What soapy thing have you done today?

[linne1gi]

I can understand why it was your 5th attempt. I have a feeling it will be a little muddy but... we shall see. I do like the colours but I don't think the swirl will end up being what I had hoped for. It smells good, though (Meyer Lemon).

Yes, you should have seen 1-4 attempts. Sad.

 

[KiwiMoose]

Thankfully not as bad as I thought. The swirl could have been a bit better, but I was pretty thick by the time I got to the top. Made with Prosecco
View attachment 53311

LOL - just noticed it said that 'I' was a bit thick. I meant 'it' was a bit thick

 

[linne1gi]

LOL - just noticed it said that 'I' was a bit thick. I meant 'it' was a bit thick

Probably you both were a bit thick

 

[Zing]

Today was Day 2 of making my January Challenge soap. I made another planet and the rest of the universe. I think my shredded white soap for stars were too finely shredded. Everything is cozy in the oven for the night.

@Misschief, so just this very week I discovered Meyer lemons for the first time! My California cousin mailed us a box. Betty Crocker, I mean Mrs. Zing made the best pie ever and lemon jam and some kind of moonshine that has to steep for several weeks. *hic. I always thought there was just one kind of lemon.

@linne1gi You've got my vote for what it's worth! Great lollipop.

 

[linne1gi]

Today was Day 2 of making my January Challenge soap. I made another planet and the rest of the universe. I think my shredded white soap for stars were too finely shredded. Everything is cozy in the oven for the night.

@Misschief, so just this very week I discovered Meyer lemons for the first time! My California cousin mailed us a box. Betty Crocker, I mean Mrs. Zing made the best pie ever and lemon jam and some kind of moonshine that has to steep for several weeks. *hic. I always thought there was just one kind of lemon.

@linne1gi You've got my vote for what it's worth! Great lollipop.

I certainly enjoyed this reply! Thanks Zing.

 

[Misschief]

@Misschief, so just this very week I discovered Meyer lemons for the first time! My California cousin mailed us a box. Betty Crocker, I mean Mrs. Zing made the best pie ever and lemon jam and some kind of moonshine that has to steep for several weeks. *hic. I always thought there was just one kind of lemon.

Yum!! I always thought the same... a lemon is a lemon, right? Nope!

 

[The Park Bench]

Have

Today was Day 2 of making my January Challenge soap. I made another planet and the rest of the universe. I think my shredded white soap for stars were too finely shredded. Everything is cozy in the oven for the night.

@Misschief, so just this very week I discovered Meyer lemons for the first time! My California cousin mailed us a box. Betty Crocker, I mean Mrs. Zing made the best pie ever and lemon jam and some kind of moonshine that has to steep for several weeks. *hic. I always thought there was just one kind of lemon.

@linne1gi You've got my vote for what it's worth! Great lollipop.

Have Betty Crocker make some lemon Cello out of those meyers!

 

[Zing]

Have Betty Crocker make some lemon Cello out of those meyers!

That's what she calls that moonshine she's making!

 

[Mobjack Bay]

I had a great time making my challenge soap this morning, but then had a horrible time with a second batch, which was made with the same recipe, but a different FO. I’ve used the second FO numerous times and never had issues. My super slow recipe with lard and HO sunflower accelerated like crazy. Whaaaatttt??? An older bottle states “no acceleration.” The new one I opened today states “slight acceleration.” So much for the idea of a swirled soap to use up the micas I had left from the first batch.

 

[rdc1978]

I made a loaf of zanys no slime castile on Friday, unfolded it yesterday and cut it today.

The soap is a beautiful and creamy color

But it was really, REALLY hard when I tried cutting it. My single bar slicer got stuck 1/4, of the way into the first bar and I had to get my old box and cutter.
Has anyone else had this? I'm fine and excited about the soap, but if these are potential signs of a screw up ill just re-try since the soap takes so long to cure.

 

[Zany_in_CO]

I made a loaf of zanys no slime castile on Friday, unfolded it yesterday and cut it today. ...But it was really, REALLY hard when I tried cutting it. My single bar slicer got stuck 1/4, of the way into the first bar and I had to get my old box and cutter. Has anyone else had this?

Yes. Other members have had that problem. I'm sorry to have to tell you this but you waited too long to cut.

ill just re-try since the soap takes so long to cure.

ACK! LOL This is NOT your usual castile soap so forget about all you learned about Castile soaps before! It not only eliminates or reduces slime but it also has a quick cure. As I wrote in the directions:
UNMOLD in 12-24 hours
CUT Day 2
CURE Ready to ship in 2 weeks. 6 weeks is best. The longer the cure the better the soap.

I start test-driving a bar at the 2-week mark.

 

[rdc1978]

Yes. Other members have had that problem. I'm sorry to have to tell you this but you waited too long to cut.

ACK! LOL This is NOT your usual castile soap so forget about all you learned about Castile soaps before! It not only eliminates or reduces slime but it also has a quick cure. As I wrote in the directions:
UNMOLD in 12-24 hours
CUT Day 2
CURE Ready to ship in 2 weeks. 6 weeks is best. The longer the cure the better the soap.

I start test-driving a bar at the 2-week mark.

Thank you! And sorry. Totally my bad for not being a more careful reader!

If I was able to slice it, is it okay to use? I got it cut, I just had to put all my piddly upper body strength into it!

Thanks again for the recipe. I'm very excited about it! Super amped to get to try it out in 2 weeks!

 

[Zany_in_CO]

If I was able to slice it, is it okay to use?

Proceed with caution. If it irritates or dries out your skin, cease & desist. Wait another week or longer.

 

[rdc1978]

Proceed with caution. If it irritates or dries out your skin, cease & desist. Wait another week or longer.

Thanks. I think I'll just make another batch and be more careful this time

I'm making it for a woman going through chemo and my nephew so I don't want to risk it. I'll probably see if I can use it on my skin.

Thank again!

 

[KiwiMoose]

Thanks. I think I'll just make another batch and be more careful this time

I'm making it for a woman going through chemo and my nephew so I don't want to risk it. I'll probably see if I can use it on my skin.

Thank again!

Just use cavity moulds - then there's no need to cut. That's what many of us do.

 

[Wooddy]

I’m very much new to soaping and really enjoy seeing everyone’s soap making creations. So here is one I did a few days ago, Not sure what to call my soap design so I will just go with rainbow, scented with orange essential oil.

 

[Misschief]

We unmolded my lollipop swirl soap this morning. It took both of us to unmold it; I used the core from a roll of engineering paper for my mold and the moisture seeped through and it was impossible to slide it out of the mold this time, even after freezing it for a while. We had to peel the mold away from the soap.

The soap itself was unremarkable, just meh.... but for a first attempt, it's ok. Just ok.

 

[Zing]

I breathed a huge sigh of relief after unmolding my January challenge soap. Actually I am thrilled with the result. I was worried about one of the planets. I created it out of mini-muffin molds and then put them in a row and prayed that they stayed stuck together, which they did! The scent is very light even tho' I used the max (eocalc) but still nice -- eucalyptus/rosemary/cedarwood. I'm not a fan of the camphorous essential oils but this blend is nice, smells like a spa.

I’m very much new to soaping and really enjoy seeing everyone’s soap making creations. So here is one I did a few days ago, Not sure what to call my soap design so I will just go with rainbow, scented with orange essential oil.

This looks great and I like your choice of colors! Is the white part uncolored or did you use a white colorant? And did you use orange eo or orange 10X eo? I have found orange 10X lasts way longer than plain orange. I've also lately been adding litsea to citrus for extra sticking power. Sorry for all the unsolicited advice!

@Misschief, sounds like a chore to unmold. Great color combo!

 

[rdc1978]

Just use cavity moulds - then there's no need to cut. That's what many of us do.

This is a fantastic idea! A friend just gifted me some lovely cavity molds and this is a great opportunity to use them!

 

[amd]

I'm a bit out of touch on this thread - so while I go back and read what y'all been doing, here's what I've been doing...

Soap stuff: Finally portioned out the hard oils that have been hanging out waiting for me - 50lbs tallow, 50lbs palm, 25lbs shea butter, and 10lbs cocoa butter. Loving the shelf space that freed up, but hubby is griping about the freezer space lost (I keep the tallow and palm in the freezer in their own boxes so they don't get mixed up with our food stuffs). I'm not sure why he's griping, I do all the cooking and grocery shopping... my griping aside, I also masterbatched 75lbs of oil for soaping. I have an order for 15 batches of soap from the local brewery, so it won't last very long and I'll be doing it again in two weeks. I'll be more grateful for taking the time to portion out the hard oils the further away I get from the memory of doing it. Soaping will begin on Tuesday.

Non soap stuff: testing label materials for lotions. Rebranding said lotion and labels. I decided that while the plain and simple labels work well for my soap, the soaps have colors and designs that speak for themselves. Lotions and sugar scrubs need a bit more "oomph" for shelf appeal, so I'm working on designing those as well.