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CP rebatch bases


coconut

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I would love to hear anyone's thoughts on the CP rebatch bases some suppliers are offering. I have been searching local stores for unscented soap with Shea butter in it but none is to be found. I am not a soapmaker but might be able to try my hand at rebatch. If anyone has any thoughts to share, it would be much appreciated. I have been searching the forum and found a few posts; most are two years old. TIA!

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I have not used them but I would assume you rebatch as you would any other soap. It's easy, really!! Depending on the age of the soap, you can just add a little liquid and let it heat up. I normally add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of liquid to start with in one of those big oval crockpots. I think it's a great idea if you don't want to deal with the making the soap part. ? How much are they?? I've never checked. ?

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From what I have found, the cost is about 6.00 a pound, more or less depending upon the ingredients and quantity purchased. The two primary manufacturers appear to be SFIC and Stephenson, sold by different companies. I am hoping Candybee chimes in since she posted on this topic before.

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I've never used them but have a friend who has.  She loves it.  She doesn't want to deal with the lye or calculator so she found these bases I think she said at Brambleberry but I could have that wrong.  The only thing she doesn't like is no control over which oils are used in making the base but is willing to give that up for the ease of use.  She said very easy like M&P.

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Sorry Coconut but I have not personally purchased rebatch bases. But I would not hesitate to try them out if you want to make real cold processed soap. BB's rebatch bases look good to me. To keep costs down I would buy in larger bulk than 1 lb. I would also invest in a dedicated crockpot just for rebatching your soap.

 

Just put the soap shreds in the crockpot with a little bit of liquid. You could do a goat milk or aloe vera juice soap. Lots of variations or just plain distilled water.

 

Rebatched soap can be kind of 'rough' looking but you can still learn how to color and swirl. Also, I have found that adding a bit of goat milk and glycerin at the end of the cook helps make the batter more manageable, smoother, and fluid. Just remember the more liquid you add the longer the soap will take to dry out and get hard and stop shrinking in the mold so less is best.

 

I also like to add a tiny bit of oil at the end. Adding extra oil to the batch is known as 'superfatting' as that oil/butter won't saponify. So use sparingly. No more than 1oz per lb batter.

 

So you could do a 1 lb batch of soap and add 4oz of goat milk in with the soap shreds. Heat it on low for about 30 minutes to an hour-- depends on how well the crockpot heats. If you get liquified batter in 30 minutes you can turn off, if not, continue heating until it liquifies. Kind of like thick, chunky, pudding.

 

Then put in your additives, like 1 oz of shea butter or whatever oil you want to superfat.

 

You can also put in a couple more oz of goat milk and an oz of glycerin. If you have a whisk or stick blender you can use that to turn the batter creamy. Use only enough extra milk or glycerin to make the batter fluid enough to work with. Add in your fragrance, colors, blend, then pour into mold and cover with saran wrap of something to keep the air off it so you don't get 'ash'.

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Thank you, everyone, for your thoughts and encouragement. Candybee, thank you for the tips. A separate crock pot is a good idea. I have so much to learn about soap and I am just starting to explore this fascinating world. Brambleberry seems like a good company. Off to do more reading!

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  • 2 weeks later...

I use the CP rebatch from Brambleberrys because I don't want to mess with making my own soap from scratch - I'm an accident waiting to happen so I stay clear of lye :-)

and I have enough addictions going as it is....candles, lotions, etc, etc

 

As Candybee said, the rebatch soaps do look a little rough but I prefer to call them ''rustic'' looking.  I've never tried to do anything fancy like swirls.  I do make hubby's shave soap with it and found that his razors last much longer that when he uses store bought shave cream - don't have a clue why.

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Update: I went ahead and bought the luxury rebatch from Brambleberry. It seems like very nice soap. It was very easy to melt and put into a mold. I used a stainless steel bowl over a pot of hot water, with a lid on top. Two tablespoons is water was sufficient.  The soap was fresh and took about an hour or so to melt. Pam, I am also an accident waiting to happen and this seems like a nice option for me. It is a bit rustic, but I think a person could melt it and then throw in shreds or chinks of unmelted soap just before molding. Could be interesting.

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The luxury rebatch seemed to have everything I could want. Brambleberry offers a more basic rebatch which might be good for adding more things to. Which one do you use? I have not used the soap yet. I'm waiting until my current bar of soap is used up.

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7 hours ago, Candybee said:

Shoot! I would be washing my hands and showering with any new soap I make. Aren't you impatient to try it out??!!

Ha Ha, yes I am. But right I have three half used bars in the bathroom!, and that doesn't count one I tucked back in the closet so DH wouldn't fuss at me!:P Also I'm not sure how long it needs to "rest". I guess it must be fully cured before they shred it? I am so new to noncommercial soap. Do you think it is ok to use so soon? I am so green about soap. *drunkenposting*

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On 2/23/2017 at 11:05 AM, Candybee said:

Shoot! I would be washing my hands and showering with any new soap I make. Aren't you impatient to try it out??!!

OK, Candybee, I tried out the new soap, the luxury rebatch. It is a very nice soap BUT to my surprise, I don't like it as much as the other soap I bought from Brambleberry at the same time. I also bought their unscented soap loaf with Shea butter. Although the luxury rebatch has more butters in it and leaves the skin feeling very soft and smooth, it leaves me feeling just a touch drier than the loaf. I had no idea this soap thing was so complex! So much more reading to do. I can see how this becomes so addicting.

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They probably shred the soap after its saponified but when its still moist enough to shred easily. That could mean that the soap may not be fully cured. I would check with BB and ask if it needs to 'cure' or at the very least get an idea of how long after its made that they shred it. Sitting in a stock room can also impact how long its been curing. If its not fully cured then that could be why it felt drying. Also, no telling if the other batch had cured longer or less. Unless you know for sure you could be using a soap that is drying if not fully cured.

 

I normally cure my soaps for 6-8 weeks before use. Cured soaps are harder and milder and more moisturizing. They should condition your skin and not dry it out.

 

I would take your test bar and put it in your linen closet for now. Wait at least a month or two and try it again. It should be milder.

Edited by Candybee
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On 2/25/2017 at 5:28 PM, Candybee said:

They probably shred the soap after its saponified but when its still moist enough to shred easily. That could mean that the soap may not be fully cured. I would check with BB and ask if it needs to 'cure' or at the very least get an idea of how long after its made that they shred it. Sitting in a stock room can also impact how long its been curing. If its not fully cured then that could be why it felt drying. Also, no telling if the other batch had cured longer or less. Unless you know for sure you could be using a soap that is drying if not fully cured.

 

I normally cure my soaps for 6-8 weeks before use. Cured soaps are harder and milder and more moisturizing. They should condition your skin and not dry it out.

 

I would take your test bar and put it in your linen closet for now. Wait at least a month or two and try it again. It should be milder.

That is great information, I thought it might not be fully cured but did not know that could make it feel drying.  I have several other bars put aside from the batch so I will leave them and try in a month or two and post back if it seems different.  Thanks for the input!

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  • 2 months later...

Update on this older thread: I have again tested the luxury rebatch in the shower and I just don't like it as well as the unscented shea butter soap loaf I bought from Brambleberry.  Unfortunately they have discontinued this loaf.  The ingredients in that loaf are Coconut, Palm & Palm Kernel oils, Sunflower oil, Shea butter and lye.  The closest shredded base I can find to this is from Voyegeur in Canada, who lists the same ingredients plus Avocado oil. Any thoughts?

http://www.voyageursoapandcandle.com/Shea_Butter_Rebatch_Soap_Base_Grated_p/43720.htm

 

 

Brambleberry's shea base shreds have different ingredients and can only be ordered in a 25lb. quantity which is more than I need! *bubblebath*

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  • 8 months later...

I've been using BB's rebatch soap for years in my hubby's shave soap but am thinking that I could start adding additional oils in the process.  Of course, hubby never complains but I am wondering what I can to to make the soap better.

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15 hours ago, Pam W said:

I've been using BB's rebatch soap for years in my hubby's shave soap but am thinking that I could start adding additional oils in the process.  Of course, hubby never complains but I am wondering what I can to to make the soap better.

 

What are you adding to it now Pam? There are a lot of great ingredients you could add to a shaving soap!

 

I guess because I CP, I think of rebatch soaps as a disaster that needs salvaging, lol. I would much rather use MP, as I think the end result turns out prettier. 😁

But I'm sure the rebatch bases from BB are far nicer than my disasters, lol!!

 

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On 5/20/2017 at 9:05 AM, coconut said:

Update on this older thread: I have again tested the luxury rebatch in the shower and I just don't like it as well as the unscented shea butter soap loaf I bought from Brambleberry.  Unfortunately they have discontinued this loaf.  The ingredients in that loaf are Coconut, Palm & Palm Kernel oils, Sunflower oil, Shea butter and lye.  The closest shredded base I can find to this is from Voyegeur in Canada, who lists the same ingredients plus Avocado oil. Any thoughts?

http://www.voyageursoapandcandle.com/Shea_Butter_Rebatch_Soap_Base_Grated_p/43720.htm

 

 

Brambleberry's shea base shreds have different ingredients and can only be ordered in a 25lb. quantity which is more than I need! *bubblebath*

 

Coconut I find that my CP recipes using sunflower oil makes the nicest skin softening soft. Soooo, you could try the rebatch base again but this time add a bit of sunflower oil as your superfat oil. Again, use sparingly, about 1oz per lb base as too much sunflower oil may cause DOS. Its from the linoleic fatty acid found in sunflower oil that can cause the DOS, but it is also the ingredient that gives great skin softening.

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On 2/15/2018 at 4:02 PM, Candybee said:

 

Coconut I find that my CP recipes using sunflower oil makes the nicest skin softening soft. Soooo, you could try the rebatch base again but this time add a bit of sunflower oil as your superfat oil. Again, use sparingly, about 1oz per lb base as too much sunflower oil may cause DOS. Its from the linoleic fatty acid found in sunflower oil that can cause the DOS, but it is also the ingredient that gives great skin softening.

Thanks, I will have to try that!

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On 2/14/2018 at 10:43 AM, Sarah S said:

 

What are you adding to it now Pam? There are a lot of great ingredients you could add to a shaving soap!

 

I guess because I CP, I think of rebatch soaps as a disaster that needs salvaging, lol. I would much rather use MP, as I think the end result turns out prettier. 😁

But I'm sure the rebatch bases from BB are far nicer than my disasters, lol!!

 

I don't usually add anything to the rebatch other than some FO basically because hubby is happy with it as it is and I've noticed that his razor blades last much longer then when he uses the store bought shave cream.

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2 hours ago, Pam W said:

I don't usually add anything to the rebatch other than some FO basically because hubby is happy with it as it is and I've noticed that his razor blades last much longer then when he uses the store bought shave cream.

 

This would be a great soap to try some of the home made aloe juice in (that was your post,  right?), I'd make sure it was strained really well and use it as the rebatch liquid.

Kaolin clay also makes a great additive to shaving soap, although I have read that some people feel it dulls the razor. I notice it gives my soaps a lovely silky slip, so it may be worth a try!

A bit of honey, like a teaspoon per pound of rebatch added during the cook might be good too, the sugar can encourage a foamy lather, and honey itself is a nice humectant. Too much would be icky though, lol!

Rebatch soap is great to experiment with, because you can melt down small amounts and not have a ton of waste if you don't like the results! 😄

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I've got a lot of aloe vera plants growing in the yard/ containers and am wanting to make some aloe water/juice to use in my lotions and now I inspired to add some to the CP rebatch

I've noticed that when I use the CP rebatch, the soap bars are really soft so I should probably think about letting them cure for a longer time to harden.  Being so impatient is really a draw-back but it all comes down to learning......kwim?

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  • 1 month later...

II've got a lot of aloe vera plants growing in the yard/ containers and am wanting to make some aloe water/juice to use in my lotions and now I inspired to add some to the CP rebatch

I've noticed that when I use the CP rebatch, the soap bars are really soft so I should probably think about letting them cure for a longer time to harden.  Being so impatient is really a draw-back but it all comes down to learning......kwim?

I ordered 5lbs of cp soap from BB that should arrive any day....and I don't really know what I'm going to do with it but whatever it is, it will be fun ...kwim?

Edited by Pam W
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