

Orange Ombré Soap
5/29/2019

Yesterday I made an orange ombré soap, and today I unmolded it! Recipe, pictures, and experiences/questions below.

Recipe and Process:
Lye concentration: 33.333%
Water : Lye ratio: 2:1
5% Superfat

Palm Oil 40%
Olive Oil 23%
Coconut Oil 15%
Sweet Almond Oil 10%
Cocoa Butter 5%
Borage Oil 5%
Castor Oil 2%

Plus 0.88 oz orange oil (I only had sample sizes, so couldn't get up to the full ounce I originally planned - I had to mix two types of orange oil) and 2 tsp sodium lactate to the lye water, once cooled.

At light trace, add orange EO and divide batter into 3 containers. Set 1 aside, added 1/2 tsp paprika to one, and 1 tsp paprika to the third. After I did this, the colors of the two with paprika were very similar, and I was worried that the ombré effect would be ruined. So I added a few shakes of cayenne pepper to the one with more paprika, to hopefully distinguish it from the middle layer. In future, I'll only add colorant to one container at a time and be conservative in achieving lighter colors, so they're easier to distinguish from the darker colors.

Layer the three layers in the mold, with the darkest at the bottom and the lightest on the top. Shape the top. (I was pretty happy with the design on top, which reminded me of cheesecake!)

Insulated in a dish towel and blanket for ~14 hours. Unmolded and cut an hour later, as it had firmed up nicely and the silicone lining came away from the edge of the soap very easily.

Notes:

-In future, mix the lye water much earlier than heating the oils. I underestimated how long it would take for the lye water to cool and overestimated how long it would take to melt the solid oils, and had to put the lye water in the fridge and reheat the oils in the microwave to get them to a similar temperature. (I think the lye was about 100 F and the oils about 120 when I mixed them.)
-I ran out of distilled water so used mostly tap water - we'll see how it goes.
-This is my first time working with borage oil - borage is one of my husband's favorite plants and was a childhood nickname of his, so hoping we like the effects!
-This is only my second time working with cocoa butter, and I ordered it in big chunks. It was difficult to break up into smaller chunks to get the precise weight, and I ended up having to use a sharp kitchen knife to crumble/cut it. In future, order chips?
-I think I SB'd a little too much and got it to closer to medium trace rather than the light trace before adding the EO and separating and coloring. The second and third batters were pretty thick by the time I did the layering, so in future I think I need to SB a little less and work a bit more quickly to do layers.
-Some of the bars had a more distinct ombré effect than others. I think I'll be more careful about weighing the three containers to make sure the layers are more even, break the upper levels' "fall" with a spoon to prevent breaking through the lower layers, and making sure not to jostle the mold when wrapping and insulating it.
-It smells delicious! My husband requested orange scented soap specially, so I hope he likes it
-Overall I'm very happy with how they look, smell, and feel! Looking forward to testing them once they've had more time to cure.

Questions:
-So far, all of the recipes I've done have been very low on the "bubbly lather" score on SoapCalc. I suspect this is because my husband and I both have sensitive skin, so I don't use much CO. I don't mind a creamy lather, but I'd like to experiment with getting slightly more bubbles - possibly reduce the SF?
-There were a couple very small air pockets/holes - possibly because I unmolded too early, or because I didn't spoon the stacking layers thoroughly enough?
-My last two batches have had a very slightly crumbly/rough texture after cutting them. I'm not sure if this is possibly bits of unincorporated cocoa butter, or just from the cutter I was using? It's not on the ends, only the insides that have touched the cutter. Or possibly it's because I'm using a slightly higher % of palm oil?

Photos:

 

[Mooicle]

Orange Ombré Soap
5/29/2019

Yesterday I made an orange ombré soap, and today I unmolded it! Recipe, pictures, and experiences/questions below.

Recipe and Process:
Lye concentration: 33.333%
Water : Lye ratio: 2:1
5% Superfat

Palm Oil 40%
Olive Oil 23%
Coconut Oil 15%
Sweet Almond Oil 10%
Cocoa Butter 5%
Borage Oil 5%
Castor Oil 2%

Plus 0.88 oz orange oil (I only had sample sizes, so couldn't get up to the full ounce I originally planned - I had to mix two types of orange oil) and 2 tsp sodium lactate to the lye water, once cooled.

At light trace, add orange EO and divide batter into 3 containers. Set 1 aside, added 1/2 tsp paprika to one, and 1 tsp paprika to the third. After I did this, the colors of the two with paprika were very similar, and I was worried that the ombré effect would be ruined. So I added a few shakes of cayenne pepper to the one with more paprika, to hopefully distinguish it from the middle layer. In future, I'll only add colorant to one container at a time and be conservative in achieving lighter colors, so they're easier to distinguish from the darker colors.

Layer the three layers in the mold, with the darkest at the bottom and the lightest on the top. Shape the top. (I was pretty happy with the design on top, which reminded me of cheesecake!)

Insulated in a dish towel and blanket for ~14 hours. Unmolded and cut an hour later, as it had firmed up nicely and the silicone lining came away from the edge of the soap very easily.

Notes:

-In future, mix the lye water much earlier than heating the oils. I underestimated how long it would take for the lye water to cool and overestimated how long it would take to melt the solid oils, and had to put the lye water in the fridge and reheat the oils in the microwave to get them to a similar temperature. (I think the lye was about 100 F and the oils about 120 when I mixed them.)
-I ran out of distilled water so used mostly tap water - we'll see how it goes.
-This is my first time working with borage oil - borage is one of my husband's favorite plants and was a childhood nickname of his, so hoping we like the effects!
-This is only my second time working with cocoa butter, and I ordered it in big chunks. It was difficult to break up into smaller chunks to get the precise weight, and I ended up having to use a sharp kitchen knife to crumble/cut it. In future, order chips?
-I think I SB'd a little too much and got it to closer to medium trace rather than the light trace before adding the EO and separating and coloring. The second and third batters were pretty thick by the time I did the layering, so in future I think I need to SB a little less and work a bit more quickly to do layers.
-Some of the bars had a more distinct ombré effect than others. I think I'll be more careful about weighing the three containers to make sure the layers are more even, break the upper levels' "fall" with a spoon to prevent breaking through the lower layers, and making sure not to jostle the mold when wrapping and insulating it.
-My last two batches have had a very slightly crumbly/rough texture after cutting them. I'm not sure if this is possibly bits of unincorporated cocoa butter, or just from the cutter I was using? It's not on the ends, only the insides that have touched the cutter. Or possibly it's because I'm using a slightly higher % of palm oil?
-It smells delicious! My husband requested orange scented soap specially, so I hope he likes it
-Overall I'm very happy with how they look, smell, and feel! Looking forward to testing them once they've had more time to cure.

Questions:
-So far, all of the recipes I've done have been very low on the "bubbly lather" score on SoapCalc. I suspect this is because my husband and I both have sensitive skin, so I don't use much CO. I don't mind a creamy lather, but I'd like to experiment with getting slightly more bubbles - possibly reduce the SF?
-There were a couple very small air pockets/holes - possibly because I unmolded too early, or because I didn't spoon the stacking layers thoroughly enough?

Photos:

View attachment 39411

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View attachment 39417

They look yummy!!!

 

[KiwiSoap]

Hallo Hawksquill, thank you for your appreciation of my thread (I plan to add to it again tomorrow!) and for sharing your detailed documentation of your soap, it's a great write-up!
To keep the lye temperature down, @KiwiMoose and @Dean advised to use ice as part of the lye water (I usually use 1 or 2 cubes), this saves a lot of time.
I'll leave it for others to better advise and answer your questions, your soaps are looking lovely and I look forward to hearing and seeing more of your journey!

 

[MGM]

I'll leave it for others to better advise and answer your questions, your soaps are looking lovely and I look forward to hearing and seeing more of your journey!

You'll have to report back if the orange scent sticks...the only time I used orange EOs, they were gone almost immediately :-(

 

[Hawksquill]

Hallo Hawksquill, thank you for your appreciation of my thread (I plan to add to it again tomorrow!) and for sharing your detailed documentation of your soap, it's a great write-up!
To keep the lye temperature down, @KiwiMoose and @Dean advised to use ice as part of the lye water (I usually use 1 or 2 cubes), this saves a lot of time.
I'll leave it for others to better advise and answer your questions, your soaps are looking lovely and I look forward to hearing and seeing more of your journey!

Thanks for your kind words! Using ice cubes for part of the water is a great idea

You'll have to report back if the orange scent sticks...the only time I used orange EOs, they were gone almost immediately :-(

I've heard this about orange EO too, my plan is to put them in a semi-closed area (maybe an ajar drawer?) pretty soon, to hopefully keep the scent...fingers crossed!

 

[KiwiMoose]

My soaping bucket list:
1. Zany's Castile recipe
2. Swirls
3. Experimenting more with natural colorants (have tried cayenne and paprika so far)
4. CP-stable mica (my very first CP batch, my husband bought me mica as a gift but didn't check whether it was CP-stable, so there was a lot of discoloration!)
5. Getting more complex with EO blends, as right now I'm only using 1-2 at a time
6. Trying palm-free recipes and potentially going palm free?
7. Experiment with shampoo bars.

Is that it!!??


Ice cubes: I usually use about 6 ice cubes and the rest water. I keep a special ice cube tray in the freezer that is 'my soap making ice cubes' and I fill it with distilled water.

Orange: Use a bit of patchouli to help 'anchor' the scent. Patchouli is quite strong though - so no more than 25% of the total fragrance.

Make it so(ap)!

 

[Hawksquill]

Zany's No Slime Castile
6/1/2019

Process:
I followed Zany's recipe exactly, using 99% olive oil pomace and 1% castor oil, which I mixed with 1 tsp cornstarch, .8 oz cedarwood EO, and .5 oz lemongrass EO to anchor the scent, as Zany suggested. I let the castor oil and EO infuse for about 30 minutes while the lye was cooling and then added it at trace, which worked a treat.

I mixed when the lye solution was 98 F and the oil was about 115 F. I barely had to SB for 30 seconds before it came to almost medium trace, I assume because I used pomace.

I insulated for a little over 12 hours, unmolded and cut after about 18 hours. I was very pleasantly surprised by how lovely and hard the bars were, considering everything else I had read about how long other Castile recipes take to unmold and cure - that salt water must make all the difference!

Notes:
-The pomace made it come to trace very quickly, but I wasn't trying to do swirls or anything so that was fine by me.
-It was a lovely caramel color when I poured and lightened over the next 24 hours.
-I made imitation seawater per Zany's recipe and absolutely loved it - the bar was lovely and hard after only a few hours insulating, and I am now considering using it for my other recipes!
-I didn't use sodium lactate, but I think the salt water likely made up for it, as I had no issues unmolding or cutting.


Questions:
-Can salt water be used for most other recipes to harden without issue? I assume it might conflict with milk or sugar recipes, but this is just based on instinct rather than actual research yet.

Photos:

 

[KiwiMoose]

Nice looking soap! I've used real seawater or Zany's sea water for lots of other recipes. I have found it tends to be a bit crumbly upon unmolding though - so be aware of that.

 

[Hawksquill]

Nice looking soap! I've used real seawater or Zany's sea water for lots of other recipes. I have found it tends to be a bit crumbly upon unmolding though - so be aware of that.

Thank you, I'm really happy with it! It was slightly crumbly, as you can see from the various bits that ended up on the cutting board! Will bear in mind for future recipes - I assume letting it rest longer before unmolding won't make it less crumbly?

 

[KiwiMoose]

No - I reckon it would make it worse.

 

[KiwiMoose]

Actually - note to self - always make salty soap in cavity moulds. Then there's no cutting involved (and therefore no crumbling)

 

[Hawksquill]

Actually - note to self - always make salty soap in cavity moulds. Then there's no cutting involved (and therefore no crumbling)

Ooh I don't actually have any cavity molds yet! How do you find using them with CP - I assume you have to work pretty quickly to prevent it from firming up too quickly?

Might need to add some to my birthday wishlist

 

[KiwiMoose]

Ooh I don't actually have any cavity molds yet! How do you find using them with CP - I assume you have to work pretty quickly to prevent it from firming up too quickly?

Might need to add some to my birthday wishlist

Not at all - just don't stick blend the bejeezus out of you batter before pouring ;-)

 

[Hawksquill]

Attempted Drop Swirl Soap
9/15/2019

Well, soapers, I come to you with my first real soaping failure! I decided to try a swirl using some CP-stable mica my husband got me from Brambleberry. I modified the recipe slightly to make it slow to trace (no palm oil, mostly soft oils, adding canola oil) and was pretty happy with how the soap was looking when I got it to very light trace.

I had previously mixed the mica with isopropyl alcohol and had it all ready. But when I split it into separate containers and added the mica, the mica formed a weird clay-like disc on top and then when I tried to stir it, it started ricing. I tried mixing, light SBing, and even giving it a few seconds in the microwave, but it was really weird and chunky so I just threw out the colored portions and used the uncolored bits in cavity molds. Not exactly my plan, but I'm glad I was quick on my feet and thought to salvage it instead of trying to use the ruined batter. It's scented with peppermint EO and tea tree EO and smells lovely.

Recipe

Super Fat/Discount 5 %
Lye Concentration 32.144 %
Water : Lye Ratio 2.1110:1

Olive Oil 25%
Coconut Oil 30%
Sweet Almond Oil 20%
Canola Oil 20%
Castor Oil 5%

Notes:
-I mixed my lye solution and also mixed my EOs with castor oil and cornstarch an hour before I started soaping, which was really helpful and helped me stay patient before getting everything else started.
-The lye solution was probably around 90 F when I started mixing, I think the oils were about the same but I was flustered by the mica stuff and didn't write it down.

Questions:
-What caused the ricing? Maybe the oils were a bit too warm? Or I should have mixed the mica with an oil rather than alcohol?
-I also just sort of dumped most of the dispersed mica into the oils and now wish I had added it more gradually.
-This is my first time using the cavity molds, so we'll see how it turns out!

Photos:

Ricing after adding mica:





Final product, not what was intended but at least salvaged!

 

[Marilyn Norgart]

I may be wrong but I would think mixing mica with the alcohol was the problem

 

[cmzaha]

I would guess it was the alcohol. Mica mixed with alcohol is recommended for melt and pour not cp soap.

 

[Mobjack Bay]

You can mix your mica with a little bit of the oil from the batch or with glycerin, or if it’s a friendly recipe and the FO or EO won’t cause acceleration, just mix the mica directly into the batter with the SB. I do it all the time. Just make sure to check that there are no clumps of mica hiding out on the sides or bottom of the container before you use the colored batter. I find that I can easily break any last little clumps up by smearing them against the side of the container with a spatula.

 

[KiwiMoose]

Also - choosing the castor oil to mix your FOs with might have contributed to the ricing. Castor oil accelerates batter, so if you added it after it was at emulsion, this might have been the culprit.