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diynewbie

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Hello fellow soapmaking friends. So I took the advice and did some research and watched a few YT vids on how to use a soap calculator. Honestly, I’m not sure why I was afraid as it seems pretty simple and the “Getting Started” guide for beginners on Soapcalc was pretty helpful as well. So I’ve played around with it a few days now and I think I have a pretty good recipe with a INS number that is pretty acceptable for me. I plugged the recipe in for a 5 pound mold but will scale it down for my test batch. But I wanted to share it here just to have a second set of eyes to ensure that the recipe looks good and the water percentage is where it needs to be to prevent glycerin rivers or if there is anything wrong and/or needs to be changed. All helpful advice is pretty much welcomed and appreciated. :)
 

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Your cleansing number is quite high. That could mean the soap may be drying to your skin. A lot of Soapers here shoot for coconut to be 20% or under. If you can get your hands on some castor oil (they sell it at the drug store or Walmart and probably most food stores in the pharmacy section) that would be a good addition at 5%. I’ve tweaked your recipe a bit to up longevity by a point but bring the cleansing down by 5 points while still keeping your bubbly number the same. INS is also closer to “ ideal”. I don’t pay much attention to that number personally. But I think it would be a good starting point for you. Ignore my preset superfat, oil weight, lye concentration etc.
 

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Thanks Jersey Girl. I’m all over the place right now so excuse me. But I had SEVERAL screens opened as I kept playing around with the recipe….changing the oil weight to fit my mold, changing oil percentages and etc., and I realized I shared the wrong recipe. I’ve attached the correct recipe that I intend to use. But I definitely appreciate your advice and will keep the castor oil in mind.
 

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I think this looks like a good starting point. I use coconut at 25% often which is fine for me and mine, but that's something you will have to discover for yourself. I'd also suggest giving castor oil a try, but if you don't have it and want to make soap now, it will be a good comparison to use it in a future batch to see what you think.
 
I think this looks like a good starting point. I use coconut at 25% often which is fine for me and mine, but that's something you will have to discover for yourself. I'd also suggest giving castor oil a try, but if you don't have it and want to make soap now, it will be a good comparison to use it in a future batch to see what you think.
Thanks Dibbles! I’ve got to run out to Walmart later this evening and I searched online and I see that they have a 8 oz bottle for $6 and it says it’s 100% pure. I’ll pick up a bottle and give it a try at 5%.
 
Maybe look at increasing your lye concentration to 33%? If you don't want glycerin rivers. But who wouldn't want those ? ;)
Thanks! I just went back and changed it from Water as percent to Lye Concentration and set it at 33% as I definitely want to avoid Glycerin rivers. Gonna try the recipe later this evening. Fingers crossed 🤞🏾.
 
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