What soapy thing have you done today?

[linne1gi]

Well even when we don’t like them, they’re still probably the coolest looking soap lots of people have ever seen!

Exactly! And no one but us, knows what we had planned.

 

[TashaBird]

Exactly! And no one but us, knows what we had planned.

I try to remember that and not mention my disappointments in my public posts. Only for us soapers!

 

[Misschief]

Here's the Gardener's Hand Soap in the mold.

 

[The Park Bench]

This is my new batch. I cut these and I think I will name them Genie in a bottle. I really need to stop this addiction I have of soap making because I have yet to sell a bar to anyone other than family LOL.

Ohhh, I like those!!!!

 

[Zing]

Today at my food pantry, I received 70 pounds, 3 boxes of a soap seller's end pieces. (The boxes were vodka cases, LOL). So, BM Soap, if you're on here, THANK YOU, from my staff and clients!

 

[KimW]

This is my new batch. I cut these and I think I will name them Genie in a bottle. I really need to stop this addiction I have of soap making because I have yet to sell a bar to anyone other than family LOL.

Perfect name for a beautiful soap!

 

[TashaBird]

Here's the Gardener's Hand Soap in the mold.

View attachment 52821

That looks like a luscious way to get the dirt off!

 

[Martha]

I read a review of someone trying a lotion bar and loving it so much she got her mother and grandmother hooked on them. What blew me away was that they cost $45/bar. @Zing @Misschief Is that the going rate? I might have to give up my day job. And they didn’t even mention meadow foam oil.
https://nymag.com/strategist/article/kate-mcleod-body-stone-review.html
Today I’m teaching a friend how to soap and we’re going to make lotion bars.

 

[MoonOakAcres]

So I'm just wondering what stages everyone's at. I'm a curious little cat, I am.

For myself, I'm waiting for my most recent batch of bar soap to firm up (trying to give it 24 hours before I even touch it, since the soapcalc numbers put it just shy of the 'ideal' hardness range). In addition I fiddled around with the liquid soap I made yesterday (a good chunk of it didn't dissolved, and I was seeing if that was because there wasn't enough water to dilute it all... sure enough that was the problem so it was diluted and added to the bottle holding the rest of it).

And right now I have a tea going that will eventually be strained and frozen, to be used when I make my shampoo bar. Still need to get to my aunt's to pick her citrus trees... But at least I can have the liquid ready to go! I measured out 1/2 oz of dried marshmallow root, 1 1/2 cups water (both weighed to the gram), and then for kicks I tossed in one bag each of Bigelow's Chammomile Lemon and I Love Lemon teas. I'm going to be infusing both chamomile and lemon into the oils, and needed to use the teas anyways (and I don't drink tea). Win-win, right? I might not need all of the tea for the shampoo bar (I'll only be using about 500g oils after all), but at least I'll have it done.

I did my goat chores (I make goats milk soap so it’s relevant right? ) I’m freezing pre portioned bags of milk, and making some coffee soap with my molds today. Currently finishing my caffeinated beverage before diving in.

 

[Zing]

I read a review of someone trying a lotion bar and loving it so much she got her mother and grandmother hooked on them. What blew me away was that they cost $45/bar. @Zing @Misschief Is that the going rate? I might have to give up my day job. And they didn’t even mention meadow foam oil.
https://nymag.com/strategist/article/kate-mcleod-body-stone-review.html
Today I’m teaching a friend how to soap and we’re going to make lotion bars.

Yeah, I just don't get it either! I had never heard of lotion bars until my rock-climbing sons started raving about this wonder product that they buy from REI at $11 a pop! I dupe it for my sons but it requires 100 ingredients and I much prefer making the 3 ingredient bars. In December I started getting requests to buy my lotion bars so I looked around at prices. They're expensive on Etsy! The local soaper sells his soaps for $5 (rounds) and his 3-ingredient lotion bars for $7 -- little ones using a popular bee mold. And inexpensive ingredients -- shea, olive oil, beeswax -- not even jojoba or meadowfoam seed oil (oh meadowfoam seed oil!) Wicky wicky what? I know the labor, hours, and ingredients that go into making CP soap -- and lotion bars pale in comparison! I need to do a cost per gram analysis for my soaps and lotions.

People rave about my lotion bars and I am forever saying, you too can do it in just a few minutes and 3 ingredients. But now I wonder if it's a well-kept secret that I've been blabbing and unwittingly undermining makers!

 

[rdc1978]

I love the slanted layers. Do you just turn your mold - pour - wait for it to set up - then turn the other way?


Gorgeous - very wispy.

My cucumber melon swirl - with a sad piped top.View attachment 52807

Your soap is gorgeous, the colors are giving me south beach Florida vibes.
As for the slanted layers, yes! I set the mold at an angle and poured a layer, let it set as I prepped the next layer, turned the mold, set it an angle on the other side and.poured the next layer.

As you can see I had multiple failures, and so I had to watch the soapish video on YouTube like 15 times. The trick for me, was in that I had to use different angles for the first layer, second layer, fourth layer and the fifth layer was laid flat. AND I had to physically restrain myself from pouring all the way to the opposite side of the mold.

Sorry, no one wanted all this detail but I have so much undeserved pride in finally not making a mess of this soap!!!!

Wow! It looks perfect to me!!!

Awww, thank you!

I'm more pleased with it than any one person has the right to be. Especially given some of the absolute perfection I see in these pictures....but I'm pretty gosh darned happy with it. Now, you cannot look at the soaps in front of and behind it.. which were both dismal fails......ha ha

 

[Guspuppy]

I gave out soap for Christmas, of course. My second cousin yesterday sent me this text, wherein her husband reviews the soap: "It's the softest, most lathery, buttery soap I have ever used."
I was never planning to sell but if I ever do I have an awesome quote for my website!

Also, I had like 8 pages to read in this thread to catch up after Christmas. HOW are you all finding time to still do soapy stuff?! I have castor oil on order that hasn't come yet but even if I had it I've had zero time to make soap. And, surprising me, I am nearly out of (a lot more people wanted soap than I thought would!) everything I made except my salt bars which need at least 4 more months. Good thing I have 4 days off starting tomorrow!

 

[The_Emerald_Chicken]

My TD booger ladden soap from yesterday. I tried to wipe some off on the right and it made a big smeary mess lol.View attachment 52801

@Catscankim Maybe you've tried this, but I use a palette knife to incorporate TD with my oil, and it's worked pretty well for me. This is the video where I got the idea:

 

[Catscankim]

@Catscankim Maybe you've tried this, but I use a palette knife to incorporate TD with my oil, and it's worked pretty well for me. This is the video where I got the idea:

I love her videos. Haven't gotten around to buying a palette knife yet, or the plasitic/glass she uses to incorporate it on. But it is on my list.

So you use this technique?

 

[Jersey Girl]

I’ve been making a few Valentine’s themed soaps. This one is scented with Aphrodisiac from NG

 

[Misschief]

I read a review of someone trying a lotion bar and loving it so much she got her mother and grandmother hooked on them. What blew me away was that they cost $45/bar. @Zing @Misschief Is that the going rate? I might have to give up my day job. And they didn’t even mention meadow foam oil.
https://nymag.com/strategist/article/kate-mcleod-body-stone-review.html
Today I’m teaching a friend how to soap and we’re going to make lotion bars.

$45 per bar???

It makes me wonder what kind of oils she's using, how she's packaging them, and what size they are. I sell mine for $15 per bar, in an aluminum tin, and they weigh about 40 grams (just shy of 1.5 oz). Mine use fairly basic oils and waxes, the main ones being Jojoba and Rice Bran Oil, and Candelilla wax instead of beeswax.

I do know that, generally speaking, a lot of makers underprice their products. I used to sell my lip balms for $2.00 per tube and they did sell but as soon as I raised the price to $3.00 per tube, they sold even better. I've had one fellow vendor, who has been telling me my prices are too low, that that price raise was a good start. Then she told me I should raise the price again next season. She's quite comfortable paying $7.00 each for her favourite lip balm, which she buys in bulk (24 per pack) every time they visit Hawaii.

It comes down to knowing your market and your area. If people are willing to pay $45 per lotion bar, yeah, then you can charge that. If you're in an area where they wouldn't even think of spending that much on a lotion bar, you won't be selling many unless you drop the price.

ETA: Ok, I actually looked at the website. First off, you'd be paying for the packaging - bamboo containers, bar wrapped in linen. Full size bar is 3.5 oz, mini bar (1.5 oz) sells for $14.00. The base ingredients are cocoa butter, sweet almond oil, apricto oil, fractionated coconut oil, and avocado oil.... nothing outrageous there.

When you look at it that way, her prices aren't really much out of line.

 

[rdc1978]

$45 per bar???

It makes me wonder what kind of oils she's using, how she's packaging them, and what size they are. I sell mine for $15 per bar, in an aluminum tin, and they weigh about 40 grams (just shy of 1.5 oz). Mine use fairly basic oils and waxes, the main ones being Jojoba and Rice Bran Oil, and Candelilla wax instead of beeswax.

I do know that, generally speaking, a lot of makers underprice their products. I used to sell my lip balms for $2.00 per tube and they did sell but as soon as I raised the price to $3.00 per tube, they sold even better. I've had one fellow vendor, who has been telling me my prices are too low, that that price raise was a good start. Then she told me I should raise the price again next season. She's quite comfortable paying $7.00 each for her favourite lip balm, which she buys in bulk (24 per pack) every time they visit Hawaii.

It comes down to knowing your market and your area. If people are willing to pay $45 per lotion bar, yeah, then you can charge that. If you're in an area where they wouldn't even think of spending that much on a lotion bar, you won't be selling many unless you drop the price.

Its weird but I could totally see that. True or not, people generally abide by the adage that "you get what you pay for"

Its why, if I'm in the mood, ill buy the actual frosted mini wheats and not the malt o meal brand which is much less expensive but made in the same factory. LOL. Im literally paying for a box

 

[Misschief]

Its weird but I could totally see that. True or not, people generally abide by the adage that "you get what you pay for"

Its why, if I'm in the mood, ill buy the actual frosted mini wheats and not the malt o meal brand which is much less expensive but made in the same factory. LOL. Im literally paying for a box

And in a lot of cases, it's perception. You could have the identical product in high end packaging or just wrapped in plastic and one will be perceived as a luxury item while the other will be perceived as an everyday item, which should cost much less than the so-called luxury item.

 

[The_Emerald_Chicken]

I love her videos. Haven't gotten around to buying a palette knife yet, or the plasitic/glass she uses to incorporate it on. But it is on my list.

So you use this technique?

Yes I do. I basically just scrape it around until it looks like all the blobs have been ground up. I've been impressed with the results! Much better than just trying to mix it.

 

[Catscankim]

I do know that, generally speaking, a lot of makers underprice their products. I used to sell my lip balms for $2.00 per tube and they did sell but as soon as I raised the price to $3.00 per tube, they sold even better. I've had one fellow vendor, who has been telling me my prices are too low, that that price raise was a good start. Then she told me I should raise the price again next season. She's quite comfortable paying $7.00 each for her favourite lip balm, which she buys in bulk (24 per pack) every time they visit Hawaii.

It comes down to knowing your market and your area. If people are willing to pay $45 per lotion bar, yeah, then you can charge that. If you're in an area where they wouldn't even think of spending that much on a lotion bar, you won't be selling many unless you drop the price.

Yes this!!!! I sell/sold for a company that sold their stuff at a high price. You say it more eloquently than I do, but I agree, do not compromise on your price in the right market.

However, $45 a lotion bar is excessive. But if i could sell my stuff at $45 I would.

People at work buy these cupcakes from some random guy that just comes in and sells cupcakes. They are really huge, big cupcakes. I had soap, and someone asked me why $8, and didn't want to pay $8 for a bar of soap. I'm like... you just bought a $5 cupcake that is going to be gone in less than 5 minutes, and you are questioning $8 for soap that is going to last your family for a month? On that...I sold soap to her.

i can't speak for lotion bars...never made them. But I take into account my packaging, ingredients, labeling, and the free samples and sometimes full bars of soap that I give away. It all costs money. Depending on recipe, most of mine average $2.50/bar to make, and then some higher, but I have been keeping them the same price for selling even if it costs a little more to make, cause it's merely pennies per bar (Haven't sold my salt bars yet, but I am thinking about selling higher because of the rent-space they have to take up for a long cure LOL).