Thursday, March 27, 2008

Ugly soap!

I'm down to one Lavender Cream soap in my inventory and I have attempted twice in the last week to make more and for some reason it's giving me HUGE problems. This is the most difficult soap I make because it's a milk based soap and when lye mixes with milk things can get a little hairy! The first time I made this soap it came out perfect, no problems at all. For some reason, every time I attempt it now, I have issues. It's one of my best sellers and one of my favorites so I am not inclined to give up on it yet but it's so frustrating to throw out an entire batch of soap. I have been researching other methods of making milk based soaps and I think I am going to try a different technique once my supplies come in. On a good note, I did successfully make a new batch of White Tea and Ginger which will be available in the shop soon. I tweaked my classic recipe a bit and added a couple of new butters to the mix to make a more moisturizing and lathery bar. I am really happy with the result.


8 comments:

OMB said...

You'll get it done perfectly!!! Like you said, just don't give up and keep trying. The same happens with me too, I usually keep my ooops bags for myself.

Joanna Schmidt said...

I had a post on The Soap Bar with that exact title just a week ago!! Except, it ended up getting resolved....ugly but resolved.

What would happen if you used water and lye and then at trace added coconut milk powder or whatever milk powder you want. Would that get too scratchy or do you think it would blend nicely?

Candice said...

Joanna - Maybe that's where the idea for the title came from! And here I thought I was being original! I think I am going to try and add it at trace, it seems like from what I have read that is the best option. Fingers crossed! I really don't feel like throwing out another batch!

Joanna Schmidt said...

Candice,I was thinking how funny it was that we had the same sense of humor. I think it's healthy to yell at the batch. I know I did! :D

You didn't have to change the name, sweetheart.

Joanna Schmidt said...

ps: If it comes out, want to do a trade with me? I'd love to try a milk bar. Especially if it smells milky and good.

Candice said...

Joanna,
I'm definitely up for a trade! I'll keep you posted on how it turns out!

Anonymous said...

We make liquid laundry soap or liduid pet soap our of botched r&d experiments. There is no need to throw away soap just because it's ugly. :) Well we did give away alot of our first r&d liquid pet soaps. They worked great, but had the greenish color and consistency of something you wouldn't put on your dog. But, it was great soap, once it lathered up.

Candice said...

Unfortunately this soap was caustic and not able to be used, I always use the aesthetically inclined soaps!! These had chunks of lye that did not get dissolved and would have burned like crazy had we tried to use them!