I finally used my soap, about 8 months later! It has been sitting loosely wrapped on a bathroom shelf to dry and cure, and then I didn't bother trying it out until the current bar of soap finally got used up—which was slow, as I've been preferring our refillable foaming soap dispenser.
Notes from first few days of use:
- Color has dimmed from a very light yellow-white to have slight orangish cast, with a few orange spots. Oxidation?
- Has a mild smell of rancid oils, which is unfortunate but not unexpected. I'd expected it to smell a little fishy or like a deep-fryer or something else mildly off-putting. But since the smell does not cling to my hands after washing, I really don't care. (On the flip side, basically all scented soaps leave a scent on my hand, which I really dislike!)
- Lathers readily, although not profusely.
- Pretty slippery feeling, almost slimy. The wet side (on the soap tray) tends to be a little goopy—I might need to use a different tray so that it doesn't sit wet as much. But the softness makes it easier for the kiddo to wash her hands, which is great.
The goopiness might be something to tone down a little in a future version, although as a novice I really don't know what to change. Maybe tone down the 5% lye discount a little? It stopped being zappy within 2 days, so I think I have some margin for error.
The smell limits how likely other people are to want to make this recipe, but I suspect if it's used relatively fresh (after 2 months, not 8) then it will be much more inoffensive.
So, not bad as a first try, and I may solicit some used fry oil from neighbors to have another go at it!