So I took a drive today out to my friend Patty’s house so she could show me how to make soap.
I’ve admired and used her awesome soap for quite a while,
so when she said she’d show me…
I knew I had to find a time to do it.
That day was today…
As I found out later what we made today was cold process soap. It used lye but wasn’t cooked on the stove as I thought it would be.
She explained that this soap has a “curing time” of about a month which if I’m understanding correctly, hot process soap is ready pretty much
right away.
This photo is showing the mixing process after
the lye dissolved in water has been added to the oils.
She is using a deep pot and a stick blender.
I was really shocked how quickly the saponification
happened.
This was actually the second batch we made but I had forgotten that I had my little pocket camera with me. I was too busy learning.
For this batch, Patty wanted to try out some new pigments she had purchased. We decided on ultramarine blue and titanium white going for a marbled effect. The scent we used was called “rise and shine”. It smelled divine!!
Her hubby stepped in to lend an extra hand while filling the mold.
Now I have to wait for a month until I see the finished product!! AHH!! I’m not known for my patience. If it didn’t take the better part of an hour to drive to her house, I’d be there on Tuesday when she un-molds it. I’m pretty sure she cuts it at that time as well. Yet another question I’ll have to ask.
That’s exactly how I make soap. Her mold is much smaller than mine. I left my soap in the mold for at least a week, covered in a towel to contain the heat. I even use a stick blender and a stainless steel pot that I keep just for making soap (although you can use the pot for cooking in afterward if you wish, because it becomes soap as soon as the saponification process is complete). I used a big plastic rubbermaid tub with a lid, like the one I use for making paper. Since I leave mine longer, I score, then cut it in the tub, then remove the individual bars and clean up the cut edges. My scales only go to 5 lbs (they are the ones I use to weigh my mail), so I can only make batches of soap that have less than 5 lbs of oil. So glad you had the chance to do this. I wish I’d had some encouragement and help the first time I made soap.
Very cool! That blue swirl will make a beautiful bar of soap, I’m sure!
i love handmade soap and splurge on it whenever i can…there is nothing like it…how wonderful to be shown the process! i bought a book on it once but it was intimidating..
I love making soap. My mold holds 64 oz. and I cut it after sitting in the mold for 24 hours all bundled up under blankets. It makes about 16 good size bars and I set them out to cure for 3-4 weeks to be sure all the lye is gone and they are gentle to your skin. I never have used pigments like this but the blue will be pretty. Have fun! Can’t wait to see how it turns out.
What a great friend, looks like fun :) Something I have never tried.
It’ll be so worth waiting for, just in time for Xmas! love the colour! Mx
well good things are worth waiting for as the saying goes…
what a lot of fun!!!
I like Patty ;)
oxo
Very interesting! Thanks for sharing!