Zany's no slime castile

[LilyJo]

Thank you both, will leave it alone and keep my fingers crossed. I wonder if I didnt blend it for long enough but I will see what happens and have another go in a day or so.

 

[LilyJo]

Ok, I ignored it (tbh I forgot it) and have just checked three days after making and its rock solid - thank goodness I made individual soaps!

Looks amazing, so white and creamy just have to ge patient now for the cure!

Thanks all

 

[MGM]

I'm going to pop in here with some advice for new soapers....make this recipe early! Maybe not for your first soap (although maybe), but within your first month. I waited and read and made other soaps and waited and waited and waited and finally made this one a few months ago. However, with such a long cure, I still have months go go to find out if I even like castiles! Add to this the fact that I did the same thing with salt soaps....waited until my 2nd year of soaping to try one. So same thing, I have these soaps that take forever to cure, but I don't know if I even like them yet. So I'm not making any more castiles or salt soaps while waiting to see. Boo.
Bottom line? Soap early and soap often!

 

[Sparks]

I'm about to start a tradition of making a Castile soap each year on, or close to, my birthday and the stamping them with the year as sort of a vintage mark. That way it's easy for me to remember when they'll be cured and it'll be a cool almost family heirloom kind of thing. I'm planning on using Zany's recipe this year, probably more. Anyway I'm a big history nut and I noticed that Zany and a few of you had done research into Castile and other styles of soap so my question is, where do you find such information? I've only been able to find the most shallow of references to them. Thanks.

I'll post picture when I finish it in a couple of weeks.

 

[Sparks]

Here it is just before popping in the oven for a brief CPOP. 70% Olive oil, 25% Coconut oil, and 5% Castor oil using Zany's faux seawater for the lye solution. Also to celebrate I just ordered a copy of "Soap through the Ages" by R. Lucock Wilson (c) 1952 which should quench my research thirst for a while.

 

[SPowers]

This is a tried and true recipe that I've made several times. Others have tried it with excellent results. Be sure to keep the bar high and dry between uses by using a soap-saver-type soap dish. Tweak to your heart's delight! (Like, do I even need to say that?! )

ZANY’S NO SLIME OLIVE OIL CASTILE
Ingredients: Olive oil, water, sea salt, sodium bicarbonate.

1) MAKE FAUX SEAWATER - Use for water portion of the lye solution.
1 quart warm water
1 Tablespoon sea salt
1 Tablespoon sodium bicarbonate (baking soda)

I make up a quart at a time and store it in the fridge until I need it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2) MAKE LYE SOLUTION - Mix and allow to cool to 35°C - 40°C (100°F - 110°F).
1.7:1 Water to Lye Ratio (Note decimal and colon)
0% Super Fat/Lye Discount

Notes: I’ve tried 2:1 and 1.5:1. 1.5:1 gets almost too hard and 1:2 is okay but a bit slimey, so, for me, 1.7:1 is the ideal. Olive oil is high in unsaponifiables; so 0% SF works best to reduce slippery slime.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Prepare lye solution and set it in the sink to cool. Weigh olive oil into soap pot. Warm to 35°C - 40°C (100°F - 110°F). Combine when lye and oils are within -12°C (10°F) of each other. SB on and off to emulsion stage (5 - 25 minutes, depending on grade of olive oil.) Slowly pour into mold. Tap to remove bubbles. Spritz lightly with alcohol. Cover with plastic wrap. Insulate. Leave soap undisturbed for 12-24 hours.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
UNMOLD in 12-24 hours
CUT Day 2
CURE Ready to ship in 2 weeks. 6 weeks is best. The longer the cure the better the soap.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Unscented, this soap is suitable for babies, sensitive skin, and for cancer patients undergoing radiation. Add 5% castor oil and 10% coconut oil for bubbles and an even milder soap.

If adding fragrance, add 0.85 oz. FO or 0.5% EO /PPO (Per 500 grams) to the castor oil an hour or so ahead of time (or overnight) and a teaspoon PPO of dry ingredient of choice -- corn starch, oat flour, arrowroot powder, White Kaolin Clay, etc. -- to help “stick” the fragrance.

VARIATIONS: Infuse Calendula Petals (yellow) or Bay Leaves (green) in oil ahead of time. Strain. Use up to 40% in the batch to add mildness and color.

Is this a shampoo bar??

 

[cmzaha]

Is this a shampoo bar??

No, "Soap" is Not shampoo.

 

[shunt2011]

@SPowers I second cmzaha.....no soap is not shampoo. I personally had my hair ruined using soap as shampoo. Went from shoulder length to pixie in about 6 months or so. The PH is too high I don't care what anyone says. Use it at your own risk. There are many others here who have had their hair ruined as well. Castille of any kind is my least favorite soap. but give this a try. I personally didn't like it but many do. I've been making soap 9+ years. Soap isn't shampoo.

 

[Zany_in_CO]

Is this a shampoo bar??

This is a Castile soap. It can be used as a shampoo bar. Try it with 80% olive oil + 20% coconut oil (Option: 15% coconut & 5% castor) to see if your hair likes it. Make sure to use an acid rinse (ACV or Lemon Juice) to restore the acid mantle of the scalp. Rinse thoroughly with increasingly cool water until it's as cold as you can stand it to be sure to remove all the soap residue.

 

[SPowers]

Thanks, going to try this. Does it have to cure for a long time?

 

[Zany_in_CO]

Anyway I'm a big history nut and I noticed that Zany and a few of you had done research into Castile and other styles of soap so my question is, where do you find such information? I've only been able to find the most shallow of references to them. Thanks.

I started soaping in 2003 when there was a lot of information on line, mostly from people who had been at it for quite a while before me and learned from others who came before them. Many members, like Anne Watson for one, wrote the first books on modern soapmaking. There were several other forums and Yahoo Groups like that. One of the best was an Australian forum that featured other B & B products, not just soap. One of the best books ever, Soap Naturally by Patrizia Garzena and Marina Tadiello, was a result of the information and recipes shared on that forum.

Alas, most of those groups and web sites are defunct. I joined Handcrafted Soap Makers forum in 2004 where I met most of my mentors, all generous people willing to share not only their knowledge and expertise, but recipes as well. At that time, we were mostly "mad scientists" trying one thing or another and helping to trouble shoot problems.

I went through a phase to learn to make some old-fashioned soaps: Pine Tar, Brown Windsor, Aleppo, old-fashion lye soap, transparent soaps -- although I've yet to try "Pears". I'm working on a recipe but I'm not 'there' yet. Details elude me. So if you find a recipe for that in Soap Through the Ages I hope you'll share!

 

[Hope Ann]

I was never a fan of castile soap but made this last fall. I did straight up and some with a smidge of coconut and castor or SAO. I doubled the salt in the water, then subbed other liquid for half the water (aloe juice is my fave). I actually love the 100% the most of my variations. I was very thankful to have bars to use on my freshly radiated skin this spring. I'm running low so just made a new batch with vinegar for my half water, plus added powdered aloe. Hardened quite quickly. The leaves didn't dissolve like I thought they might (was a rougher grind than I realized) but at 48 hours already is surprisingly bubbly with a mild exfoliation effect. A very happy accident that I think I will repeat on purpose. I made some baby bars plus my loaf as I haven't ever the patience to wait. :-D I suspect this will be another fave soap and am looking forward to checking every couple weeks.

Thanks Zaney for sharing this one! It also had given me the encouragement to play with low SF in other formulas. I've been following the forum for 3-4 years but rarely post. I do search a lot to glean wisdom from everyone and it's one of my favorite places to kill a few hours.

 

[Zany_in_CO]

Thanks, going to try this. Does it have to cure for a long time?

You're welcome. Please read: Post #1

 

[SPowers]

but at 48 hours already is surprisingly bubbly.

Are you using this soap right away or letting it cure first?

 

[SPowers]

The cure question answered! Thanks Zany.

 

[Hope Ann]

Are you using this soap right away or letting it cure first?

Most of it is happily curing away for some future date. However, I like to see how the soap changes over time, especially if I've done something new, so use the ends of a loaf, cut a slice into small pieces, or use guest soaps from overpour (keeping in mind that if I gelled the loaf the guest soaps may not have). It's fascinating to see how "oh fudge I really screwed up" turns into "eh, this might be salvageable" to "holy smokes this is fabulous". Or not. :-D

Hope

 

[SPowers]

great idea... thanks!

 

[Sparks]

I went through a phase to learn to make some old-fashioned soaps: Pine Tar, Brown Windsor, Aleppo, old-fashion lye soap, transparent soaps -- although I've yet to try "Pears". I'm working on a recipe but I'm not 'there' yet. Details elude me. So if you find a recipe for that in Soap Through the Ages I hope you'll share!

I will, if it ever arrives. It was supposed to be here Tuesday. It is now Friday, still no book. I'm trying to be patient.

 

[Malleebird]

Help ! Another failed castile
Yesterday I made Zany's castile with coconut oil & castor oil...perfect ! This morning it popped out of the mold beautifully...a lovely smooth hard bar.
So proceeded to do another with 100% OO this time. All seemed to be fine...I was so confident, what could go wrong when you've only got 2 ingredients .....well something !!
First photo was when I poured, the second after 12 hours !

I'd given it a light spritz with isopropyl alcohol, covered it with cling wrap and insulated with towels. That's a soft crust that's formed on top, underneath is thick custard. I knew it wasn't going to improve overnight so I scrapped it back into the jug, added about a Tbs of the brine/bi-carb mix, microwaved to 37 C , then SB'd for about 2 or 3 minutes until it was almost too thick to glop into the molds. Spritzed, covered and insulated again....now waiting till morning ....but not confident.
Zany's instructions say to SB for 5-25 minutes depending on the quality of the oil. As I was using my friends oil from her olives that only been pressed about 2 weeks ago I assumed about 7 minutes was enough as it appeared to be a good medium trace after that time. (It was for the first successful batch with CO & castor).
Any suggestions ? I really felt that perhaps I hadn't SB'd long enough... but was worried it was going to be too thick.
Really want to get it right, as I was making these 2 batches for my friend.... who I think was a bit horrified that I was making soap out of her precious oil

 

[miheypete]

Zany, thanks so much for this recipe. I had been meaning to try it since you first posted it, and I finally made 3 loaves of this in early March (just after shelter-in-place order). It's cured now I've been using it for a couple of weeks. Lovely soap! I always add 15% CO and 5% Castor Oil. The first (smaller) loaf I accidentally left too long in the mold and it was crumbly to cut but I got a few nice bars. My second loaf was olive oil; my third was half OO and half RBO (with CO and Castor in both). All three loaves are no slime, soft and gentle, fluffy, abundant lather, and feel good on my skin. This recipe is a keeper and it will be in my rotation forever. I'm so happy to have this recipe. Thank you!