I am so excited about moving into the next phase of soap making! I love the chemistry (and slight risk of blowing the house up) and detail required for cold process soap making. Really makes me feel like a mad scientist :D
Here's my first attempt at CP soap...a nice unscented Castile soap that's great for sensitive skin. This particular type is even suitable for babies! Before I start doling out soap porn let me mention this is a serious process- not something you want to attempt on a whim! You really really need to have to proper safety equipment and follow directions from a reputable book or website such as Brambleberry.com <- This website is a great place to start your research!
Now, onto the show!
All CP soap starts with the oils...this particular recipe is primarily extra virgin olive oil
I learned that it takes a lot longer to cool the lye water down than heat the oils up, so I mixed my lye (VERY VERY CAREFULLY!!!) and let it set...
Next, I had to get a huge pot of oil to a very specific temperature.... a little more involved than it sounds!
And now for the big bang (or hopefully not!!)...
Things thicken up pretty quickly! This is called 'trace'....
Now into the molds (thanks to my awesome hubby for the great birthday present!! )...
Then LLLLOOOOOOTTTTTTTTSSSSSSS of waiting! Yeah, I know, not my best quality! These will take 4-6 weeks to cure and be safe for your skin... Believe me, I'm missing a layer of skin on my palms from washing all the soap dishes bare handed afterwards :P I foresee some cool new dish gloves in my future...
No comments:
Post a Comment