I'm convinced that the reason I love making soap so much is..

[valerieinthegallery]

the cutting of it after it cools.

Seriously, has there ever been a more satisfying sensory experience?

Especially if you have been patient enough to wait for it to be good and truly cooled down and hardening up. I can't even describe with words what makes it so, but cutting through it with a pastry cutter is one of the best feelings in the world.

I don't remember MP feeling like this.

I have a batch cooling right now that I can't wait to get near!

(Have I lost it?)

 

[MorpheusPA]

Help is available! Just dial 1-800-MAD-SOAP and a psychologist will be on the line to help you with your issues.

But yes, that's a fun experience. You get to see how your design (if any) turned out.

I also like making it, and tend to stir at least part way by hand. I like to feel the emulsion setting up under my spatula, and the stiffening batter as oil and lye turns into soap!

 

[Susie]

I love the goggles and gloves on mad scientist mode of weighing out ingredients and getting to trace.

 

[not_ally]

Val, you have not lost your mind, sometimes I wake up early and lurk around the kitchen to see if it is time to cut. OK, maybe you have lost your mind, but not more than the rest of us

 

[valerieinthegallery]

Help is available! Just dial 1-800-MAD-SOAP and a psychologist will be on the line to help you with your issues.

But yes, that's a fun experience. You get to see how your design (if any) turned out.

I also like making it, and tend to stir at least part way by hand. I like to feel the emulsion setting up under my spatula, and the stiffening batter as oil and lye turns into soap!

Well, I don't really do designs or anything like that (I am in love with the rustic-ness of HP). I meant the actual FEELING of cutting it. I wish I could describe it. Just how smooth it is when you cut through it.

Also, I was a Psych. major in college, and I know enough to know that I am a lost cause. LOL.

I was just thinking about that today, about how the feel of the batter changes as it emulsifies and how you can get pretty good at predicting when trace will happen based on that alone.

 

[Dana89]

My favorite other than cutting is a nice smooth pour, puurrrrrrrr. A nice pour makes me say to my soap " ok we have made it this far, now just do not overheat on me, if you need to in the fridge or freezer I am here for you, if you start to gel a little I will give you a nice heating pad to sit on, we can do this, mommys here.

Thank goodness nobody here knows where I live or else the men in the white coats would be pulling up soon. lol

 

[valerieinthegallery]

My favorite other than cutting is a nice smooth pour, puurrrrrrrr. A nice pour makes me say to my soap " ok we have made it this far, now just do not overheat on me, if you need to in the fridge or freezer I am here for you, if you start to gel a little I will give you a nice heating pad to sit on, we can do this, mommys here.

Thank goodness nobody here knows where I live or else the men in the white coats would be pulling up soon. lol

LOL. Oh man, I can just picture you coo'ing to your soap in such a way.

I don't really get the "nice smooth pour" feeling, as with HP, it's more a "slop, glop, plop". But that's fun too.

 

[osso]

My 6 year old loves to help me cut the soap (I have a single wire cutter). It is a wonderful part of the process.

 

[IrishLass]

Oh my goodness! What's wrong with you crazy soap people?! Talking to soap?? What's up with that? I don't know what y'all are talking about and just can't relate at all! Nope, not me. Not one single bit!



IrishLass

 

[Jstar]

I baby talk my soap and my tomato plants..guess Im a lost cause too hahaha

And I LOVE cutting my soap..its like Christmas morning..over and over again ~lol~

 

[Balloons]

For me so far it's been for the excitement of what my soap looks like when I take it out of the mold. I have only made a few batches but so far that's been what does it for me.

 

[Cactuslily]

aside from waiting impatiently to finally cut into the soap and see what you created, there's this lovely sound and feel you get as your wire glides through.

 

[grumpy_owl]

When I've poured a puddingy liquid into the mold and a few days later a miraculous solid sheet or loaf of appears as if by magic. It's like the fairies came and put a glamour on my mold, turning the ordinary into something extraordinary. Unmolding that hard slab of soap is magical for me. I took almost nothing--some oils, some powder, water--and turned it into this beautiful stuff.
Sniff.
Oh, btw, I am working on getting that cabin in the bayou with a soaping barn out back. Y'all are welcome to join me!

 

[valerieinthegallery]

aside from waiting impatiently to finally cut into the soap and see what you created, there's this lovely sound and feel you get as your wire glides through.

Yes, that is what I am talking about - the actual feeling of cutting through it. I love it!

 

[valerieinthegallery]

When I've poured a puddingy liquid into the mold and a few days later a miraculous solid sheet or loaf of appears as if by magic. It's like the fairies came and put a glamour on my mold, turning the ordinary into something extraordinary. Unmolding that hard slab of soap is magical for me. I took almost nothing--some oils, some powder, water--and turned it into this beautiful stuff.
Sniff.
Oh, btw, I am working on getting that cabin in the bayou with a soaping barn out back. Y'all are welcome to join me!

Oh, man. What a life that would be! Also, I love the word "glamour" in re: to magic. I remember the first time I heard that term, I was a little kid watching that movie Legend with Tom Cruise, and he says to Oona that she is just tricking him with faery glamour - I love that!

It is pretty amazing what a few ingredients thrown together can turn into, huh?

 

[galaxyMLP]

Multiple things for me! One is cutting the soap. I also love that I can apply my chemistry knowledge (to some extent) into a creative yet practical art.

I also love that since pretty much everyone uses soap all of the time, it gives you an excuse to make more more more!! You just think "well, I can give this to my family" or "oh, this would make a great gift" lol. Its not like the jewelry I used to make that really could only be given to women. Men greatly appreciate homemade soap bars as well. :-D

 

[boyago]

the cutting of it after it cools.

Seriously, has there ever been a more satisfying sensory experience?

I get a kick out of shredding soap with the salad shooter and then playing with the curls.

 

[boyago]

My 6 year old loves to help me cut the soap (I have a single wire cutter). It is a wonderful part of the process.

I've nicknamed my daughter (almost 6) "soap-cutter". She frequently asks if I have any new soap to cut.

 

[lenarenee]

I love pouring drops swirls and watching the the swirls swim around. And I love cutting; got a soap cutter for Christmas and won't use it because I like to cut one bar at a time and make it last longer.

I confess to hiding soap loafs from our 7 yr old so I can get to cut them. Otherwise, she takes command! She actually does a fantastic job - including choosing whether to use a flat bench scraper or the crinkle cut.

Then there's the mystery of the reveal - especially when swirls turn out better than expected.

 

[Susie]

When I've poured a puddingy liquid into the mold and a few days later a miraculous solid sheet or loaf of appears as if by magic. It's like the fairies came and put a glamour on my mold, turning the ordinary into something extraordinary. Unmolding that hard slab of soap is magical for me. I took almost nothing--some oils, some powder, water--and turned it into this beautiful stuff.
Sniff.
Oh, btw, I am working on getting that cabin in the bayou with a soaping barn out back. Y'all are welcome to join me!

If you could get us a group rate on a psychiatrist, it would be perfect!