Water %

[Jordan’s]

I tried making this recipe using the cold process method and it always gets very very thick when I mix everything together.

I tried cooling my stuff down before mixing. I’m wondering if I should raise my water % higher? Says 38% of oil weight right now but doesn’t seem like enough. Would 50% be too much? Will it still work if I let it rest for longer?

 

[AliOop]

Your amount of water is already pretty high.

What’s making it thicken so fast is the stearic acid. Like any free fatty acid, it will saponify immediately. It also needs to be quite warm to stay fully melted. If you let it cool off, you’re probably getting a false trace.

Either way, it’s not an easy ingredient to work with. Is there a particular reason you’re using that for this soap?

 

[Jordan’s]

Your amount of water is already pretty high.

What’s making it thicken so fast is the stearic acid. Like any free fatty acid, it will saponify immediately. It also needs to be quite warm to stay fully melted. If you let it cool off, you’re probably getting a false trace.

Either way, it’s not an easy ingredient to work with. Is there a particular reason you’re using that for this soap?

Thank you for your feedback.

I’m using stearic acid since I’m trying to make a shaving soap. I tried the hot process with this recipe but since it’s thick, my final product is too rustic for my liking even tho it works really good. That’s why I tried to do it with the cold process method.

I’m very new fyi so many things I’m not aware of

 

[AliOop]

Thank you for your feedback.

I’m using stearic acid since I’m trying to make a shaving soap. I tried the hot process with this recipe but since it’s thick, my final product is too rustic for my liking even tho it works really good. That’s why I tried to do it with the cold process method.

I’m very new fyi so many things I’m not aware of

No worries about being new and asking questions - we are here to help!

First, I really appreciate that you posted your whole recipe. I hadn’t seen the note at the bottom about it being dual lye, which would have tipped me off to the fact that this was shaving soap.

Second, you are not alone in struggling to make a shave soap that pours smoothly despite the high amount of stearic involved. Have you watched any of the YT shave soap videos by Holly’s Soapmaking (formerly Kapia Mera) or Amy Warden? They both have excellent tips, esp Amy who shows a couple failures along the way. Along with those videos, the biggest help to me was this shave soap book.

 

[DeeAnna]

It's unrealistic to expect to saponify a recipe with 30% stearic acid using a cold process method. Honestly, hot process is the best way.

You might experiment with adding warmed yogurt or warmed sodium lactate solution at the end of the cook to get a smoother looking soap. I've had the nicest results from yogurt but others swear by SL.

Can't remember her username, but there is a gal from the Philippines who specializes in HP. She has been very generous sharing her advice about making smooth HP soap. Dawni????

 

[AliOop]

Yes, that was @Dawni. She's not around much these days, but her old posts on HP methods have a lot of good info.

 

[Becky1024]

I’m a shaving soap maker and stearic acid is difficult to work with. Yes, hot process is best. Through trial and error I found my recipe works best if I melt all the oils/butters, cool to around 110-120F, then mix in my lye solution. Only use the stick blender for a few short bursts and then mix with a spoon for several minutes. If you use the stick blender too long the stearic acid will become like concrete! After the cook add 2% sodium lactate. Hope that helps!

 

[DeeAnna]

Yes, that was @Dawni. She's not around much these days, but her old posts on HP methods have a lot of good info.

Ah, thanks, Ali. Yep, that's her! I was on my phone when I replied before, so was trying to rely on memory.

Dawni's advice is to always warm anything you add at the end of the HP cook so the soap doesn't harden up due to being cooled.

 

[Jordan’s]

I’m a shaving soap maker and stearic acid is difficult to work with. Yes, hot process is best. Through trial and error I found my recipe works best if I melt all the oils/butters, cool to around 110-120F, then mix in my lye solution. Only use the stick blender for a few short bursts and then mix with a spoon for several minutes. If you use the stick blender too long the stearic acid will become like concrete! After the cook add 2% sodium lactate. Hope that helps!

If I add sodium lactate, do I also add glycerine or should I cut that out?