Soap Batch Recipes

I have been wondering what went wrong with soap batch number 2. The alien skin, alligator skin, old lady in Florida skin one that I made last night....


I think because of the yucky misfortune in #2, it might be helpful to me as well as others, perhaps to maintain a soap diary, so that you and I can learn together of what NOT to do.

So...
Batch 1:
15 oz. solid coconut oil 76 degrees
15 oz. high oleic sunflower oil
18 oz. macadamia oil
6.9 oz. Lye
18 oz. water
2.1 oz. fragrance oil

I think I took the basic recipe and did some oil substitutions from Teach Soap - another one of Anne-Marie's successes :).

The following recipe I did in grams...and I can't tell you where I pulled it from, but I switched it all up anyway, and didn't do any lye calculations as some of you asked. I just assumed that if one uses a recipe, it tells you right there how much lye to use, so what's the problem? Well, apparently, I know nothing about this soap thing, and this is why I was hoping for a hands-on teacher. C'est la vie, I don't have one here with me, so let's move on! I will look into that lye calculating and get back to you on that.


Batch 2:

400 g. high oleic sunflower oil
300 g. solid coconut oil 76 degrees
270 g. organic virgin coconut cream oil I used to buy it at From Nature With Love, but now I have grown to love many products here locally and often much cheaper at Camdengrey.com
55 g. soybean oil
144 g. lye
350 g. water
30 g. fragrance oil

Now, before I poured the batch in my Batmobile gift box that I used as a mold, I took about one cup of soap out and mixed that with two tablespoons of chicory coffee from New Orleans stirred it up and set it aside. I poured the big batch into the black Batmobile box, then drizzled the coffee soap over it into a squiggly design. I scented the soap with graham cracker fragrance and with the coffee added, it smelled really pretty unbelievable... but the squigglies kind of looks like puppy diarrhea in a DNA formation. Not really what I was going for.

Here is my Batmobile box...I know there are some non-believers but I kid you not (look closely):



So what went wrong?

Luckily for me, I have REAL soap surrounding me, like Morgan Street soaps which I just reviewed and Stella Marie's which will be next up in my reviews. Stella Marie also has a blog which currently has some really cute bath fizzie photos that look like Easter eggs in a basket.

Here is a peek at some of her soaps:

Chocolate Covered Cherry

Rockaway Beach (coconut Cream)