New hobby - making soap!
 

Hi all

I have spent the last week, reading, watching videos and talking to friends about making my own hand soap. I have not been able to buy a soap that I am totally happy with. Tomorrow is the day I get started. I am going to keep it very basic at first. I know about lye - I will wear 'protection' and be very careful... I have found the website SoapCalc and plan on using it!

Anybody out there making soap? Any advice?

Thanks.
Trish

Are you ready for another addictive hobby??? I have such a stockpile that I had to stop making more. One thing that I learned was to never soap when I was tired, sick or distracted and do not rush. It helps to prevent a disaster.

Take a deep breath, exhale slowly and enjoy the process. Good luck!

A friend of mine has started making soap. I have no idea the ingredients she uses but I'm sure it all natural stuff and she is using oils in hers for the smell. She is really enthused..............I don't know when she is going to find time to quilt. She is past 70 but that woman goes like the pink bunny on tv commercials.

Hello. I'm a new quilter (brand new to this forum) but long-time soapmaker. I started making it because I'm vegetarian and allergic to synthetic fragrances. I couldn't find soaps that didn't have animal ingredients or synthetic fragrances or that didn't dry my skin out or give me rashes. After developing my own formula that works for me, my skin has never felt better. I have an official soap business and sell it on-line, farmers' markets and craft shows.

Have fun, take good notes for each batch, and prepare to become addicted to dreaming up new formulas, scent blends, color combinations, etc. It really is addictive.

My daughter-in-law makes soap and sells it at flea markets. She's a "natural" gal and so are he soaps. She does make a few "flavors" that smell like market ones. My experience was need way back in the day.

We have the lye and the oils at about 100 degrees. They do need to be about the same before you put the two together. Have fun. We make it every year for Christmas gifts. Everyone looks forward to the soap and to see what fragrance or essential oils we put in it. Have fun!!

First batch in the molds! Only disaster was that i spilled the small container that I had the essential oil in. Bye bye lavender (and bye bye $$$). Otherwise it went well and I look forward to cutting it into bars tomorrow morning! Thanks for all your advice and comments.

My DD makes peppermint soap that I just love. So refreshing.

I took a class on it a few years back and loved it. I only made a couple of batches though. It is a really useful skill to know. I just didn’t stick with it, moved on. Have fun!

My Mom use to make her own laundry soap. She'd grate it up into a bucket and then use a scoop to add to the washer.

One day she had a small bucket of soap shavings sitting on the chair in the kitchen, and one of her SIL's walk in and said "wow - look at all those slivered almonds!" yup - he took a hand full and popped them in his mouth. Good thing he was right next to the sink.