Ron, you don't need the cdea to make a 'commercial' bar. Remember, you're trying to provide a better bar, not the same cheap crap being spewed out by everyone else. Provide better quality and you will set yourself apart and build your market with soap that stands out from the competition.
Yes, remember that I told you it would need to cure for at least 4 weeks, this is NOT just to dry it out, but also so that the soap's molecular structure settles down into the right pattern which creates a harder longer-lasting bar, but also is less harsh and BETTER LATHER! Uncured soap just does not lather well, and no amount of chemical crap is going to solve that, you just have to wait it out. I have an awesome soap made with carrot puree, and it took about 6 weeks before suddenly I had tons of glorious lather.
SO, you have your first batches made. You wrote down the exact recipe you used for each one, correct? Then on each batch's recipe, attach a fresh sheet of paper, and record the date you made that batch. Write down your method used. Write down anything you remember about making it -- how long it took to trace, did it heat up? Any trouble with it? Did it overheat in the mold? Change colors? Smell funny? Anything you might want to do different next time you make it.
Then, for each recipe, you will write down how long it took to be able to unmold and cut. Did it cut smoothly? Crack? Crumble or smush? Any air-pockets or lye or oil or fragrance pockets inside? Then while you have it set aside for curing, set one bar aside for testing later. With this bar, you will use half, and store half to check for signs of rancidity or other issues that can take a few months to show.
For the half-bar you will be testing, you'll test this pretty much right away, to get that curiosity out of the way, because we soapers are all too impatient to wait LOL!
Then you'll make notes on that on your batch sheet. Again at 1-2weeks, again at 4-5wks. Some soap my need 8wks or more, but I think yours should be ok at 4-5wks.
How to test -- wet hands thoroughly with warm water. Wet soap thoroughly also. The younger the soap, the more water you may need to get the lather started. Rub the soap over and over about 10x's and set aside. Add a tad more water to your hand and lather up!
What you want to note -- lather, of course, big fluffy bubbles? Little fluffy bubbles? Foamy bubbles? Creamy lotion bubbles? This can change a lot sometimes over the cure period! Ok, then think about how it feels? Squeaky clean? Rich and luxurious? Does it rinse clean? Leave a residue ? Feel oily? Dry your hands gently. If there was a residue feeling, is it still there? Or do your hands now feel just clean without tightness or dryness? Or do they feel dry or tight? Or like you need to use lotion? Also note - texture. Was it smooth? Creamy? Scrubby? Slimy? Sticky? And scent -- before use, strength ? During use, and after rinsing. In general, it should smell nice to use, but not leave a ton of scent stuck to your skin. After several uses, does the scent fade or change? Lastly, color. What color did it start out? How did it change as it cured? How did it change with use? Did it fade? Get darker? Do something unexpected?
Ok, so now you have a few things to do during the soap's cure time. The next thing to do is make more soap. Keep with the small batches, avoid the chemicals, play with using sugar and salt, and varying amounts of your puree. Keep notes on each variation, so if you get something amazing, you know how to duplicate it, and if you get something so-so, you know what NOT to do.
Keeping detailed batch notes about each recipe, especially now, while you're learning, will help you build a successful business, because you will become very familiar with how each thing affects the outcome and how little details can make a big difference!
Once you are making the soap, taking your notes, checking previous soaps, and planning details of recipes, and planning any labels, brochures, etc, as well as making sure you're following any local laws for selling it. It wouldn't do, to make lots of wonderful soap, and get in trouble for not following the sales laws!!!
