Recent content by makemineirish

I can certainly understand this viewpoint, especially for someone as experienced as you. I am assuming that you have made your recipes countless times and pinpointed the curing/aging period that results in an optimal product. As a hobbyist, I rarely repeat myself and am unclear on when this...

I am sorry if I was unclear in my storage procedure. It was a passing comment on the space-efficiency and functionality of packaging from different suppliers. Here is are a couple of photos. I have a three gallon bucket with gamma lid. There is a container of dessicant from Lowe's inside...

I agree and tried to make that distinction when I stated that further changes occur during cure. However, I feel that a different term needs to be used. I mentally compartmentalize the process into saponification, cure, and age. Saponification can be deemed complete once all of the fatty...

I think that you are conflating saponification with cure. My understanding is that saponification is completed during the process of hot process and takes less than a week in cold. The soap is "safe" once saponification is complete. Curing soap is necessary to eliminate excess water through...

I figure out how much batter to make with this equation (assuming full water). For regularly shaped molds, calculate the volume using basic geometry. For irregular shapes, add water to your "fill line" and pour it out to measure the milliliters. One cubic centimeter is eqivalent to one...

I should have mentioned in my post: I am a hobbyist. While I might be willing to do 10-12 pounds to allow for greater vendor selection, 50lb bags are a storage nightmare. My current lye storage is a 3 gallon bucket with a desiccant tub inside. I would want anything that I bought to fit in that...

This is not really what I envisioned, but not bad for a first draft. I rushed to get something finished for today and was a bit torn over even entering it. I am well aware of everything wrong with it. However, I still thought my idea was badass, even if the execution fell short. I figured I...

I ran out of sodium hydroxide today and intend to buy more. Most of the threads on lye that I have found on the forum reference where to find brick and mortar retailers or the cheapest option. I don't really care about either of those metrics. Having only bought from Camden Grey thus far, I...

I third? Camden Grey. Their shipping runs a bit high for me and I rate their customer service as acceptable, but not ideal. However, their selection is good, quality excellent, prices reasonable, and anything under four(?) pounds can ship at an economy rate. It usually works out well for me...

I use the MyWeigh Maestro as my main scale. It has a pull out platform that measures to the tenth of a gram for smaller amounts. I love it for weighing yeast and salt when making bread. http://www.oldwillknottscales.com/my-weigh-maestro.html For bath and body products, where I might have...

I have not had that particular with BB's site, but have my own complaint. It's a bit convoluted, but i try to articulate this technological snafu. When shopping on BB's site, I sign in and select 20+ items to put in my cart. Inevitably, I need to leave the page to look something up (usage...

Here is the longest thread discussion that I remember on the topic: http://www.soapmakingforum.com/showthread.php?t=6832

I love salt bars and use any number of different salts. While I have not tried Real* salt, I have never had a problem with any of my choices. My opinion is that "scratchiness" owes little to the type of salt. Rather, I think it is important to pay attention to grain size. I buy my finely ground...

I do have a couple of "surprise" fragrances that I reversed my opinions on once soaped (positive and negative). That being said, I am a hobbyist and usually have more projects planned than can be reasonably accomplished. There are definitely FOs that I have decided did not make the cut without...

Options I am not opposed to purchasing something at a thrift store. I just do not find it economical once you factor in the time and gas to hunt down a specific item. Craigslist, however, is entirely feasible. I have narrowed my choices down to three options IF I maintain my policy of...