What am I doing wrong???

[Adirondacker]

I recently made my first batch of CP soap using a recipe from Bramble Berry. My first attempt was a disaster. The batter thickened up so much I couldn't divide it up to add the necessary micas. Figured I just over mixed I didn't mix my second batch as long as was able to divide up the batter into the different pouring containers, but when I went to add the different micas it had thickened up on me and was no longer pourable. Am I still over mixing my batter or am I taking too long which is letting my batter cool too much??? Thanks for the input in advance.

 

[Ancel]

Hi Adirondacker,
It's hard to know what happened without seeing the recipe, or knowing the temp you worked at, or how you mixed it and for how long. Also did you leave the separated batters for a while before you tried adding your micas? It's not so much a question of them cooling down, more a question of the saponification beginning and heating up. If you pots the recipe you followed and your general process then folk can trouble shoot

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

What is the recipe, including the amount of water used, FOs or COs etc? How much are you mixing it and how are you mixing it? It might well be that you are mixing too much - but these questions will help people get down to the helpful stuff faster

 

[Adirondacker]

The recipe I used is....
http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-b...oap/holiday-cookie-bar-cold-process-tutorial/
One I separated the batter out I tried to work quickly and my bottom and middle layer were nice and pourable. However the batter that I separated off for the green, red, and white swirls sat for maybe 5 minutes or less. When I went to add the fragrance and color it was like pudding.
I blended the entire batter with my stick blender to what I thought was a nice light trace, but seeing how the first two layers were pourable I'm thinking I'm just too slow.

 

[judymoody]

Are you using a fragrance and if so, which one? Fragrances can cause your soap batter to accelerate as well.

 

[dixiedragon]

Were you just using the soap recipe, or were you trying to make the soap exactly as they did, including layers, swirls, etc? If so, notice that this is an "advanced" recipe. you tried to do the holiday cookie bars as is - that was brave of you! When you make something like that, you have to work quickly. Which means you have to know what each step looks like, exactly what sort of tools you'll need, how much workspace you'll need, etc.

 

[seven]

... this is an "advanced" recipe. you tried to do the holiday cookie bars as is - that was brave of you!...

^^^
that... i must salute you for your bravery. that tutorial looks complicated enough, with lotsa colors, etc. my best guess is you over mixed with the SB before splitting the batter. with that kind of difficulty, as laid in the tutorial, you might want to split before you even reach light trace. emulsification is enough me thinks.

also, what kind of FO did you use? like others had said, some FO can accelerate trace.

 

[dixiedragon]

I have been making soap for 10 years, and I have never done anything that elaborate! It looks really cool! If you have your heart set on making this, it might go better if you did it in 3 seperate pours, over 3 days. Do the light brown layer as one batch. When it's firm, do the dark brown layer as one batch. Then do the top swirly layer as a batch. For that batch, you might want to have a helper. If I am doing something complicated, it's helpful to have somebody to keep gently stirring the soap while I am coloring or scenting the rest of the batch.

You could also do it over a weekend and do a batch in the morning, a batch in the evening, and another batch the next morning.

 

[Ancel]

You could also use a little extra water and only blend to the lightest of traces. The extra water will slow things down, but it will also mean your layers might not hold up and give you those nice sharp distinct colours/lines. Maybe a helper could stir in the Micas while you're pouring the first layers, so it's ready to pour as soon as you are? Good luck

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

If you have large enough pots, you could then further hand stir to a thicker trace before molding it all up.

Some good tips here, for certain

 

[cmzaha]

^^^
emulsification is enough me thinks.

Seven is correct that just stick blending to emulsification is all that is needed, but as a new soap maker you need time to recognize the different stages of trace or just emulsification. As Dixiedragon mentioned it would be better to do this in 3 stages until you have more experience.

 

[Adirondacker]

Thanks for all the tips. I definitely should have waited to do an advanced recipe. I used all the same exact tools that were used in the tutorial. My light and dark layers came out beautiful, but because my swirl layers thickened I kind of plopped them on top and then swirled them. There definitely not smooth like the tutorial pic. The soap still smells wonderful and it passed the zap test. I was hoping to give them as Christmas presents, but I think I'll be keeping them for myself and family. Here is a pic of mine.

 

[roseb]

Okay so it doesn't look exactly like the one in the tutorial...I think it looks great! Just don't show anyone the tutorial and they will never know. You are brave! I've been soaping for 6 months, have made about 30 batches and have yet to attempt anything so complicated. You go girl!

 

[DaleF]

I think they turned out very pretty! Congratulations!

 

[seven]

I think they turned out very pretty! Congratulations!

i 2nd this! for a 1st batch, yours turned out awesome. you managed to get the layers done, and that deserve two thumbs up. i think the textured top actually make the soap pretty interesting.

*my mind just did a rewind to my 1st batch of cp which was a disaster. cocoa powder galore. i used sooo much the layers practically split.

 

[Saponista]

I think you did really really well as a first attempt!