What's your most recent hard lesson learned?

[Guest]

Thought I'd start a thread to help others with some of the not-so-obvious ins and outs of soaping!

Talk about lessons you learned the hard way (or the expensive way) here!

Mine from this week:

1. SB'ing herbs in your soap can cause the soap to discolor very heavily from the release of oils in the herbs! Mix them in gently without using the SB, just before pouring.

2. When using fragrance oils, let your melted oils and lye solution cool before mixing (100°F / 37°C or cooler). Add the fragrance oil at light trace, and mix it in without SB'ing.

 

[kellistarr]

Less is more. This rule applies to adding additives such as honey, egg yolks, herbal powders etc... especially when doing it for the first time.

Create my own recipe ahead of time. Doing this allows you to tweak your recipe, prep your ingredients. Double check your lye and water calculations. This is also a time saver!

Take on one new experiment at a time. If I'm working with color, I'm not going to use oils I've never used, additives I've never used etc. . . This way, if something goes wrong, I can identify the problem.

Research Ingredients. You know that you are getting the best price, you know what your ingredients are meant to do and what you are going to use them for.

 

[honor435]

Less is more. This rule applies to adding additives such as honey, egg yolks, herbal powders etc... especially when doing it for the first time.

Create my own recipe ahead of time. Doing this allows you to tweak your recipe, prep your ingredients. Double check your lye and water calculations. This is also a time saver!

Take on one new experiment at a time. If I'm working with color, I'm not going to use oils I've never used, additives I've never used etc. . . This way, if something goes wrong, I can identify the problem.

Research Ingredients. You know that you are getting the best price, you know what your ingredients are meant to do and what you are going to use them for.

definetly check into prices, i paid way too much for coconut, til i met you guys!
Dont make soaps fragrance that I dont like.
research.

 

[valor]

I've learned a lot of lessons this week (especially since this is my first week of soap making) Things I've learned include: I need to...

Slow down! Don't be so gung-ho. Take my time in setting things up, it'll still be there later.

Make a small batch first to see if I like it, then expand it into a bigger one.

NOTES NOTES NOTES! Uber important! Note everything...I may think that I will remember, but chances are that with everything I am doing, there is no stinkin' way that I will actually remember.

And finally:

Just because a soap LOOKS good enough to eat, doesn't mean that one SHOULD eat it... Bleck! :x

 

[heyjude]

Don't wear dangling earrings while soaping. If you do they may go flying across the room (or worse - into your soap) when you whip off your googles and dust mask!

Jude

 

[Bigmoose]

Don't use FCO when making liquid shampoo. I made this recipe before and adding FCO was only thing different. Less lather and thinner.

Bruce

 

[I love soap!]

Keep animals out of the way, cats don't like soap!

 

[Inodoro Pereyra]

Not to use peppermint for my soap. Hard and painful lesson.

 

[ilovedoxies]

Wipe out your bowls! Pet hair is not an appropriate additive.

Prepare your molds before getting started.

Get your additives lined out and handy, ready to pour in at trace.

Make sure you have a safe cozy place to put your poured soap.

 

[kaseencook]

To be mindful, and not be thinking of other things while making soap.

It was a while back, but my husband had just washed up the dishes with hot water and left the kitchen. I came in to make my soap, poured my water for my lye, got my oils ready in the pot, and then measured my lye. I then added my lye to my water mixed in a bit and turned around to let it sit for a moment..... then I head this deep rumble..... turned around and BOOM, lye water violently bubbling over the top and onto the counter... luckly I keep the lye water on a newspaper and it mostly soaked into the paper.

I should have made sure the water I put the lye into was cold, but I was not thinking that the water would not be cold, because my husband had just used the hot water. So I am always mindful of my soap making, it is easy to become a robot on auto pilot - and I check my water is COLD!

 

[MsBien]

Lessons learned the hard way in the last couple of months:

1. Be sure that the mold is prepared before starting to stir the soap.

2. Scotch tape is not strong enough to secure the plastic to the bottom of a PVC mold.

3. If there is barely enough time to make soap, WAIT until later.

Stacie

 

[Guest]

It takes LESS that a full teaspoon of black oxide ppo to get true black soap.

I wanted to err on the side of too much, rather than end up with gray soap.

I definitely got pitch black soap, but the lather has a slight gray tint. Half a tsp, or even a bit less, would probably have been enough.

 

[Guest]

Soap will burn your toes if your hand slips. It's a good job I was wearing my slippers :wink:

 

[reallyrita]

CONCENTRATE....CONCENTRATE...CONCENTRATE.....

 

[jbarad]

#1 Double check calculations : otherwise you could end up with a mold full of oily glop

#2 Calculators are your friend : there is no shame in using them instead of your fingers or toes

#3 Always set the oven timer when doing CPOP : if you forget your soap in the oven on warm for 4+ hours you will get a volcano, I promise you this :?

#4 Warn guests that the chocolate bunnies on your counter are in fact soap, and not Easter candy

 

[Guest]

The soap fairies don't seem to be around to much , if everything is prepared ahead of time and you can take your time and concentrate on the task at hand.
Don't make soap when you are tired.
Don't try putting everything but the kitchen sink into a batch, less is more.
Don't expect that every single batch will be exactly what you envisioned .It won't be , but you will still have soap.
Rebatching is not a bad thing.It can be your friend.
Use elastics on your cuffs if you have loose arm bands on your sweatshirt.

Kitn

 

[Guest]

#4 Warn guests that the chocolate bunnies on your counter are in fact soap, and not Easter candy

LOL! That's criminal!

I've seen a lot of soaps on here that look like cakes, pastries, etc.... and I think.... why put the temptation there?!

Reminds me of when I was 4.... parents put popsicle shaped soap under the christmas tree.... hilarity ensued (for them).

 

[jbarad]

#4 Warn guests that the chocolate bunnies on your counter are in fact soap, and not Easter candy

LOL! That's criminal!

I've seen a lot of soaps on here that look like cakes, pastries, etc.... and I think.... why put the temptation there?!

Reminds me of when I was 4.... parents put popsicle shaped soap under the christmas tree.... hilarity ensued (for them).

I must admit it was a setup I had chocolate soap bunnies and real chocolate bunnies - my granddaughter picked up the real chocolate bunny and took a bite. So her dad ( my son ) who is always stealing her candy grabbed the "other bunny" thinking he was being slick. The joke was on him My granddaughter got a great laugh out of it and so did I. My son, not so much lol

 

[Sibi]

I must admit it was a setup I had chocolate soap bunnies and real chocolate bunnies - my granddaughter picked up the real chocolate bunny and took a bite. So her dad ( my son ) who is always stealing her candy grabbed the "other bunny" thinking he was being slick. The joke was on him My granddaughter got a great laugh out of it and so did I. My son, not so much lol

Wish I coulda been there to see that!! hehehe. You should have captured that on video, it would have been a hit on the Funny videos show!

 

[chrisinflorida]

If possible, research your FO ahead of time to know if it will accelerate trace or change colors. It will make your soaping less stressful if you have sort of an idea of how the fragrance will behave rather than finding out just as you have poured it into the soap or when you go to unmold it.

Chris