Excited to get started

Soapmaking Forum

Help Support Soapmaking Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

CynCyn

Member
Joined
Jun 2, 2020
Messages
20
Reaction score
20
Location
37601
My name is Cynthia and I've not yet begun to make soap. I've done lots of research, found a recipe I want to start with and finally ordered all of the ingredients... now to wait for them to arrive before finally tring to make soap. It's a hurry up and wait game. I'll be honest, I don't want to wait 4-6 weeks after making the soap to be able to use it. 😁 waiting is not one of my strong suits.
 
Yay! Welcome to the forum (and the additional). The wait is unbearable on the first few batches 😉 but it'll get easier I promise!
A few days after you make your soap (how long will depend on your recipe) the soap will have finished reacting. At that point it's theoretically safe to try a small piece at the sink, but the soap will get so much better after a full cure!
 
Welcome to the forum. Be sure to run your recipe through a soap calculator if you are using someone else's recipe. Also, you can use your soap in 24-72 hours after making depending on if you gel your soaps or not. Once saponification is done it's safe. It won't be at it's best until after a good cure but you can watch how it improves with time.
 
If I'm using someone else's recipe and the measurements are already broken down do I still need to use a soap calculator? I would have assumed it's like a baking recipe... just follow the directions.
 
Welcome Cynthia! :)

If I'm using someone else's recipe and the measurements are already broken down do I still need to use a soap calculator? I would have assumed it's like a baking recipe... just follow the directions.

I would still use a calculator, just to be safe, because we've had many an instance over the years of new soapers following a recipe they found online that turned out to be bad, and they've come here asking for help troubleshooting.... and when we've checked out their recipe through a lye calculator, it was found to be a bad recipe. When it comes to lye and bad recipes, you don't want to mess around, because your skin (and the skin of those you give your soap to) can end up being burnt.


IrishLass :)
 
Welcome Cynthia! :)



I would still use a calculator, just to be safe, because we've had many an instance over the years of new soapers following a recipe they found online that turned out to be bad, and they've come here asking for help troubleshooting.... and when we've checked out their recipe through a lye calculator, it was found to be a bad recipe. When it comes to lye and bad recipes, you don't want to mess around, because your skin (and the skin of those you give your soap to) can end up being burnt.


IrishLass :)
Thank you! I will work on that while I "patiently" wait for my ingredients.
 
Welcome.gif

Howdy from Colorado USA!
There are many Newbies and Semi-newbies here so you are in good company. You might want to take some time to read info posted on the Beginner's Forum -- especially the Stickies. There's lots of good information there to help you.

Take a cuppa along and scroll down to Lovin' Soap Studio to get a handle on most of the stuff we talk about here.

Most of the equipment you need you probably already have in your kitchen, with the exception of a stick blender which you might find at a thrift store or Walmart, Target, etc. You can use a whisk to bring soap to trace, but a stick blender is faster.

LYE: Look for Rooto "100% sodium hydroxide" (lye) locally at the hardware store or big box stores (drain cleaner). For very little expense, you can buy lard at the grocery store which makes a fine bar of soap all by itself.

Plan on making small 1 pound (500 grams) batches at first to get the hang of it.
Run all recipes through a calculator like SoapCalc first.
You can get feedback by starting a new thread on the Recipe Feedback Forum (non-soap items too).

To save time, money, and frustration, this is a good read for a soaper at your stage of experience:
Q: What advice would you give to your beginning soaping self?

DeeAnna's Soapy Stuff is a good read for Newbies & experienced soapers alike.
https://classicbells.com/soap/soapyStuff.asp

The best way to search SMF: GOOGLE
(type your keywords here) site:soapmakingforum.com
If you want to search for a phrase, put the phrase in quotes.
You can include individual words along with phrases

If you have problems, feel free to contact our Admin/Mods by clicking on their names or avatars: Angie, Irish Lass, Relle, lsg, Shunt 2011

HAPPY SOAPING!
 
My name is Cynthia and I've not yet begun to make soap. I've done lots of research, found a recipe I want to start with and finally ordered all of the ingredients... now to wait for them to arrive before finally tring to make soap. It's a hurry up and wait game. I'll be honest, I don't want to wait 4-6 weeks after making the soap to be able to use it. 😁 waiting is not one of my strong suits.

Boy do I hear you! At 70 something, I am just getting started on my soaping journey it's been less than 2 months for me. I feel I have to make up for lost time! The waiting is the hardest and to help me with that, I just keep making more soap!!! :oops: My first soap is now 6 weeks old and my 2nd almost 5 so that is very exciting! Welcome - this is a great place to learn!
 
Back
Top