Starting My Soaping Journey

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KiwiSoap

KiwiSoap

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 24, 2019
Messages
177
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285
Location
New Zealand
Hallo All,
I've been lurking and scanning through the forums for a while and have picked out a few recipes I thought I'd like to try. Where to start, where to start? I'm certainly overthinking things but seeing the helpful guidance given to others (before and after the soap flows) I thought I'd share my ideas and see what you think.

I am looking at making vegan palm-free soap and currently have (modest amounts of) OO, CO, castor, SAO, Shea butter, RBO, Canola, SO, and individual rectangular silicone soap moulds.

Here is my current plan:
  1. Zany's Castille
  2. Zany's Castille with 15% CO and 5% Castor
  3. 100% Coconut, 20% SF
  4. Salt bar (80% CO, 15% OO, 5% castor)(split to try 0%, 20%, 40% salt)
  5. KiwiMoose's Poly-Oil bar (need to get Avocado Oil and Soy wax)
  6. My bar (#under construction#)
(Of course, when I buy Avocado Oil for KiwiMoose's bar, then I have it to try Genny's Shampoo Bar ... :D Have I caught the addiction?)

This plan is over a number of weekends. Not as ambitious as some other beginner soapers out there (bless them!) but I think this should gently start me off and give some good comparisons.

Any thoughts, advice? When I get started photos will be sure to follow :)

Kind regards,
Paul
 
KiwiSoap said:
Hallo All,
I've been lurking and scanning through the forums for a while and have picked out a few recipes I thought I'd like to try. Where to start, where to start? I'm certainly overthinking things but seeing the helpful guidance given to others (before and after the soap flows) I thought I'd share my ideas and see what you think.

I am looking at making vegan palm-free soap and currently have (modest amounts of) OO, CO, castor, SAO, Shea butter, RBO, Canola, SO, and individual rectangular silicone soap moulds.

Here is my current plan:
  1. Zany's Castille
  2. Zany's Castille with 15% CO and 5% Castor
  3. 100% Coconut, 20% SF
  4. Salt bar (80% CO, 15% OO, 5% castor)(split to try 0%, 20%, 40% salt)
  5. KiwiMoose's Poly-Oil bar (need to get Avocado Oil and Soy wax)
  6. My bar (#under construction#)
(Of course, when I buy Avocado Oil for KiwiMoose's bar, then I have it to try Genny's Shampoo Bar ... :D Have I caught the addiction?)

This plan is over a number of weekends. Not as ambitious as some other beginner soapers out there (bless them!) but I think this should gently start me off and give some good comparisons.

Any thoughts, advice? When I get started photos will be sure to follow :)

Kind regards
Paul
Click to expand...

Hi Paul.

I started with 120 CO bar and found it horribly drying and stripping. It was the worse thing my skin experienced since I fried it with presciption acne cream as a teen. I’d strike that recipie...especially if ur doing the salt version which is suppose be milder.

I think its best to keep recipies simple at first. After 1 and 4, Id try a 4 oil bar: co, castor, HO, SW. Once u discover ur desired cleansing and hardness levels, and preferred HO, then try adding adl. ingredients.

Unless u have lots of Kiwis to help u test, I’d make two bar test batches so u can experiment frequently.

Keep us posted on your journey. Happy soaping!
 
Last edited:
The bad news is Paul - is that list is only going to get longer.

You can sub the SAO for Avocado in my recipe - just run it through the soap calc. Maybe try setting the lye conc to about 30 to start? My earlier ones had a higher lye concentration which I think contributed to them seizing up - along with waaaaaay too much stick blending.

Also I was going to add - Pam's Coconut Oil is quite cheap in 1 litre - about $10. If you don't want to order it online, or need it quickly it's a good option. Either New World or Pak 'n' Save stock it.
 
Zany's is a nice easy recipe to try if you want to be able to test Castile in about 4-6wks instead of a year, and there's already a lot of info in that thread.

You can reduce or add the amounts of coconut oil and olive, too and add other oils. I've also tried it with a regular recipe with no hard oils and it works fine.

For the salt bar just make sure it's very fine salt as sometimes the others can be really scratchy. Otherwise try a brine soap, where the salt is dissolved in the water instead of added afterwards. You can use any recipe with this, just up the coconut a bit. I love brine soaps, so smooth and hard, but they take a long time to cure for max benefits also.

After doing some reading I started using 2:1 lye ratio and then experimented with different amounts.

You just reminded me, I've been wanting to try that recipe by @KiwiMoose.....
 
Dean said:
Hi Paul.

I started with 120 CO bar and found it horribly drying and stripping. It was the worse thing my skin experienced since I fried it with presciption acne cream as a teen. I’d strike that recipie...especially if ur doing the salt version which is suppose be milder.

I think its best to keep recipies simple at first. After 1 and 4, Id try a 4 oil bar: co, castor, HO, SW. Once u discover ur desired cleansing and hardness levels, and preferred HO, then try adding adl. ingredients.

Unless u have lots of Kiwis to help u test, I’d make two bar test batches so u can experiment frequently.

Keep us posted on your journey. Happy soaping!
Click to expand...

Thank you @Dean, I thought the 100% CO bar was a rite of passage ;) But you're right, I am much more looking forward to trying out salt bars..

Batch size is an important consideration .. I've been mentioning to people that I am interested in making soap, I was hoping I might find some other soapers. No luck there but a few have said they love soap and would like to try some (I'll have to talk to them more about what they like in a soap, and manage their expectations!). And my partner chews through soap like I've never seen, so I will have a few testers, plus some keepers for observation. But will limit batch size so I don't drown in it!

Thanks for all you've shared of your soaping journey, it's helped us along, keep it up!
 
KiwiMoose said:
The bad news is Paul - is that list is only going to get longer.

You can sub the SAO for Avocado in my recipe - just run it through the soap calc. Maybe try setting the lye conc to about 30 to start? My earlier ones had a higher lye concentration which I think contributed to them seizing up - along with waaaaaay too much stick blending.

Also I was going to add - Pam's Coconut Oil is quite cheap in 1 litre - about $10. If you don't want to order it online, or need it quickly it's a good option. Either New World or Pak 'n' Save stock it.
Click to expand...

Hallo @KiwiMoose, lol, I don't think that's bad news, it's looking like a big adventure, we'll see what the reality is like soon when the lye hits the oil!

Good suggestion re. subbing SAO, but I'll be ordering SW anyway so may as well add to the order and feed into the addiction.. will use your advice on lye concentration, and keep stick blending to a minimum. And will keep watching Newbie's video to know what I'm looking for..

Thanks for the heads-up re. CO tubs, I did spot 1L Blue Coconut (brand) at Pak 'n' Save for that same price, good to know it is regularly available at that price!

Can't wait to see what soapy thing you do next!
 
Dawni said:
Zany's is a nice easy recipe to try if you want to be able to test Castile in about 4-6wks instead of a year, and there's already a lot of info in that thread.

You can reduce or add the amounts of coconut oil and olive, too and add other oils. I've also tried it with a regular recipe with no hard oils and it works fine.

For the salt bar just make sure it's very fine salt as sometimes the others can be really scratchy. Otherwise try a brine soap, where the salt is dissolved in the water instead of added afterwards. You can use any recipe with this, just up the coconut a bit. I love brine soaps, so smooth and hard, but they take a long time to cure for max benefits also.

After doing some reading I started using 2:1 lye ratio and then experimented with different amounts.

You just reminded me, I've been wanting to try that recipe by @KiwiMoose.....
Click to expand...

Kumusta @Dawni! That's exactly what I thought about Zany's castille, great to hear the technique will work with other recipes as well. Until @Dean and @KiwiMoose shared the wonders of soy wax (SW) I was looking light in hard oils, so this gives me even more options!

Thanks for the reminder about salt bars! I have fine table salt here, but was thinking about getting some fine sea salt, which salt do you use? I have been thinking about brine soaps as well, so much to do!

Salamat, have a great day!
 
Oye, ayos lng ako.. ikaw? :)

I use the rock salt for my brine soap from the palengke sometimes, the one nobody is 100% sure where it's from lol I haven't actually done a salt bar..

I've struggled with hardness too.. shea and cocoa butters tend to be expensive but salt and vinegar are my current experiments. Soy wax is next when I buy supplies again.
 
Dawni said:
Oye, ayos lng ako.. ikaw? :)

I use the rock salt for my brine soap from the palengke sometimes, the one nobody is 100% sure where it's from lol I haven't actually done a salt bar..

I've struggled with hardness too.. shea and cocoa butters tend to be expensive but salt and vinegar are my current experiments. Soy wax is next when I buy supplies again.
Click to expand...

@Dawni is joining the soy wax club! :dance:
 
Dawni said:
Hehe let's see how it goes..

I'm wondering how similar, or not, the feel is to beeswax, which at 2% of one of my soaps, I didn't like so much. I have yet to try a lower percentage..
Click to expand...

I don’t use BW but SW is not a wax so I think it will perform very differently. You would certainly use a lot more than BW...bout 20-40% depending on ur desired lvl of hardness. U have access to it in the Phillipenes or does ur fam have to source it for u when they r abroad?
 
Dean said:
I don’t use BW but SW is not a wax so I think it will perform very differently. You would certainly use a lot more than BW...bout 20-40% depending on ur desired lvl of hardness. U have access to it in the Phillipenes or does ur fam have to source it for u when they r abroad?
Click to expand...
A couple of places have a soy wax but I still need to check if it's the same kind you guys are using or one with the additives for candles. Which reminds me, I have to email the supplier I found....
 
KiwiMoose said:
https://mrsrogers.co.nz/product/premium-fine-sea-salt-1kg-bag/

I think I got it from New World. Or maybe Countdown.

Make sure you make your salt bars in individual moulds (which it sounds like you have) because it gets hard very quickly and you won't be able to cut it if you make it in a loaf.
Click to expand...
Great! I picked some up on the way to work this morning, though I probably won't get to try salt bars this weekend, depending how quickly Zany's Castille unmoulds. Or maybe I could start with salt bars...

#writing down recipes, checking them twice# (with SoapCalc of course!)
 
The deed has been done.

Zany's Castille is moulded, unsurprisingly there were no major disasters. The lye solution took forever to cool down, and the soap batter was slow to come to trace (but that's why I chose it to start with!) I don't fool myself they will look anything as pretty as KiwiMoose's, but ya gotta start somewhere! Thanks all for your support and pushing me forward!
 
KiwiSoap said:
The deed has been done.

Zany's Castille is moulded, unsurprisingly there were no major disasters. The lye solution took forever to cool down, and the soap batter was slow to come to trace (but that's why I chose it to start with!) I don't fool myself they will look anything as pretty as KiwiMoose's, but ya gotta start somewhere! Thanks all for your support and pushing me forward!
Click to expand...

Lye cooling tip...1/2 ice, 1/2 rm tmp
 
KiwiMoose said:
Yay!! Was gonna PM you to see how it was going. Did you use colour or fragrance?
Click to expand...
Thanks! No colours or fragrance this time, how boring! Will go through your media again for inspiration! I need to put in that order for soy wax, avocado oil and ROE, so will pick some colours and fragrance as well

Dean said:
Lye cooling tip...1/2 ice, 1/2 rm tmp
Click to expand...
Great tip, will def try this next time, speed the process along!
 
Last edited:

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