Never made soap...yet

[Janine Hoffart]

Hello, I am brand new to soap making! I have not made soap yet but it's getting close. I have purchased about $500 in ingredients and am excited to try but I get so overwhelmed with the science behind all the percentage stuff. So many people say to use a soap calculator but I just want to follow a recipe! Of course I don't want to waste any ingredients either so I want to make sure I do it right! Who has successfully made soap by following someone's recipe rather than using those complicated soap calculators?
Thanx in advance
Janine

 

[Misschief]

Hi @Janine Hoffart and welcome!

There is nothing wrong with using someone else's recipe to start out. I'm sure that 99.9% of us here started that way; I know I did. It's a great way to learn the method of making soap. I do recommend that you learn to use percentages rather than volume right from the start, though. It's an easy way to scale recipes up or down. (You don't want to make huge batches when you're just starting out).

There's an great thread about advice to new soap makers that has a lot of really good information for any new maker. I'd suggest reading through it as often as you need to. And, ask questions! Again, welcome and good luck!

https://www.soapmakingforum.com/thr...ou-give-to-your-beginning-soaping-self.62916/

 

[dmcgee5034]

Hi @Janine Hoffart - not all calculators are complicated. I started with the one on BrambleBerry before I learned enough to migrate over to SMFriend. I agree with @Misschief that starting with a recipe is fine, and I bet before you know it, you’ll want to venture out to try something new and a calculator will be needed. Go play around with the easy BB one just for fun, and they also have quick mix oils that make the first few batches easy. Happy soaping

 

[lsg]

IMO you should always run a recipe through a lye calculator to be sure ingredient percentages are correct. It only takes a minute to type in the amount of each ingredient. It will make sure you don't end up with lye heavy soap or waste expensive ingredients through a misprint in the recipe.

 

[Janine Hoffart]

Hi @Janine Hoffart and welcome!

There is nothing wrong with using someone else's recipe to start out. I'm sure that 99.9% of us here started that way; I know I did. It's a great way to learn the method of making soap. I do recommend that you learn to use percentages rather than volume right from the start, though. It's an easy way to scale recipes up or down. (You don't want to make huge batches when you're just starting out).

There's an great thread about advice to new soap makers that has a lot of really good information for any new maker. I'd suggest reading through it as often as you need to. And, ask questions! Again, welcome and good luck!

https://www.soapmakingforum.com/thr...ou-give-to-your-beginning-soaping-self.62916/

Thank you so much, I feel better already lol. I do agree that it's important to weigh the ingredients rather than use volume. I am a baker so I am familiar with that and it works better in sourdough baking. I am hoping after I make a couple of batches that I'm not so intimidated.
Thank you for your words of encouragement.
Janine

T

Hi @Janine Hoffart - not all calculators are complicated. I started with the one on BrambleBerry before I learned enough to migrate over to SMFriend. I agree with @Misschief that starting with a recipe is fine, and I bet before you know it, you’ll want to venture out to try something new and a calculator will be needed. Go play around with the easy BB one just for fun, and they also have quick mix oils that make the first few batches easy. Happy soaping

Thank you for your words of encouragement
Much appreciated.

IMO you should always run a recipe through a lye calculator to be sure ingredient percentages are correct. It only takes a minute to type in the amount of each ingredient. It will make sure you don't end up with lye heavy soap or waste expensive ingredients through a misprint in the recipe.

Great advice, thank you. I look forward to gaining the confidence I need to get to that level!

 

[Jorah]

Thank you so much, I feel better already lol. I do agree that it's important to weigh the ingredients rather than use volume. I am a baker so I am familiar with that and it works better in sourdough baking. I am hoping after I make a couple of batches that I'm not so intimidated.
Thank you for your words of encouragement.
Janine

As I've been describing my soap-making efforts over the last few months, my wife's most common reply is some variation of 'that sounds just like cooking!' and of course, it is! Just as much cleanup, too! Welcome to the forum.

 

[GGMA0317]

Hello, I am brand new to soap making! I have not made soap yet but it's getting close. I have purchased about $500 in ingredients and am excited to try but I get so overwhelmed with the science behind all the percentage stuff. So many people say to use a soap calculator but I just want to follow a recipe! Of course I don't want to waste any ingredients either so I want to make sure I do it right! Who has successfully made soap by following someone's recipe rather than using those complicated soap calculators?
Thanx in advance
Janine

Welcome! My first batch of LS was not my formula and it went very well. I use soapcalc when I started. Don't overthink it. It really is like cooking. Start with a 2 or 4 oil batch and use paper baking(loaf) pans for test or guest soap. Don't be discouraged and have fun!

I bought most of my stainless bowls and spoons from a thrift store and they are big enough to hold 6lbs of soap batter.

 

[KiwiMoose]

Welcome Janine! Yes my first recipe was one I found online, and I successfully made soap from it. Since then I have developed my own recipe which is much better 'quality' by manipulating percentages of different oils to my liking.

Just be sure to check the quantity that you are making - total oils should be ideally about 500- 800 grams maximum for a first batch. And also use a recipe from a reputable online soaper, not someone that no-one has ever heard of.

Maybe pop the recipe in the recipe feedback forum and one of us can check that it looks OK? We will probably pick it to pieces, which you could ask us not to do - but rather just to check that it will make soap.

 

[Shelley D]

Hi Janine ~ I felt the same way when I started, and since all the videos I watched said to use the calculators I started by taking an existing recipe and putting it into the calculator (I like soapcalc) to see if I got the same numbers. If I did, I was using the calculator correctly, if not, I knew I had to correct an entry. And by running pre-existing recipes through a calculator I got more comfortable with using it and was creating my own recipes after several batches of making other people's recipes.
So don't worry, you will get a feel for it. I agree with the statements above, almost every single one of us has started with a pre-existing recipe. I think for me the hardest part was trying to decide between hot or cold process, and I chose cold process and I love it
Remember, the forum is a great source of information and inspiration!

 

[BritS]

The book Simple and Natural Soapmaking by Jan Berry has quite a few recipes in it that might be helpful. Anne Marie from BrambleBerry also has a book with different recipes you can try.

 

[Quilter99755]

Yep, I started with someone else's recipe and didn't use the soap calculator and lived to tell the tale. But once I found this site I learned to use the calculator and also so much more. I no longer use those two recipes, but it has more to do with my aging skin than anything else.

Keep a journal or some kind of notebook. I put my soap calc recipes in sheet protectors and make notes on the back side. Now that I have a couple of recipes of my own I rarely make notes unless I try something new. Or I get a request from a family member for a certain soap or ingredient. Soaping is a journey that has many paths you can branch out on. Enjoy!

 

[Ford]

Maybe pop the recipe in the recipe feedback forum and one of us can check that it looks OK? We will probably pick it to pieces, which you could ask us not to do - but rather just to check that it will make soap.

Welcome Janine,

$500.00 in supplies? You don't live near a $tore?

My goodness, don't scare the girl. We will give her our heart felt opinion. Let her know if the recipe is good as is, maybe tweek it, or even make suggestions. As to how to improve it, if she likes.

 

[artemis]

If you go to soapee.com or the soapmaking friend calc, there are recipes there that users have made public. If you're going to use someone else's recipe, this may be a good option for you, since:
1. It's already in a soap calculator, so no need to worry about typos messing you up.
2. You can easily adjust it to the size of your small, 450g batch (hint)
3. You can get experience with that calculator.

 

[artemis]

$500.00 in supplies? You don't live near a $ Store?

"Back in my day..." I found a recipe online that had oils I already owned and used a container that was already on the shelf. (We won't talk about the recipe being in volume measurements or that I had never heard of a lye calculator or that I probably used a glass container as my mold!)

 

[GGMA0317]

"Back in my day..." I found a recipe online that had oils I already owned and used a container that was already on the shelf. (We won't talk about the recipe being in volume measurements or that I had never heard of a lye calculator or that I probably used a glass container as my mold!)

I got all my equipment from a thrift store and all of my oils from Walmart and lye from lowes. I used a hand mixer and everything was alright. Fun and exciting then and now. I still use all my thrift store equipment.

 

[Zany_in_CO]

 

[Janine Hoffart]

Welcome Janine,

$500.00 in supplies? You don't live near a $tore?

My goodness, don't scare the girl. We will give her our heart felt opinion. Let her know if the recipe is good as is, maybe tweek it, or even make suggestions. As to how to improve it, if she likes.

It seemed every time I read a different recipe I would go buy the stuff I needed for that recipe, then a local soap making compnay was selling all of their ingredients and because it all sounded like a great deal I kinda went overboard. I will post my first recipe on the forum before I make it but that will likely be a month from now as I am visiting my kids in another province.
Thank you all so much

 

[TheGecko]

Percentages are better than weights as it makes it much easier to scale the recipe up or down depending on the size of mold or molds you are using.

ALWAYS run any measured recipe through a soap calculator. It is very easy to make a typo and/or you may want to use a different Lye Concentration or Super Fat.

Below is my Regular Soap recipe. I recommend starting out with a small batch of soap. I use 4" Square Silicone Molds for testing...20oz total batch weight, 4-5oz bars. I also recommend starting with a plain soap...no colorants, no scent...so that you get a feel for it. The recipe below makes a nice plain bar with a clean scent.

35% Olive Oil
20% Coconut Oil
20% Palm Oil
10% Cocoa Butter
10% Shea Butter
5% Castor Oil

33% Lye Concentration
5% Super Fat

1 tea Sodium Lactate PPO
1 tea Kaolin Clay PPO

 

[Janine Hoffart]

Percentages are better than weights as it makes it much easier to scale the recipe up or down depending on the size of mold or molds you are using.

ALWAYS run any measured recipe through a soap calculator. It is very easy to make a typo and/or you may want to use a different Lye Concentration or Super Fat.

Below is my Regular Soap recipe. I recommend starting out with a small batch of soap. I use 4" Square Silicone Molds for testing...20oz total batch weight, 4-5oz bars. I also recommend starting with a plain soap...no colorants, no scent...so that you get a feel for it. The recipe below makes a nice plain bar with a clean scent.

35% Olive Oil
20% Coconut Oil
20% Palm Oil
10% Cocoa Butter
10% Shea Butter
5% Castor Oil

33% Lye Concentration
5% Super Fat

1 tea Sodium Lactate PPO
1 tea

Percentages are better than weights as it makes it much easier to scale the recipe up or down depending on the size of mold or molds you are using.

ALWAYS run any measured recipe through a soap calculator. It is very easy to make a typo and/or you may want to use a different Lye Concentration or Super Fat.

Below is my Regular Soap recipe. I recommend starting out with a small batch of soap. I use 4" Square Silicone Molds for testing...20oz total batch weight, 4-5oz bars. I also recommend starting with a plain soap...no colorants, no scent...so that you get a feel for it. The recipe below makes a nice plain bar with a clean scent.

35% Olive Oil
20% Coconut Oil
20% Palm Oil
10% Cocoa Butter
10% Shea Butter
5% Castor Oil

33% Lye Concentration
5% Super Fat

1 tea Sodium Lactate PPO
1 tea Kaolin Clay PPO

You're going to make me use a soap calculator aren't you! Lol thank you for this, I will give it a try!

 

[TheGecko]

You're going to make me use a soap calculator aren't you! Lol thank you for this, I will give it a try!

Yes I will. When I first started my soap making journey, I printed/copied tons of recipes I found on the internet. When I learned about SoapCalc from a YouTube video by Royalty Apple Soap, I ran them through...figured not only would it be good practice, but I would learn about the various properties. I found that a good third of the recipes were off when it came to the amount of NaOH needed...sometimes too much, sometimes to little. While SuperFat will change the amount of NaOH needed since it is about leaving some fats unsaponified, the amount of NaOH should never change based on Lye Concentration.

Depending on the time of the year...I use between a 33% and 35% Lye Concentration, between 3% and 5% of SuperFat, and between 5% and 6% when it comes to Fragrance Oils. This is the standard that I apply to all soap that I make regardless of what the recipe calls for.