ProudMarineMom

What would you like to try? I have the following made: Patchouli - MW Egyptian Dragon - Southern Soapers, I think Joop (Men's Type) - SOS (love this in incense) Alien (Women's Type) - SOS (love this one too) Dragon's Blood - NG Black Canyon - Peaks Patchouli Passion - MW

Well, obviously, one is wrapped using wood powder and the other charcoal. For me, the wood punks give a smokey, woody smell to the fragrance when burning. If you want nice, fat sticks that are pretty consistent, SOS has 6 inch wood punks that are actually very nice. I prefer charcoal because the fragrance seems more pure when burning. I don't get the woody smell. But, they are messy because of the charcoal powder. I would recommend having disposable gloves when handling the sticks. I grew up with Gonesh so I'm partial to charcoal. But, even their sticks are very thin now. Even thinner than the ones from SOS. kforbs, I can send you some dipped charcoal incense I made if you would like to try it. They are from SOS. I could toss in some blanks as well.

Are you all using charcoal or wood punks? If it's charcoal, there is a place I have wanted to try, but due to the minimum order have not ordered from there. Their page clearly states that incense is sold by weight and not the number of sticks. The have two sizes, 10 inch which has about 1250 sticks per order (sold as 1000 grams). And, 8.5 inch sticks which has about 1000 sticks per order. I was interested in the shorter ones because they have more charcoal on them, meaning a fatter stick. The minimum is $40 and shipping is pretty expensive. But, even with shipping factored in, the cost per bundle is less than the member price of 1,000 charcoal sticks before shipping at SOS. 6000 sticks would be quite a lot for me. I should call and ask if they provide samples. Here is the place I have bookmarked: http://www.nematfragrances.com/products/unscented_charcoal_incense_sticks.php?id=C15 There is another place in Florida called Scents of Paradise. She sells a variety of incense, wood, charcoal, punks, cones, in case lots or bundles, minimum of 10 bundles. But, she also has a minimum order of $75 or a small order fee is charged. New customer orders have to be $100. Her shopping cart doesn't estimate shipping so can't compare how the cost compares to SOS, Wellington, BCN, etc. But, the case price is definitely cheaper. Here is the link in case you are interested. http://www.scentsofparadise.com/best/product/raw.html

Citrus notes will fade but can be helped by adding base note EO, like patchouli or vetiver, or something like litsea or anise to help anchor the scent. Clays can also help.

With some of the beautiful soaps I have seen posted here of M&P, I definitely consider it handmade. I never had the talent, or the patience, to make M&P soap with the embeds and layers and other creative ideas. It can be a wonderful medium.

The gingerbread men are adorable!!

According to the Soap Scent Review Board, there was no A or D. The scent reviews are mixed. Several people loved the scent and it stuck; a couple said it faded. One thought it smelled like Pine-Sol. Another scent to consider is Pinion Pine from Moonworks. I haven't put it in soap yet, but it is wonderful in wax melts. One review on SSRB said no A or D and a nice pine forest fragrance. No chemical smell.

Beautiful!!

You always have such pretty swirls!!

Ooohhh, very pretty!! Have you soaped this fragrance before, any issues? It's one of my bath salt fragrances but haven't tried it in soap.

I think is really does depend on whether you use FO/EO. I use PET (which I'm pretty sure is recommended) for both my bath salts and bath milk and the FO/EO does not eat the plastic. I believe glass will work as well but I didn't want to have glass around a tub that could get knocked off and break. Not sure about HDPE. I have tried using tin tie bags and the ziplock coffee bags. Both work, I just didn't care for the look. What you need to consider with EO is sensitivity. Things like peppermint can be a bit tingly on the lady bits if used in too high of a concentration. There are also IFRA guidelines that specify how much of an EO can be used due to the components in the EO. I am by no means an Essential Oil expert, so please do your research if using EO blends in your bath salts. Hope this helps. J

I generally use 2%, sometimes I add a titch extra.

I thought the flashpoint had to be > 200 degrees in order to be shipped by USPS. At least, that is the guideline I always follow.

Well darn, I just ordered from them. This sounds wonderful.

I haven't tried Wellington but I've had pretty good luck from Save On Scents. I prefer charcoal and they are one of the few places that carries them. They also have wood punk and colored sticks. Bittercreek North carries incense sticks as well.

I don't know about MK, but I put wax paper under my melts when pouring. I can't pour neat to save my life. That way, all I have to do is throw away the wax paper instead of cleaning wax off the table. I also use it to cover my scale when measuring wax. My crock doesn't have a valve and I get clumsy when scooping out wax as well. I'll put spoons and what-not on it, too.

Thanks, Steve!! Will give that a try on my next batch.

Candy, I'm sure there is a calculation somewhere... I created a cylinder mold in Soapmaker with your dimensions. Worked great from mine. I did it in two sizes, 3" X 13" and 3" x 15". I've read you should pour 2 inches below the top to prevent it from over-flowing. These are the numbers it came up with: 3 x 13 = 1100 grams of oils 3 x 15 = 1263 grams of oils Summer Bee Meadow also has a soap calculator and resizer. You can enter your recipe and calculate like normal. Once that is calculated, scroll to the bottom and you can see where you can enter a mold size to recalculate the batch size. hth https://summerbeemeadow.com/content/welcome

Steve, no issues with the wax paper? Soggy or the like? I've been using freezer wrap and it's a bit of a pain to cut. Soap comes out of the mold very easily though. Tracy and Candy, thanks for sharing the pics of that bottom piece. I had DH pick me up some and I really like them. Much more steady than what I was using.

Beautiful soapies!!

Don't know what kind of wax you use but there is a DPS Morris in New Lenox, IL. Might be a little bit of a day trip depending on where you are. They carry the Ecosoya soy waxes and I think all of the IGI Paraffin. Here is the website: http://www.dpswax.com/DPS_index.html

I wish I had your store near me. They have a lot of nice items.

Several reviews on the Soap Scent Review Board liked the one from Southern Garden Scents. Said there is no A or D and the scent sticks. Another option. The one from AH didn't have any reviews.

I could never get my M&P to turn out so pretty. Great job!

Amazon, who would have thought. Well, they have pretty much everything else.... Thanks ChrisR! CB, I have read about that method for Almond Milk but haven't tried it yet. Sounds like it will work well for both almond and hemp. I've seen almond milks at the store and hemp at Trader Joe's (I think) but wasn't liking the additional ingredients. Already have an almond milk facial soap planned. Do milks made in this manner from nuts/seeds have those natural sugars that is good for bubbles? I'm sure this will make for a nice, creamy lather.