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TheGecko

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Realized this morning that I hadn’t properly introduced myself.

I’m The Gecko; all-knowing all-seeing...or dumber than a box a rocks and blind as a bat depending on the day of the week. :)

I’m on the dark side of 50 with only a hop and skip left to 60 (I don’t jump anymore...or run, unless there is chocolate, preferably dark with some caramel). Married, hubby and I have five children between us, two grandchildren and a third on the way, and two cats that hired us last year (we have yet to receive a paycheck from them). Hubby is retired due to disability and I work full-time as an accountant.

Okay...the soap thing. I took a soap making class several years with the intent to make goat milk soap. I had been buying it for years from this one gal, but then she retired and the gal who took her place only makes five soaps (she really likes oatmeal) and that’s it. But then hubby became disabled and money was tight for several years, so I set the thought aside.

Then at the beginning of this year, I ran across a YouTube video on someone making soap and I started neglecting my knitting. I sat in the evening watching video after video after video and taking notes...saponification, super fat, hard oils, ITP, Lauric acid, and so on and so forth. And I started collecting recipes, but the majority of them didn’t make sense until I found a tutorial on SoapCalc. Then I started entering the recipes and making notes on the differences between the ingredients and amounts thereof and how they related to each other. I looked at the various processes of soap making and even the history of soap making.

It was the history and subsequent research into modern soaps that led me to consider soap making as more than just a hobby. I discussed my idea with my husband, did some more research, wrote a 5-year business plan, ordered the Beginner’s CP Kit from BrambleBerry and then headed down the rabbit hole. But I didn’t far. Not only did the amount Macadamia Nut Oil not really add all that much to my soap, it didn’t fit with the brand I was trying to create.

So here I am. I don’t view failures as failures, but as opportunities to learn...and I have learned a lot:

- If you are going to ‘master batch’ do it with only one recipe instead of three; that way you won’t put your ‘2 lb’ lye solution in your 1 lb batch. I put it in the middle of my driveway because I thought it might catch on fire...it was that hot.

- Double-check your measurements...there is a big difference between 2 teaspoons and 2 tablespoons of Titanium Dioxide and it should be dispersed in water (or oil), not added dry. Soap was a gorgeous white...and shattered when I cut into it.

- Heavy-duty white plastic molds need to be lined. I had never seen anyone use one before so I thought they were like the clear acrylic molds. Hubby had to chip the soap out out of the mold; it might not have been so bad if it didn’t have two tablespoons of dry TD in it (yes, I made two batches).

- Double-check all new ingredients before you use them. By the time I used the Pearberry FO, I had forgotten that it accelerates...badly. I went from a beautifully colored light trace to concrete with a single pulse. I tried chipping the mess out of the bowl, but only succeeded in punching a hole in it. My second batch turned out much better.

- No reviews doesn’t mean no problems. I wanted to make a ‘lemon’ soap with a Lemon EO (BB) and Lemon Sherbet Mica (RE). Double-checked everything; oils and lye is at room temp, mica is properly dispersed in batch oils, EO is measured and ready to go. Add lye solution to oils and blend to light trace, stir in color and give it a couple quick pulses, and add in EO and stir and...what the heck?!? My soap is turning ORANGE!!! I wanted to cry, but I finished up and put it to bed in the garage. Several hours later I went to show hubby my ‘failure’ and OMG...it’s yellow! I now only make 1 lb batches when using a new color or scent.

- Despite all my research into making Goat Milk Soap, I somehow missed that its’s a good idea to refrigerate it. Instead I covered and insulated it. When I checked on it the next morning, I noticed the top looked a little rough, but figured I could trim it off. Then I turned the mold over and noticed some excess oil. Okay. Cut off a small slice, it was clean, tested it...it was soap. It was my first post here. Subsequent batches of GMS have turned out beautifully.

I continue to research and watch videos...always something new to learn, and it doesn’t to review old materials with a better understanding.
 
I second the advice about doublchecking for details on acceleration and discoloration for FOs... When i started CPing, i was very sure to buy non-accelerators. But got burned a couple of times with discoloration (lemongrass Verbena? Really??) then i intentionally bought only non-discoloring FOs. But that was pretty limiting. Also, i had actually started my purchasing before i was doing CP, and many discolouring FOs are more forgiving in bath and body products and M&P. And my attention and memory both shift, so I won't always remember what was remarkable about a FO when I bought it. At least I've only been buying from one company, so I only have to keep track of one version of an FO! Until today that is :this afternoon I will soap with some of the new NF scents! I re read the specs last night for the 20+ oils I purchased ... And I will reread the chosen ones again before I start....
 
Hello and welcome. The hard part with FO is that it can’t act totally different from one recipe to another and sometimes even on batch to the next. You sound like you’re on your way.
 
Thank you. My experience with Pearberry FO (RE) also taught me a second lesson: ONLY buy sample sizes the first time around (which I kind of sort of did). Rustic Escentuals was having their 'scent sale' and so I bought 20 sample sizes including Pearberry. Several days after they arrived, hubby was going through them and mentioned that he really liked it and since I was getting ready to put in a order with RE and they had it on sale, I bought an 8 oz bottle. Then the soap seized and I was like "OMG, how much money did I just waste on an ingredient that I can't use?"

Along with the regular soap making videos, I watched a lot "Things I Wish I Had Known". One gal had five large totes filled with soap molds that she rarely used. Another had a bunch of those stacking drawers filled with large bottles of FO's and EO's that didn't work out for one reason or another. And so on and so forth. I can understand how it happens...there is a lot of excitement in creating soap, but man...I have a budget. So okay, the $200 Rolling Kitchen Island wasn't in my budget, but it's something I can still use if this enterprise goes bust and everything I use for soap making fits in it.

Hello and welcome. The hard part with FO is that it can’t act totally different from one recipe to another and sometimes even on batch to the next. You sound like you’re on your way.

Thank you. I noticed that from watching videos and I took lots of notes, especially when I knew what oils and/butters were being used. So, so many companies out there...just in the US alone. Right now, I am using colors and scents from three companies...Bramble Berry, Rustic Escentuals and Nurture Soap. As time goes on, I will check out some of the other companies in my notebook because it's important to have a primary and secondary source for 'stock' items.

I'm taking things slow, though I am a little further along in some things than I had originally planned for. I'm doing a Craft Fair in November...something that wasn't in my Plan until Year Two under 'Test Marketing', but my sister and I are splitting the cost which is fairly inexpensive to begin with so even if I don't sell anything, I'm only out $25. But because of it, I did have to dip into my second year budget as I needed to secure my ABN, domain/website, social media, and business cards and that was $100. More professional soap packaging and labels was $20. And another $20 for shopping bags/labeling. Don't know how much the insurance is going to cost, waiting to hear back from my agent on insurance.

Oh...and I didn't go crazy making a bunch of soap for this Fair either; I only found out about it the beginning of this month so only soaps that were already made and tested were going to be sold. It's about 70 bars and if I sell out, I sell out and if I don't, then I'm not sitting on a huge stock of soap.

Welcome to the forum.:)

Thank you.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
@TheGecko Great intro and follow-up replies. Fun to read. I look forward to watching you grow in knowledge and experience.

This thread is a fun read about what pitfalls await Newbies:
What advice would you give to your beginning soaping self?
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/what-advice-would-you-give-to-your-beginning-soaping-self.62916/

Welcome.gif
 
@TheGecko Great intro and follow-up replies. Fun to read. I look forward to watching you grow in knowledge and experience.

This thread is a fun read about what pitfalls await Newbies: What advice would you give to your beginning soaping self?

Thank you. Loved that thread. Tons of common sense.

A couple things I would add:

I started out waiting for my lye solution to cool then starting making it the night before, But after a couple of times of having something else come up, or not making as much soap as I planned, I switched to freezing my distilled water and bagging it. Best part is that I don’t have to deal with the fumes when mixing my lye solution. I also freeze and bag my evaporate goat milk out of the can; easy-peasy to cut a cube in half.

I take my rings off when I soap. Somehow while cleaning up (I had taken off my gloves) I got soap batter trapped under my wedding set. I remember waking up in the middle of the night and my ring finger hurt, I thought I had just slept weird and pushed the set onto the top of my hand. Got up the next morning and my hand was swollen...another hour I would have had to have my rings cut off (castor oil). When the swelling started going down a couple of days later, I noticed a dark spot where my rings were. I looked at it for a while before I realized that I was looking at a burn mark.
 
Yikes! As it happens, I just healed a burn on my hand. I made a concoction of 1% lavender EO (you can use 5% if you like) in jojoba oil (or almond, avocado, etc. whatever you have on hand.) I used a dropper bottle. It doesn't take much... a drop will do. Put it on the burn. It should soothe right away. Then use as often as needed. You will be amazed how fast lavender can heal a burn. I was! :D
 
Yikes! As it happens, I just healed a burn on my hand. I made a concoction of 1% lavender EO (you can use 5% if you like) in jojoba oil (or almond, avocado, etc. whatever you have on hand.) I used a dropper bottle. It doesn't take much... a drop will do. Put it on the burn. It should soothe right away. Then use as often as needed. You will be amazed how fast lavender can heal a burn. I was! :D

Thank you, but unfortunately I seem to be allergic to lavender.
 
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