Sally's GF3 thread

[saysfaa]

There is a world of difference between lye from wood ashes and lye crystals from the store.

Nope. A universe of difference.

Also in tallow (so I assume lard too) that I tried to render and what comes already rendered in the grocery store. I tried making soap once the old (like 70's and 80's) way. It, hm, did not go well. Or result in useable soap.

 

[Sally PB]

I think he didn't want to buy anything. He grew up during the Great Depression, and that left a mark, I'm sure.

I haven't looked for lye at Meijer... I wonder if they still sell it...?

 

[saysfaa]

You should write an article on this!

I could but I would end up plagiarizing Anne L Watson.

I haven't looked for lye at Meijer... I wonder if they still sell it...?

They do. In the drain cleaners section. I don't remember if they also sell lye with other things in it so read the label.

 

[Sally PB]

Anne L Watson.

Did she write a book, or is that online?

The older I get, the more I want how-to and reference material in hard copy.

 

[saysfaa]

I like physical books too, especially for reference things.

She wrote them. "Smart Soapmaking" is the one I read. The library where I used to live had it.

Oh. It looks like it is still in print. Barnes and Noble carries it.

Hm, wow. At that price, I might get a copy too.

 

[cavemanrich]

Man, that soap was awful! It didn't lather, it was very harsh. I was at school when he did it, so I wasn't part of the process.

It worked to get your hands clean.

I think he didn't want to buy anything. He grew up during the Great Depression, and that left a mark, I'm sure.

I haven't looked for lye at Meijer... I wonder if they still sell it...?

I remember some ancient peeps when I was a small child,, made their own soap. We didn't because had no resources to make from.
Purchased the entry level priced IVORY SOAP.

 

[Sally PB]

It worked to get your hands clean.

Well... not really. I recall trying to wash my hands with it, and it didn't lather. At all. My mom eventually threw it out.

I think he did it as an experiment. We had the ingredients, so he thought he'd make soap. We didn't have a book on it, and of course this was before the internet.

 

[Sally PB]

We spent a couple hours this afternoon at hubby's boss's house. He had most of his tractor collection lined up in the yard by the road. It's not a small collection; I think there were about 85-90 Farmall/McCormick tractors in nice neat rows. He and his son buy them at auctions and restore them. The tractors usually live in barns, but for the holiday, they came out to sit in the sun.

It took about 3 days to get them all out, as he only has half a dozen batteries. But they all run.

Hubby took a lot of pictures with his digital camera, and two with his 4x5 in B&W. Too bad we didn't have a nice blue sky with puffy white clouds to go with the red tractors on the 4th of July. It was overcast, but the plus side of that is it didn't get scorching hot.

 

[Sally PB]

These were most of dinner tonight! I also dug a tomato that was getting sunscald on its shoulder. It's ripening on the windowsill. First taters and mater of the season.

 

[Sally PB]

I started digging some of the compost out of the chicken run. It's so deep, I have to duck under the cross support in the frame.

I took 3 half-totes out. I have to be able to lift the tote into the cart, so I can't fill it full. Nearly all of it went around the onions. I'll dig some more (tomorrow, I hope), and it'll go in various places.

I also turned the compost pile. I've been dumping buckets of weeds there the past few weeks, and it was a big pile.

The top was damp, as we had a generous 1/8" or scant 1/4" rain yesterday. Under that, it was dry. Then I got below that layer, and it was nice and damp again. The bottom was wet, heavy, and smelly. It was time to turn it, for sure.

That's the bottom-now-top. In a few days, the every other day turning begins.

I think my working out and doing planks made this much easier.

The snap trap for chipmunks and red squirrels is on the back cinder block wall. It was empty today.