Like I don't have enough to do. Doing soap now.

[Yankee11]

  The soap stands always seem busy at the markets. So, we are joining the fun. Beeswax, Honey and Sunflower oil. plus other stuff.

[neillsayers]

Cool Yankee,

My wife has been making soaps for Farmer's Market and craft fairs for 20 years. Keeps me busy in the workshop making molds, cutters etc...

[Jen]

Yum! The first pic looks luscious! Like I could dip my spoon right in there and sample oatmeal cake batter ~

[Les]

Great pics, something else I would like to try!

[Lburou]

Cool Yankee,

My wife has been making soaps for Farmer's Market and craft fairs for 20 years. Keeps me busy in the workshop making molds, cutters etc...

I have some wax....I'm interested in seeing your process, do you have pictures?

[riverbee]

very cool yankee! thanks for the pix, and like lee, your process?

[Lburou]

very cool yankee! thanks for the pix, and like lee, your process?

We want ALL the secrets, don't be shy!  ;-)

[Yankee11]

We are doing cold process lye soap.

Ingredients are;
Olive Oil, Shea Butter, Coconut Oil, Sunflower Oil (pollinated by our bees), bees wax, honey and lye/water. essential or fragrance oil.

we melt all the oils and beeswax together in a pot. About 140 degrees. Then in a separate container we combine ice water and lye. Then we wait for
both the oils and the lye water to reach the same temperature (usually around 100-110) and we combine them together and use a stick blender to mix until it gets thick like pudding. Add the essential oil and pour into a mold.

Let it sit in mold for 24 to 48 hours. Remove from mold, cut into bars and let them cure for 4 to 6 weeks.


We are new to this so I am sure some of these steps will change as we go, but this is how we are starting.

I wont buy store soap any more, love this stuff.

[apisbees]

It looks like fudge, it looks good enough to eat unlike the bars used for washing our mouths out.

[Lburou]

It looks like fudge, it looks good enough to eat unlike the bars used for washing our mouths out.

A story about lye soap:
I had just arrived to visit my Grandma and was scouting for things to do.  In the basement I found a very appetizing cookie tray full of fudge -I figured she had set it there to surprise us later.  Well, it looked like a light colored fudge anyway.  It only took one bit to realize it was not fudge....Grandma didn't stop laughing for quite a while.  :-)