Soap Makers Help!

[Morgaine]

It is the Smart Soapmaking by Ann Watson.

 

[MSDeb]

Can someone pm me advice and recommendations about selling soap?

I just talked to someone at city hall about getting a business license. All the steps involved in getting registered with the feds, state, and city plus licensing fees, surety bonds, and insurance sounds cost prohibitive.

Help!

 

[ChicksterJo]

Quote:
CJ, glad you mentioned that because I am going to do a lavender soap soon, using BB FO though, but I'll be watching for a fast trace!

PS--What is "Watson's" book?

Oh I should have mentioned that I think it traced fast because of the oils in the recipe not the fragrance oil. I have been doing mostly Watson's basic veggie soap recipe from her book and it has always traced pretty fast for me, like within 3 minutes. So I had to stir and pulse for 10 secs, stir again, etc. I added the FO at the very end and that did not accelerate it or anything. I was afraid of 'soap on a stick.'

 

[Morgaine]

try to lower your temps of your oils and lye before mixing. That should help it slow down trace,

 

[ChicksterJo]

I will keep that in mind. Let me write it down. I think the oils were around 94 and the lye was around 102 this time.

 

[Morgaine]

Hmm, that is pretty cool then. What oils were you using? I am not familar with the recipes in there.

 

[ChicksterJo]

Her recipe uses 21 oz. olive oil and 9 oz. coconut oil with a water discount, I think of 20%

 

[Morgaine]

Those two oils usually take forever to trace. Can you tell me what your lye and water amounts were?

 

[ChicksterJo]

9.0 oz. water and 4 oz. lye. I ran the recipe through soapcalc before I tried it and I posted on here that it said to put ~11 oz. water (I don't recall) but someone replied that she had taken a water discount. So I went with what was written in the book.

I tested the ph of that first batch which has been cured for 2 weeks and it is around 8.5 or 9.

 

[Morgaine]

Ok that is not that much of a discount. Have you made this recipe before and it was well behaved? Have you used the same container of oils on other batches that have turned out ok?