GrandmaArial

Thank you so much Jadryga. Good ideas! I also found an article that suggests egg white. Whip it up (just the white) massage it in and using a damp cloth wipe it off. She can’t go around with fresh eggs and a mixer of course, but I’m wondering if powdered egg whites might be an answer. I remember as a small child my great grandmother washing my hair with egg whites (she stuck my head under the faucet to rinse though), and egg whites dry to a stable powder and are used in recipes like royal icing for that reason. Any white she misses should brush out in a few minutes as a powder. I think this would make it so all she would have to do is lay a towel under their heads to contain the mess. And I was thinking a touch of finely powdered herbs could add some positive properties but are mild enough to not be a risk (after all the people she would use it on do eat foods with the same herbs in it). Thank you for reassuring me on this. I think I will try making up some batches of both and see what works best. I guess she and I will not be washing our hair much for awhile… I can’t imagine I will be able to get any of my other testers to work this one for me! LOL.

Or you can use the calculator at http://www.summerbeemeadow.com/ which will compensate for the variations in density of different oils though with such a small mold it really won’t make any discernable difference. I am concerned about making such a small batch, I make a minimum of 32 oz batches for testing new recipes as it is physically impossible to get every bit of oil out of your measuring containers. The larger volume makes it a much smaller percentage.

How did I miss these? The colors are WOW! Looks energetic to me! You wouldn’t even have to shower with this to wake up in the morning… just turn on the light and look at it!

A friend who is a community health nurse has asked me to come up with a dry shampoo for her elderly patients that can’t hang over the sink for extended periods. I have searched and searched for a starting point. All I have come up with is powder.. cornstarch, corn meal, even flour. I know this can be messy so may be counter indicated for someone who’s bedridden. Does anyone one have and recipes/suggestions? I suppose we can scent some cornstarch to make it a more pleasant experience for her people, no Eos though as these people all have serious health issues and many Eos can be counter indicated with the health issues and/or meds they are taking. TIA

I use clear glass ramekins and mix with glycerin about a half hour to an hour before I start my soap.

Reading the discription I didn't think I would like it... but it's lovely! The texture looks so soft and comforting. I love the nutral tones with the cocoa accents. Good job.

Those are all adorable

Beautiful... nothing else to say... just beautiful.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA… My lips are sealed! I can’t believe Meredith and euginia haven’t made LS! If I had known that I would have been convinced it’s to complicated for me! But really… follow thesoapersworkshop’s directions… it’s easier than bar soap. I was itching to mess with the liquid soap last night… but I was good… I left it in the basement and made a batch the old fashioned way and cooked it. Never again. WAY to much work. It bubbles so I guess its soap, though seems to thin to me (probably to much coconut oil), and very cloudy. It’s sequestered now so we will see what its like in a week or so. Tonight I am making my third batch. Yes… I was bored… and I have been getting a lot of requests for goat’s milk liquid soap so I thought why not? So I’ll set it next to the first batch and exhibit patience. I adjusted the oils to have a higher percentage of soft oils and will dilute in stages to find the right balance for the oils I used. I am also starting to formulate lotions for distribution. I have been making lotion for myself for awhile now simply because what I can find makes my skin blister (I react to the hydrocarbons and alcohols in them) but have been getting a lot of people asking for lotion as good as the soap. I’ve tried to convince them to make their own… but they want me to make it… so I’m testing a recipe that uses the same oils I use in my favorite basic bar soap recipe. So far so good. Its three weeks old and tests clean for bacteria so I started handing it out to my testers today. Everyone loves it so far except one, who for some reason it was greasy on. The thing is the reason everyone else loves it is because it absorbs so fast but on her hands it just sat there… like she had rubber Crisco on her hands. It was from the same jar I am using and three other people first sampled from who all loved it… nice soft dry hands in a few seconds. Anyone have any ideas on this? And yes Hibiscus, so far the CPLS is so much simpler than the CLBS. I don’t think dilution should be to hard as long as I take it slow and don’t try to rush it.

As always... amazeing.

I made (or rather am making, it’s tucked away for the next two weeks) liquid soap. I have been thinking about it for almost a year… reading recipes and instructions. I finally got up the gumption to try it. Thank you Soaersworkshop. I decided to follow your instructions. I decided to use the same oils I use in my favorite soap recipe increasing the water to 60% (the recipes I looked at used between 50% to 70% water to oil ratio so 60% seemed a good average) . It was all like you described, only easier. It took about 20 minuets to reach trace… and then about 30 seconds to turn into paste. It separated once after that… but I kept checking it for the next two hours as I couldn’t believe it could be that easy. I superfatted at 0%, which according to Steve Mushynsky (Summer Bee Meadow) means it’s about 10% superfatted (he explains that POH is only about 90% pure), we will see. I plan on diluting with herbal tea, probably rosemary and calendula, but will start with 50% of the dilution water and test the PH. If it’s high I can neutralize then and then add more water to make the full dilution. I’m so excited! How can I wait two full weeks????????? I was scared to try this having read how hot POH gets compared to NaOH. And how it fizzles and sputters, and how bad the fumes are compared to NaOH in some sources. What gave me courage was a few people here said it was cooler, just a lot of noise. So when I poured the POH into the water I was as far away as I could be (just in case) and waited for the water to start boiling and sputter. Nothing. It sat there. So I inched closer and started stirring. I did hear a grinding sound… the sound of the POH flakes (more like disk shaped beads) grinding against each other. No more disturbing than stirring gravel in a bucket. And it didn’t get all that hot. Maybe 140F. not much hotter than I take my baths. Not even as hot as our tap water is. As for fumes I wore my mask as usual… but when I took it off (it makes my glasses fog up) after I had poured the lye water in the oils and started blending it seemed milder than NaOH. I would suggest anyone doing this have a potato masher handy. I had my wisk handy to use after it reached trace… didn’t work, just glumped up in the tines. If hubby finds out I used the masher he will freak out (he’s convinced I’m going to poison him) so no one tell him… Kay, I’m talking to you! I’ll have to pick one up for LS before I make another batch.

Sorry for being so slow. I don't measure as it will vary from batch to batch (the SAP values we use are averages and does vary between batches of oils). I just add about a quarter cup disolved in water to start the rebatch then start testing the PH when its liquid. You have to disolve it in liquid, it won't disolve in the soap. I would guess somewhere between a half cup to a cup of citric acid to a three lb. batch.

I see them... and all of them, even your "plain old boring Lavender Oatmeal" makes everything I make look dowdy. Beautiful work.

Actually… when I was in the navy I had some tie died t-shirts that looked a lot like your soap… they called me “California sunshine” when I wore them…

Your Hubby nailed it. That is so Woodstock.

It depends on the minerals in the spring water. Most “spring” water we buy has been filtered but if it’s coming straight from the spring it could have a high mineral content. Many minerals will cause your soap to not lather but produce large amounts of scum, like using it with hard water. I would say try it. Nothing ventured nothing gained. If you lose quality in your soap you know that spring has a high mineral content, then you can bottle it and sell it for an exorbitant price….

The problem with using soap on hair is the PH. Typically hand made soap runs between 9 and 10 on the ph scale. Permanents and relaxers alkaline solutions and break down the hair which is then curled or straightened and neutralized with a low ph or acidic rinse Bleaches and hair colors are also alkaline, it’s how they penetrate the cuticle of the hair. . I have very fine hair and find that using soap makes my hair nice the first day or two but then I start shedding bad with a lot of breakage, just like if I have a perm. You must have great hair to not have problems washing it with soap. I make a shampoo bar for my personal use. I HP then rebatch the next day adding citric acid until I get a PH reading of 7. still a little high for hair but ok for a few days and easier to travel with than a bottle of shampoo.

Looks like another stained glass window on acid to me, LOL. I love it. How do you get all those colors to behave themselves and stay so bright? It's beautiful. I have no idea what to call it, but I want it...

Those are all beautiful! I partuclary like the looks of the Fantasy.

Nice to know I was missed! I broke my glasses, had to wait to get new ones. It's good to be back. I have a lot of catching up... I guess I better start reading!

My stuff isn't better than yours, you make candles. wonderful candles. The best candles I have ever seen. I make soap. You can't compare apples and oranges... BTW... the white ice looking candles... one sure would look good on my sofa table.... (that's a hint).

Awwww:awww:... Thank you sweet daughter-in law. I hope those words arn't being said just out of love

Is it as good as the coffee mask? If so I expect a sample…. Looks lovely!

Those are spectacular!

I don’t have the post you’re looking for but I have this, a post of SoapersWorkshop I am considering trying. http://www.candletech.com/forums/showpost.php?p=448599&postcount=15