Modern Soapmaking Process
Yesterday I wrote about the old-fashioned methods for making soap. It was a rather lengthy and somewhat vague process that produced inconsistent results. Here are the modern soapmaking steps I use to produce cold process soap:
1. Use computer software to determine recipe.
2. Measure ingredients with digital scale.
3. Combine lye with cold liquid.
Melted Oils in Pot
5. Add lye solution to fats and oils. Mix with electric stick blender until emulsified (about one to two minutes)
Adding oatmeal to the soap pot
Soap in the mold
8. Slice into bars and allow to “cure” (water evaporates) up to four weeks.
Easy peasy, lemon squeezy, as my five-year-old daughter would say. Except that I still get inconsistent results at times… depending on the fragrance or the amount of liquid used or the temperature of the oils or lye solution. Sometimes the same batch of soap you made perfectly fine in the winter comes out all wrong when you try to make it in the summer. It’s weird, but fortunately pretty rare, which is why I am truly addicted to making soap.
March 2nd, 2009 at 9:31 pm
[...] Original post by Amy Warden [...]
March 3rd, 2009 at 10:52 am
Wow, I had no idea making soap could be that easy!!! Where can you find soap molds? Like at any bed and bath store?
I’m hosting a giveaway on my blog…I’d love it if you’d come check it out!
March 3rd, 2009 at 11:03 am
Actually, if you wanted to make melt and pour soap, they have kits at the craft stores like Michael’s, Hobby Lobby, or whatever you have in your area. I use molds that my hubby made. The hardest part about making soap from scratch is actually getting lye. When I first got started, you could buy it at the grocery store. Not anymore!
August 2nd, 2009 at 7:19 pm
Hi Amy,
I have now made 2 batches of soap with the cold process method. They both turned out fine consistency wise. The problem I have is that I put in the fragrance oils by the amount the recipe called for and you can hardly smell it! Also, I purchased color that says for soap and it didn’t do a thing. So the next batch I did put paprika in and that colored well. I just wondered if you can write about how to determine the proper measurements for fragrance oils and also for the amounts of herbs to add. Thanks so much!!
Laurie
August 2nd, 2009 at 9:31 pm
Laurie – Congratulations on your successful soaps! Finding the right amount of fragrance can depend on the supplier. When using a high quality fragrance that is made for cold-processed soap, I generally use 0.7 oz. per pound of soap. Most essential oils are stronger and you can use less – more in the 0.5 oz. per pound range. Soapcalc is good for figuring out your recipe.
Additives such as dried peppermint leaves, I generally use 1 tbsp. in an almost 8 pound batch of Stress Relief soap. Check out this information table from Muller’s Lane Farm for natural soap colorants: http://www.mullerslanefarm.com/soapcolors.html
April 12th, 2011 at 11:52 am
I want to start making block soaps. Can anyone suggest a good molds? How are breakaway molds?
April 12th, 2011 at 12:14 pm
@Roselle – I could use a little bit of clarification on your question. 1. What do you mean by “block” soaps? Are you referring to bar soap? 2. What type of mold are you looking for? I’m not sure what you mean by “breakaway” molds.
April 14th, 2011 at 10:36 pm
I make CP soaps and I find I get variances all year round too. I had a feeling it had something to do with humidity, if anything will go wrong it tends to happen during the warmer months. I’m addicted to soap making too
April 15th, 2011 at 6:32 am
@Jodie – Oh, it’s such a fabulous past-time, isn’t it? I wish I could pinpoint exactly what causes the trouble, but I suppose there are too many variables. Fortunately, those strange batches don’t happen very often! Best wishes to you!
May 23rd, 2011 at 4:37 am
These are very precise and very easy-to-follow steps on how to make beautiful soaps. I’m sure this post will help a lot of soap enthusiasts out there. Thank you very much for sharing!