Archives for September 2013

Our Favorite Pinterest-iffic Soaps

September 30, 2013 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

I can’t believe more than a month has passed since the Soap Crafting book was released. Since then we’ve seen some jaw-dropping soaps, and even started the Soap Crafting Club to get you more involved in our soapmaking community. Last month we announced the Pinterest-iffic Soap Crafting Contest so soapers could show off their gorgeous interpretations of the designs from the book, and I was blown away by all the amazing entries. I sort of feel like Sally Field, “You like me! You really like me!” It was difficult to pick our favorites; thank you for everyone who shared your interpretations of the Soap Crafting soap designs.

I loved seeing how people made the Soap Crafting recipes their own, and I want to remind everyone to not be afraid to put their own personal twist on the recipes in the book. That’s what makes it so fun! Overall, every soap we saw was fantastic and everyone’s photo that included the #soapcrafting tag will appear on our Pinterest board. We hope that the board will serve as inspirational resource and encourage you to experiment with various new soapy techniques. Are we missing yours? Just comment below and let us know the link and we’ll get you pinned!

Top: Tanya from Baby Duck Soap Co. created this truly-psychedelic Cranberry Fig Salt Bar using the Psychedelic Green Tea Technique from the Soap Crafting book. I was mesmerized by the intense colors and can’t wait to see this one ummolded. You might even recognize Tanya’s talent as she was a feature of one of our Facebook Photo’s of the week earlier this year.

Bottom Left: Jamie from Crochet Dynamite took her time, but poured her very first column pour cold process soap with the recipe from the book. I was impressed with her soap and talent (on the first try!). She is also a knitter and created the cutest little pom-pom bookmarks that she used to hold her place in the Soap Crafting book. Take a look here.

Bottom Right: Audra Weisenberger did an stunning job with the Clay-Spoon Plop. The warm colors and distinct layers are so eye catching. In fact, it looks like she even used the same colors as the recipe (Sea Clay, Green Zeolite Clay, Yellow Silt Clay, Rose Clay and Kaolin Clay). This inviting and earthy color palette makes for one fabulous soap.

Congrats to Tanya, Jamie and Audra! They’ll receive all the ingredients for one of the projects in the book, and we can’t wait to see what they’ll do with them! Please contact us at contest(at)brambleberry(dot)com so we can get your packages out ASAP.

Thank you again to everyone who participated, and you can see more awesome Soap Crafting recipes on our Soap Crafting Pinterest Board here. The contest may be over, but we’ll keep adding your photos to our board. What recipes from the Soap Crafting book have you tried so far, and which ones are your favorites?

Sunday Night Spotlight: 9 Cube Soap Silicone Mold

September 29, 2013 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

Over the years, we’ve amassed hundreds (if not thousands??) of soap molds. We’ve got 3D molds, wooden molds and countless fun patterned molds. Sometimes though, it’s nice to have a simple mold that allows the soap itself to shine. If you’re experimenting with new colors or techniques or just want a super cool shape that fits nicely in the palm of your hand, the 9 Cube Soap Silicone Mold is what you’re looking for.

The 9 Cube Soap Silicone Mold is great for small batch production work (go for the mondo 25 bar Cube Mold for larger batches) or making simple and elegant birthday or holiday gifts. This mold holds about 3 pounds of soap — 45 ounces to be exact. Each cavity holds approximately 5 oz. of soap. Best of all, you can use this mold in both cold process and melt & pour soapmaking.

Because silicone molds insulate soap so well, we’ve found that adding Sodium Lactate to cold process recipes allows you release soap faster from this mold. We recommend using Sodium Lactate at 1 tsp per pound of oils (add it to the lye water) and it’s great in combination with the 9 Cube mold’s larger counterpart, the 25 Cube Soap Silicone Mold. The 25 Cube Mold holds about 8 lbs of soap (125 oz., to be exact).

Need some ideas of what to use your silicone cube soap mold for? Take a look at these links to inspire your next creative soapmaking session: (clockwise from top) Goat Milk Soap Tutorial,Crazy for Cubes, Faux Swirl Melt and Pour Cubes and Goodness Gracious, Great Balls of Freedom,

Have you used this mold before? I’d love to hear how it worked for you!

Happy Baby

September 29, 2013 Filed Under: Personal Ramblings

“A smile is a curve that sets everything straight.” — Phyllis Diller

“Smile: it is the key that fits the lock of everybody’s heart.” — Anthony J. D’Angelo

Happy Sunday everyone! =) I’ve got a busy week ahead at home of cleaning closets and harvesting the last of the potatoes (and yes, yes, I know I should have done that weeks ago). Oh … and kiddos. Lots of children’s activities today too. And whoah! you can clearly see which photo above was taken with the iPhone versus a real camera. That is good inspiration for me to drag the camera along with us more often. As for work, the week ahead looks very busy. I’m soaping up a storm for the holidays and can’t wait to share some of the projects with you in the upcoming weeks.

Bramble Berry Gets Muddy

September 28, 2013 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

We can’t help but be a squeaky clean office — we’re surrounded by so much soap all the time! So when Order Manager Carla heard about the 2nd annual Muds to Suds Relay Race, we couldn’t wait to dive into a muddy pool or three. The race took place early Saturday morning, and we had 13 Brambleberrians participate from all departments including customer service, packing and shipping. They couldn’t wait to get muddy!

The team beforehand. So nice and clean! Part of the race included a costume contest, and we came dressed as the Bramble Berry Super Soapers.

The race course covered a little more than two miles, and wound through the beautiful Hovander Park in Ferndale, Wash. There were plenty of obstacles along the way, including four (!!!) mud pits, an army-style cargo net crawl, several walls and obstacles to climb and lots of sand pits, which conveniently stuck to all that sticky mud. In total, there were an incredible 22 obstacles throughout the course.

We were obviously the most spirited team in the whole race =)

Luckily all this dirt, mud and sand was for a great cause. All proceeds from the event benefited the Whatcom County Boys & Girls Club, which offers programs that many Bramble Berry parents utilize. My better half, Chris, sits on their board and was named the Whatcom County Volunteer of the Year for the Boys and Girls Club; we were all thrilled to support this worthy cause.

A Super Soaper sloshes her way through a muddy river.

Taking a little swim!

There was no shortage of sand and sawdust to stick to all that mud.

A Super Soaper takes a quick break on a wall obstacle mid race.

Michelle, from shipping, got caught up in the suds right before the finish line.

Cassie and Nikki, from the warehouse, celebrate the end of the race. Everyone on Team BB completed the race in under an hour.

Lauren, a packer extraordinaire, shows off the strength that got her through the race.

Carla didn’t hesitate to dive into any muddy obstacles. She was the impromptu team leader and encouraged everyone to participate in the race.

Inna, Kari, Carla and Carla’s daughter Ember celebrate the end of the race before heading off to the showers.

Inna was covered in plenty of dirt and suds but still couldn’t help but smile.

After the race everyone took a much needed shower. Pretty soon though, the grass started to get muddy and everyone was dirty all over again.

Every racer got a free hot dog and drink at the end of the race. Team Bramble Berry relaxed in the beer garden with delicious beer provided by Boundary Bay Brewery.

Soapy Social Media Roundup

September 27, 2013 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

Welcome to the end of September, everyone! It seems like just yesterday it was summertime, and we’ve been taking advantage of the changing seasons by getting out and about as much as possible. We enjoyed an evening out on the beach and have been taking plenty of pre-dinner walks throughout our neighborhood. In fact, the changing scenery is what inspired our newest melt and pour project!

In Soap Crafting news, I am very excited to say that we’ve reached the number 1 selling book on Amazon in three categories: soapmaking books, candlemaking books and candlemaking Kindle ebooks. Myself and the team are overjoyed by this news, and I am so excited to share my passion with others through this book.

In baby news, a new Brambleberrian has joined our family! Our Social Media Manager, Kristen, gave birth to her first child, Ewan Montgomery Clawson on Saturday, September 21. Both momma and baby are healthy, and they stopped by the office yesterday to say hi. Ewan is so tiny, and it’s hard to believe that Lily was that small just a few short months ago! I was so awestruck and gobsmacked that I didn’t get one picture (!). She’s promised to stop by next week so expect a photo of the littlest Bramble Fan soon.

For now, sit back with a nice cup of hot apple cider and enjoy this week’s Soapy Social Media Round Up.

Pins:

Clockwise from top left:

You know the holidays are around the corner when you start seeing an influx of red and green-hued soaps, and this is one of my favorites so far. The red, which can be difficult to achieve in cold process, is absolutely stunning and I love the dusting of glittery mica on top.
How cute are these lace mason jars? I love burning candles in the fall and winter months, and this is a fun project with such an elegant result.
Timeless, classic and super chic, rose body products never go out of style, which is probably why I am in love with this Peppermint Rose Lip Balm. This recipe is super simple, and infusing the fresh rose petals is a great way to practice infusing oils, which is a technique I use all the time in various recipes.
The writing is (literally) on the wall — it’s fall! Thinking about hanging this cute little banner in the office somewhere to celebrate.

Instagrams and Vines:

It’s getting colder around here, but that didn’t stop us from creating this bright, flower-inspired cold process frosting recipe. Soap frosting is super fun and way easier to whip up (pun intended!) than it looks. Check out a tutorial we did for soapy cupcakes with frosting to try it for yourself.

Our first holiday inspired soap of the season! This is our Holiday Holly design, made in our Square Tray Mold and garnished with real Cranberry seeds.

Tweets:

This list of business (and life!) lessons from Bella Lucce is so inspiring. I love thinking about her first tip — passion is a great equalizer. Don’t let the fear of failure or the unknown scare you away from starting a business around something you love.
I could not believe this when I first saw it: an Odwalla Super Food smoothie has as much sugar as FIVE Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. How unbelievable is that? I love comparisons like this because they cause me to pause and examine all those “healthy” food claims.
This blog post shows that even some of the world’s most successful corporations still haven’t nailed down social media yet. Social media sites such as Pinterest aren’t just for posting pretty pictures (although how many hours have we all spent looking at pretty pictures on Pinterest!); they represent very real ways to build and maintain a loyal customer base.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone! To keep up with the latest soapy social media throughout the week, you can follow me on Twitter, Tumblr, Vine, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube.

Facebook Photo of the Week (September 20th ~ September 27th)

September 27, 2013 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

Another week has just passed and I’ve seen so many amazing soaps shared in our community. We just finished up our Soap Crafting Pinterest Post and I can’t wait to see your versions of the recipes from the Soap Crafting book. What an honor (!!). To see what other soapers are making, check out our Soap Crafting Board here. In the mean time, check out the Photo of the Week. It’s a sweet treat!

This week’s photo comes to us from James, owner of London Suds. He told us that the Blueberry Delight Fragrance Oil is a huge hit. In fact, this was the caption of his winning photo: “Just wanted to say that my London Suds customers are in LOVE with your Blueberry Delight fragrance!” We couldn’t agree more, and it’s one of our favorite dessert-type scents too.

If the grey-skies and rainy weather of fall get you down, try this fun summer blend during these winter months to bring a little pep and zest into your soapmaking: 2.5 parts Lime Fragrance Oil, 1 Part Pink Grapefruit and 2 parts Blueberry Delight. Thank you so much for being a part of our soapmaking community, James! We can’t wait to see where your business is going to take you. Be on the lookout for a special soapy package headed your way.

James’ Facebook Page: London Suds

James’ Website: London Suds

Post pictures of your soap creations on the Facebook page each week for a chance to be featured on the Soap Queen blog and receive a sweet soapy package from Bramble Berry.

Soap Challenge: Peacock Swirl

September 26, 2013 Filed Under: Cold Process Soap

I’m no stranger to making multiple batches of soap and perfecting recipes and techniques. It’s just part of soaping! However, the Peacock Swirl technique set a new record for me — we tried this recipe at least 6 times, resulting in more than 40 pounds of soap! Some of our batches didn’t quite make it, some of them allowed us to experiment with exciting new color palettes and some of them, after many attempts and several hours, actually turned out quite beautifully. This was all in the name of perfecting these awesome swirl tools, which makes creating the beautiful technique a breeze.

What You’ll Need:

20 oz. Coconut Oil

28 oz. Olive Oil

24 oz. Palm Oil

8 oz. Rice Bran Oil

11.2 Sodium Hydroxide

26.4 oz. distilled water

18-Bar Unfinished Birchwood Mold with Silicone Liner

Fragrance Blend of:

3.2 oz. Kumquat and 2 oz. Ginger Ale

Click here to add everything you need for this project to your Bramble Berry shopping cart!

Don’t want to make the oil blend from scratch? Consider purchasing our Swirl Quick Mix for this recipe. You’ll save time weighing and blending the oils while still getting the same great swirly result!

If you’ve never made Cold Process soap before, stop here! I highly recommend checking out our FREE four part SoapQueen.tv series on Cold Process Soapmaking, especially the episode on lye safety. And if you’d rather do some reading, Bramble Berry carries a wide range of books on the topic, including my newest book, Soap Crafting. You can also checkout the digital downloads for that instant gratification factor.

SAFETY FIRST: Suit up for safe handling practices! That means goggles, gloves and long sleeves. Make sure kids, pets, and other distractions and tripping hazards are out of the house or don’t have access to your soaping space. Always soap in a well-ventilated area.

COLOR PREP: Disperse 1 teaspoon of each pigment into 1 tablespoon of liquid oil (we like Sweet Almond or Sunflower). Prepping your colors in the beginning will allow you to work quickly and give you more time to work with your soap. Use the mini mixer to get all those clumps worked out smoothly.

FRAGRANCE PREP: In a glass container, combine the Kumquat and Ginger Ale Fragrance Oils. Give the mixture a good stir, and then set it aside.

TOOLS: This is the debut tutorial for two brand new soaping tools: the Comb Swirl Tool and the Easy Swirl Tool. You’ll use them in steps seven and eight to create the beautiful Peacock Swirl in just two motions. If you decide to order the new tools, please note that they will arrive fully assembled and ready for use in our 18 Bar Birchwood Mold. If you’d like to use them in a smaller mold, or rearrange the screws to create a different pattern, you can easily disassemble the whole tool and configure it to your specifications. Each tool is lovingly handcrafted in our Bellingham, Wash. warehouse, and just like all handmade items variations between products are normal.

ONE: Slowly and carefully add the lye to the water, and stir until clear. Set aside to cool. If you’d like a harder bar of soap that lasts longer in the shower, you can add Sodium Lactate to the cooled lye water. Use 1 teaspoon of Sodium Lactate per pound of oils in the recipe.

TWO: Melt and combine the Coconut, Olive, Palm and Rice Bran oils in a large glass container. Once the lye water and the oils have cooled to 130 degrees or below (and are ideally within 10 degrees of each other), add the lye water to the oils and stick blend until thin trace.

THREE: Once the batter has reached a thin trace, use a spatula or whisk to incorporate the fragrance blend.

FOUR: Fill four condiment bottles roughly two-thirds of the way full. Mix one colorant per bottle in the following measurements: 1 teaspoon disperse Fizzy Lemonade with 1/2 teaspoon Titanium Dioxide; 1 teaspsoon dispersed Aqua Peal with 1 teaspoon Titanium Dioxide; 1 teaspoon Ultramarine Blue with 1/2 teaspoon Titanium Dioxide; and 1 teaspoon Black Oxide. Securely fasten the cap, plug the opening with your finger and shake vigorously, releasing the tip away from your face.

FIVE: Pour the remaining batter into the mold. Tamp the mold several times on the table to ensure even coverage and disperse bubbles.

SIX: Now take your squirt bottles and pour thin, horizontal lines across the length of the mold until you reach the bottom. Repeat this process with the other colors, methodically layering one on top of the other in the same order and pattern. Do this until you’ve emptied all the colored squirt bottles.

SEVEN: Once you’ve layered all the colors, insert the Comb Swirl Tool at the top of the soap and slowly drag it downward. When you reach the end, pull it straight up and out of the soap so as not to ruin the pattern.

EIGHT: Now insert the Easy Swirl Tool into the soap. Be sure to drag it in the same direction you drug the Comb Swirl Tool. Gently move the tool from side to side, working your way down to the end of the mold. Take care to move the tool in a smooth, fluid motion. Ideally you should end up with rounded S curves that run down the length of the mold.

Spray the entire top with 91 or 99% Isopropyl Alcohol to reduce soda ash. Cover and insulate for 24 hours and unmold after 3-4 days, and allow to cure for 4-6 weeks. Enjoy your beautifully swirled Peacock Soap!

Thank you from Haiti

September 25, 2013 Filed Under: Business Musings

Earlier this year we featured a guest post by Amanda Griffin about her trip to Haiti. Amanda runs the Lovin’ Soap Blog, and it was inspiring to read about how she taught Haitian women to make soap and start the road to financial self-sufficiency. We’ve been waiting to hear more and are delighted to get more inspiration from Amanda. Beauty in Haiti, the name of her original project, has grown into the Lovin’ Soap Project, which is focused on creating female business leaders, educating girls and saving children’s’ lives from preventable diseases by making soap more available in their communities. The Lovin’ Soap Project is currently working on receiving 501(c)(3) status.

The Lovin’ Soap Project’s project mission is simple: empower women by giving them the tools to earn their own income. The journey began for Amanda in January 2013, when she took her first trip to Haiti and taught 30 women how make soap. When Amanda realized that soapmaking was a viable way for the women to make money to support themselves and their families, the project took off. Since the first trip, Amanda has returned to Haiti several times to teach more workshops and lead more women out of poverty and into running their own self-sustaining business.

The project is built on the Buy One Teach One model. With this model, every bar of soap purchased means the organization teaches a woman how to make soap and build a micro-business (similar to the Kiva model– which happens to be one of my favorite micro-lending organizations). Each one of these workshops comes with enough soap supplies to learn and begin producing. Bramble Berry is proud to have sponsored multiple workshops, providing most of the ingredients and tools (you can see our silicone molds below!) to get started.

In addition, Lovin’ Soap provides follow up and support until the business is handed-off to the women who then run the business independently. This model follows the logic of giving women a hand up instead of a hand out, and encourages independence, fosters a sense of dignity, creates a legacy mothers can pass onto their children and best of all, offers families a way out of poverty.

The Lovin’ Soap Project is not in this journey alone. They work closely with the OFEDA (Organisation des Femmes Devouees en Action) and HAPI – (Haitian Artisans for Peace International), two co-operative groups of women based in Haiti. OFEDA was founded after Haiti’s devastating earthquake in January 2010 by a group of Haitian women. However instead of using soapmaking as a way out of poverty, OFEDA group focuses on creating beautiful, handmade greeting cards. You can learn more about their organization here.

HAPI is a group of artisans working towards earning a just and fair wage. A majority of them have no regular incomes because jobs are not available in a region where bartering is the major form of commerce. This group helps to provide safe, healthy and fair working conditions for artisans, and you can learn more about them here.

As an independent business woman, I fully believe that self-employment is the way to go for a lifetime of rewards (not just financial). Amanda’s group combines my love of teaching and soap in a way that everyone can participate. I highly suggest clicking on the links to help support this group as they continue to teach women and girls around the world. To get involved with Lovin’ Soap or learn more about the project, visit their website.

All photos courtesy of Amanda Griffin/Lovin’ Soap Project.

Soothing Bath Soak with Oat and Lavender (video)

September 24, 2013 Filed Under: Soaks & Scrubs

In this quick little short I show how to make a lovely bath soak. It’s filled with skin-loving ingredients like Calendula, Lavender, and Colloidal Oatmeal. It’s so fast and easy to make you’ll never take a plain bath again!

Click here to get everything you need for this project added to your shopping cart!

To make this recipe you will need:

Last day of the Soap Crafting Pinterest Contest

September 23, 2013 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

It’s the last day to enter our Pinterest-iffic Soap Crafting Contest! We’ve already seen some fantastic pins, Instagrams and even a few book reviews of Soap Crafting. We can’t wait to see more, so show us what you’ve got, soapy friends!

Some of the entries we’ve received so far! Clockwise from left: Avocado Moisturizing Bar, the Juniper Berry Natural Infusion, the Linear Swirl and a Natural Colorants recipe.

Not sure what we’re talking about? You can check out the original blog post here, but we’ll also give you a refresher of the contest rules: today is the last day to pin your Soap Crafting-inspired projects to our Soap Crafting Pinterest Board. Be sure to include the hashtag ‘#soapcrafting’ with your entry. You can also Instagram your creations with the hashtag #soapcrafting and we’ll pin those onto the board too! To break it down:

We will repin your pins or pin your Instagram photos to our Soap Crafting Pinterest Board.
We will announce our three favorite projects in a blog post on September 30. The three winners will receive all the ingredients for one of the projects in the book.
We can’t repin your pins without the hastag #soapcrafting or pin your Instagram pics without the hashtag #soapcrafting, so don’t forget the hashtag!
You can follow me on Pinterest here or Instagram here. Search the hashtag ‘#soapcrafting’ to see what other soapers have created and fuel your own creativity!

That’s it! We can’t wait to see your take on the Soap Crafting projects.

Toddler Toilet Paper Roll Project

September 21, 2013 Filed Under: Home Crafts

Earlier this month Jamisen started preschool, and I can hardly believe he is almost three years old (sob). My (totally and completely not attainable) dream is to be a Pinterest Mommy so to help him get a jump start on learning, I’ve been searching Pinterest for fun, easy and affordable activities that involve his age range. We are focusing on learning shapes, colors and numbers, and I thought this tutorial would be absolutely perfect.

Jamisen couldn’t wait to help me make these colorful little tubes. He was thoroughly entertained with all the different sizes and colors for the entire project.

This is a really simple project that includes toilet paper rolls and construction paper. You can buy oragami paper that is the perfect size or you can cut your paper to size and either glue or tape it onto the toilet paper roll. I choose nine different colors to help Jamisen differentiate between each one. Developmental psychologist suggest that your child’s ability to recognize different colors starts to accelerate around 18 months, which is the same time kids begin to notice, shape, size and texture.

After you are done cutting, make sure to adhere the colored paper securely to the toilet paper roll. I used a glue stick coupled with Glue Dots on mine, but I’ve also seen it done with tape or a hot glue gun. Make sure they are fully dried and adhered before using.

Jamisen couldn’t wait to get his hands on these and immediately started filling them with puffy balls. We are trying to teach him his colors, but he seemed much more interested in seeing how many puffy balls he could get in one tube. I wanted him to match the puff ball colors to the colors on the tubes but that didn’t happen … (sigh).

Another way you can use these to help teach your children is by number matching. You can either write, draw or use number stickers on your tubes. Your kids can drop the matching numbers using beads, beans, or puffy balls in the tubes (Jamisen loved doing that!).

Jamisen is all about stacking anything he can get his hands on, and these tubes were no exception. The original post recommended cardboard circles to use as a base between each roll, but Jamisen was able to carefully steady each additional roll. Do you see the utter concentration in his eyes as he is carefully stacking each individual part of his colorful tower? He was so proud of how high he got each one and then giggled as they would fall down. He loved (loved loved!) to have Mommy stack them and then he would come and just whack ’em to knock them all over. I consoled myself that this was a good lesson on gravity and physics for him.

One of the big benefits of this easy and affordable project is the fact that you can work in so many activities. We found that color matching was a great game (with a little help from Mom and Dad of course), and had fun later that day using them as tube tunnels for his Matchbox cars and trucks. I would suggest this project to any parent with a toddler; it is an easy way to help them start learning at home.

Facebook Photo of the Week (September 13th ~ September 20th)

September 20, 2013 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

This week we’ve been inspired by the changing weather and temperatures in the Pacific Northwest. On Sunday we featured the super skin-loving Shea Butter, which can make your even winter-chapped skin feel luxurious. On Tuesday, our most recent melt and pour project reminded us of the stormy grey skies that accompany fall and winter. This week’s Facebook Photo of the Week continues our fall trend, so curl up next to a warm fire and enjoy!

This week’s photo comes to us from Kathy, owner of Sand Creek Soaps. She told us this was her first time using the delightful Almond Biscotti Fragrance Oil. To complement the amazing fragrance oil, she added some exfoliating Ground Walnut Shells as a special touch. If you want to make a fall-inspired scrubby soap, check out the Oatmeal Stout Cold Process Soap (the exfoliant is oatmeal) or even the Handmade Soap for the Gardener. I appreciate everyone who participates in our fantastic soapmaking community, and can’t wait to see what new ideas you come up with. Keep sharing your soapy creations with us on Bramble Berry’s Facebook page!

Kathy’s Facebook Page: Sand Creek Soaps

Post pictures of your soap creations on the Facebook page each week for a chance to be featured on the Soap Queen blog and receive a sweet soapy package from Bramble Berry.

Soap Challenge: Mica Topped Cold Process

September 19, 2013 Filed Under: Cold Process Soap

We’re hooked on the Great Cakes Soapworks Soap Challenges! They’re a great way to practice new techniques and learn from other soapers, and this particular challenge was all about finishing off the soap with a mica swirled top. It’s a relatively simple yet beautiful technique that adds the perfect finishing touch. For the base of the soap we did a simple spoon plop technique, which closely resembles the faux funnel pour. The good thing about the mica top technique is it can used with any cold process soap, no matter what technique was used in the base.

If you’d like to check out our other entries to the Soap Challenge, take a look at our Leopard Spot, Mantra Swirl or Elemental Swirl tutorials.

What You’ll Need:

33 oz. Swirl Quick Mix

4.5 oz. Sodium Hydroxide

11 oz. distilled water

1.1 oz. Blueberry Fragrance Oil

1.1 oz. Pineapple Cilantro Fragrance Oil

10″ Silicone Loaf Mold

Click here to add everything you need for this project to your Bramble Berry shopping cart!

Don’t want to buy the Swirl Mix or want to make a recipe up from scratch? I’d recommend at least 60% liquid oils and no more than 40% (total) of solid oils and butters to give yourself a long time to work with this intricate design.

COLOR PREP: Disperse 1 teaspoon of each pigment into 1 tablespoon of Olive Oil. Prepping your colors in the beginning will allow you to work quickly and give you more time to work with your soap. Use the mini mixer to get all those clumps worked out smoothly.

TWO: Melt the entire bag of Swirl Quick Mix and portion out 33 oz. in a large glass container. Once the lye water and the oils have cooled to 130 degrees or below (and are ideally within 10 degrees of each other), add the lye water to the oils and stick blend until thin trace. You can use any standard recipe with this design if you don’t have the Swirl Mix on hand but keep in mind that you need a lot of working time with multiple techniques.

TWO: Split the batch into two equal portions. Eyeballing it is okay! After the split, you should have about three cups of batter per container.

THREE: Add 3 teaspoons dispersed Titanium Dioxide to one cup and 1/2 teaspoon dispersed Black Oxide to the other. Mix the colorant into the batter with a wire whisk or spoon. After the colorant has been incorporated, mix the Pineapple Cilantro Fragrance Oil into the white batter and the Blueberry Fragrance Oil into the black batter.

FOUR: Using a spoon, start with the black soap and plop three spoonfuls into the mold. Do the same with the white soap, layering the spoonfuls on top of the black soap. Repeat this process until you’ve emptied both containers of batter.

SIX: Insert a chopstick or dowel about 1/2 inch into the top of the soap. Beginning in the top left-hand corner, make a figure eight pattern through the soap, working your way across the mold.

SEVEN: Using a dropper, drizzle the Aqua Pearl Mica across the top of the soap. We drizzled the mica in loop-de-loop swirls, but you can create your own design too!

EIGHT: Repeat the process with the Amethyst Purple Mica.

NINE: Once all the mica has been drizzled on the soap, use a chopstick or dowel to make small loop-de-loops across the length of the mold. When you reach the edge, begin your curve again and make a second set of loops under the first.

TEN: Spray the entire top with 91 or 99% Isopropyl Alcohol to reduce soda ash. Cover and insulate for 24 hours and unmold after 3-4 days, and allow to cure for 4-6 weeks and enjoy.

How to Handle Potassium Hydroxide

September 18, 2013 Filed Under: Tips & Tricks

When making soap from scratch, there’s one thing you just can’t avoid: lye. Without lye, your soap just isn’t soap! Working with lye may seem daunting at first, but if you learn proper handling techniques, take precautions and follow basic safety guidelines, there is no reason to fear it. You may be familiar with Sodium Hydroxide, which is used to make solid cold process soap, but today we’ll cover Potassium Hydroxide, which is used exclusively in liquid soap. Although the rules for working with Potassium Hydroxide are similar to working with Sodium Hydroxide, it is important to understand and recognize the differences. Plus, it’s always nice to have a general lye safety refresher! To learn more on general lye safety, check out this blog post.

Potassium Hydroxide is a type of lye specifically used to make liquid soap. It is also known as potash, lye or even KOH. This is the chemical that induces saponification of the fats and oils to create liquid soap. Even though making liquid soap is different than making bar soap, it’s still vitally important that you use the correct amount of lye in your recipe. Our lye calculator makes this easy and allows you to select liquid soap as an option.

Potassium Hydroxide is hygroscopic (meaning it attracts moisture), so be sure to keep it in a sealed container in a cool dry place. If you leave it in an open container for even a day, it can attract enough moisture to throw off its weight enough to ruin a recipe. If you leave it out for an extended period of time, it can attract enough moisture from the air in the room to turn completely liquid. When handling Potassium Hydroxide, give it the same safety considerations as you would with Sodium Hydroxide. It is a hazardous material, and being educated about safe handling practices is key when handling Potassium Hydroxide. As with any other type of lye, Potassium Hydroxide will emit some fumes, so be sure to soap in a well-ventilated area.

Always add your lye to your water, and never the other way around. Adding water to lye can cause a volcano-like reaction. Unlike Sodium Hydroxide, Potassium Hydroxide reacting with water makes a faint crackling or groaning sound — a somewhat subtle version of adding milk to Rice Krispies cereal.

When working with lye water, wear goggles that protect your eyes from all sides because alkali burns can cause blindness. If you wear glasses, check your local hardware store for goggles that are big enough to fit over them. Always wear an apron and gloves. Rubber dish gloves are great, but if they’re too bulky you can use thinner latex gloves. Pair your gloves with long sleeves because the less exposed skin you have, the better. Finally, use a heat safe container to hold your lye water, and use silicone or stainless steel tools to stir (no wood). Never use any tools or bowls containing aluminum as that will create highly flammable hydrogen gases. Remember that when Potassium Hydroxide is mixed with water, it produces a reaction that heats the water up substantially, making it all the more important to mix lye in a heat safe container.

Never leave your lye water (or lye) unattended or in an place where children or pets may come in contact with it. It only takes a few seconds for an accident to happen! If you do need to leave the lye unattended for whatever reason, cover the container with a piece of plastic wrap and use a sticky note to clearly label it as a hazard.

If there is an accident:

If swallowed: Rinse mouth with water and drink one or two class of water. Do not induce vomiting! Immediately get medical attention or call your poison control center at 1-800-222-1222.

If in eyes: Immediately flush eyes with water. Remove any contact lenses and continue to flush eyes with water for at least 20 minutes. Immediately get medical attention or call your poison control center at 1-800-222-1222.

Lye water on skin: Wipe solution from skin and remove any contaminated clothing. Flush skin with plenty of water for at least 15 minutes and then wash thoroughly with soap and water. Contact a physician or call your poison control center at 1-800-222-1222.

Raw soap on skin: Even after it has been mixed with oils, lye can still be dangerous. If exposed skin comes in contact with raw soap batter, flush with water for 5 minutes and then wash thoroughly with soap and water.

Just like any tool, Potassium Hydroxide can be used safely and carefully to create wonderful liquid soaps for personal or business use. Use it responsibly.

What are you experiences working with Potassium Hydroxide? Let us know your best tips and tricks to work with it in the comments below!