What soapy thing have you done today?

[Meena]

Unmolded and cut my 4th soap. My design attempt didn't work, but I'm not super-concerned about a perfect look right now. I'm really working on creating varied formulations with differeing oil choices or proportions, then seeing how the soap batches work out, how they cure, how they age longer-term, how they might ameliorate my lotion use, and jazz like that. As long as i like the colors and they don't look like food. ;P These are for me, SO, and maybe some friends if they beg real pretty-like.

This was a 6-oil soap: Avocado, castor, coconut, hemp, olive, and certified sustainable organic palm (alphabetical, not by weight). Same oils as the "hamburger soap", but different proportions which gave a slightly more balanced Sat:Unsat ratio, but still lower Sat than my 1st two soaps, which will also give me something to compare, down the road. SF 4% and 34% lye concentration. I've been staying in the 32% - 34% lye range with 3% to an unusual 6% SF (for the soleseife only), and have not had any soaps zap upon unmolding.

The weird surface on the foreground soap (which was across the whole slab) was from the plastic wrap touching the soap and messing up my fancy top ... because I FINALLY made enough to fill that mold ... and a titch too much.



These are the molds I ordered today, that are coming Monday. I think my soaps will still go through gel phase in the rectangles, since they are close together, but I might have to take extra care to gel the ones in the flower molds -- time will tell. Please chime in about this, if you have any experience with it. TIA

 

[Dawni]

BaH!!! I unmoulded my challenge soap, as, as feared, it is not up to standard.

I think my standard falls way below yours since my output is the same lol but I like looking at all soap so I'm waiting for you to show us hehe

Cut the soleseife this morning, but think I should have left it another 4 or 5 hours, for a full 24. I like it, though.

love the color! Careful though, if you miss the window to cut soleseifes become super hard to cut.

I made anise and amber soap again, this time with cut up chunks of my last black soap, which was too black.

View attachment 35208

Niiice! I love soap with anything black hehehe

2. Saw a 2-oil recipe here somewhere last night .... can't find it now, but it fired-up my imagination. It had a high proportion of CO and I forget what else (maybe it was OO?), but I'm gonna play with Soap Calc and try it out with the different soft oils that I have.

I ordered some pretty molds (was linked below, but showed security risk details ;p) which will arrive on Monday, so I won't actually make the modified no-slime castille today. After seeing Zany's soaps made in 'intaglio' cavity molds, I'd be inconsolable if I had to make these in a plain loaf mold!

Might that be a high coconut with Castor? That's a "usual" kind of soap..

Unmolded and cut my 4th soap. My design attempt didn't work, but I'm not super-concerned about a perfect look right now.
View attachment 35219View attachment 35220

These are the molds I ordered today, that are coming Monday. I think my soaps will still go through gel phase in the rectangles, since they are close together, but I might have to take extra care to gel the ones in the flower molds -- time will tell. Please chime in about this, if you have any experience with it. TIA

View attachment 35217 View attachment 35218

I love the muted colors! What did you use for colorants? Micas or natural?

I've seen soaps made in those rectangle molds around but can't seem to find the actual molds. So pretty..

 

[KiwiMoose]

Unmolded and cut my 4th soap. My design attempt didn't work, but I'm not super-concerned about a perfect look right now. I'm really working on creating varied formulations with differeing oil choices or proportions, then seeing how the soap batches work out, how they cure, how they age longer-term, how they might ameliorate my lotion use, and jazz like that. As long as i like the colors and they don't look like food. ;P These are for me, SO, and maybe some friends if they beg real pretty-like.

This was a 6-oil soap: Avocado, castor, coconut, hemp, olive, and certified sustainable organic palm (alphabetical, not by weight). Same oils as the "hamburger soap", but different proportions which gave a slightly more balanced Sat:Unsat ratio, but still lower Sat than my 1st two soaps, which will also give me something to compare, down the road. SF 4% and 34% lye concentration. I've been staying in the 32% - 34% lye range with 3% to an unusual 6% SF (for the soleseife only), and have not had any soaps zap upon unmolding.

The weird surface on the foreground soap (which was across the whole slab) was from the plastic wrap touching the soap and messing up my fancy top ... because I FINALLY made enough to fill that mold ... and a titch too much.

View attachment 35219View attachment 35220

These are the molds I ordered today, that are coming Monday. I think my soaps will still go through gel phase in the rectangles, since they are close together, but I might have to take extra care to gel the ones in the flower molds -- time will tell. Please chime in about this, if you have any experience with it. TIA

View attachment 35217 View attachment 35218

Hi Meena - I have those floral moulds and I find the soaps don't gel on their own usually.

 

[dalewaite48]

I started designing a new soap that will be called Fruity Pebbles. It will be made from goats milk, and the main part of the soap will be white, and then I made 4 drifferent colors of melt & pour that I need to figure how to cut up to look like cereal. Once I figure out that will add the inserts at trace. Any ideas would be great.

 

[Lesley Susan Madigan]

Boring but I did some melt and pour last night.

Shea butter base, I was trying for red and yellow swirls with bronze mica but the swirls didn't work

But when I took it out the mould it was an amazing burnished copper colour. Little heavy on the mica but also as I used a cinnamon FO smells divine

 

[Chris_S]

Hi Meena - I have those floral moulds and I find the soaps don't gel on their own usually.

Do you find it better to have a thicker trace when using individual cavity molds? i got some rectangle cavity molds today and they feel slightly more flexible than id like so just trying figure out best way to use them so they dont bulge at sides when full. Dont really caare if they gel or not as i dont have to cut them they can sit in the mold for longer they are ideal size for individual bars so was thinking things like face soap and shampoo bars when i get round to making them would be ideal. and the 2 molds hold nearly as much as a loaf mold just need to find some baking trays to place them on for moving about

@Meena iv seen videos where people cover molds like that with a card box and then wrap it so that the towels arnt touching the soap batter maybe that would help im going to put them on a baking tray then if i try to gel ill do what i just suggested but not bothered about gelling smaller molds im happy just gelling the loaf molds actually thinking about it i will prob do the box thing just to try avoid ash

 

[shunt2011]

I have those floral molds. I pour at a light trace so they stay smooth on top. Too thick and they get gloopy. You can get them to gel but it’s difficult. I put them on a lined cookie sheet an put into a warm oven then shut it off. I’ve only used them for salt bars. I have also found that individual molds tend to ash more often. They un-mold we’ll from them and make pretty soap.

 

[Marilyn Norgart]

I have those floral molds. I pour at a light trace so they stay smooth on top. Too thick and they get gloopy. You can get them to gel but it’s difficult. I put them on a lined cookie sheet an put into a warm oven then shut it off. I’ve only used them for salt bars. I have also found that individual molds tend to ash more often. They un-mold we’ll from them and make pretty soap.

does spraying alcohol on top work to prevent ash/ does it work well or just somewhat? I am planning on doing some today at lower temps and I found some 91% alcohol and am going to try but thought I would ask before hand

 

[shunt2011]

@Marilyn Norgart. I haven’t had a lot of luck with alcohol on individual molds. It certainly can’t hurt. Good luck. Hope it works well for you.

 

[Chris_S]

does spraying alcohol on top work to prevent ash/ does it work well or just somewhat? I am planning on doing some today at lower temps and I found some 91% alcohol and am going to try but thought I would ask before hand

Could you do an update on if it works please would be interested to know if it does. ill be testing my new molds later but will try a different method for each to test this out. will also do a little update when i find the results out

 

[Misschief]

I have several cavity molds that I use. Some of them are extremely flexible/thin, others not. I find they don't gel at all in the cavity molds and I'm fine with that. I don't actively encourage gel in my loaf molds; if they gel, fine.

As stated before, I'm also not overly concerned about a bit of ash. It's purely cosmetic and doesn't affect the soap. If I'm bothered by any ash, I'll steam the loaf before cutting or steam the bars individually.

 

[Zing]

does spraying alcohol on top work to prevent ash/ does it work well or just somewhat? I am planning on doing some today at lower temps and I found some 91% alcohol and am going to try but thought I would ask before hand

@Marilyn Norgart , on my CP soap, I spray with alcohol, cover in plastic wrap, then cardboard, then towels. I don't get ash.

 

[Lin19687]

Unmolded the Coconut milk test recipe....... and used it on one arm. lol
lathers Very well, can't wait to see how it does in 2 weeks.
If I still like it I will use this new recipe for all the bars.

btw, I used a small cavity mold, the flexible ones. Can't Gel in that even though I wrapped it. Got up to 96 F at an 1.5 hr after pour. That was it. There was no FO added or color

 

[Zing]

Made lotion bars today (1/3 each of beeswax, coconut oil, shea butter plus EO) for birthday gift tomorrow. Still can't believe I'm just now discovering these amazingly quick and easy things! Mainly I'm avoiding shoveling the 9" of snow we got....I may have to make a second batch.

I also finally moved my recent rosehip soap to the drying room. It's been in my dining room because it's been fascinating to watch the color change.

 

[Dawni]

Wrapped a couple of soaps to send with my dad, who is traveling back to Abu Dhabi tomorrow. Or should I say later..

Anyway, these soaps are techinally testers disguised as gifts for some good friends of mine there.

Speaking of disguised testers... My cousin just got hers, in Dubai. She's one of my best supporters and wanted to try out my soaps in that kind of climate, so I guess it's not really a disguise anymore lol

Recycled brown paper from supermarket purchases (clean and dry lol), inside a box my EOs came in, and wrapped in twine from a wine package. The only thing I bought was the star tag, which came in 200pcs lol

 

[Chris_S]

Made lotion bars today (1/3 each of beeswax, coconut oil, shea butter plus EO) for birthday gift tomorrow. Still can't believe I'm just now discovering these amazingly quick and easy things! Mainly I'm avoiding shoveling the 9" of snow we got....I may have to make a second batch.

I also finally moved my recent rosehip soap to the drying room. It's been in my dining room because it's been fascinating to watch the color change.

procrastination at its best. i do however feel your pain iv been out today but yesterday i spent the day just feeling sorry for myself. i wasnt fit for the outside world with the mood i was in yesterday and i risked bumping into people iv made very clear i want nothing to do with and would happily put in hospital should i ever have to come face to face with them again so was for everyones good that i stayed a hermit yesterday

 

[Meena]

I have several cavity molds that I use. Some of them are extremely flexible/thin, others not. I find they don't gel at all in the cavity molds and I'm fine with that. I don't actively encourage gel in my loaf molds; if they gel, fine.

As stated before, I'm also not overly concerned about a bit of ash. It's purely cosmetic and doesn't affect the soap.

This is certainly the practical-minded stance, which I can recognize because I'm also a practical woman. Plus, I don't think I'll be one of those who dislikes ash if/when it occurs because it can be pretty (if embraced, I admit). And I think colors are great, but if they don't 'pop', that's not going to be too concerning.

Thanks for the heads-up on this, @Misschief.

 

[Meena]

love the color! Careful though, if you miss the window to cut soleseifes become super hard to cut.

Might that be a high coconut with Castor? That's a "usual" kind of soap..

I love the muted colors! What did you use for colorants? Micas or natural?

I've seen soaps made in those rectangle molds around but can't seem to find the actual molds. So pretty..

Hi Dawni! Yes, I had the salt factor in mind, but I think it's the full "salt bars" that become super hard, much more than the soleseife. Regarding that mystery recipe, I've been thinking castor might have been involved. I don't think it was on this board, I think it was on a soaping website -- maybe Soap Queen. Didn't get to it yesterday, after all.

The colors were the leftover bits from the soleseife batch. I had made them by mixing Ultramarine Blue pigment powder with Emerald mica and Red Wine mica powders in two different combinations. I scraped one leftover cuppie into part of the batch, and the other cuppie into a separate blending container.

I found those molds on Amazon. Does Amazon sell in the Phillipines? I hope so because I think these are going to make very fun soaps!

I enjoy reading your posts, and hearing what you are up to! You are doing great at soaping!

 

[Meena]

I have those floral molds. I pour at a light trace so they stay smooth on top. Too thick and they get gloopy. You can get them to gel but it’s difficult. I put them on a lined cookie sheet an put into a warm oven then shut it off. I’ve only used them for salt bars. I have also found that individual molds tend to ash more often. They un-mold we’ll from them and make pretty soap.

Thanks, shunt (although I think you were answering @Chris_S , not me)! I see your logic here, and agree with the lighter trace as opposed to glopping the batter in -- particularly with the flower mold. The rectangles would be more forgiving of gloop, I feel.

I like your warm oven idea -- you kind of CPOP your individual molds, then, right?

I could also force heating by putting a little sugar in the batter, but would have to be careful about creating volcano since the surface area is so small the batter wouldn't have anyplace the bubble-up could go.

 

[KiwiMoose]

Do you find it better to have a thicker trace when using individual cavity molds? i got some rectangle cavity molds today and they feel slightly more flexible than id like so just trying figure out best way to use them so they dont bulge at sides when full. Dont really caare if they gel or not as i dont have to cut them they can sit in the mold for longer they are ideal size for individual bars so was thinking things like face soap and shampoo bars when i get round to making them would be ideal. and the 2 molds hold nearly as much as a loaf mold just need to find some baking trays to place them on for moving about

@Meena iv seen videos where people cover molds like that with a card box and then wrap it so that the towels arnt touching the soap batter maybe that would help im going to put them on a baking tray then if i try to gel ill do what i just suggested but not bothered about gelling smaller molds im happy just gelling the loaf molds actually thinking about it i will prob do the box thing just to try avoid ash

I use a thinner trace with floral moulds otherwise it can miss some of the detail of the flowers if too thick.