Soap Secrets Part One

 I got a nice card from Judy the other day. In it she wrote that her husband was interested in how the soap I sent her got made so since I was making soap today, I thought I would show you all once again how it's done. That's the oil and butters up there. There's a lot of different ones for different reasons. Some are for moisture, some for bubbles, some for hardness.  I weigh them all out carefully and then melt them together in the microwave.

 To a portion of the water the recipe calls for, I add the milks, oatmeal and clay and warm it up. I make up the recipes using an online calculator that does all the figuring for me. I tell it what I want to put in the soap. It tells me how much of everything I need.

 Then it's time to figure out a color scheme. You don't have to add color. It's a pain as you probably already have read here but it does make the whole thing more fun. You mix a little of the cosmetic mica with some sweet almond oil so you can mix it with the batter later.

Now it's time to get serious. I suit up and move outside with the lye.

 It's a food grade lye but it will still burn you.

 After weighing the lye out, you add it very slowly to the precise amount of distilled water that I have had waiting in the freezer. The colder the better. This mixture heats up fast.

 To cool it down, I take it back in the house and dunk the container in cold water.

 The oils and butters are melted and ready to go but......

 ....now the trick is to get them to within 10 degrees of each other. That is not an easy task.

 After fussing with the two mixtures and getting them to temperature, it's time to stick blend them together just until they look creamy.

 Time for the additives. I put it through a strainer to catch any lumps.

Time for some scent. I look up the FDA recommendations for percentage and then use about a quarter of that. Too much makes me itch and it can make your batter go wonky. Today I'm making some Tuscan Herb with Honey and also some Green Clover with Aloe. They both smell clean and fresh. They will be perfect for spring.

 I pour the batter into the cups of mica colorant and give it a quick stir. Things start moving very quickly now.

You've got to pour before it gets too thick. I've given up on being fussy with fancy swirls. I just pour the cups of color back into the main batter. One color after the other.

 The whole mess gets poured into the mold. It will make its own willy nilly design.

 What ever is left in the color cups gets scraped onto the top.

 I take a stick to it for a messy design. I am really not fussy about appearance anymore. Soap is soap. It's how it works that matters.

Having said that I have to have my glitter. It's cosmetic grade and I love the sparkle.

 There they are ready to go to bed for a few days until I can cut them.

I have to put them way up high, out of sight or I will be tempted to cut them too soon. It's so hard to wait.

Back in the kitchen I have a mess to clean up. It's not too terrible. Dawn does the trick. Dawn does it all. Fleece, soap batter, dog baths. I love it.

The soap I made today was cold process soap. I'm out of the stuff I need for the glycerin soap but I should be getting a shipment of supplies this week. Next Sunday I'll show you how this is made. It's so easy anyone can do it. Even you!