Soapy hacks

[The_Phoenix]

@Jersey Girl's cocoa butter soap hack got me thinking about soap hacks (unconventional ideas to make the soap making process our own or solve problems in an interesting way).

I've mentioned before that I use a Styrofoam cooler to gel my soaps. I cook and bake just about every day, which makes CPOP impractical and risky. I keep the cooler in my garage, which keeps down on the soap clutter in my house.

I MB my lye and fats/oils. To prevent the fats from separating or the lye to separate from the water, I use a gardening warming mat that I had for growing seedlings. It keeps them at a nice 70-ish degrees in my garage (warmer if I throw a towel over them). Seedling Heat Mat for Seed Starting - Free Shipping | Gardeners.com

I made my own hanger tool my bending a hanger to suit my needs and wrapping it in a few layers of black electrical tape.

I eat yogurt every day and save the containers to mix micas.

Those are the first things that popped into my head.

 

[jcandleattic]

or the lye to separate from the water,

Once the lye is thoroughly dissolved, it will not separate, as it is a solution, not a mixture.

There are a ton of these types of tricks throughout the board. Glad you are finding your own and making it work for you!!

 

[The_Phoenix]

Once the lye is thoroughly dissolved, it will not separate, as it is a solution, not a mixture.

There are a ton of these types of tricks throughout the board. Glad you are finding your own and making it work for you!!

Really? When I first master batched my lye solution, I experienced what would best be described as a powdery deposit of what I thought was lye separating from the water, resting under the screw cap. I thought it was imperative that the solution not get below 60-something degrees. Is that a myth?

 

[AliOop]

Really? When I first master batched my lye solution, I experienced what would best be described as a powdery deposit of what I thought was lye separating from the water, resting under the screw cap. I thought it was imperative that the solution not get below 60-something degrees. Is that a myth?

I agree with @jcandleattic that you don't need to keep your lye water warm unless the storage area will get too cold - that can cause problems. However, what you are probably seeing around the cap is some of the dried solution that collected there when you poured out some of the solution. I used to get that around my lid, so now I wipe it clean after each pour.

Some random things I do to make my soaping life easier:

1. Masterbatch my lye solution at the ratio that I typically use for soaping. That way, no math is involved since Soapmaking Friend calculates the masterbatch solution amount for me.

2. Use the foil bags from food deliveries to insulate my soap. My small slab mold slides into it perfectly!

3. Line squeeze bottles with the air-filled packing pillows to save on cleanup and reuse something that would otherwise be thrown away.

4. Put PVC cylinder molds in the freezer for an hour, then defrost for about ten minutes. The soap slides right out without any need to line or grease the mold. NB: the success of this method does seem to be somewhat recipe-dependent, with soft oils creating more need for greasing or lining, or at least, more effort to push out the soap log.

5. Line my wooden molds with cut-to-fit Teflon sheets or Dollar Store cutting mats. This eliminates the hassle and waste of paper lining.

 

[The_Phoenix]

I agree with @jcandleattic that you don't need to keep your lye water warm unless the storage area will get too cold - that can cause problems. However, what you are probably seeing around the cap is some of the dried solution that collected there when you poured out some of the solution. I used to get that around my lid, so now I wipe it clean after each pour.

You have no idea how perplexed I was about this. See, had I not mentioned it, I would not have figured it out. Thank you!

 

[AliOop]

You have no idea how perplexed I was about this. See, had I not mentioned it, I would not have figured it out. Thank you!

You are welcome! That's what I love about this forum... someone else almost always has figured out the solution to my problems.

 

[IrishLass]

Yep....what AliOop said.....that white stuff is the collected dried solution left behind from pouring, which has turned into sodium carbonate.

One of my hacks is using corrugated cardboard, out of which I cut 2 pieces to fit only the inside ends of my log molds so that on those occasions when I choose to use my wavy cutter to cut my soap into bars, the end pieces are wavy on both sides, just the same as my other bars. After cutting the cardboard pieces out to fit in my mold, I carefully tear away one side of the cardboard backing to expose the waves sandwiched inside, then I form-fittingly wrap each piece in plastic (secured down with glue) before placing in my mold. It actually works pretty darn good.......and they last for many batches, provided you keep them wrapped well!

Corrugated cardboard -along with a handful of bamboo skewers- is also great for creating a quick and easy peacock swirling tool (a handy trick I learned from Jcandleattic). Just cut out a length of cardboard across the corrugations that is as wide as your slab mold and about 3" tall or so, and then insert the skewers into the corrugated tunnels, spaced out about an inch apart or so from each other- and voila!- you have a peacock swirling tool. The skewers fit nice and snug in the corrugated tunnels without shifting, and the evenly spaced corrugations help you to evenly space your skewers.


IrishLass

 

[AliOop]

@IrishLass love that peacock swirling tool hack! That swirl is on my Try List so now it is off to the garage to rescue some cardboard from the recycle bin.

 

[Jersey Girl]

This thread is awesome! Should make it a sticky!

 

[The_Phoenix]

Corrugated cardboard -along with a handful of bamboo skewers- is also great for creating a quick and easy peacock swirling tool (a handy trick I learned from Jcandleattic). Just cut out a length of cardboard across the corrugations that is as wide as your slab mold and about 3" tall or so, and then insert the skewers into the corrugated tunnels, spaced out about an inch apart or so from each other- and voila!- you have a peacock swirling tool. The skewers fit nice and snug in the corrugated tunnels without shifting, and the evenly spaced corrugations help you to evenly space your skewers.


IrishLass

That is brilliant!

 

[Zing]

I won't tell you how long I was soaping until I discovered this particular tip on this forum and then smacked my forehead. In my pot, I weigh out ALL my hard oils and butters. Before I had separate containers for each. I'm still not brave like others on here to weigh out all my oils into the pot directly.

It was also a huge hack to find out about using a chopstick or skewer laid across the top of my essential oil bottles while pouring.

 

[SoapSisters]

I make salt bars in individual molds. And I've found that if I keep them covered for a few days they won't ash.

My hack: Instead of using single-use plastic wrap, I cover them with the plastic covers of spiral notebooks (that are no longer attached to the notebooks). I use a few so that they weigh down on the soap molds and stay in place. Then I just wash the covers with all my other soap stuff and reuse.

 

[linne1gi]

Yep....what AliOop said.....that white stuff is the collected dried solution left behind from pouring, which has turned into sodium carbonate.

One of my hacks is using corrugated cardboard, out of which I cut 2 pieces to fit only the inside ends of my log molds so that on those occasions when I choose to use my wavy cutter to cut my soap into bars, the end pieces are wavy on both sides, just the same as my other bars. After cutting the cardboard pieces out to fit in my mold, I carefully tear away one side of the cardboard backing to expose the waves sandwiched inside, then I form-fittingly wrap each piece in plastic (secured down with glue) before placing in my mold. It actually works pretty darn good.......and they last for many batches, provided you keep them wrapped well!

Corrugated cardboard -along with a handful of bamboo skewers- is also great for creating a quick and easy peacock swirling tool (a handy trick I learned from Jcandleattic). Just cut out a length of cardboard across the corrugations that is as wide as your slab mold and about 3" tall or so, and then insert the skewers into the corrugated tunnels, spaced out about an inch apart or so from each other- and voila!- you have a peacock swirling tool. The skewers fit nice and snug in the corrugated tunnels without shifting, and the evenly spaced corrugations help you to evenly space your skewers.


IrishLass

Genius!

 

[ravenscents]

@IrishLass love that peacock swirling tool hack! That swirl is on my Try List so now it is off to the garage to rescue some cardboard from the recycle bin.

Can someone show pic of the peacock swirl? Please

 

[Janewoc17]

I won't tell you how long I was soaping until I discovered this particular tip on this forum and then smacked my forehead. In my pot, I weigh out ALL my hard oils and butters. Before I had separate containers for each. I'm still not brave like others on here to weigh out all my oils into the pot directly.

It was also a huge hack to find out about using a chopstick or skewer laid across the top of my essential oil bottles while pouring.

Chopstick laud across EO bottles?

 

[AliOop]

Can someone show pic of the peacock swirl? Please

Here is an example of Peacock Swirl Soap

Chopstick laid across EO bottles?

This article on DeeAnna's website shows them using a pipette, but it's the same principle. You can also use a toothpick for the really small bottles: Pouring Tips

 

[Zing]

Chopstick laud across EO bottles?

When I first started soaping, I'd pour my essential oils out of the bottle and so much would spill down the side of the bottle making a mess and wasting super expensive ingredients. Now I open the bottle and hold a chopstick across the top so that it makes a T shape. I hold the stick and then pour. The oil runs down the stick in a steady stream. It's still tricky to concentrate on holding the stick and watching the scale!
See Tutorial: Pouring Essential Oils (and Other Liquids) Without Spilling a Drop! • Modern Soapmaking

 

[Janewoc17]

This article on DeeAnna's website shows them using a pipette, but it's the same principle. You can also use a toothpick for the really small bottles.

Pouring Tips

Thank you!!!

 

[Obsidian]

I use baby spoons from the dollar store to mix my colors. They fit better in small cups and are easier to wield then a standard sized spoon.

They are heavy plastic so are safe to use in the batter. Wipe clean, wash and reuse.

 

[amd]

I use baby spoons from the dollar store to mix my colors. They fit better in small cups and are easier to wield then a standard sized spoon.

I found stainless steel sundae spoons that work awesome for stirring colors in the 4 cup pitchers.