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Cleaning Up:  Soapmaking advice  |
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quiltin mama
True Blue Farmgirl
436 Posts
Heather
Crescent City
CA
USA
436 Posts |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
 Posted - Mar 01 2010 : 5:49:09 PM
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Thanks, Lori. I will try to find the conversion chart. Sounds like a close call there with the stinky hubby! Good save.
Heather, I made some almond scrub soap with almond oil. It looks good so far. Still curing. But I would think you could use it in any recipe. And it's free! Can't beat that.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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CrystalinNC
Farmgirl at Heart
6 Posts
Crystal
Rocky Mount
North Carolina
USA
6 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2010 : 12:01:05 PM
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Hi ladies! I just happened to find this forum yesterday after following a couple of links, and I am totally amazed already! I have learned so much about making cold process soap from this thread, and I think I'm ready to jump in and do it this time. I'm trying to make a list of everything I need to purchase to make that happen. I don't want to make a ton of soap right now--just enough to stock my family for a little while and to get a feel for using different fragrances and oils. I think I read about someone making a 1lb batch. I might want to make a couple of separate small batches like that. I mostly am trying to figure out how much I need of different things.
I have some essential oils already, and I ordered a few more just before I started reading here. I also have grapeseed oil, sweet almond oil, olive oil, castor oil, and coconut oil. I have coco butter and shea butter coming soon with my new EOs.
I know I need to look for a pot that I can use just for soap making, a dedicated glass measuring cup, thermometers, and a stick blender. I need to pick up some goat's milk, too.
I also need to order some lye, but I'm trying to decide if there is anything else I need to order before I do. Do you all have any input as to how much I will need when it comes to essential oils, lye, etc. Also, I'd love to know if you think of anything I have left out.
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~Crystal |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2010 : 3:46:32 PM
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First of all, welcome to the forum, Crystal! Have you been to the Welcome Wagon yet? You need to go there and introduce yourself. Let us know a little bit about you. But so glad you joined us here.
I see you didn't mention scales. You will need a good scale. I just have a cheapo scale that measures pounds and ounces. I need to invest in a digital scale. And maybe one that will convert all the metric so I can make Lori's soap! I wonder if they make those?
I ordered my lye from www.thelyeguy.com. He's got good prices. Sounds like you have a good start. I'll sell you a good Lamancha dairy goat for all the fresh milk you'll need! You're not too far away from me.
Also good thick rubber gloves and goggles if you're afraid of the lye. But for sure good gloves. Wooden or stainless steel long handle spoons. I used a wooden spoon to stir the lye and it only lasted about 5 times.
Also some good molds and either butcher paper or waxed paper to line the molds. I use whatever I have in the kitchen. Glass baking dishes, boxes. You can use anything really. Some wool blankets to wrap your soap in.
I just started making soap in Oct. so I am fairly new to this. I love it and it's very addictive.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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vintagevickie
Farmgirl at Heart
3 Posts
vickie
rome
ga
3 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2010 : 4:48:47 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Canadian farmgirl
My goal for 2010 is to learn how to make soap! I have bought the book "The soapmaker's companion" by Cavitch, and I have a question: can you use an electric mixer that is not a stand mixer? I only have a portable (two-beater) one that you have to hold onto while using it.
Any other advice for a rookie soapmaker? I am going to use a wooden cutlery tray from my dining room buffet (you can remove the dividers) as my mold, and line it with parchment paper. Would this work ok? If things go well, I plan to make a wooden loaf-type mold.
Please share your advice!
Thanks,
Lori
Farmgirl Sister #183
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vintagevickie
Farmgirl at Heart
3 Posts
vickie
rome
ga
3 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2010 : 4:55:50 PM
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You will love it.! I started last August and have had all kinds of batches. The book that you chose is the best. (my teacher told me)
You can use your electric mixer, but be careful and don't put on high.
You can use anything for a mold. I usually use freezer paper to line my mold and use the shiny side up.
I use a loaf mold, and I think you can probably find instructions to make one somewhere on line.
Best of luck.
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vintagevickie
Farmgirl at Heart
3 Posts
vickie
rome
ga
3 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2010 : 5:03:03 PM
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You can go to Brambleberry.com and watch The Soap Queen make soap. It might help...
You can use any mold. I use freezer paper to line my molds. Use the shiny side up.
I have been making soap since last August. Went to a class at John C Campbell folk school for the soap class and it was great. I just could not get my recipes right until I went.
Good luck... you will love it.
Vintagevickie |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2010 : 8:38:20 PM
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Hey Vickie. Welcome to you. Yeah! Another Georgia girl! I am not too far away. Just a little west of Lafayette. I have been to Rome several times. Is this class you took in Rome? I would love to go to a real soap making class. And a folk school sounds like something I would like. Can you tell me more about it please?
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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Canadian farmgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
482 Posts
Lori
Ontario
Canada
482 Posts |
Posted - Mar 03 2010 : 05:13:16 AM
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Hi ladies,
The digital scale I bought at Walmart will toggle between pounds/ounces and grams. I have taken my recipes written in ounces and converted them to grams, since that's what I am used to using. Here's a great conversion link for reworking recipes into the units you like to use:
http://www.thesage.com/calcs/measures.html
It's from Majestic Mountain Sage, and they also have a lye calculator for you to double check your recipes.
http://www.thesage.com/calcs/lyecalc2.php
It's a good idea to double-check the amount of lye, in case there has been a typo somewhere along the line!
I cannot find freezer paper here in my area, so I use parchment paper and it works just fine.
A bit of advice: start with a basic recipe, not too complicated, to get the hang of it. You need to get used to recognizing when you are at trace. The first couple of times I know I went a little too far and it started thickening up in the pot as I was pouring it. The soap turned out fine, just not really smooth on top.
Lori
P.S. The other day I made my 10th batch of soap! Not bad considering I've only just started this hobby in January!
Farmgirl Sister #183 |
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CrystalinNC
Farmgirl at Heart
6 Posts
Crystal
Rocky Mount
North Carolina
USA
6 Posts |
Posted - Mar 03 2010 : 06:01:58 AM
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Thanks so much for all the advice. I meant to mention the scale. I do have a little digital scale that I use for weighing packages, and I think that should work. Thanks for the advice about the wooden spoon, too. I have wax paper, and I think I am out of parchment paper. Can I use the wax paper, or should I pick up some freezer paper?
I definitely think I'll start with a basic recipe because I want to get the hang of it before I start throwing in all my goodies. I only wish I could have a goat...and chickens, but that's all part of the farmgirl at heart for me. We're in the city right now, but I'd love to get back out in the country some day.
I'll head on over to the welcome wagon and then I'm off to watch the video mentioned. I'll be looking for books at the library, too.
Thanks again! I can't wait to get started.
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~Crystal |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Mar 04 2010 : 12:59:04 PM
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Lori, I just tried a small batch of goat milk soap. I got everything ready and poured the lye into the milk and bam! it turned yellow right away then orange in less than 2 minutes. I never saw a light brown color. So I hurried and poured it in the oils and went to blending it. I added 1/2 cup of finely ground oatmeal and 2 tbls of dark honey. It fianlly traced before my blender almost blew up. I put fresh ground oats on top of the soap. Then wrapped it up. I'll see what it looks like tomorrow.
I also made another batch and went ahead and put lavender EO in it and lavender flowers on the bottom of the mold. But dummy me, as I was pouring it the flowers kind of got mixed in a little. Didn't really want that to happen. I should have just put them on top.
My house smells so good now. This is so fun.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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Canadian farmgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
482 Posts
Lori
Ontario
Canada
482 Posts |
Posted - Mar 04 2010 : 2:57:41 PM
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Kris,
I hope your goat's milk soap turns out! That was a recipe I got off the internet, and the owner said it was a good one. My goat's milk turned yellow, too. I never did see a brown colour. Did you use the ice water bath?
I am making my soap in small batches so that if they don't turn out, it's not such a big loss of ingredients.
I add grapefruit seed extract to my recipes, as it accelerates trace, and acts as a preservative. Rarely do my recipes take more than 5 minutes to trace, using the stick blender.
I made soap today, too. Mine was Vanilla Citrus. My 2 month old scale is already acting like it has a low battery--almost quit before I got everything weighed! I had to go out and buy another battery this afternoon. $6 plus tax! I hope this was just a cheapo battery that the company provided initially with the scale, and that it's not going to eat batteries like that. The man at the electronics store said these batteries (CR 2032) should last 2 years.
Lori
Farmgirl Sister #183 |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Mar 04 2010 : 4:27:06 PM
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Well, I just checked on that goat milk soap. I am so used to wrapping the soap base in wool blankets for 24 hours to keep it warm while it sets. (Because I do French milled soaps.) Apparently ya don't do that with this soap. It looks like natural peanut butter with all the oil on top. Same color, too. I bet it's just ruined. I went ahead and stick blended it together and left the top off and uncovered. It even feels like peanut butter. I'll check later. What a mess. I've never made soap this way before.
Kris
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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Canadian farmgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
482 Posts
Lori
Ontario
Canada
482 Posts |
Posted - Mar 04 2010 : 4:39:59 PM
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Oh my goodness! Kris, I am so sorry! I don't know what has happened to yours. I did cover mine with blankets, like I always do. I remember only putting one tablespoon of honey in it, though. Mine was tan when I poured it, but went dark, like peanut butter, too. But it didn't separate like that.
Don't throw it out just yet. Wait and see.
Lori
Farmgirl Sister #183 |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Mar 04 2010 : 4:48:55 PM
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I won't throw it out yet. I want to see what it does. So you do cover yours? I just thought that's the way to do it. How long do you keep them covered? The other soap I made with the lavender looks good. It was still warm when I checked but had a little oil around the edges. I went ahead and uncovered it, too.
I might not have had everything just right when I went to mix it. I need to get come more thermometers and a good digital scale. I'm going out tomorrow and I'll look for one. It really has to be just right. But I have never yet had this problem. There's a first time for everything, right?
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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Canadian farmgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
482 Posts
Lori
Ontario
Canada
482 Posts |
Posted - Mar 05 2010 : 07:13:12 AM
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I make cold process soap, and always cover it with a piece of cardboard then a couple of blankets for 24 hours (sometimes I peek around 20 hours, though). When I make it in a loaf pan, it usually stays warm for about 8 hours; in my larger wooden tray (makes 16 bars) it stays warm for even longer because it's a bigger recipe. It needs to be covered with blankets or towels so that it has a slow cool down to solidify nicely.
Absolutely, a good scale and thermometers is a must with this. There is not a lot of room for error.
I have only tried the goat's milk soap once. It's a little finicky, or maybe I'm just still a newbie!
Right now I have 64 bars of soap on hand, so I think I will have to sell some before I make any more.
Keep trying! It's all a learning process. I am finding that my soaps with pure essential oils do not have as much fragrance as the ones with fragrance oils. Or maybe it just evaporates out of them a little faster, when they are pure EOs.
Lori
Farmgirl Sister #183 |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Mar 05 2010 : 12:32:50 PM
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That goat milk soap is not going to work. It's still in the mold and is not hard yet. So I might as well just throw it out. But the lavender soap is greta. I love it. I got 25 bars and they are a little over 4 oz. Some about 6-7 oz. I could have gotten more if I could cut better. I had the tape measure and still got wonky bars. But it smells so good. I am happy with that.
I guess I'll stick with the French milled goats milk soap. I can't afford to throw away money. And I used a recipe I already had so it wans't your, Lori. I still can't figure out metric or whatever that is. I hate math and have to use a calculator for everything. Or a ruler. I'd love to see your soaps, Lori. And I am starting to be overrun with soaps all over the place, too. But I want to have enuf cured for the market that starts in May. Thay should all be ready by then.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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Canadian farmgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
482 Posts
Lori
Ontario
Canada
482 Posts |
Posted - Mar 05 2010 : 12:51:23 PM
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Here is a picture of the basket of soaps I took to the hair salon:
I am sorry to hear about your soap, but I definitely hear you about the cost of ingredients if something doesn't work out.
And I LIKE wonky bars--shows that they are handmade! 
Lori
Farmgirl Sister #183 |
Edited by - Canadian farmgirl on Mar 05 2010 12:53:45 PM |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Mar 05 2010 : 2:06:53 PM
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Very nice, Lori. I love the pink. Thanks for showing me. They look very good.
I'll be making more next week. I love making soap. I just hope it sells.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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momdrinkstea
True Blue Farmgirl
180 Posts
Elizabeth
Ozark
AL
USA
180 Posts |
Posted - Aug 07 2010 : 11:56:21 AM
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Kristin, do you sell your soap here on the Forum?
Or do you have a link to share to buy it?
I'd love to try it! :)
My great-grandma made soap during the war years, she
used it to trade for ration coupons. My mom remembers
her cutting it in a big white enamelware pan on the counter.
I'd love to start making soap and carry on the tradition! :)
We all should barter more ... think of the taxes it would
save us!
"Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better." -Albert Einstein |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Aug 07 2010 : 1:42:29 PM
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Hi Elizabeth. There are so many people here that make soap and are so talented and make it come out just right. I am just beginning really. If you go to the Marketplace section you'll see alot of soapmakers there. I have sold mine but would like a little more experience under my belt. Thank you for asking though. And keep me in mind for later.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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Cleaning Up: Soapmaking advice |
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Soapmaking advice
