LuminousBoutique

dont really know what to say? I've been making this castile with my grandma for 20 years. She always has it around, as do I... There were no such thing as soap calcs when she started making it but I've run it through one since, and her recipe (42 olive, 5.3oz lye, and 9.5 water).. works out to around a 30% reduc and a 5% superfat.

Thing is, I've never once thought of licking it.. I had no idea what a zap test even was, until I came on here and read about it.. so one day after cutting a batch I licked it and... zap. Its my only soap I've ever felt a zap with, so I assumed it was the water reduc and the fact that I had just cut it and it was really only a few hours "old". Checked it again a few days later and no zap... but I still let them cure 6 months because, well... thats what she does.

Try www.papermart.com

I get my boxes from them for my status jars and they have a great return policy, if you order a package or case and don't like them you can return them no hassle.

I am ALL about Papermart. They have everything! Wonderful customer service, and low minimums on most products. HUGE variety too.

all the time! Mostly at shows though, because despite the fact that I have an online shop.. I hate paying shipping, LOL!! I am also a Lush-a-holic. I LOVE LUSH.. its a sickness. I could spend a thousand dollars in that shop, lol.

I buy lots of candles too.. because I'm still learning on those and I really love to see what other people do and find the best, so I can learn and try to be better.

If it feels like you've put your tongue to the terminals of a 9v battery then it needs a few more days. Once you don't get that battery zap, you really CAN use the soap, but it'll get milder and better over the next 2-4 weeks.

Go ahead - try them tomorrow. YOU can use them if they are safe - just not ready for prime time.

castile with water reduc = EPIC zap. I never knew what people were talking about with the zap test until that day.... yikes

I dont know which is cheaper, really... I mean after you figure the cost of the oils and fragrance and molds and lye.. it isnt cheap. But.. I think its funner

I do CP and I have a 5 year old and 3 year old. Its a challenge sometimes but not impossible... we had a good talk about never touching mommies soaping tools, which was a big part of it.. but I am also really careful about how I store my stuff. I buy my lye at Ace hardware in small containers, and then store those containers in ziplock bags inside a rubbermaid container with my gloves, soap spoons, and goggles. I keep that on the highest shelf of our pantry.. somewhere I know the kids can never reach!!

When I mix my lye, I always do it in our mudroom, and I keep the water/lye mixture on the higest (STABLE) shelf. I mix it after they go to bed and 1-2 hours later its ready for use. I do all my soaping at night because it takes the kid factor out. I can prepare my oils ahead of time with them around, because I simply melt them together, I dont heat them. So all I have to do is pour my lye into my soap and mix to trace, which takes less than 15 minutes usually. I mix the water into my oils in the mudroom, then bring it into the kitchen to stick blend it and pour it.

Waiting isnt hard once you get into the swing of it... seems like I make a batch every week or so, which means there is a batch cured every week! some soaps take only 3-4 weeks, some take longer. My castile takes 4-6 months but its worth it I think if you are interested in it its worth giving it a shot and just seeing if you even enjoy it!

PS.. top of the fridge is a great place to cure soap and a great "up high" place to store supplies as long as the kids know not to ever touch it.

yeeep.. I use wood molds so yeah, pour... let sit 12ish hours (kinds depends on the recipe), slice and let cure 4 weeks min. but some take longer. I let my castile which is just olive oil, water, and lye cure for 6 months. I want to try HP sometime because I am intrigued by the idea of using it right away!

^ what she said... did you pour it into the mold? Some of my CP takes longer to trace than others but creamy and thickened is what you want. Kinda like a thin pudding

Still love your soap and I have never thought of the sprinkles, thanks.

If you make Bunny's bath melts, those brownie bites makes the perfect size.

Yeah the sprinkles are cute! I stole the idea from the cupcake bath bombs I see on etsy all the time.. so adorable. My experience is people shop with their eyes first, nose second, and common sense last.. so I am trying to make my soaps "prettier" lol.

I love those brownie pans, they are great for massage melts too... I am a massage therapist (although let my license lapse so I dont practice) and one of those is the perfect amount for one massage.

I can't wait to see the soaps.

I've never made soap in PVC tube. What did you use to stop one of the ends?

they have these great little plastic caps that pop right in, there in the PVC section at the hardware store.. I used those. I lined them with plastic wrap first so they wouldnt get stuck

The M&P question ... I dont have any experience with it personally but I would think you couldnt add too much liquid to it without it not setting up properly. I know some people add goats milk and additional oils though, so I would use the search feature to see what you can find about adding liquids to M&P.. its a great resource. And with all things you wont know until you test im sure.

as for beer soap from scratch.. there is no such thing as soap without lye. No Lye, no soap. If theres no lye, its a synthetic detergent, not soap. M&P soap was made with lye too.. its just hidden in the ingredients. Some label it as "Sodium Hydroxide", NaOh, KOH (Potassium Hydroxide - for liquid soaps), Caustic Soda, Soda Lye, White Caustic, or "Saponified Coconut Oil"... if it says "Saponified" its been mixed with lye.

They both look great ! I just bought 2 brownie pans to make samples with too .Great minds think alike:)

Thanks!

They look great! Like chocolate cake. hehe Funny how the little minis haven't changed color yet...

Question, where did you find a silicone brownie pan?

Michaels! They were 50% off so I grabbed two of them.. they work great for candle tarts too. The finished mini's weigh about .7oz

Here it is now... almost exactly 24 hours after pouring, and 10 hours after cutting.

took a pic for you since I'm uploading new stuff anyways-

This is actually the NEW packaging.. no pic of the old one but its basically the same except the green label and green lid.

right next to the olive oil usually, its called LouAna and the packaging is changing from a white plastic container with a green lid and green label to white plastic container with black and orange label and black lid. Here its 4.95 per container.

I had to freeze my 2' pvc tube, place a rag over the top of a jar of pasta sauce that fit in the tube, place the jar on the ground, and pound down on the jar about ten billion times before my soap finally slid out. I used 6 layers of freezer paper but just a TINY bit of soap eeked out and the whole thing was stuck because of it. eventually it squeezed out but it was a bit like labor! something I never want to do again!! lol.

How long is your PVC? I cut mine down to 1' sections after that and havent tested them since because I'm inaftuated with the log molds my husband built me... but I've heard that helps alot. I've also heard of people using silpat (silicone baking sheet liners) to line their PVC pipes and they swear it slides right out

The same thing happens to me when I soap Pink Sugar. At first the soap looks yellow with pink swirls. It takes it a few days to start turning brown. Within two weeks it looks like chocolate with pinks swirls, lol.

Vanilla stabilizer will keep soap with vanilla fo's from turning brown, if you don't like brown soaps.

thank you, I'll have to look into that! I dont mind it.. but I want to learn new techniques in color

Those look great! I'm thinking if there is vanilla in the butter cream it will eventually go brown. Vanilla in FO's turn soap from tan to brown depending on amount in there. It may be starting on the top and going inward. Just have to wait and watch. Maybe more experienced soapers will come along and chime in. :smiley2:

AH I cant believe I didnt think of that! :embarasse Its very heavy on Vanilla, LOL i can be a dope sometimes! thank you... That makes perfect sense. It is full on brown now.. looks really nice and consistent. I guess I was confused just because it started on the top and I let myself freak out about it instead of let the soap do its thing... Thanks again!!

You also should have good product liability insurance in place, if not, you better get your butt in gear and get it pronto!!

out of everything said this I think is the most important

This is a hobby you want to make into a business.. thats awesome, thats what we all should look for in life! BUT...Personally? I dont make a profit, its almost impossible to make a profit right away! never have, probably wont for a very long time. selling supports my candle and soap habit, and it keeps me happy. It gives me something to do other than just be a stay at home mom. Some years I dont even do any shows, last year I only did one! And insurance isnt cheap. You'll pay between $200-1000 a year. That being said, no matter how many or how few candles I sell, I ALWAYS have insurance in place.

Why? Because Average Joe can take your candle home, set it on a stack of papers, let his cat tip it over, and set fire to his house. your fault? not really. But guess who gets sued over it? YOU. Average Joe could forget (or not know) to trim the wick and set a potential candle flamethrower on his antique furniture, drip some wax, shatter the container, smoke up his curtains... whatever. Doesnt matter. You are liable for any and all of it if Average Joe has the right lawyer.

Same goes for soap making. Someone could be allergic to an ingredient or fragrance in my soaps, and sue me.. despite all warning labels and testing recommendations I give. It doesn’t matter if I suggest they test the frag before using it or how many times we label to keep it away from eyes.. if they burn their eyes, they can still attempt to sue me.

I am thousands of dollars, and hundreds of test candles into it and I've only found one container (the square mason) one wick combo, and 20 scents I am confident selling as of yet. Thats after HUNDREDS of test candles/scents/jars. When I see people at shows selling poorly tested candles, who know very little about their craft and are simply selling them to make money... yes, it makes me a bit grumpy! Because that DOES reflect on all of us. People remember that one time they bought a soy handmade candle and it wasnt "strong enough, big enough, burn long enough... and so on.." and they dont remember who sold it all the time, but it stops them from coming back for more handmade candles. They think... why not just buy one at Wamart, Hobby Lobby, or Yankee?

I dont (and I know nobody else) say any of this to be harsh.. we all help eachother out here, I've asked stupid questions.. we all have. I've asked questions that you could easily find the answer to (Thankfully Stella was SUPER helpful when I first joined and showed me how to properly use the search feature! thanks Stella!) But part of helping eachother out is being honest... You can easily get in over your head, waste epic amounts of time and money, and ruin your reputation as a candle maker all at once.

Now. This is all just our word and you dont have to take it.. but the true success of business is repeat customers and nobody is going to return to buy a candle they werent satisfied with. And I agree its OK to figure out pricing before you are ready to sell...

my formula is pretty simple... supplies x3. And adjust for market conditions. Sometimes I'm willing to sell for less to sell more, or sell for more to sell less depending on who the clientele is. (for example some boutiques you can get away with charging WAAAAAY more per candle than at a craft show)

so example being (total example not based on any real numbers)... per candle: jar 1.00, wax .50, scent 1.00, wick .10... I would charge 7.80 at least for that candle. You also need to consider labels, time, packaging, effort, testing, travel (if its a show), and competition.

I wish you all the luck in the world, keep working at it, have fun with it.. but dont rush yourself. All I wanted to do when I started out was sell sell sell but looking back now I see how dangerous that could have been. Dont give up.. dont think anyone here is being mean.. I'm just doing my absolute best to make sure you are informed.

what does ffb stand for?

foaming bath butter, its a base

I have a few Q's for you lovely people... I have made EO CP soap for years but I've never used FO's.. I decided it was about time and pulled some out but I'm seeing some things I never have before in my soaps so I wanted some of you guys to take a peek and tell me what you think.

I made a small batch.. 42oz of oils, used my "grocery store" oil recipe since it was a tester (Olive, Coconut, Canola, Sunflower, Soybean, Sweet Almond, Castor), 4oz of Buttercream FO (I used 1oz PP of Oils, not PP of recipe.. and then added an ounce because this buttercream (candle source) smelled weak compared to my normal brand (candle science)) and sprinkled nonpariels (sp?) on top after I swirled my logs top.

1st.... color! It turned YELLOW... we're talking smiley face yellow. I've never seen that before, I've had my soaps go brown because of sugars but not like this. On the top, where my sprinkles are, it turned brown in gel and never went back. I'm assuming its because of the sugar from the little candies but wonderd if anyone had any experience with this and if it fades? You'll see in the pics its quite the color difference!

2nd.... scent. I always use 1oz PP of oils when I use EO.. but I had no experience with the FO so I just did the same thing. Its a bit weak but I know it will change with cure... how much do you guys usually use?

here are the pics... I hope the brown on top lightens up. My little mini's that I pour into a silicone brownie pan turned out adorable, cant wait to send those out as samples in a few weeks! I hope it attracts a new group of buyers because I've never messed with color or FO's and I think its about time to do some fun soaps!

First pic: I did a loaf of 100% castile too.. I do a 30% water reduc and it cures hard as a brick by week 4 but I let it cure for 4 months. You can see my minis are more yellow still, but dont have the brown on top...

Pic two.. loaf before cutting. its REALLY brown on top..

Pic three.. cut loaf..

Pic five.. my minis... they are so cute! I am SO happy with how they came out.

Hello!! welcome

our JoAnn dollar section has the plastic ornaments, FYI for anyone who doesnt have them yet!

Correct me if I am wrong, but cream of tartar is a fruit from a tree. It is found in a hard green pod, it is in individual fruits inside this pod. Grows on trees in zimbabwe.

Nope...

Potassium bitartrate, also known as potassium hydrogen tartrate, has formula KC4H5O6. It is a byproduct of winemaking.

In cooking it is known as cream of tartar. It is the potassium acid salt of tartaric acid, a carboxylic acid.

Potassium bitartrate crystallises in wine casks during the fermentation of grape juice, and can precipitate out of wine in bottle.

This crude form (known as beeswing) is collected and purified to produce the white, odorless, acidic powder used for many culinary and other household purposes.

Here's just a little good-natured ribbing: Us "country kids" are yelling "City slicker!"

hehe.. I was giggling too.. I used to have to handle way too much alfalfa on the farm back in the day so I'm pretty familiar with it.. my husband goes "who would want to smell that? its like a barn!" EXACTLY! Well.. I cant blame him. hes a city boy. He just doesnt get it! I love that smell... good luck Sorcha, let us know how it smells!!