Lifelace

See that's what I was wondering too, does the 3lbs of soap mean just the oils or the water and lye too? Melany

Those are sooo pretty!! Are these little candy cups or muffin cups? Trying to figure out how big these are. I want some!! Awesome job! Melany

Hi guys. I have yet to make my first batch of CP soap but I'm slowly getting everything prepared! I do have a question which hopefully isn't a stupid one! Say I have a soap recipe or even want to make my own using SoapCalc how do I know how much it makes or rather, that it will fit nicely in my mold? For example I have a 3n1 mold from Mr. Doright that says makes a full 3lbs of soap now how do I figure out if a recipe will fit in there? Man I feel dumb asking this! LOL The recipes I've seen don't say "Makes X-pounds of Soap" so if I have a recipe do I add up all the oils AND lye AND water and that will give me the pounds it makes? Then how do I know this will fit in a certain mold? How can I measure how much POUNDS a mold will hold? Help!! I'm confused! LOL Any help would be appreciated!

Hi there! I couldn't resist replying to this although I don't think I'm going to be very helpful! I know we all have different noses but I gotta say I have bought about 300 samplers of FOs so far and Scent Works' Lait Sucre was so yucky and <<offensive>> to me I threw it out! I haven't purchased any Matin Calin FOs but have bought some bath and body goodies in that scent and it was a wonderful light creamy scent. Scent Work's Lait Sucre though is just nothing like I thought it would be. It's so hard to describe, I got no sweetness from it at all, no cream, no milk just very strong <<something>> LOL that contaminates everything else. I kid you not, I placed a few drops of Lait Sucre in an ounce of apple cinnamon (don't ask, I was trying something LOL) and the Lait Sucre is all I could smell and I had to throw that out too. It's just a very THICK scent that makes me gag....Don't let me stop you from ordering though, just try a very small amount! If the Matin Calin goodies I tried is what you are looking for then Lait Sucre is nothing like that.

I second the Pumpkin Crunch Cake from NG! I'm not much of a foodie person and I LOVE this one! Melany

Hi there, as for the Vitamin E you can really use any kind. I use the Vitamin E Capsules which are 400 UI each (just place a small slit with a knife and seeze) or you can use Vitamin E Oil that can be found in grocery stores or Walmart for example, here they are always in the <<natural products>> section. Those say something like 30,000 UI on the bottle but that's the entire bottle, they are usually something like 5 drops for 100 UI. Or you can buy some from the soap supply places online (choices of synthetic or natural). They all work! HTH. EDITED TO ADD: Vitamin E is Tocopheryl Acetate or Tocopherol Melany

Hi girls! I know you'll all understand my excitement! This is in response to my other thread about Sodium Hydroxide. I tried to find a way to edit my other post but couldn't so I figured I would start a new one. This might help other girls in Canada who are looking for Lye locally! So PLEASE tell me I lucked out and found the good stuff. I don't have my digi cam here, lent it to my mom on vacation but I can describe the can. I found it in the drain stuff section at Rona a hardware store here, they JUST opened so it never occured to me to look there, plus I thought only Home Hardware carried lye for some reason. It's a white plactic can (with a black, yellow, green and red label) that says Super Drain (Company is Albert made for Inovx Servipro Inc) It says Granular and <<Contains: Sodium Hydroxide>> with no other ingredients listed! There were other drain things there that contained Sodium Hydroxide and other things too but this one only says on the back that the contents are Sodium Hydroxide. It was 4.95CAD for 1KG Much better than the 4.75CAD a pound plus shipping and HAZMAT fee I was gonna order! Yay!! Please tell me I did good?! I really want to try CP soap and see how I like it, this way I can try but not much expense. I also bought a pair of Neoprene coated rubber gloves and will buy goggles with splash guard, face mask and apron....I already have a 3lbs mold from Mr. Doright and am pretty sure I can find oils here to use, saw some pure coconut oil in a big jar that looks like white butter so I think I can use that right? Ok sorry for the ramblings! I have lots of books to read and wanna be sure I'm well prepared but I think I'm well on my way to making my first CP batch!! So this lye is good right?? Melany

Hi guys, I've been using the clean plastic jars with the silver lids from Scent Works but they are closed for a couple of weeks and I'm all out. Who else carries them? Would love any help! Melany

Hi guys, I was wondering if you all had some favorite butters you like to use in recipes? I've only tried Shea, Mango and Cocoa and I gotta say I'm just not crazy about Shea. I rubbed all 3 on my hand next to each other and Shea was so much greasier, Mango sinked in instantly which I loved. It (Mango) also has no smell which is a big plus....I really want to try new ones though and was wondering what you suggest? Something non greasy and not stinky.... Also I LOVE cocoa butter, I put it in everything LOL, anything similar to that in hardness, that's not stinky or anything? Would love suggestions! Thanks! Melany

Thanks guys, yeah it just didn't seem right to me, the price. The guy could just have been confused about what DH was asking. I did check out the Miller site quite a while back and haven't found any lye in our hardware stores, we don't have the big name stores here. Ahhh the joys of living in a small town! Having to pay shipping on everything is awful...but what can ya do! I think I'll have DH call a few more places and ask (I'm shy that way) and if I don't have any luck I'll just order online. I don't know though, I just checked again and with the hazmat, shipping and tax it comes to 150$ for 50lbs lye at Scentsanctuary. UGH........Oh well.....Anyway I was mostly wondering about the lye itself and if there were different grades or kinds you could get...looks like it's all pretty much the same as long as it's not mixed with other stuff.... Melany

Hi guys, I have a quick question. I'm pretty clueless about CP soap and all that is involved so I hope this isn't a silly question. I have had no luck finding lye locally although I admit I haven't looked very hard. Online I can find it for around 1-2$ a pound so maybe 50$ for 50lbs plus the hazmat and shipping fees etc...I'm in Canada BTW. Now my Dh decided to call a local farmer's pesticide etc...place and asked them if they had lye and they said yes for 7$ for 75 lbs. Now that just doesn't sound right, way too cheap right? If it is indeed Sodium Hydroxide, do I need a special <<grade>> or something or is sodium hydroxide the same no matter where you get it? I just want to be sure what I would be using is safe.....any help would be great! Melany

Yep, definitely the 3x3 ones, anything smaller will be too small. I also used the regular fluted molds and they fit very tightly in there, you have to take into account the thickness of the tart not just width. I actually would have loved to try the 4x4 since the 3x3 didn't allow me to put a tart it without it rubbing against all sides of the opening and leaving wax residue....drove me nuts! I no longer make the fluted tarts but definitely the 3x3 ones are the ones you need, nothing smaller! Melany

Ooooo I LOVE NG's Lotus Blossom, it's one of my top 10! I've tried about 300 FOs so far and Lotus Blossom is sticking around! It's a strong scent (works incredibly well in soaps, lotions, candles etc) but it's still a very soft and powdery floral. I've given goodies made with it to people and they all love it. You know what I love to, that scent looks great in things of any color especially when colored turquoise, aqua, blue etc.....unlike many floral scents I've tried. Melany

Hi guys! I would really love a great no-fail lotion recipe. I've tried so many recipes and different methods and while I do have a spray lotion and whipped butter I love I can't find a great lotion recipe. I want something with the basic ingredients for now so I can tweak it later. All the ones I've tries are either too watery, or they seperate or they feel waxy and or greasy. It could very well just be me too but I thought I would ask here if anybody has a great one to share? I might go the lotion base route later on but for now I really one to make one from scratch. Any tips??? Thanks! Melany

UGH, I've given up on Jody's Soap and Things. I do love the variety of stuff she has and my first order went great but second took about 5 weeks before I got a shipping notice, that really is awful, no notice that there would be a delay or anything either which would have been acceptable. Package ended up lost by UPS too (which is not her fault) and all in all it took 3.5 months to get my order. If I HAD to get something from there I would definitely pay the rush fee.....but I prefer to stick to bigger companies who ship quickly and/or give me a way to track too. I can't find supplies anywhere locally so I gotta get everything online and knowing approximately when an order will arrive is essential for my sanity! LOL Melany

Ack, tell me about it. It costs me (with taxes or duties, shipping and wax) 2.50$ a pound at best. Using soy wax for now. It's insane. I might just stick to tarts and at least save on the containers, wicks etc... If anybody knows a better deal please let me know, I buy mine from Village Craft and Candles although I have tried from different suppliers and I end up with crazy fees if from the US. Melany

I LOVE LOVE Warm Vanilla Sugar and have been on the hunt too. So far I've tried it from 4-5 suppliers and my fav is from MMS, it's the strongest and best, at least from those I have tried (I think I got mine from Nature's Garden, Scent Works, Sweet Cakes, Bramble Berry and MMS). HTH! Melany

Hi guys, new here! I was just wondering what everyone's best selling bath and body item is? I make several things but don't sell yet, I just make for friends and family, little gifts etc. I'm writing down everything on paper now, trying to figure out a business plan, what scents and products to offer, what supplies I need and so on. What would you say your best selling item is? I was going to put a big focus on my bath treats but recently I sent samples to 15 girls and only 4 or 5 of them actually likes bath treats, most only take showers...so I imagine the creams and lotions are everyone's best sellers? Just curious! Melany

Hi there, too much liquid is definitely to blame. Also, what sort of color did you use? Did that contain water as well? You really don't need to add even a teaspoon of water, that is too much still. I do like so many others and use a sprayer. One spritz then mix with a wire wisk, squish the mix in my hands to see if it hold its shape. It should be sort of like packed brown sugar, it holds its shape well but does NOT feel wet so just keep spraying until it feels like that. I personally only spritz 3-4 times. If you have coloring that contains water I find it's best to make a little well in the dry mix, then put my oils in there and put the liquid coloring there on top of the oil and quickly but gently mix in to minimize the reaction. I hope this helps! They really need to be VERY firmly packed in molds also, that way they really will not expand at all. Oh and definitely watch the humidity in the house, try to only make these on dry days if you can. Melany

Hi there, I don't know if this helps or not but one of my absolute fav FOs ever is Lemon Blossom from New Directions. http://www.newdirectionsaromatics.com/lemon-blossom-fragrant-oil-p-1090.html Very strong, fresh tart lemon scent with a tiny tiny hint of florals but honestly just yummy lemon. Not at all a lemon cleaner scent. HTH! Melany

Hi! I'm a lurking newbie and just wanted to post about this. I also bought a mold from him on eBay and after sending him 3 requests for total amounts with shipping he finally called me (probably 5 days after end of auction). I was a bit surprised about that (getting a call at home)! Just like the previous poster he told me his wife was in the hospital getting hip surgery and said he only does the molds and doesn't know much about the rest (computers, emails, shipping etc.). I finally got my mold today and it took a bit less than a month to get here in Canada. I would keep trying to contact him. I know it's frustrating but life happens and while I have been <<screwed>> by some sellers on eBay, this guy does seem to be honest. I wouldn't give up on your molds just yet! Melany

Hi everyone! I'm brand new here (and to candle making) and have a bit of a newbie question. I hope someone can help! I made my very first batch of soy wax tarts and burned one today. After a little while I saw steam (or smoke) coming out of the wax. Is that normal? I tried Google for answers and didnt find anything. I have actually only burned one soy tart before, only used the Yankee tarts and so I don't know if that steam or smoke (it looked more like steam to me) is normal to soy wax? It smelled good, not like anything was burning or anything. I did find one thread about this here but it's an older one and didn't really help me. The mold I used was a normal size metal tart mold.....Do I need to worry? Is this dangerous or is this just normal FO or wax evaporation or something? Any help would be great! Melany