Here are some tips and tricks for your soap making adventure.
When I went to purchase my base, I had several options on amount - for every 2lbs of base you will get approximately 8 bars of soap. Obviously that depends on the size and thickness of your bars - but is a good rule of thumb.
For your essential oils, the rule is approximately .5 oz per one pound of base. For fragrance oils (not recommended as they have colors and other chemicals that may irritate skin) .5 - 1 oz per pound of base.
Never add your fragrance / essential oil while the soap is still over heat. Allow it to cool slightly to ensure you don't burn your fragrance off the soap.
One of the issues with adding spices, flowers, seeds, grains to your soap mixture is that they will float to the surface and it is difficult to keep them suspended properly. There are a couple options you have - there are certain mixes that are created for suspension - choose the proper one. Secondly, you can add your items only after the soap begins to thicken.
Avoid high temperatures - be patient. You may notice your soap sweating, which means you have used too high a temperature and the glycerin is sweating out of the soap.
To avoid air bubbles, stir slowly if at all. Spray top of soap with alcohol.
Preparation. preparation. preparation. Make sure you have everything ready when you begin melting your base. Once the base is fully melted you will have about 8 minutes of work time for the glycerin base, and only four to five minutes with goats milk base.
When adding color - use 1/8 - 1/4 tsp per pound of base for the mica coloring, and one drop at a time for the liquid. Make sure that you do NOT use regular food color in your soap - they have chemicals in them, artificial colorings, and they will come off on your body and towels - stains!
If you want to add butters / oils to your soap for that luxurious feeling and added healing power the rule of thumb is 1 - 2 tsp of carrier oil to pound of base and 1 tsp of any additional liquids (coffee, tea, cream, etc).
If you want to add cubes of colored soap in your bar, lay them in the mold and spray them lightly with rubbing alcohol. Ensure that your soap base has cooled sufficiently or your cubes will no longer be square!
If your soap is sticking to the mold even after you have sprayed it with alcohol, pop it into the freezer for a couple minutes. It should come right out.
When I went to purchase my base, I had several options on amount - for every 2lbs of base you will get approximately 8 bars of soap. Obviously that depends on the size and thickness of your bars - but is a good rule of thumb.
For your essential oils, the rule is approximately .5 oz per one pound of base. For fragrance oils (not recommended as they have colors and other chemicals that may irritate skin) .5 - 1 oz per pound of base.
Never add your fragrance / essential oil while the soap is still over heat. Allow it to cool slightly to ensure you don't burn your fragrance off the soap.
One of the issues with adding spices, flowers, seeds, grains to your soap mixture is that they will float to the surface and it is difficult to keep them suspended properly. There are a couple options you have - there are certain mixes that are created for suspension - choose the proper one. Secondly, you can add your items only after the soap begins to thicken.
Avoid high temperatures - be patient. You may notice your soap sweating, which means you have used too high a temperature and the glycerin is sweating out of the soap.
To avoid air bubbles, stir slowly if at all. Spray top of soap with alcohol.
Preparation. preparation. preparation. Make sure you have everything ready when you begin melting your base. Once the base is fully melted you will have about 8 minutes of work time for the glycerin base, and only four to five minutes with goats milk base.
When adding color - use 1/8 - 1/4 tsp per pound of base for the mica coloring, and one drop at a time for the liquid. Make sure that you do NOT use regular food color in your soap - they have chemicals in them, artificial colorings, and they will come off on your body and towels - stains!
If you want to add butters / oils to your soap for that luxurious feeling and added healing power the rule of thumb is 1 - 2 tsp of carrier oil to pound of base and 1 tsp of any additional liquids (coffee, tea, cream, etc).
If you want to add cubes of colored soap in your bar, lay them in the mold and spray them lightly with rubbing alcohol. Ensure that your soap base has cooled sufficiently or your cubes will no longer be square!
If your soap is sticking to the mold even after you have sprayed it with alcohol, pop it into the freezer for a couple minutes. It should come right out.
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