Buttermilk Soap - Second batch

[Butterman]

My first batch I followed this recipe to the tee except I used 100% buttermilk.

44% OO
24% CO
32% PO
5% superfat

This time around I figured I'd just try the trifecta at even amounts and add a "medium strength" amount of peppermint oil.

33% OO 16oz
33% CO 16oz
33% PO 16oz
1% superfat (I chose zero but they don't allow that in the calculator)
60g of peppermint essential oil 2nd distillation

And as a noob of course I didn't use the calculator properly. I was trying to calculate for 48oz batch but the calculator requires the input as the oil amount. Lesson learned. I ended up just using some parchment paper inside of a bread loaf for an ugly loaf of soap which I'm fine with. ended up with 72oz or so of final product. The mold I have can hold 58oz.

I noticed that it went to trace similarly to last time.....but that as I poured it I thought it was a bit less mixed towards the bottom. I'll have to see if that made a difference. That's the part that went into the ugly loaf. I decided to make my bars nice and rectangular (OCD, I like clean lines and those fancy patterns on top of soap really do nothing for me).

Here I'm leveling off the bars.



What it looks like today. I'll pull it out of the freezer in a few hours.



I also made the mistake of mixing everything in these tall plastic pouring jugs. Next time I'll revert to using a nice wide metal bowl. Makes it way easier to pour lye into and mix.




Here's a quick video of the leveling off of the soap in the mold.

 

[AliOop]

Nice! I also like leveling my bars that are in cavity molds, as I'm not very good with the planer for evening things out later. I often use a bench scraper or a repurposed drywall spatula. Your icing knife or whatever that is looks quite handy.

Just curious; what don't you like about the pouring pitchers? Those are my favorite for mixing the solution. I'd make a complete mess with a wide round bowl. Hats off to you if you can pour from that without spilling!

 

[Butterman]

Nice! I also like leveling my bars that are in cavity molds, as I'm not very good with the planer for evening things out later. I often use a bench scraper or a repurposed drywall spatula. Your icing knife or whatever that is looks quite handy.

Just curious; what don't you like about the pouring pitchers? Those are my favorite for mixing the solution. I'd make a complete mess with a wide round bowl. Hats off to you if you can pour from that without spilling!

Yeah I like that knife. I use it normally for separately my pound cake from the form...

I should have clarified a bit....I think I will revert to using the bowl for mixing and then transfer to the plastic pouring jug for pouring.....The pictures don't do it justic but these are about 12" tall and hold 5000ml so they are too tall and skinny....and I can foresee them being a tip over hazard and nobody wants that!

Also I think I'm going a little strong with my quantities. Perhaps I should be making small batches to test what I like instead of going 50oz at a time. Although once I find something I like I stick with it. Now that I've got the first batch unscented I want to see how this batch performs. 60g seemed like a lot of peppermint as I could really smell it but I suppose the smell fades a bit.....

 

[Savage Daughter]

Just curious; what don't you like about the pouring pitchers? Those are my favorite for mixing the solution. I'd make a complete mess with a wide round bowl. Hats off to you if you can pour from that without spilling!

Those are pitchers I use as well. Most often, actually. I find they prevent splashing of raw soap batter when mixing when making moderately sized batches.

 

[Butterman]

Initially I thought my batch was no bueno. After 48 hours I washed my hands and it felt really, really drying and slimy. I thought "Oh no, I mismeasured the lye most likely......" and then after a week I tried it again and it feels ok. It definitely feels less gentle at 1% SF compared to 5% as well with the different oil percentages compared to my first batch. I think I will use these bars for washing my hands when I come in from working outside as they get really dirty.

I think I just needed to let the batch cure as it has been extremely humid here in NY with a lot of rainy days back to back.

The lather is much higher with the higher CO and I think I will try ordering some castor oil next time. The next batch will be the first recipe I used.

Unscented
44% OO
24% CO
32% PO
5% superfat

It takes a second to really get the lather going but once it does it is very thick and fluffy. I like it.

 

[Shelley D]

Those are pitchers I use as well. Most often, actually. I find they prevent splashing of raw soap batter when mixing when making moderately sized batches.

On the topic of buckets . . .
I bought 2 kinds from Amazon and I really like them both for different purposes. I got a bunch of painter's buckets which are a good size for me and they have measurements on the side. I usually mix my lye solution in these and they handle the job well.
And I got a couple funnel pouring ones, which are sort of on the small side but they are great when you want to divide a batch for mixing colorants and they work great for filling cavity molds!

 

[Butterman]

On the topic of buckets . . .
I bought 2 kinds from Amazon and I really like them both for different purposes. I got a bunch of painter's buckets which are a good size for me and they have measurements on the side. I usually mix my lye solution in these and they handle the job well.
And I got a couple funnel pouring ones, which are sort of on the small side but they are great when you want to divide a batch for mixing colorants and they work great for filling cavity molds!

Nice buckets!

I've been using the 2nd batch in the shower with cotton flour sack towel....and holy cow I am really loving it! It lathers up like crazy with the washcloth and I don't feel like the soap is drying me out at all. Great cleaning power, mild peppermint smell, and I'm going to use this formula on the next batch.

 

[Shelley D]

Nice buckets!

I've been using the 2nd batch in the shower with cotton flour sack towel....and holy cow I am really loving it! It lathers up like crazy with the washcloth and I don't feel like the soap is drying me out at all. Great cleaning power, mild peppermint smell, and I'm going to use this formula on the next batch.

Hadn't thought of using flour sack towels! Brilliant idea! Do you use the hand towel size? Or are they smaller, like washcloth size?

 

[Butterman]

Hadn't thought of using flour sack towels! Brilliant idea! Do you use the hand towel size? Or are they smaller, like washcloth size?

I use the typical size - diaper size. Combined with the amazing lather it really does a great job of cleaning your back along with the rest of your body. I love flour sack towels and use them all over the place - in the kitchen instead of those useless non-absorbent towels I used to use, in the bathroom, in the garage, I cut them into smaller pieces for applying finish to my wood projects. They absorb water so well and they dry out really fast too.

These are the FLOUR SACK TOWELS I buy.

 

[Savage Daughter]

On the topic of buckets . . .
I bought 2 kinds from Amazon and I really like them both for different purposes. I got a bunch of painter's buckets which are a good size for me and they have measurements on the side. I usually mix my lye solution in these and they handle the job well.
And I got a couple funnel pouring ones, which are sort of on the small side but they are great when you want to divide a batch for mixing colorants and they work great for filling cavity molds!

LOL I have exactly the same ones as well. I got the painters buckets at my local hardware store for a little more than a dollar, actually. Scooped those up very quickly when I saw the price! I use them for smaller batches. I discovered the other day that I needed to start using my large stainless steel water bath canning pot for my new 16 pound batches. That felt a whole lot different! I actually prefer my canner to the buckets now, although it wouldn't work very well for less than 16 pounds, I don't think. The mix would be too shallow to blend properly