When you make soap, you need to get your stuff together.
Getting everything ready and in one place ahead of time makes life much less stressful when the soap starts to become soap in the pan (which is just out of the photo) and you need to be ready to pour it into molds.
As you can see, I make soap outside. I started doing that because I didn't want lye fumes or any spills in the kitchen. When I use the metal table outside, I don't worry about the inevitable spills. And cleanup is very easy. When the weather's bad and I NEED to make some soap, I've made it inside. I ran the kitchen exhaust fan and opened the kitchen window and had no problems. I prefer to do it outside, however.
This is my batch of honey and oatmeal soap, some of which is on sale in my etsy and artfire shops.
Once I get the lye mixed into the water in the glass measuring cup and let it start to cool, I melt the oils in the stainless steel soap pot.
Once all the oils are melted, you need to cool the lye water and the oils. In the picture below you can see that the lye water mixture is HOT. That's another science thing. Lye mixed with water makes a chemical reaction that makes it HOT!!
And you take the temperature of the oils . . .
When they get to the right (close) temperature, you CAREFULLY pour the lye water into the oils. Then you start mixing. Since life is short, you should use a stick blender to mix your soap. Otherwise, it takes a very long time and your arm gets very tired. Duct tape may be required on your stick blender when you use it for soap rather than the soups for which it was intended.
Then you run the blender for a bit and then use the blender as a spoon for a bit. You don't want to burn up the blender motor. Once it starts to thicken and you can see the image of the blender on the surface of the soap mixture, it has reached or is reaching "trace."
This is when you add your special ingredients. Like ground oatmeal.
Then you add the honey.
Then you pour it in your prepared molds (preparing the molds is part of what you do before you get started!).
Then you put all your molds with your fresh soap mixture in a box lid to help contain drips or spills. Some soaps you insulate with towels, but soaps with honey don't want to be insulated. So this oatmeal and honey soap isn't blanketed.
And, yes, some of those molds are "interesting" things from the hospital and the hardware store. They make good soap molds.
The soap rests in the molds for a day or two or three. Until they're ready to come out relatively easily. That's another blog topic.
Next . . . CLEAN UP!!
Clean up isn't that big of a deal, but it is a bit messy and oily, so keep your apron and gloves on. Sometimes I save the mess until the next day because then it's SOAP!!
There are a few more steps, but we're at a stopping point for today.
As I explained in an earlier post, there are great places online to learn about making soap:
If this just seems like waayy too much mess and work, then please visit my shops linked above to check them out and purchase soaps already made!!
Next week I'm planning to make more soap. On the list of soaps to make are patchouli, peppermint and oatmeal, and maybe rosemary and peppermint.
What other soaps do you think I should try? Let me know what you think in the comments below. Make sure you leave your email address. Why your email address? Well, if I select your soapy idea and make up some of those soaps, I'll email you to get your mailing address. And I'll send some of those soaps your way!! Now put your thinking caps on and let me know . . .
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