itsmejeffd

Me drink? Surely you jest! (sorry, I almost fell over typing that!) You gals know I am as willing as the next person to crack open anything that will make me forget how much my feet and back hurt right now...but there simply was no freaking way in hell I could get it done. As it is, I was up till 3am trying to finish up the two wholesale orders I got on Monday and I was up at 5am. The hours just were not there. But he got candles (not the ones he wanted) and I got money. Whoo hoo!

You know, as my good friend on the board Jeff reminded me when I was bitching and moaning about getting crap done in time (Hi Jeff! ), at least I have something to bitch and moan about. There are worst problems to have, eh? The best...I deliver my big ass orders tomorrow, get the checks, deposit them and then hubby and I are shopping. Sadly we have done NOTHING in the lines of Christmas shopping!!! In preparation of facing the butt munches on the roads, in the parking lots and in the stores, I am taking my xanex and a flask with me. Ho ho ho....

Glad I could help?!? Next time, if you need more help, I'd be glad to sell him some of my candles.

I also make a no-liner mold out of the same HDPE material as Kelsei and Soap Hutch. I can make it to whatever size you want. Soapmaker man on this forum also makes high quality molds out of wood.

Lye (sodium hydroxide), alone, is never safe for your skin. Too much lye used in a soap recipe will burn your skin. That's why it's always recommended to run your recipe through a soap calculator. When a lye solution (NaOH + H2O) is mixed with oil(s), the mixture saponifies to make soap. This means that the lye has reacted with the oil and becomes inert. If too much lye solution is used, there will not be enough oils to saponify and the mixture will be "lye heavy" meaning that there is left-over lye in the mixture. This left-over lye will typically cause skin irritations. If not enough lye is used, the recipe is said to have a superfat percentage. This is generally harmless and, usually, good for the skin. But, if a superfat recipe is used on very oily skin, it can cause pore blockage, irritation and sometimes infection.

Your ratio is going to depend on your recipe. Personally, I use a 33% solution (2 parts H2O : 1 part NaOH). I store it in an empty 1 gallon plastic water jug.

My question is: Why aren't you sharing what you're obviously smoking. I want some too!

Wish my wife would get into it as much as you ladies.

I've had very good luck with CD wicks at up to 9% FO.

Very nice! What type of trays will you use and where will you get them? I'm sure you can fill it with your soaps in no time but we expect to see pictures to ensure that you are worthy of such a nice set up!

Fire;)

http://www.lonestarrs.com/index.cfm?type=service&id=26&ln=f&area=Shopping&action=GetProduct&productid=2490

Oh my! What a hot, firm rack you have going on there~ Jeff.

Not quite as nice as your avatar's rack.

Just got this yesterday. It will comfortably hold 1440 bars of soap. I could probably squeeze over 1500 bars on it.

http://www.lonestarrs.com/index.cfm?type=service&id=26&ln=f&area=Shopping&action=GetProduct&productid=3582

I don't know what it equals in I.U.'s but I use 1/10 oz of T-70 Tocopherol per lb of oils. You have to use more than that if you're using T-50.

I've left soap in a mold for that long and more without a problem. I don't see how it could ruin the soap.

Hope everything is ok.

There are a couple people on this board who make soap molds. I make an HDPE mold cutomized to your requirements. Soapmaker Man makes some out of wood that have gotten some very good reviews. He also makes a cutter and beveler.

The boiling temp. of water can vary depending on your altitude and barometric pressure. Water boils at 212*F or 100*C at sea level with a barometric pressure of 29.92 in of mercury. The higher your elevation and lower your barometric pressure, the lower the boiling point of water and vice-versa. Try putting water in a pressure cooker with a thermometer and see how hot the water gets.

Here's a good calculator to get an estimate of your corrected boiling temp. http://www.csgnetwork.com/prescorh2oboilcalc.html

It doesn't take into consideration your elevation but barometric pressure is more important because the higher your altitude, typically, the lower your barometric pressure is. You can easily find your barometric pressure by going to your local news web site's weather section. Barometric pressure is more important because it all has to do with vapor pressure. Think of the air above you as a weight pressing down. The more the air weighs, the harder it is for the water vapor to release and that builds up the temp.

Just handing them to the parents but still giving the kids a treat in their bag isn't bad.

My problem is when people (and this started happening last year) put their free samples, post cards and invitations directly into my son's bag. Last thing I want for my son when he gets home and dumps out his bag is for it to be filled with these things. How disappointing would that be for any child? Halloween and other holidays (especially Christmas) have become too commercialized already. I get solicitations in the mail and email every day. I get phone solicitations less frequently now that my number is on the national do not call list but even one is still too many. If one person did it last year then 5 people will do it this year and 10 the next. Where will it stop?

That's why I make my own molds. I give them an extremely fine finish and the soap comes out very easily. I would recommend using some kind of mold release agent like Pam cooking spray or mineral oil to line the mold next time.

Hi Jeff,

How do we order molds from you?

Christy

Hi Christy,

You can send me a PM or an email @ jeff@loganbearcandles.com

Paraffin wax does not require a cure time at all.

WHAT?!? You've got to be kidding. All candles require a curing time to smell their best. Though some may be shorter than others.

4627 has a great hot and cold throw after about a week of curing. Granted, not all FO's work well with all waxes but it's seldom that I have a problem at 6% to 9%. Oh, and try adding your FO at 190*.

Hi Jeff,

I know I have spoken to you before about your mold.

I have a few questions, probably should have PMed you but maybe someone else will benefit from them.

1) It is obviously a 6# mold, so can it be divided into 3 - 2# molds?

2) What size bars does it make (width, height)

3) Can you make it without the cutter feature, really don't need that

4) What would the price of it be without the cutter

Lastly

5)How big are the bars, how many and how much are your slab molds?

Thanks, hope I didn't offend anyone asking so many questions.

Didn't think I was hijacking the thread but maybe I did?? Just a little?

Ok, let's see.

1) This one is a 6 lb mold but I only supply 1 divider so you can only divide it into 2. If you want another divider and divider clamp, we could talk.

2) Standard width is 3.5" but I can make it to whatever you want. The height depends on how much soap you put into it. I make a standard size mold to give you 3" of height but I could make it deeper if you wanted.

3) The adjustable divider, adjustable cutting guide (I do not supply the cutting blade) and lid are all separate options.

4) The price of a mold varies depending on the size. A 3 lb mold with no options is $55 and a 6 lb mold with no options is $70 with other sizes and prices in between. The options cost $5 each for the lid and cutting guide and the divider with divider clamp is $10.

5) Comparable size slab molds will give you the same number and size bars as a log mold. I can also space the dividers to whatever dimensions you want. The slab molds are $10 more because they use more material and are a bit more time consuming. The only options available on the slab molds are the dividers to make individual bars for $10 and a lid for $10. Again, the difference in price for the options is because of how much material is used.

Hi guys,

I make my molds from HDPE so you don't have to use a liner. I can custom make them to any size you want. Most of the molds I've been making for people on this board so far have been log molds. Devil Woman and Texas Brat have some of my 18 bar slab molds. I don't have a picture of my slab mold yet but I plan to do that this weekend. Here are some pics of one of my latest log molds.

The first one shows the divider set in the middle so you can make 2 separate batches at once. The divider can be set anywhere in the mold so you can make two 3 lb batches or a 2 lb and 4 lb or whatever you want.

The second one shows the divider all the way to one side to make one 6 lb batch. You can also see the adjustable cutting guide option. You can adjust the guide to whatever dimension you want to give you equal size bars every time. The pieces in the background are the divider clamp and 1", 2" & 3" spacers for quickly adjusting the cutting guide. The spacers are 1/2" thick so you can stand one up on end to adjust it in 1/2" increments.

The last picture shows a log of soap set up in the cutting guide and how it works.

Also, Mslegacy posted some pics of a mold I made for her with a new batch of soap in it here.

I see the bars of soap screaming at eachother. That one cracked me up.

Hope it wasn't my mold you had a problem getting the soap out of.

If you ever go to a psychiatrist to have a Rorschach inkblot test done, I want to be there.

Either that or I want some of what you're smoking.

Thanks to Tammy, the prices have now doubled. If anyone has an issue with that, you know who to thank. JK. Thank you for the kind words, Tammy.