Teach Soap

Hi, brand new to soaping, I dabble in aromatherapy, make lots of things with herbs and EO and wanted to try my hand at soping.
I bought a MP base, and a mold tray, (which turned out to be a candy mold by wilton) a couple of fragrance oils and proceeded to make the soap.

Are molds only to be used once? I had to practically tear it apart to get the soap out, and the mini muffin pan I used as well, I had to dig out the soap. also the mold did not leave a nice edge.

I also feel it is a bit sticky, is that normal? the base was Glycerine and Olive oil, I had no colorant, so it came out practically clear.

Is there a MP base that is all natural? or should I try CP?
any help would be greatly appreciated.

I only want to make some guest soaps, cute and great smelling.

I would say it depends where you bought the MP base and mold from.
Candy molds don't do well with higher temps like MP.
If your soap gets stuck in a mold, you can leave it in the freezer for about 10 minutes. It should pop right out.
For CP you really need to wait 6 weeks for the soap to cure. With MP, you can use it as soon as it cools off.

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

Thanks, soap buddy, but 1 question is still unanswered, should it be tacky, (sticky) and the base and mold came from a soapmaking supplier that has been mentioned on this thread.

also since I wish to go natural, what is my best way to color my soaps naturally?
I'm assuming saffron for the yellow, maybe food coloring?

Molds definitely can and should be used more than once. If it's a candy mold, it may break after 15 or so uses but if it's a regular soap mold, with tender loving care, you will literally get hundreds of uses out of it.

The soap is sticky and tacky when it first comes out of the molds. This is because of high glycerin content in melt and pour soap. You'll notice that tackiness going away after as little as one hour. Was it a Bramble Berry base? If so, which one? Various bases act differently in molds and at pop out. If the soap was difficult to pop out, you could do the fridge/freezer thing but you'll also want to examine how long the soap is in the mold to start with. I usually let my soap sit in the mold for 4 hours before trying to gently break the air lock by prying the molds away from the sides of the soap gently.

Yellow food coloring, while lovely in soap, is not all natural. You might consider a yellow oxide like the liquid yellow oxide here: http://www.brambleberry.com/micas.aspx#liquid Or you could use Saffron or Annatto Seed that has been infused in oil for an all natural yellow.

Once you get the general feel of how melt and pour works, you're going to love it. It's completely addicting! =)

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Happy Soaping!

Anne-Marie
blog: www.soap-queen.blogspot.com
supplies: www.brambleberry.com

Thank you Ann Marie, the base was from Wholesale supply, glycerin and olive oil,
it has been 48 hrs. and while you may not call it tacky, its not solid and hard like it should be, if I touch it it gets fingerprints and I have to wash my hands, I have soap residue on them.
Thanks for the Annato tip, got one for purple or lavender?
ps. I think I've caught the bug already.

what does phthalate free mean?