Graham Cracker Coffee Soap (aka Batch 2)

I cut off the alien skin which was making me gack just looking at it. They actually came out okay, I think, minus the ick-skin. I washed my hands with it last night and it was nice and sudsy. I can't wait until they are cured! Ah, five more weeks.... Then hopefully they will harden and I can send them out to friends and family, but WOW, that smell. I am going to have to make some bath goodies with it. Mmmm.

So according to the chemist soapers out there, I didn't add enough lye to my batch 2. I am hopeful that it will become soap, because I have become a bit attached to these guys.

Swirly Tops

This is the texture that got me wrapped into the making of it all. How do you get the pretty swirly tops like this? Anyone who sends me a good video tutorial of the "topping of swirls" process wins stuff from me! What stuff? I don't know yet, you name the product! :O)

I can then post it for all to see. It's a challenge---so 1--2--3----GO make a video! ohhhh, this'll be fun.

Country Cottage Soap - Black Tie Loaf

Grumpy Girl - Orange You Special Satsuma

Morgan Street - Paradise

Platypus Dreams - Freedom

Oats & Honey - Riceflower & Shea Soap

They are all so beautiful!

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)

Batch One and Batch Two - Photos

This is the first batch of CP soap I made the other day. Not great, but I think it is soap. The soap color I drizzled on didn't incorporate the way I had hoped, but oh well.







This is my second batch. I made it last night. Can you help me? What happened to it? It looks like alligator skin. I wrapped it and insulated it well, so what happened??

Morgan Street Soap

pile of Morgan Street soap at my home...

Sharon of Morgan Street was terrified of sending me her soaps for review. She urged me..."Be gentle, Joanna", but I don't know what she's talking about. Talentless people should be worried, not Sharon! I have been admiring her soaps for almost a year now, and I have been urging her to send me a bar, but she wasn't sure she wanted a review. Her blog is fun for me to read. She goes on about the different bars she is making, things she is planning and sales that are going on in her Etsy shop along with some personal stuff. I love her addiction to soap and reading her experiences and seeing photos of her new creations are inspiring. It is a daily read for me. I just bought her last Paradise bar and I wait in great anticipation for it. Yumm!

The Yummiest Soap Contest put a fire under Sharon so she sent 5 bars (one of which has fallen victim to "my desk ate my homework" syndrome, but I know it is here somewhere under the rubble). Unfortunately she wasn't added to the soap contest because Crystal, of Cute Indie Finds and Domaly and I needed to each review a bar. Each entrant needed to send in two of the same bar... one for me (Florida) to judge and one for Crystal (in California) to judge. The deal was, that a soap maker would send two bars to one of us, and we'd take care of getting the other bar to the other judge. Sorry, Sharon, you had been eliminated, but I am happy to announce that I had fun with every bar in these pictures.

The Green Tea bar was so stunning in color. I must say that is my favorite color in the whole world and it won me over before I had a chance to smell it. Green Tea was delicate, and feminine with a hint of floral notes. Love-rly...


The Black Raspberry Vanilla was a beautiful pink with the layered look (sounds like a haircut) with a sweet black raspberry smell and a hint of vanilla. It was sweet and fruity... I think I would have preferred a tarter version, but it still smelled wonderful and left me feeling clean and fresh!


The Lime and Black Pepper was unusual at first but I got totally into it the moment I started showering with it. The pepper wasn't too strong - it was an unusual combination for me, but I really loved it and have been using it every day. Not typically what I go for, but I am going for it. Definitely unique and would be a great gift for men, I think. Bold but not strong or overwhelming, just like men should be. ;o) Father's Day will be here really soon, so stock up before she runs out!


Finally, the Mysterious bar. This one changed smells, and maybe this is why the bar is called Mysterious. Once I got in the water and lathered up a bit, my nose couldn't stop shmushing up against the smooth bar. It was reminiscent of cinnamon, but it didn't look like cinnamon. It looked like a carnival having a party in a circus tent. So cute....I loved it! Sharon, was there cinnamon in there, or was my nose playing tricks on me?

Here are the soap chappies all lined up behaving very nicely.

Thank you so much, Sharon, for your encouraging words and for being such an artist and sharing your art with me!

First Soap Batch Ever!

pot o' oil


~~~~~Missing pic. I poured the lye water into the melted oil and voila~~~~~

Not the color I expected. I was thinking it would be an off white, not a brown orange.

This is my way of trying to hold it together by NOT getting too creative....

You may not believe this, but I made my very first batch of cold process soap tonight (at 11:30 pm mind you). I have been scared to death and I finally got the nerve up. I kept thinking I should wait for a mentor to physically stand by me, but that just would take too long. I have spent hours and hours researching so I wouldn't burn my face off and have gotten invaluable advice from the nicest soap makers I have made friends with along this journey on the Soap Bar.

So here is a video of me before the actual soapmaking, and a few pictures while I was making the cp soap. We'll see how it turns out. I have hopes but I am certainly scared when I unwrap in tomorrow it will be seized, curdled, separated, disgusting, whatever! I will hope. All I can say is that I had so much fun. I hope this batch goes well so that I can go beyond the basic bar and get really creative. I really had to stop myself.... and as you can see, I needed to just do a little color on part of the batch. It took everything to not mix in calendula or orange powder or rose petals, or color and go crazy with swirls, but clearly I do NOT know what I am doing, so I started calmly and with as much knowledge I could find under my hat.

Cupcake Video

Savor Goodies

Lisa Salamida, soap maker of Savor Soaps on Etsy has a cute approach to her soaps. It is making me hungry.

This is a pile of cookie dough soap

Just sold out today...ugh! It looks remarkably like chunks of the real stuff that I enjoy unbaked. Mmmmmm.

Spun Sugar Soap.... cute!

I love the color and the look. This is one that is still available for $4.50.

Another nicely textured one: Whipped Cream Fragrance Free.

I know nothing about the soaps and have never tried them. They look like they are M+P, but it's hard to know sometimes. Maybe I'll pick up a bar soon and review it!

Nahia Creations - Chocolate Espresso Soap

Chocolate Espresso Soap by Nahia Creations.

Before the Yummiest Soap Contest, Shelley of Nahia sent me multiple bars of soap to enter into the contest. What a gorgeous surprise! I think out of all the soaps that I have recieved ad reviewed, Shelley's soaps were the most beautifully packaged. The glossy thick box was printed with their woman's face logo and comapny name in a gorgeous font. It was made specifically for the shape of the bar or the soap was made to fit the box...either way the presentation was superb, professional looking and truly memorable. Each soap was stamped with the face and sat nicely in its bed of glossy boxedness.

The first thing I noticed was that the bars of soap were a chunky shape, not the typical soap bar shape. More cube-like in nature. Out of the array of scents that she mailed to me, I immediaatey chose the Chocolate Espresso, for obvious reasons.

The smell was mild and not at all overwhelming or intoxicating. However, I was hoping for a kick in the pants for my morning shower ritual with that name, but this soap delivered a powerful cleaning and bubbling experience and my shower was wonderful. My only issue was the shape of the soap for no other reason than it was hard to hold onto. I loved the way the shape looked and felt, but when I woud rub, slide or manipulate it, it wanted to jump away from me. Could totally be my hands and what I am used to or the shape and my hands not melding in harmony. Who knows?

All in all, Nahia Creations soap is great and everyone should check them out. If not for yourself, you should purchase a soap as a gift, becasue not all soaps are all ready to give without wrapping paper. Shelley's soaps were a real treat and continue to be a daily surprise for me in my shower and at my bathroom sink.

Thank you for your soaps, Shelley. I truly cherish them every day!!

Upcoming Soap Reviews

Nahia Creations

Morgan Street