Teach Soap

OMG! I did 2 batches of cp, one yesterday and one today. Along with the liquid soap debacle yesterday, I decided to make a batch of cp that I have done several times, I mean a tried and true recipe. I wanted to make another batch of my 4 color swirl. Everything was the same except the temp inside the house (probably 4 degrees warmer than last time) and the brand of lye. I had one heck of a time with it. I got it to trace, added fo, split into 4, added color, BOOM! Pudding. I don't know how I managed to get it swirled but I did. It turned out pretty. I am happy with it. Then today, new batch, new recipe, new fo (I know, I know, too many "news" goin' on there, but hey, I'm experienced right??). I planned on a 2 color pretty something but didn't have a real plan for the colors just knew what I wanted. I started out soaping cooler (almost room temp, oils were 85 and lye was 89). Everything seemed to be going swimmingly and after seperating into my 2 pitchers and adding colors, pudding and then 5 minutes later, spackle. I glopped it together, and jammed it into the molds. It is currently sitting in a warm oven, forcing gel. I scented it with Lavender and Herb FO from BB. I didn't read anything that said it accelerates trace. I am wondering if this is because of the brand of lye. Is that even possible? I just don't know what is going on. I have never used this brand of lye before but have read good things about it so I decided to try it. Now I am rethinking that decision. My husband thinks I am going crazy talking about soap gremlins and the lye being weird and getting upset over a batch not working right. He just doesn't get it!! LOL. I think he does actually, he's pretty good about stuff like that. Well, I just had to vent. I guess I need to pour myself a glass of wine and the gremlins a glass and sit back and relax for a bit. And then see how these bars are going to turn out.

_________________
Haven

Which brand of lye was it? 4 degrees should not make a difference.

_________________
Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

Sounds like something wonky is happening with that lye!

_________________
~~Heather~~
Mad [soaping] Scientist

I got the lye from essential depot. I have never used it before.

_________________
Haven

Can you get a small can of lye locally and try your recipe again?

_________________
Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

Sorry to hear about the soap gremlins! A glass of wine will help. I've found beer or margaritas work in pinch. Hope your batch turns out ok. I've never used ED lye but have heard good things about it. Lye being a dud I can see (for instance when moisture has gotten into it and it's clumped), but I haven't heard of it accelerating trace before. Weird! Let us know how your next batch turns out and what lye you used.

_________________
Linda

I learn so much when I can't leave well enough alone!

I don't know what kind of lye would be available at Home Depot or Lowes. My closest Ace is about 20 miles away and I would get lost. I looked online at both of those and the only lye sold was liquid. I may just go up there and see as they are only 5 minutes away and across the street from each other. The batch I made yesterday seems to be ok. I pulled it out this morning and it did go through full gell. Smells great but doesn't look very pretty and is full of air pockets because it wouldn't even bang down into the mold. I zapped tested it and it didn't zap so I assume it's not lye heavy. I will give it a full 6 weeks cure and see what happens. It was just so frustrating having 2 batches in a row do that to me. I had plenty of wine on hand was the good news.

_________________
Haven

Did you use the fragrance before?

_________________
Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

My last dozen bottles of food grade lye from ED have been horrible! Contaminated with dead bugs and all clumpy! I binned an entire 2lb bottle because it had so many dead bugs. I complained and they replaced 1 bottle. It had been 'too long' since I purchased them and they said the bottles became contaminated here. In my nice clean, bug free, workshop! They were full of bugs when they came out of the box!

The clumpy bad lye makes thick trace soap quickly no matter what you do to it. Maybe yours was from the same batch as mine?

_________________
~~Heather~~
Mad [soaping] Scientist

It's possible but the lye doesn't seem clumpy. The first fo I had used before with no problems, Summer Melon Spritzer. I was able to do the prettiest swirls I have ever done with it. The second fo, I hadn't used it but there was no mention on BB's website about it accelerating trace. It is possible though, it's Lavender and Herb. I can handle thick trace but not spackle. I literally could have put up walls with this stuff. It was ridiculous. I just don't see how it's possible though that it would be the fo 2 days in a row and especially since I had used one of them before with no issues. It's gotta be the lye. I will have to do some searching locally and see what I can come up with and try it. The potassium hydroxide I used on Tuesday was from them also but what are the chances both the sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide are bad? Craziness....

_________________
Haven

I've always had good experiences with Essential Depot. I like that they bag the bottles in plastic to ship and I leave them that way until I use them, since keeping air out will keep it good longer.

I will say I took the plastic bags off but I just got this order in about 3 weeks ago. I don't think that is enough time for it to go bad. It is not humid here. I am not going to give up though. I think I will try a small batch today or tomorrow and see what happens.

_________________
Haven

It looks like the gremlins took a break and then came to my house on Sunday. I used the same recipe and fragrance from Saturday. All that was different were some of the colors. I don't know what happened but I ended up having to glop and plop the soap into the mold. It looked... okay but just very frustrating!!

_________________
**ERIN**

**I've taken up photography because it's the only hobby I can shoot people and cut their heads off without going to jail**

Well that sucks because we are in the same town. I guess they just skipped a couple of neighborhoods.

_________________
Haven

I guess they decided they were done messing with me. Thankfully. I was able to do a beautiful 2 color swirl today no problems. I soaped at about 90 degrees, added FO (Spellbound Woods smells divine!!) to the cooled off oils, hand stirred with a whisk for about 5 minutes, stick blended for 5 seconds, light trace. Colored the whole batch and it was still nice and fluid, poured half of it in my 3D Triquatra molds and some into my cube molds, was able to grab the black oxide to darken the rest and poured it in the molds no problem. I am so happy! I still don't know what went wonky with the other batches and I guess I never will. Maybe I just had to try a new technique to make it work. Or maybe the glass of wine scared them off.....

_________________
Haven