I’ve been dragging my feet regarding making our Oatmeal, Milk and Honey handmade soap in one of the large 35lb block molds since I knew that the honey and heavy cream I add to this particular soap is a bit touchy and heats things up quite a bit.   In the 12lb slab mold it has a large surface area and the heat these additives generate have been manageable.  The big block mold though, is a whole new ball game and I knew it was going to get hot, but didn’t know how hot and had no clue how much insulation I would need if any.    It would not be fun to lose 35lbs of handmade soap, especially, one as popular as this one is for both a retail and wholesale soap so I’ve been dancing around working up the nerve to just jump in.  So yesterday I poured the soap and just put the lid on at an angle with the ends open thinking this would be enough to let the heat escape and didn’t insulate.  Left the shop and took a break for some coffee.  What I should have done was hang around and watch because when I came back the soap was in full hot gel and heaved up against the lid!  This in a matter of about 15 minutes.  No kidding!  I went to remove the lid but the soap was stuck to it so I had to scrape it off and pat it back into the mold.   The next thing I did was grab a fan to blow air over the mold to slow things down a bit to avoid the volcano I knew was getting ready to happen.  Anyhow, I am pleased to say I still ended up with good handmade soap bars with some creative trimming.     Well now I know how this particular soap behaves in this mold so I won’t use the lid at all and will be hovering over it watching and ready to put the fan on it.

Popularity: 5%

I must confess that I got distracted.  Yes, I did!   We have a small handmade soap company  and I really want to offer liquid soap as well as handmade bar soap.   I’m so close to launching a liquid soap line but got distracted when I ran across a different method of making liquid soap on a handmade soap making forum that I belong to.  While I found this different method interesting I was hesitant to try it.  Instead of adding potassium hydroxide which is the alkali used for liquid soap making to the water phase, you replace the water with vegetable glycerin and add the potassium hydroxide to the glycerin.  It’s a quick and painless method.   Usually, it takes me several hours to get to the point that I have a workable soap paste.   When using glycerin in place of water the chemical reaction happens so much faster and I’ve got a nice solid translucent paste within an hour or so.   It’s that quick!  Also, taking a 2% discount, there is no need to neutralize and I still end up with a clear liquid soap after dilution.   Has there been a learning curve?  Yep!  Sure has and I’ve got a couple gallons of dish soap to prove it!   Some of the essential oils I added turned the diluted liquid soap to a nice thick gel after sitting for a while so I learned to work through this adding a bit more glycerin and letting it sit.  The glycerin dissolved the gel and made it fluid again.   It is normal for a true liquid soap to be pretty thin.  Thin enough that you can squirt it out of a bottle.   I happen to like a thicker soap and so have been tinkering with how to get it.   I tried different vegetable gums, adding borax and reducing the amount of water used to dilute the soap paste.   Using the normal method of making liquid soap, I could reduce the water quite a bit but with the glycerin method I found I needed a bit more water in dilution to keep the soap from reverting back to paste.   Borax works but I really wanted to avoid using it.   What I ended up doing is making a 20% sodium chloride (table salt) solution and adding a dropper full at a time to the diluted soap stock.  Using too heavy of a hand will turn the soap cloudy so there is a fine line on how thick you can take it and not get cloudy soap.  I was able to use the salt solution with a coconut oil percentage of 20% in my formula.  I have never used a salt solution before but have read that it won’t work on a liquid soap formula with a high percentage of coconut oil.  In my case, it seemed to work great so I don’t know how high is high.   I really like using the glycerin liquid soap making method.  It’s a time saver and has produced some beautiful soap for me.   Took a lot of testing but I think I’ve got the process down now.  Patience is not one of my virtues but I have been forced to go slow and test, test and test some more.

Here I’ve got warmed oils and the potassium hydroxide added to the vegetable glycerin.

The lye solution has been stick blended into the warmed oils.

                                                                                             Tracing…

                                                                                    We have bubbles..which means done!

To get to the bubble stage only took about 5 minutes.  The soap is done and after I put the lid on and came back in about an hour I had paste and it tested neutral with the  phenolphthalein.   I had whipped air into the soap which accounts for the cream color but underneath was all clear paste.   So much for 24 oz test batches.    Not the easiest to work with but better than wasting a lot of material.

And here is the final test batch of paste diluted, thickened and scented with Eucalyptus, Spearmint and Sweet Orange essential oils.    Perfect!

Popularity: 7%

Remember the seized soap a couple of weeks ago?  Well…I did something I don’t normally do and took some of those  soap balls and put them into another batch of handmade soap.   I am very happy about this because the bad batch didn’t end up in the landfill and I got to do a new technique in the process.    Wasn’t sure how many soap balls to actually use so had to shoot from the hip so to speak but I think the new batch is pretty cool looking!   I also enjoy providing something out of my normal range to my customers who buy handmade soap.   So, how did I know how much soap to fill up the mold with since the soap balls were going to take up some of the volume?   I did not want to end up with an overflow of soap.   This is what I ended up doing and it worked perfectly.

Mold Size – 20in x 17in x 3in x .4 = 408oz of the oil portion (ppo) to normally fill this mold.   I measured out 2lbs 10 oz of soap balls and then calculated that 386 oz of oils would be needed to make enough soap to cover the soap balls and complete the block of soap to fit the mold.  Worked perfectly with no leftover raw soap!

These soap logs are scented with Blackberry Sage fragrance oil and smell delicious!

Popularity: 4%

Been making handmade soaps for some time now and from the beginning used Brambleberry.com as one of my “go to” suppliers for top notch fragrance oils for use in soaps and body care products.  What makes this supplier so great you ask?  CUSTOMER SERVICE!  Yep, you got that right!  Their customer service is top notch.   Every time, I’ve got a question, I get an answer.  No repeat emails or having to pick up the phone.   When using a new fragrance oil when making a batch of handmade soap bars, I know exactly how it is going to react.  No guessing and no surprises.  Why, because Brambleberry tests their fragrances and posts any reaction they had in the soap pot on their website.    So when I buy them, on the invoice, I have a reminder of whether the fragrance oil is going to move fast, discolor or is just plain not suitable for making handmade soap.   This is especially important to me and avoids situations like the seized soap I had a couple of weeks ago.  I love this about them!

Popularity: 7%

I had my day planned Friday.    The plan was to make several batches of handmade soap and then take a break and go to town.  It didn’t happen that way.   The first batch went smoothly.    Made the first batch which was  goat milk soap with honey and oats.     Something must be in the air as this is the second special request for this type of soap with no scent.   It went smoothly.  Got everything prepped and ready to make another batch of a the new Cucumber Mint goat milk soap that will be coming soon.  Made it before, no issues.  Well….this time as soon as I added the fragrance to the soap pot it was instant SEIZE.  Instant!  What a headache!  Either dump 12lbs of handmade soap or thinking quickly I decided I didn’t want to dump this so decided to turn the oven on and try to hot process it which I have never done before so it was risky.    Simply put,  in hot processing you “cook” the soap to speed up the saponification process.   By using this method you can use the soap right away if you want, however, allowing it to “cure” for a week or so will allow a harder bar.    Once the soap is ready it is glopped into the mold.  Not poured.   It makes for a different texture and more rustic appearance but I have seen hot process handmade soap bars made by soap makers who only make hot process soap turn out very smooth bars.   I however, was  just going for saved soap.  I tell you I had a mess on the floor, a mess on the table and a mess in the pot but the soap cooked and I was able to slam it into the mold.  Not a pretty site but in the mold non the less and not the garbage can.   After I released the soap the next day, I used my kitchen aid stand mixer to shred it and roll it into little soap balls which will be used a design element in a new soap.   Feeling pretty good about this!  Actually, learned something here.  Took me all day and I was pretty stressed by the time it was over but I’m glad I took the plunge.

Seized soap in the pot!

Seized soap in the mold.

And voila!  Soap balls!

Popularity: 12%

I have wanted to make a Dead Sea Mud soap for quite some time and finally got around to it.   This is a fabulous handmade soap which incorporates the mineral rich black mud of the Dead Sea.   It is gentle enough to use on a daily basis as a facial soap but I wouldn’t limit it there.   Our Dead Sea Mud soap makes a fantastic handmade soap for the body too.   What makes Dead Sea Mud so special in handmade soap bars?   Well the rich mineral mud from the Dead Sea actually deep cleanses the skin while gently removing impurities and reducing pore size.   The fine mud particles have a gentle exfoliating effect while helping to remove dead skin cells leaving your skin with a smooth and refined finish.   Your skin will feel soft and not tight.   While designing this particular bar of handmade soap, I decided to swirl it with Australian Black Clay which is high in iron and oxygen and very nourishing to the skin.   I also think it adds a lovely touch to the soap.   It’s scented with a essential oil blend of  Litsea Cubea, Lavender, Tea Tree, Lavender, Patchouli and Clove which is just perfect for this soap.    I can’t say enough good things about this soap.   Can you tell that I’m pleased as punch with how it turned out?   I think it is going to be a fantastic handmade soap for both our retail and our wholesale soap clients too!

Popularity: 7%

Sometimes, but not always, once you pour your handmade soap batter into your molds and the soap starts to solidify, a white powdery substance will form on the top of the soap.  In the morning, when the handmade soap is removed from the mold, you will notice that you either have a light scattering of white residue or it can be fairly thick as will happen with goat milk soap.

Ummm..what is this white powdery substance you ask?  This white chalky residue is commonly known as soda ash or sodium carbonate, a sodium salt of carbonic acid and forms as the water in the soap stock evaporates.  This soda ash may be a bit unsightly on top of those perfectly formed and colorful handmade soap bars but it is harmless and washes away with water or can be wiped off with isopropyl alcohol or simply ignored and accepted as part of what makes handmade soap unique and special.

One tip to prevent the formation of soda ash is to simply cover your freshly poured handmade soap with plastic wrap which cuts the soap off from the open air  preventing the soda ash from forming.  Unfortunately, because of the type of molds I use, this isn’t an option and I picked up another tip from a fellow soap maker which I’ll pass on.  I spritz my slabs of freshly poured handmade soap with 99% isopropyl alcohol after the soap sits a bit and goes opaque.    This has been a huge help in reducing or eliminating the amount of soda ash that forms.   Especially, on the goat milk soap bars.    Be sure to either use 91% or 99% isopropyl alcohol as the 70% does not seem to work.

The photo below is an example of soda ash on the  side of a few bars of Raspberry Mint Goat Milk Soap that weren’t sprayed with isopropyl alcohol after sitting for one week on the drying rack.  When these particular handmade soaps are beveled for sale, I will remove the soda ash just because I’m a bit obsessive about it.

Popularity: 14%

Our handmade soap company is a family affair around here.  Our little soapmaker in training spent the week end, and was just fascinated with Nona’s soap shop and the large block of Lemongrass soap that we cut.   When I took out the pot tipper to take over to my brother’s so he could weld another one, well…that was just TOO interesting.   Pot tippers are great when pouring heavy buckets of oils or handmade soap.  Makes life much easier!

Popularity: 6%

I don’t know why but I’ve been intimidated with the thought of making a larger bath of handmade soap.  Say 35lbs or so at a time.   I know.  It’s not rocket science but it’s taken me a couple of years to get around to doing it.  I make a lot of soap at a time but use several of my 12lb slab molds lined up and then roll like on an assembly line.   Get the molds ready, make a batch, pour and go back and do it all over again.   The rush in wholesale soap orders this fall pushed me over the edge and I purchased a large silicone soap mold to test the process out.  Could have used just wood and lined it and yes, it would have been cheaper but I am spoiled and will only use silicone soap molds now.  So after looking at this beautiful new big batch handmade soap mold for a few weeks, I finally got the nerve up to venture into the shop and make a batch.   Borrowed the big guy’s electric power drill and hooked up the squirrel cage mixer to it.  I had saved a large 55 pound bucket which had held shea butter to  to mix the oils and lye solution so I was good to go.  For the first batch, I decided to make my Lemongrass soap since this recipe moves at a reasonable pace and would be easy to work with.  

Here are the buckets of melted oil and lye water solution waiting to be combined.

Part of the prep was getting the poppy seeds and mineral pigment used for color mixed and ready.

Here is the drill with squirrel cage attachment waiting to go into action.     Felt like I kid when I used this to mix the soap up.   Something new and it was really easy and fun!  Don’t know why I was so intimidated.  

And…here we go, the soap solution has emulsified, I’ve added the color, poppy seeds and essential oils and the soap is almost ready to pour into the mold.  I was having so much fun using the mixer that the soap almost went into a heavy trace which is not what I like.  Caught things just in time.

Finally, the soap is ready to pour into the mold.  Really, it didn’t take long.  Maybe 10 minutes from start to finish.

And…the finished soap logs ready to be cut into handmade soap bars!  The sweet part… I get eight soap logs out of this one mold which is soaptacular! We will definitely be making a mother mold and pouring our own silicone liners.  I’m sold!

Popularity: 9%

When customers want to buy handmade soap from us for problem skin and ask what handmade soap we carry that I would recommend, the first handmade bar soap that comes to mind is our Oatmeal, Milk & Honey soap.   For several reasons really.   Oatmeal has long been used to relieve dryness, eczema, inflammation, rashes (think diaper rash), and even bug bites.    When my kids were just babes and either their little bottoms were burnt from diaper rash or they had irritating bug bits I would put some whole oats in an old sock and squish them around under running water in the tub and have them soak.   We always got relief and healing that way.   Our Oatmeal, Milk and Honey soap bar also contains a generous amount of honey and heavy cream.  Remember Cleopatra?  Only milk and honey baths for her!    Honey in skin care is primarily known for it’s humectant and antimicrobial qualities. (A humectant is a compound that attracts moisture to itself and helps retain the moisture.)  For this particular handmade soap, I added wheat germ oil which is naturally high in vitamin E.  It has been one of our most popular retail and wholesale soaps. 

Popularity: 13%