Soap Making Part 1-Gathering the Materials Needed

 

It has been a couple years since I made soap. A few years ago they took the lye off the market and I had to stop but now thanks to Patti telling me about Rooto Chrystals, I am again able to make soap. However, making soap is not something you take lightly, you have to have all the right materials to do it with. 

First I had to familiarize myself with the whole process again. Frankly, I had forgotten how to do it. So off to the soap making sites I went. Reading, reading, reading and reading some more. A few things had changed, others hadn't. Things I had always been told like using vinegar if you got lye on you, are now considered wrong. Also not everyone is using lard now. I always disliked the smell that lard gave the homemade soaps so my first soap this time I will try without lard. I found lots of recipes and familiarized myself with the soap calculator again. I still don't feel quite ready and I'll be reading up on it some more before I attempt to make any. 

I also needed to collect up some things: a new thermometer, some rubber gloves, oil and a few fragrance oils. Other things I found I still had: the molds I used to use, some soap coloring and fragrance. I also have a digital postal scale this time which I am sure will help a lot. I went looking for a stick blender (my old soap making one burnt out --no one had told me to shut it off and stir when it got hot). When I had made soap before you could buy one for $9.99 in Wal-mart, now they want $24. Needless to say, my first batch may be stirred by hand (unless I can find one in one of the Dollar stores or the thrift store). 

So I am just about prepared. I have an apron and will collect safety glasses from Phil. The only thing I need now is time to make it. I guess that will have to wait until the weekend :(