Soap Making - Formulating a Soap Recipe

When I first started making soap I used a recipe out of The Everything Soapmaking Book: Recipes and Techniques for Creating Colorful and Fragrant Soaps (Everything: Sports and Hobbies) this book has many basic recipes which are good for the Beginner Soap maker.  The recipe I used was as follows
Olive Oil       9oz                                                Lye      2.4oz
Coconut Oil  4oz                                                Water  6oz
Palm Oil        3oz
Castor Oil      1 Tbsp

I made this recipe several times to get comfortable with the soap making process; then I started to formulate my own recipes using SoapCalc the first thing I did was decide what kind of oils and butters I wanted to use.  Choosing your oils and Butters according to the quality they will bring to the soap.  The book I found that has one of the most in-depth overview of soap making oils is The Soapmaker's Companion: A Comprehensive Guide with Recipes, Techniques & Know-How (Natural Body Series - The Natural Way to Enhance Your Life) This book details the Benefits of the oil, the best way to use in soap making and also a recommended percentage to use in your soap recipe.

There are several factors to consider when formulating your soap recipe.

1.  What oils/butters do you have on hand or that you will be able to get your hands on
2.  What are the qualities you wish to have in the final soap

For example Coconut oil is know for giving soap creamy lather, so it is an oil commonly used by soap makers but if used in too high of a percentage it can make your final soap too drying to the skin.

Once you have the oils/butter that you will be using in your soap recipe, plug the oils into the soap calc template and you can either but in the percentage you want to use of the oil (example: Coconut Oil, 30%; Palm Oil 30%; Olive Oil 30%, Castor Oil 10%. 

Then enter the Superfat amount, most people use a minimum of 5% with a maximum of 10%.  What is superfat? To superfat your some is also known as a lye discount, which means you use less lye than is needed to fully saponify all the oils, some some of the oils/butters will remain in its original state and lend more conditioning quality to the soap.  A problem may occur when you have a high superfat with oils that have a short shelf life; without the use of a preservative your soap will have a higher probability of going rancid. So please take that into consideration when formulating your soap recipe.

Finally you can change the Water as % of oil number, this number will discount the water in your recipe and speed up the cure (a little) by having less water in the final soap that needs to evaporate.  Most soap makers use a percentage of 33% to 35%.  

And that's it, hit the "Calculate recipe" button and Viola! You will have your recipe ready to print. 

There is an old school way of formulate a recipe checkout this Blog Post to formulate a soap recipe from scratch. Please leave a comment if you have any other questions. 

Andrea Mack

Helen's Hands Soap

Oatmeal Milk and Honey Hot Process Soap Tutorial

Here is my 2nd YouTube Hot Process soap Tutorial.  This is part one of a two part series, I will be doing more tutorials and video's showcasing my products that are available on my website Helen's Hands Soap
If you would like to see more tutorials or have soap making questions please feel free to email me at andrea.mack@helenshandssoap.com

Part 1 of my Hot Process soap How-to Video.

This is my video detailing how I make Hot-Process soap using a crock-pot.  Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel as I will be posting more video's showcasing my products as well as other how-to videos. 

New website coming along!

I am working on a new website and what an undertaking this is! I am building my inventory and picking what products I would like to make.  A lot of decisions especially for a procrastinator like me. Sometimes I find it very difficult to focus and my mind wonders....often! But I am determined to get this website up and running by Wednesday, April 6, 2011.  I am putting this out there for some accountability and a little bit of pressure. So check out my website...still under construction, so please don't mind the dust and the empty shelves, the grand opening is coming soon! Helen's Hands Soap

Dear Crissy is giving away an HP TouchSmart 310 - I entered and YOU can too!

I found a great giveaway today while surfing and reading some of my favorite blogs.  Dear Crissy is giving away an HP Touchsmart 310. 

The importance of having current technology is very important; especially to us momprenuers! As a writer, entrepreneur and single mother I cannot update my computer equipment as often as I would like and I currently share a computer with my children since their computer broke several months ago.  This computer will help me family immensely and give my aging desktop a well deserved break.  As a blogger and owner of Helen's Hands I use my computer daily, it is a vital part of my daily life and the way I provide for my family. I encourage all my readers to enter, even if I don't win, I would be super psyched if one of my readers did! :)

 Crissy's blog reviews the HP and give a lot of insight and information.  So stop by her blog and enter the contest! Good Luck!

Dear Crissy is giving away an HP TouchSmart 310

Choosing a Soap Mold Video

This is my YT video about choosing a soap mold.  It goes along with the post below.  If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.

Choosing a Soap Mold

When I first started making soap I brought a small 1lb mold.  I could not wait to use it, but unfortunately, I did not line the mold properly and this is how that story ended.

 When choosing a mold you have a multitude of options.One of which is the individual silicone mold.  This is a six cavity mold and makes 5oz bars of soap.  It will take a 1.5lb batch of soap

 This is my newest 1lb mold.  I love it! It is very well-made, one of the walls is hinged for easy removal.  It has a foam liner that makes removal a breeze!   This mold can make 4-4oz bars if you use 1lb of oils or 4-5oz bars if you use 1.5lb of oils.

Here is another 1lb wooden mold. Although extremely well made, I don't care for the dimensions and the way the finished soap bar looks.  Which is just my personal preference.  Also, if you notice the middle pic, one time when I used it the freezer paper I used obviously had a leak somewhere.  Thank God the soap did not stick to the mold. But it is permanently stained, still usable but stained.  I am thinking about giving this mold away.  Stay tuned.

                                                                                                                                      

 You can use good old fashioned cardboard boxes, lined with a plastic bag or freezer paper.  But this box would hold a 3-4lb batch, possibly 5lb.  Keep that in mind when choosing a cardboard box.

You can also use a gladware or other plastic container.  You can line with plastic wrap or you may  have to put the soap in the freezer for 30 minutes to make the soap easier to release.

This  is a wooden tray soap mold.  Notice the notches in the sides, the mold came with the knife that you can cut while still in the mold. I have used this mold several times and I like it.

 Lastly, here is a wooden log mold, this is lined with freezer paper and ready to make soap.  The soap from this mold will need to be cut by hand or with a soap cutter.




What things should you consider when choosing a mold?

1. What kind of soap are you making?  It wouldn't be a good idea to put a plastic container in the over for CPOP, silicone or lined wooden molds hold up best in the oven.
2. How much soap are you making?  Are you making soap just for family and friends.  Then one or two molds would probably suffice, but if you intend of making soap to sell, then having multiple molds will give you more flexibility and options, as you won't have to wait for soap to be removed from the mold before making another batch of soap.
3. What size do you want your finished bars to be?  Some people prefer a small, thick bar, while some people prefer a larger, thinner bar.  This is truly a personal preference and I advise that you try different molds and see what you like best.

Choosing a mold is one of the most important decisions you make as a soap maker, it is second only to the ingredients in directly effecting the outcome of your soap.  So try a few and see what is the best choice for you.