Beeswax in salt bars?

[Obsidian]

Mine are in the molds now. Moved faster but not so fast that I will have air pockets. I was able to pout the batter into the individual molds until I got the the last one, it had to be spooned in but it was still soft enough that it tapped down nicely.

I don't think I would have had time to do any kind of swirl unless I was hand-stirring. My wax is natural so my bars are about the color of butterscotch pudding.

 

[shunt2011]

Awesome. Can't wait to see them. I just took my second batch out of the molds. No wax and turned out so much better.

 

[shunt2011]

Awesome. Can't wait to see them. I just took my second batch out of the molds. No wax and turned out so much better.

Here they are. Green are Lime. Yellow is Lemon Verbena.

 

[dibbles]

Thanks for the pictures. I can see where you would be happier with the looks of the yellow bars, they are really smooth and pretty. It will be interesting to see if the beeswax helps at all with ash. I'd be willing to forgo beauty for ash-free salt bars.

 

[KristaY]

So do you think you'll try the wax in salt bars again, shunt? Do you normally get ash on your salt bars? If so, I'll be interested to hear if the wax helped with it.

I can't wait to hear how yours come out, Obsidian, when you unmold.

 

[Obsidian]

Here are mine. They have zero ash but the tops are still a bit sticky.
The square bar is the one that had to be spooned in, no air pockets at all. The small bubbles on the bottom of the oval is from water droplets on the mold when I poured.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

Very interesting. I might have to add some to my regular recipe to see if it helps keep the ash away

 

[shunt2011]

Yours are much smoother than mine. Well, it's been over 24 hours and so far no ash on either batch (one with wax and one without). Will I use it again, probably not. I have found that if I spray them with 91% alcohol and cover them with something, this time I used paper towel I don't get much ash. It was an interesting experiment.

 

[Cindy2428]

Thank you both for the effort! Working hard on my Mosaic tile soap so no time. Next week hopefully.

 

[hlecter]

But, it may also make it last longer.

Does beeswax itself (at about 1-2%) make soaps last longer in the shower?

 

[Obsidian]

Did my first test lather, the wax didn't seem to reduce lather at all and there is still zero ash. Can't wait to try these, see if I like the wax in them as much as I do in a regular bar.
I wonder what is the lowest you can use for ash reduction? I use beeswax because I like how it feels on my skin but if a very small percentage would do away with ash, it might be worth it for some people.

Shunt, I think part of the reason mine was smoother is due to my new stick blender (kitchen aide), I've noticed it makes all my recipes trace slower. I could probably poured even sooner but I usually like my salt batter to be thicker just to make sure the salt stays suspended.

 

[dibbles]

Shunt and Obsidian, thank you for doing this and posting the results. It seems like something worth trying, and especially if it helps keep the ash away - even somewhat.

 

[Cindy2428]

Finished making all of my 2nd batch of mosaic tiles all last night. This beeswax salt soap kept me up for another hour. Have to try it. Since I normally use up to 60-80% salt, I'm going to reduce to 3% beeswax and also going to make a batch with candelilla wax. Coconut Oil - 80%; Beeswax/Candelilla wax 3%, lanolin 5%, RBO 12%, dendritic salt 50%, 18% SF, and coco water/milk sub. These suckers are going to get hot!

 

[shunt2011]

Will be looking forward to see how it goes. I did use GM in mine as I was out of Coconut milk which I generally use. Good luck.

 

[joy.]

Slightly off topic, but I put half of my last batch of salt bars in the frig for 12 hours and left the other half out on the counter. The half in the frig had no ash. The half on the counter was covered in it. Refrigerating may be another solution.

These suckers are going to get hot!

How did these turn out? I've been wanting to try beeswax in a goat milk scrub bar, but I'm worried about scorching it...keeping it hot enough for the wax but cool enough for the milk.

 

[Cindy2428]

Ran out of calendula infused RBO. So it is slowing things down a bit. I'm going to HP this, so it should be ready tonight. I will keep you posted

 

[shunt2011]

Does beeswax itself (at about 1-2%) make soaps last longer in the shower?

I really don't know as I've not used beeswax in soap until this batch. I'm curious to see if it makes the salt bar last any longer though they already last quite well.

 

[Cindy2428]

Okay - beeswax HP batch done - or better yet it did me in. Instant seize when I added my salt. Added my yogurt, SF and additional liquid so I could get it into the molds.

I have a good hour of cleaning to do before I try the candelilla wax - CP.....
I have soap batter everywhere.

The bubbles are small but plentiful even with the beeswax and lanolin. Worth the experiment. I will post pictures once I have my kitchen cleaned up.

 

[Obsidian]

Have you ever made salt bars HP before? My first attempt was pretty dang solid, hard to mold and turned out very ugly. The second try, I used less salt and more water then normal, they were much smoother.

 

[Cindy2428]

Yes Obsidian I have. Using 50% I have to move fast but they work. I do use quite a bit more liquid. The next batch with candelilla will be CP. Too tire right now.