Soap Makers Help!

[RockyToggRanch]

chocolate donut soap? That'll teach my sugar cookie soap to cure dark!

 

[Sooner]

Rocky is that the loofah ???

 

[RockyToggRanch]

Quote:
Nope...didn't do that yet..I was wanting to make the loofah a tomato soap, but have been reading that tomato is drying, so I'm rethinking it. Maybe a citrus?

This was my sugar cookie soap that cured so dark it no longer resembles a sugar cookie. It smells like a donut too.

 

[RockyToggRanch]

I have 3 potential wholesale accts. How do you all figure your whole sale pricing? What are your minimums to get the special pricing?
I didn't expect this much interest right out of the gate. I'm not as prepared as I thought.

 

[Morgaine]

I have a 25 bar minimum on all wholesale accounts. They don't have to order every month, but they have to meet the minimum to get the wholesale price. I personally do not have minimums on the number of scents they pick, unless I am making custom labels, then it has to be lots of 5 (because of my labels). If you are going to do wholesale, you need to sit down and think about what your terms and conditions are.

I wholesale my bars at $3 each. The stores sell them anywhere from $5-7 each. What you can wholesale at will depend on how much you have going into each bar. I have price breaks as well. If they order over 100 bars the wholesale price drops to $2.75/bar. I also provide free samples for them to pass out to customers.

Here are some questions you need to answer (for you, not for me)

Are you going to have an order minimum? Is it going to be a dollar amount or bar amount?
What will that minimum be?
Will you have monthly or quarterly or yearly minimums?
Who will provide the display? If you provide the display, who will pay for it and own it?
Will those stores be the only one to sell your soaps?
Will you do custom soaps?
How will you work out payment? At time of delivery? Net 30?
Are shipping the soap or delivering it? Will there be a delivery fee?
What if they don't want to carry your soap any more, will you take the bars back?
Will you trade out stock that has become shop worn? Who pays for that?
Will you exchange scents that are not moving for ones that do, or what they buy is what they keep?

That is all I have right now off the top of my head. I know that there is a lot more to consider but my mind is blank right now because of the cold.

 

[Broke Down Ranch]

I am FINALLY getting around to making some soap. It took FOREVER to get the lye (there really is NONE available locally) now it has just been a matter of timing. Kids are back in school so I guess timing won't ever get better...LOL!

I have come across some amazing sounding recipes but before I try them I have a few questions. I know these questions may have been asked somewhere in this thread but it may take me another year to get to making my soap if I have to read thru this whole thing.....lol!

I plan on using goat milk as the liquid and I have made soap with a friend before (she was the teacher) so I understand about how easily the milk can burn. My first question is can I sub the water a recipe calls for with milk? Would the ratio be the same? And I have read about using fats and superfats - what is the difference? I froze my milk in ice trays then bagged it up - what is the difference between using slushy milk or frozen milk?

OK, I think that's enough for now...crossing my fingers I get to make some soap in the next few days.

 

[Morgaine]

Yes, you should be able to just swap gm for water and yes it will be for the same amount. If you are getting the recipe online though, I would run it through soapcalc.net just to make sure it all adds up right.

I do not use frozen milk, I found that way too hard. I put the whole pitcher of milk into the freezer and then take it out when it start to freeze on the edges. Then I place it in a water bath with a ton of ice cubes and then very very slowly (we are talking only a spoonful at a time) add the lye. It's really important to go slow and do only a little at a time. And make sure that your water bath is as high as your liquid.

You can also do equal amounts water and lye, mix, and then right before you add to your oils, add the rest of your liquid as gm and then quickly mix before it heats up.

The fats are the oils you are using. Superfatting is where you add a % (usually 5-8%) of extra oils that what is needed for full saponifaction. This is important, unless you are making a laundry soap, because it makes for a much more mild soap that will not be lye heavy.

 

[RockyToggRanch]

Cinnamon balsam is in the molds....got done quickly so decided to attempt bath bombs..lol. That was interesting. I used a pill bottle and the top to my hair mousse can. I tried a cookie cutter...forget it. Also tried a teaball...nope. So, I'll be looking for bomb molds now.

 

[Morgaine]

I got mine from Bitter Creek.

 

[RockyToggRanch]

Quote:
I'll have to check them out..thanks.