Daisyd'Light Posted March 31, 2006 Share Posted March 31, 2006 I'm a newbie, feet soaking wet with candle making. I ventured into the B&B section of our family forum and now am facinted with soap. Opinions please...Is soap hard to make? Is it safe to make around children? Are the supplies easy/hard to come by? Can you use the same FO's in candles as well as the soaps? Any and all input...negative or nice is appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smart tart Posted March 31, 2006 Share Posted March 31, 2006 I just wrote a whole book for you and tried to post and it said my message was too short??? wtfAnyhow......If you are talking about cp soap, imo it is easy and allows you the ability to be very creative (see the post on Bunny's cucumber/avocado/mayonaise soap ) or be very simple. Robin has done an awesome tutorial on cp soap making which pretty much takes you by the hand and goes step by step!As long as you follow safety measures I am sure you could make soap and keep your children! lol.....But with all things, you must follow safety measures....keep your kids out of the room while you are pouring lye, etc...(I would rather give up the kids and make soap but I may be in the minority!)Supplies can be as expensive as you choose or as cheap as you choose.....you can make soap with olive oil, lard, other oils found in the grocery store! Or you can (and probably will) go on-line and find butters and specialty oils that are awesome!FO's, as long as they are body safe, can be used in soap.....however.........not all fo's will work - some loose their scent, some don't work because they seize, rice, turn into what most call 'soap on a stick'.....but there is a sticky that members have posted to indicating which fo's they found worked well in soap and alot of suppliers that sell fo give descriptions as to how the fo works in soap.Just a few opinions on how great making soap is! I love it.....then after you do soap, you will surely want to try lotions, cremes, bath salts, lip balms, and the list goes on and on....Try it.....Debbie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Synascents Posted March 31, 2006 Share Posted March 31, 2006 Jenniferhaven't ventured into CP soap yet, though I plan on getting the lye this w/e and trying a first batch of it.Now for MP SoapThis is really easy to make.Supplies are easy to come by, and you can make this soap around kids, if you put it far away from there reach. Fragrance wise, as long as it says, safe for bath & body or soap, you are good to go!HTH some!Stephanie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenniejr Posted March 31, 2006 Share Posted March 31, 2006 Another one ventures to the Dark Side! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaybee23 Posted March 31, 2006 Share Posted March 31, 2006 Soap is a learning process, just like candlemaking. Being new to soapmaking after doing candles for almost 2 years, I can say that I feel like there is so much more to know and learn when it comes to soap and B&B than candles. But that is JMO. The best thing you can do is read and read and when you think you know what you're doing, read some more, LOL! Lye is very dangerous if the proper precautions are not taken. You have to respect what it can do. If you have small kids, I would really think of doing soap after they go to sleep or when they aren't around. Less chance of an accident. I would post your same questions over in the B&B section, you will likely get many more responses to them there as some of the soapers don't venture to this part of the board much. Also as was mentioned, M&P is a safe alternative to making homemade soap. It is soap already made and you just melt it down and add your own ideas and creativity to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheri Posted April 1, 2006 Share Posted April 1, 2006 I'm a newbie' date=' feet soaking wet with candle making. I ventured into the B&B section of our family forum and now am facinted with soap. Opinions please...Is soap hard to make? Is it safe to make around children? Are the supplies easy/hard to come by? Can you use the same FO's in candles as well as the soaps? Any and all input...negative or nice is appreciated.[/quote']You too, huh? :laugh2: I'm terrified of lye so I'm going to stick to MP for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniedb Posted April 1, 2006 Share Posted April 1, 2006 This is just my opinion and my experience, and hopefully it might contibute to your knowledge pool. I have a two-year-old, as I think I've mentioned to you, and I've made one whole batch of soap. Lye is a very caustic chemical, not to be taken lightly. It can be extremely dangerous when one doesn't take the proper precautions. I soaped my batch after Henry was in bed, so he wasn't around, or even remotely in danger of coming in the room. However, I have recently read of two instances where toddlers have suffered lye burns and worse. In one case, the mother was soaping and making dinner, while her child has access to the room with a pitcher of lye water, but in the other case the mother had taken care to place the lye on the highest shelf in her workshop, where her child could not reach. He managed to get a ladder and get up there and eat it anyway. If you have a toddler, you know how fast they can move, and how they can get themselves into difficulties before you can blink.After reading these posts, I am just not ready to have lye in my home, no matter how careful I am and how cautiously I treat it, things can still happen. While Henry is still this young, I just can't take that chance, and if on the remotest chance that something happened, I would never, ever, ever, ever forgive myself. So, I'm putting off CP until he's old enough to understand, really understand, that lye can not only give you an owie, it can give you an OWIE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smart tart Posted April 1, 2006 Share Posted April 1, 2006 I just have to say this.....lye is/can be dangerous.....but one takes the appropriate safety measures and usually the outcome is fine....I said usually because of course accidents can happen....but I would like to point out....you take your children in the car - right? You use a safety seat, follow the rules of the road, etc.....but what about the other fellow who doesn't? Accidents happen there also....Lots more than a child who got burned with lye....You make candles.....what if he pulled the pot down and spilled hot wax on him? You just make sure your cords and handles are in a safe place or don't let the kid in the room.....Any of you use poisons in your garden? Rat/Mouse poison? Use cleaning chemicals? Life is full of 'what ifs'.....I just wanted to point out that we usually do the best we can to keep our kids/pets safe.....If a kid could get a ladder to get a pitcher of lye, why couldn't he get a ladder and get in the cleaning/chemical cupboard or medicine chest or.......???JMO....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crafty1_AJ Posted April 3, 2006 Share Posted April 3, 2006 Can you use the same FO's in candles as well as the soaps?Yes and no. It's just like testing a new fo in candles. You have to test to see how it does in your particular application. I've tried candle fo's in soap that were awesome. And some were dogs. HTH! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tess Posted April 3, 2006 Share Posted April 3, 2006 I have a 3 YO also. I agree with all the tips above. Respect the lye but you dont have to be intimidated. I am still leary around it. I usually ONLY mix it outside, at night time when no children are around, and I keep by the window to make sure no one else comes around. I also label my container "CAUTION LYE HAZARDOUS". I did however mix it once inside, and that was because there was a stray cat hangin outside my door. NEVER EVER leave it unattended around children. I had my son watch a movie to keep him away from my workspace, while I sat at the table in front of the lye and re-read my instructions. I never left it alone, not even for a moment. So I would advise this as well if you have children anywhere in the house asleep or not. Just sit there and re-read your instructions, don't go about other chores. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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