What soapy thing have you done today?

[KiwiMoose]

Plenty of free time... check.

LOL! It's purrrrtty. A sure fire challenge winner - you've got my vote!

 

[Michele50]

LOL! It's purrrrtty. A sure fire challenge winner - you've got my vote!

Ya got mine also.

 

[GML]

I spent part of last night and today re-batching some soaps just for the heck of it. I watched a video where the soaper added coconut milk to the soap shavings so I thought I would give it a try.

 

[Karmic]

I seriously tried to do the October challenge today....

Grab your adventure caps kids!!! There are glycerin rivers ahead!!!

I didn't try it today (today was hibernation day for me) but I did cut mine. I know that I'm not eligible to submit to it yet but in theory, it sounds like a fairly easy technique, so I decided I wanted to give it a shot anyway just for myself on Friday morning. Mine was not as much as an adventure but it still didn't go as planned. See, my fragrance oil and I have differing opinions on what "slight acceleration" means.

I got the base color in the mold and then picked up the squeeze bottles to find the soap was starting to seize up inside them. My daughter was laughing so hard when she came into the kitchen and found me windmilling my arms around trying to shake them up to keep the soap flowing. And I was laughing myself as the squeeze bottles farted congealing soap out into my base. I managed to get some of it to cooperate but also ended up plopping into some guest soap molds before my squeeze bottles would become molds of their own. Note to self, line your squeeze bottles with plastic baggies in the future.

Today I cut the loaf and was surprised it didn't turn out as bad as I had expected it would. Definitely not as pretty as the examples but there is some drop shapes before things started getting to out of hand. Amusingly enough I also got glycerin rivers but I'm kinda digging the effect. My colors came out perfect though so I can't complain about that.

 

[Michele50]

I didn't try it today (today was hibernation day for me) but I did cut mine. I know that I'm not eligible to submit to it yet but in theory, it sounds like a fairly easy technique, so I decided I wanted to give it a shot anyway just for myself on Friday morning. Mine was not as much as an adventure but it still didn't go as planned. See, my fragrance oil and I have differing opinions on what "slight acceleration" means.

I got the base color in the mold and then picked up the squeeze bottles to find the soap was starting to seize up inside them. My daughter was laughing so hard when she came into the kitchen and found me windmilling my arms around trying to shake them up to keep the soap flowing. And I was laughing myself as the squeeze bottles farted congealing soap out into my base. I managed to get some of it to cooperate but also ended up plopping into some guest soap molds before my squeeze bottles would become molds of their own. Note to self, line your squeeze bottles with plastic baggies in the future.

Today I cut the loaf and was surprised it didn't turn out as bad as I had expected it would. Definitely not as pretty as the examples but there is some drop shapes before things started getting to out of hand. Amusingly enough I also got glycerin rivers but I'm kinda digging the effect. My colors came out perfect though so I can't complain about that.

Glad it turned out better than you had expected. I agree that glycerin rivers can sometimes be appealing. I only had that happen once, but I actually like it for 'that' loaf of soap.

 

[Ashleigh]

Busy soapy day for me. Ran out of lard so had to run to the store to get some and then masterbatched 20 lbs of oils. While the oils cooled so I could move them from the kitchen to my soaping area I did a bunch of soap dishes. Then I frosted 70 soap cupcakes. 1/3 of the cupcakes turned a really ugly mustard yellow colour which i'm hoping will change a bit during cure. I knew the FO could discolour a bit but I added a colour stabilizer and also TD. The bases I made a couple days ago just turned a darker tan, so i'm not sure where this yellow came from. I would have been happy with a light tan or off-white but this was unexpected. Luckily the FOs I used for the other two batches acted as expected and i'm super happy with the design for those ones.

I hope to get another loaf or two made tomorrow before I leave on vacation for 2.5 weeks. I've been trying to get as much made as possible so it can cure while i'm away and be ready for the Christmas markets I have scheduled for later in November. I'm officially running out of curing space!

 

[Michele50]

Busy soapy day for me. Ran out of lard so had to run to the store to get some and then masterbatched 20 lbs of oils. While the oils cooled so I could move them from the kitchen to my soaping area I did a bunch of soap dishes. Then I frosted 70 soap cupcakes. 1/3 of the cupcakes turned a really ugly mustard yellow colour which i'm hoping will change a bit during cure. I knew the FO could discolour a bit but I added a colour stabilizer and also TD. The bases I made a couple days ago just turned a darker tan, so i'm not sure where this yellow came from. I would have been happy with a light tan or off-white but this was unexpected. Luckily the FOs I used for the other two batches acted as expected and i'm super happy with the design for those ones.

I hope to get another loaf or two made tomorrow before I leave on vacation for 2.5 weeks. I've been trying to get as much made as possible so it can cure while i'm away and be ready for the Christmas markets I have scheduled for later in November. I'm officially running out of curing space!

Hope you have a GREAT vacation!

 

[Kari Howie]

Today is the first day in a long time that I don’t feel like making soap. I worked up a design to try for the October Challenge, but I think I want to see how the little test batch I made yesterday turns out before I move forward. Plus, yesterday I made a big mess when I spilled oils, my soaping microwave died and then when I finally decided to wind down, the Apple TV box died, too.

 

[SoapySuds]

I showed my soap to my husband.

Him: why does your soap look like prison food?

Me: how do you know what prison food looks like?

 

[amd]

Friday I cut, beveled and stamped my first attempt at the mini drop swirl challenge. It's kind of mini drop swirl-ish, but I think I can do better but just in case I won't share it just yet. I have to pick up some squeeze bottles (I knew I went to WalMart yesterday for something and wound up wandering aimlessly) for my next try.
Saturday I had a show (not good) so I didn't do much of anything when I got home.
Sunday I did bookwork, took some new soap pictures (which involved figuring out what to use for photo editing on the new computer, I tried GIMP but you need to know what you're doing so that was a waste of time, finally ended up using Word ha!), updated some website stuff, video editing and making labels.

I attempted to make a batch of yogurt. Years ago I used to make a batch every two weeks in my crockpot, but got out of the habit 5 or 6 years ago. My husband bought me some yogurt cultures (which I had never used before, I always just bought a yogurt with live cultures and then saved a bit of whatever I made for the next batch) so I thought I would try it using my Instant Pot feature. It failed horribly. Smelled like yogurt, looked like kefir without the carbonation. I suspect the culture more than the Instant Pot, so I'm going to try a second batch this week with premade yogurt and the Instant Pot (IP really is easier than the crockpot if it works). Anyways, what makes this soap related is that last March I made a yogurt and honey soap that was phenomenal, the best soap I've ever made IMO, so I want to make more of that but with homemade yogurt. (Of course, I'll eat some of the yogurt too!) I have a whole lineup of very simple scented one color soaps with poppy seeds that I want to do, so now that I'm almost done with my CM lineup, that will be next.

 

[Ashleigh]

Friday I cut, beveled and stamped my first attempt at the mini drop swirl challenge...

Any time I think I've been busy with soap stuff, I read @amd 's activities and puts it all in perspective. I don't know how you find the time!

 

[Marilyn Norgart]

Instant Pot feature

I always use my IP for yogurt and love it--I use the cold recipe (the one where you don't heat it up first) I use Fairlife milk and mix yogurt starter or yogurt in it and set on yogurt and in 8 hours I have a nice thick yogurt--the one trick is to not stir and put it in the fridge to cool. I used to use my dehydrator but the IP is so much better

 

[amd]

I don't know how you find the time!

Marry a guy who does laundry, make the kids do the house work, and don't watch TV every night... lol. I don't do nearly as much as I want to do, and waste a lot of time on things I shouldn't... but thank you for making me feel accomplished! I think I'll take tonight off

I use the cold recipe (the one where you don't heat it up first)

I'll have to look into the cold recipe. I've heard about it, and of course it's been a dozen years or so since I did my initial "how to make yogurt" research so I'm trying to remember why it had to be heated to 180 to begin with. Much like soap making, I've forgotten a lot of things I learned about yogurt.

Forgot to mention my plans for this week:
An second attempt at the mini drop swirl
fudge brownie scented soap
Mandarin Mimosa cupcakes (I ordered an orange slice embed on ebay, so if it arrives this week I should have enough time to make and cure for my end of November show)
4 batches of sugar scrub because I can't keep it in stock
Maybe some lip balms
I have a show on Saturday, so I need to package and label 50-ish bars of soap that are cured.
We'll see how it goes, I have brew club on Tuesday and I work on Wednesday night, so if I take tonight off, I'll only have Thursday and Friday to accomplish this...

 

[Marilyn Norgart]

I'll have to look into the cold recipe.

its another one of those things that peeked my interest somewhat but didn't want to try, once I did I have not made it the other way and its one of those things that my friends really enjoy getting from me

 

[shunt2011]

@amd I make the cold recipe as well. It works a charm but I don't find it thick enough so I strain it. I was making it once a week and need to get back to it.

 

[Liesel Atwood]

"It's a very individual thing. You have to be willing to take on the business aspect of it. It isn't just going to be making soap.

I would suggest checking out the business forum section for more information/advice if you decide that is a direction you want to go in.[/QUOTE]"
Runnerchicki.....I think you've hit the nail right on the head! It is the business aspect that scares me. Like you, I love making soap! But if I had to manage all the "spendy-costy-number crunching things", I think it would become a hassle. Definitely need to think more about this. Thanks, Runnerchicki, for your valuable input and advice. Gratefully appreciated. PS Sorry for the improper quoting and formatting. I'm still figuring out how it's done! LOL

I ABSOLUTELY agree with it taking the joy out of creating. My chemical engineering son has tried to get me to sell (large scale) my beard products that I make him and my other engineering son. No thank you; I developed them for my sons' and husband's beards. I ran a large business (worked my butt off) for decades and don't care to get that involved in my retirement years. There is a lot of work that goes into marketing your products; it's for some but not for others. Checking the business forum section is good advice; it's best to get pointers, information, and advice from those already doing it.

Thanks, Michele50. I'm beginning to get a better sense of the amount of work that goes into keeping up a soap business. I don't think going into business is a smart option for me, given that I've been unable to work for the last number of years due to sickness. Making the soap is more than enough work. Thank you for sharing your experience with me, and for the advice. Soaping is a therapeutic hobby for me....it fulfills a need to be creative and feel useful. I'm thinking it should stay that way. I am truly grateful for all of the advice given to me.

 

[Baqn]

Here is the COFFEE soap cutted. It freezed so quickly that I couldn't work with the batter. I had other intentions for the design ...

 

[Fiona Robertson]

I also have started using soy wax. And I love it. I’ve been using it around 10%. In your opinion does 20% make the soap feel waxy. I also do NaOH and KOH at 95/5% to help increase lather as my palmitic +Stearic numbers are close to 30-35. I’m considering going higher on the soy wax and wondered what your lather is like and how your skin feels after the shower.

Here's a good thread to read: https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/soy-wax-users.73339/

 

[Lefty]

I have two shows coming up in early November, so this last week I made my final batches of soap for those shows. One is some guest-sized leaf soaps (good for Thanksgiving) and the other is a batch of my regular bars using BB's Cashmere fragrance. I did an ITP swirl which I haven't done before. I wanted it to be swirls of light pink, white and brown from the FO discoloration. So far the pink is a bit darker than I wanted, and what is supposed to be brown just looks sort of yellow! Hopefully after a few weeks of curing, it will mellow and be a bit more brown. But I'm loving the look of the swirl. I kept my signature vertical line in the soap, so that made it a bit more challenging to pour the layers!

I also have a bunch of lip balm testers out to a group of volunteers who will be sampling and giving me their feedback. I've been making lip balm for a while, but just for myself, so I figured I'd do some market testing first before offering it at my upcoming shows!

Now I'm working on all the non-soapy side of getting ready for the shows such as packaging and labeling, planning my table setup, working on any printed materials, etc.

 

[Michele50]

Thanks, Michele50. I'm beginning to get a better sense of the amount of work that goes into keeping up a soap business. I don't think going into business is a smart option for me, given that I've been unable to work for the last number of years due to sickness. Making the soap is more than enough work. Thank you for sharing your experience with me, and for the advice. Soaping is a therapeutic hobby for me....it fulfills a need to be creative and feel useful. I'm thinking it should stay that way. I am truly grateful for all of the advice given to me.

You're quite welcome. I'm new to the forum (as a member that is) but find a lot of assistance and advice here, It good to find a place where there are so many eager to help lovely people. I've been nudged by many who receive gifts as soap from me to sell on Etsy--are you kidding, lol. I, like you, make soap as a creative outlet. I enjoy the choice to make whatever soap I want, start to tackle new techniques and make it at my own pace. We had to sell our business due to osteoarthritis in all major joints and spine so I just could no longer stand on my feet for 13 hours a day without being in severe pain all the time. My husband talked me into selling, otherwise, I suppose I would have carried on for longer. Being retired I had time to focus on what I enjoy--creativity--and fell in love with both the science end of soap making and the artistic end of it. Happy soaping and enjoy your lovely creations!!