Cutting a loaf after 4 months. How long should I cure?

[TheGecko]

I know you mean well, but its this exact problem I am talking about. It may work for most recipes as a "general rule of thumb", but someone out there, someone new, will read this, try it, and might not get the success they are looking for like I did. I started with using the guidelines on this forum. This is from my experience. I did not achieve the success I was looking for (some recipes), because my recipes were just a little different. If it works for most people, I have no qualms about that. But for me, in the beginning especially, I had to figure out saponification times and cure times on my own since the soaps were not performing like I thought they would after following those guidelines. Not to say that the guidelines don't work. They just didn't work for me at the time.

Is that your way of saying, “Well bless your heart”?

I’m not sure what the problem is. Again this a ‘general rule of thumb’…of course it is not going to work for everyone for various reasons and you wanna know what? It’s okay. Seriously…it’s OKAY. But you have to understand that there is a lot more to soap making than oils, butters, lye concentration, additives, colorants and scent and you have to start somewhere. And because there is so much more to it, all anyone gave anyone is ‘general rule of thumb’ because:

I don’t know what kind of stick blender you have and what kind of hand you have when you use it.

I don’t know what the temperature of your soap making area is, or the temperature of the area you will be saponifying soap in, or the temperature or humidity of the area your will be curing your soap in.

I don’t know if you bought your ingredients from a reputable soap supplier or the craft section at Hobby Lobby.

I don’t know what size batch you are making or what kind of mold you are using.

I don’t know if you got laid the night before or had a fight with your significant other or what color undies you are wearing (yes, it makes a difference).

And something else you have to understand…too many people don’t want to learn how to walk…they just want to take off running. “Oh I just made my first 20lb batch of soap with expensive Essential Oils and 17 different color swirls and it didn’t turn out right.” Again…‘general rule of thumb’ and when things go wrong because they often do, then comes ‘twenty questions’ and the opportunity to learn.

When I first started making soap…I made a lot of mistakes: the soap that shattered like glass when I went to cut it, the Goat Milk Soap that was a disgusting, vile mess, the soap that almost caught on fire, the soap that turned into concrete. i have had many opportunities to learn more and I continue to have opportunities to learn as I try new scents, new colorants, new oils, new butters.

 

[CloudShave1487]

Is that your way of saying, “Well bless your heart”?

I’m not sure what the problem is. Again this a ‘general rule of thumb’…of course it is not going to work for everyone for various reasons and you wanna know what? It’s okay. Seriously…it’s OKAY. But you have to understand that there is a lot more to soap making than oils, butters, lye concentration, additives, colorants and scent and you have to start somewhere. And because there is so much more to it, all anyone gave anyone is ‘general rule of thumb’ because:

I don’t know what kind of stick blender you have and what kind of hand you have when you use it.

I don’t know what the temperature of your soap making area is, or the temperature of the area you will be saponifying soap in, or the temperature or humidity of the area your will be curing your soap in.

I don’t know if you bought your ingredients from a reputable soap supplier or the craft section at Hobby Lobby.

I don’t know what size batch you are making or what kind of mold you are using.

I don’t know if you got laid the night before or had a fight with your significant other or what color undies you are wearing (yes, it makes a difference).

And something else you have to understand…too many people don’t want to learn how to walk…they just want to take off running. “Oh I just made my first 20lb batch of soap with expensive Essential Oils and 17 different color swirls and it didn’t turn out right.” Again…‘general rule of thumb’ and when things go wrong because they often do, then comes ‘twenty questions’ and the opportunity to learn.

When I first started making soap…I made a lot of mistakes: the soap that shattered like glass when I went to cut it, the Goat Milk Soap that was a disgusting, vile mess, the soap that almost caught on fire, the soap that turned into concrete. i have had many opportunities to learn more and I continue to have opportunities to learn as I try new scents, new colorants, new oils, new butters.

Not at all. I'm just letting you know, that some general rules, do not work for some. In this case, it didn't work for me. All of those questions are valid, but to keep with the main points of this conversation, its best to keep care in understanding what we are really doing here. In the spirit of brevity, I'd just say if you don't want to learn how to walk, and we're talking about working with chemicals and toxic fumes where safety could be a issue, which is what soapmaking is, then that right there is a real world problem. I wouldn't say its okay if there was a real fire hazard.

Taking off running is just another way of saying: dive in without knowing what you're getting into. With chemicals, that's dangerous, and I would never just say that when safety is always in question.

A fire? I am happy you didn't lose more than the batch.

Another thing: "Well bless your heart?" No it isn't my way of saying that at all. I am sorry if I upset you.

The main points of this conversation were about safety, using safe and efficient ways to understand one's soap recipe, in a way that is both fun, and where one can enjoy the art of soapmaking and learn. To use what you said to strengthen my point on this, especially if there is a fire hazard, I would really suggest for newcomers to learn how to walk first (read and be prepared), before just diving in. As an example, using the 1 bar of soap per batch is just one way for someone to be more careful when working with a recipe for the first time, especially if they want to understand what happens so that they are better prepared for the next run. That's what this is all about ultimately: learning in a safe environment and making the best soap we can. =)

 

[TheGecko]

@CloudShave1487

Just to be clear...can't catch soap batter on fire, it was tongue-in-cheek. I made a really stupid error...was in a hurry, grabbed the wrong jug of lye solution I had made the night before. It was the LS for 50oz batch of soap and I poured into a 20oz batch. My batter immediately started heating and was in gel phase by the time I chucked it into the driveway.