Teach Soap

Hi all, I'm looking for a good basic recipe to try out for my first batch!

I will have:
coconut oil
palm oil
olive oil
castor oil
shea butter
sweet almond butter
cocoa butter
honey
beeswax

I also have sweetgrass FO coming (don't want to use this at first)
Almond & honey FO
french vanilla FO
At home I think I already have: orange, tea tree, peppermint - and some almond scent that came with a lotion kit

walnut shells - I would like to use these

Suggestions? I based my list off the BB Beginners CP kit

Thanks so much, can't wait!

ps - does BB or WSP require signatures? They didn't say if they did whereas FNWL did. If so I have to have fedex hold them for me

BB does not require a signature. As far as your recipe, I'd do a 2# batch with 3-4 oils of your choice. Create your recipe and run it through the soap calculator to determine water and lye amounts.

I agree with Roy. Start small and simple. Once you get your first couple of batches under your belt then you can start playing around. I still consider myself a newbie and I've been soaping for a while.
The soap calculator at MMS really worked well for me as a beginner. When you print the recipe it also gives you basic soaping instructions to help as a reminder while you work...such as adding the lye to the water and not vice versa. I'd use the 7% superfat listed on it and each time the soap would come out very nice. You can find that calculator here . If you don't like using that one then use the soapcalc here . I've not used the calculator at Bramble Berry yet, but it looks simple enough to use. Make sure to take notes!

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Lisa
“What soap is to the body, laughter is to the soul” ~ Yiddish proverb

Ditto the simple part. My first recipe was basically 75% olive, 25% coconut and 5% castor. It's a recipe I still use because it's a great soap with lots of bubbly lather. I superfat at 7%

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

Thanks so much! I only wanted to use 3-4 to begin with. I've been playing with soapcalc and I did remember the 7% comments! Linda, I may just give that a try.

I'll look at thesage too, reminders are always good! I still want to print out a couple of topics from here to keep with me.

I will be locking my cats out of the kitchen but fully expect one of them to be banging on the door. (if I left the door open she'd probably sleep upstairs but as you know, you can't expect to close a door and not have a cat question why). Is there anything I need to worry about WRT FO's? Or for that matter, would you just leave them out for this time?

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

Linda, would that be 20% on the coconut?

Aprilprey, my girl has to know everything before she deems it not worth her while. Lol

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

How long does this soap take to be fully cured? I'd try this recipe because it's "more basic" than mine and I'm still learning

if you were doing a 4 pound batch then how much lemongrass e.o. would you use? i have a very hard time finding a scent that smells after the soap is done

donna

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Lisa
“What soap is to the body, laughter is to the soul” ~ Yiddish proverb

Donna, you can use a small amount of litsea EO to anchor the lemongrass.

iuno, the standard cure time of 4-6 weeks. I tend to go for a a 6-8 week cure if the recipe is more than 50% olive oil because I think it makes a nicer soap if you wait longer to use it.

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!