Teach Soap

I've been trying to find a tutorial on the 3D Apple found here: http://www.moldmarket.com/new.html

I really need to make this soap, has anyone done this and can tell me the ingredients and directions? or can Anne-Marie do a video tutorial on it? I would have a buyer for some if I can make it in the next 30 days. Thanks!

That's made with a MP soap base. It's hard to see the mold, so I'm going to take a presumption. The halves are taped or attached to each other, then the melted soap is poured through a small hole. Let harden, (possibly put in the freezer for a while) then carefully undo the halves. The leaf is just a quickly cut MP piece. Voila!

I would go with a 3D silicone soap mold instead. Much easier. http://www.penguinlovestore.com/

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

Most sellers include instructions on how to use a 3D mold - Brambleberry included instructions with each 3D mold I bought from them. I would call/contact customer service at Mold Market to find out.

If this mold's 2 parts (top and bottom halves of soap/apple) don't attach together with a small opening in the top like this mold then I would make red-colored apple-scented soap, pour into the 2 different halves sticking a popsicle stick in the top one if you want, let them harden then attach the 2 halves together with a thin layer of clear soap (like glue). Remember to spritz each half with alcohol first before attaching together so you get a better cohesion. Then to make the "caramel sauce" soap, melt & mix some brown-colored soap which can be scented with caramel or vanillla fragrance oil and lightly dip/roll the bottom half of your apple soap in it. To make the "peanuts", chop up into small pieces some light brown colored soap and roll the apple soap in it after dipping in the caramel sauce soap, just like you would with a real caramel apple. To make the leaf, you can also make it out of soap like Soapbuddy suggested. You can either buy a small leaf cookie cutter or leaf shaped clay cutters at the craft store, make a thin layer of green soap in a shallow silicone pan and cut out leaves to attach to the top if you want or cut out leaf shapes in the green soap free hand with a knife. HTH!

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Armi

Wouldn't the two halves break apart?

If you don't want/need a popsicle stick in the finished apple, I agree with Irena that a silicone 3-D mold would be a better choice. They tend to be more expensive since the cost of silicone is considerably more than hard plastic. Most silicone molds are made by hand. The hard plastic molds are made by machine. There are many 3-D silicone apple molds around, in all different sizes. Depending on how it will be used, a typical shower/bath bar will be about 4 ounces. A hand soap, between 2 and 3 ounces (or smaller).

By the way, the apple mold you linked to makes an 8 oz soap - that's very big. Seems like you get four "parts" to a sheet, so you can do two apples at once. It doesn't look like it has a pour spout, which means you'll make the two halves separately and "glue" them together with clear soap and then trim. They will hold together, but it's not an ideal solution and fairly labor-intensive. I've never had success using molds like this one. Something always goes wrong.

The best hard plastic 3-D molds are carried by Bramble Berry, but they don't have an apple, last I looked. Here's a link to their instructions

http://www.brambleberry.com/Webpage.aspx?WebpageId=73

I sell a bunch of 3-D rope soaps using the Bramble Berry molds with the spouts. They are great. Careful with fragrance choices -- some will "pit" the plastic, so do a test first with a couple of drops of fragrance on the side/edge of a mold and let it sit for several hours to see if the plastic changes and leaves small bumps/pits in the plastic. I've "killed" five or six hard plastic molds before I realized it was the fragrance creating a chemical reaction.

I've never bought anything from GoPlanetEarth (they carry the Mold Market molds), but here's their tutorial on how to use the molds with a pour spout built in.

http://goplanetearth.com/project_3D_OvalLeaf.html

Whatever you do, have fun and let us know how it turns out

Connie
http://www.etsy.com/shop/SoapRhapsody?s ... d=10056477 (for pictures of the 3-D rope soaps)

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Armi

p.s. The 3D mold I bought that I ended up throwing away was NOT from Brambleberry. If you do buy a mold like the one Brambleberry sells, remember to tap the mold gently several times and spritz with alcohol after pouring your soap in or you'll end up with some open areas and/or bubbles where the soap didn't come into contact with the mold.

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Armi

Great! I will check out brambleberry's for a mold, but they don't have an apple.

EDIT: would you recommend this one? http://www.bonanza.com/listings/Silicon ... 5/42813914

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

That one you picked is small - 2 inches high x 2 inches around. So, look at a ruler to see if that's what you want.
They have several others. The larger the mold dimensions, the more expensive they become. I like this one - it's a little bigger.

http://www.bonanza.com/listings/Silicon ... d/42813901

I've used these molds - they work really well. And, their customer service is outstanding.

Connie
www.soaprhapsody.com

P.S. Here's a pumpkin mold from the same company. The detail is fabulous

Yes, that company has great molds and customer service. I have at least 2 of their molds and the molds are made from a soft pliable silicone that easily releases, arrived with no smell like some other silicone molds do, doesn't absorb fragrance as much as others either. They're easy to clean up too. Check the dimensions of the soap mold you like to see if that's what you like, also take into consideration whether it would be easy to use - if the resulting soap is too big or too small or too heavy to comfortably hold when you use it; if adding a popsicle stick to the apple for a caramel apple like soap will make it too unwieldy or awkward to wash with, etcetera.

That being said, I just want to say - since you are so new to soapmaking, I would be hesitant to start selling soap. Have you looked into liability insurance and getting more experience in soapmaking first? I've been making soap as a hobby for over 6 years for personal use and I occasionally give to friends and family but I still feel uncomfortable thinking of selling soap or other B&B products. If I were you, I would get more experience and do product testing first before selling anything. Soapmaking seems like a great way to earn a quick buck especially in this economy, but I would hate to create a product that could cause anyone injury or illness if not done right. Just my opinion though.

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Armi

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

Yes I would be testing first. The place I'd want to sell it is only a spring and summer thing, would have to get my bid in quick.

But I bought about $75 worth of stuff to get me started. As soon as it arrives I will be making and testing them. I hate to waste my soap.

I have a high amount of knowledge about insurance and the business side of things. So that is helpful to me.

I knew that SoapQueen already did a 3D caramel apple tutorial and finally found it. She made her own mold using Flexy Fast silicone mix.

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Armi