Recent content by songwind

I buy mine from soaperschoice.com, but you have to buy at least 7lbs. You can also order it from Amazon but it's pretty expensive that way. Yep, lard is lard. I haven't personally made a shaving soap with lard, but in theory it should be possible. You could try to do it that way, but...

Tallow, lard, or castor oil will make it creamier. The bubbly factor is largely due to the coconut oil, so I'd look at reducing that moreso than the stearic.

I second the suggestion of sodium lactate. Its' a big help in making HP soap that doesn't have many air pockets or places where different clumps of soap are touching but didn't self-adhere.

I haven't tried blending mine, because I really like it as is. I think it would go well with vanilla, though. Or maybe tone it down and use some citrus.

The quickest oil heating method I know of would be the microwave. A crock pot would work, too, but it would have lots of residual heat so there could be some logistical issues if you want to do cold process. Mostly from having to pour from/scrape out a heavy, burning-hot crock.

I really like the Frankincense & Myrrh Cybilla, Cucumber Melon Cybilla, and Green Tea. I think I'm going to get some of the other "Cybilla" oils to try out during the sale.

1. Newbie- Oooooo, this will be harder than it looks. I know because I've tried it with not so stellar results. 2. Dixiedragon (gulp) 3. Snappyllama (if only mine can come out half as pretty as the example, I'll be one pleased petunia) 4. Saponista- I can't wait to have a go at this! 5...

shunt2011 makes a good point - As far as aging and soap desirability, you have a point where the lack of scent can overcome the improvement due to aging. I know that a decent part of my enjoyment of handmade soaps are the unique fragrances, so losing those is a strike against it.

I use a binder, too, with plastic sheet protectors in case of spills or splatters. I design and store my recipes in SoapMaker, but it's mostly paper for the work room. Though now I have a tablet/2-in-1 that will run SoapMaker, so I might take it in there with me sometimes.

Looks like a candy bar or maybe a Li'l Debbie snack cake!

This is probably due to the fact that many soaps (and EOs) are yellowish. Since purple and yellow are complementary, the yellow undertones take the saturation of the purple down a bit.

Seems like a perfectly reasonable motivation to me. :)

Why the on/off cycle? I mean, PC fans neither take a ton of power nor are they prone to failure due to sustained spinning. (I have some that have been spinning non-stop for going on 4 years.) Is there a reason the soap needs to not have the air circulating part of the time?

I think I'd do a CP beer soap, then froth up some MP and pour on the top once the CP has solidified.

Will he be Fat Elvis or Young Elvis?