Sunday, November 24, 2013

Saponification Sunday: Fugly Soap



 

 

Fugly...as in Freakin' Ugly , soap is on the menu today. And there is no good excuse. No tornadoes this week to distract me. No lack of basic soaping skills (that could be debated), more so just rushing through the process again.

This soap which is fondly called Billy Bob soap is a favorite of one of my customers. Made with 4-5 colors that are to be gently spooned into the mold after scenting the soap with a great combo of Essential Oils, it is a good soap inside and out. Most of the time.

This time however...well, the inside is still good.

 
 

The outside failed me or more accurately; I failed it. I did not wait until the lye water was cool which then caused the soap to get thicker too fast. This meant that instead of gently spooning the five different colors into the mold, I ended up THROWING the soap spoonful by spoonful into the mold.

And due the concrete like consistency, I had to slam the mold hard on the counter to get the soap to settle well. The thick soap combined with the hard slams left a few air bubbles in the finished product. Not to mention the evolution of some gentle waves into some big ugly globs.

 
 

But the good news was this. The EO's I used, a combination of lavender, lemongrass, pink grape fruit,and  amyris left the fugly soap with the same wonderful scent my Billy Bob soap always ends up with.

You would think after over three years of making soap on a weekly if not more often, basis, I would learn that rushing never results in a well crafted product.

You would think.

So what can one do with Fugly Soap? Here are my top ten
 
     1. Cut into tiny pieces, throw into crockpot and rebatch. Final result will range from a masterpiece
     soap that looks like expensive granite to just another bunch of fugly soap. If so go to step 2.

     2. Grate it all up. And for every one cup of grated soap, add one cup each of baking soda,
     washing soda and borax. Mix well. You've just made laundry soap

     3. Chop into small pieces and fill a plastic bottle half full with the soap chunks and fill the rest
     of the container with hot water. You have just made dish soap.

     4. Cut the bars into chunky pieces measuring 4 inches long and 1 inch thick. You have just made
     laundry stain remover sticks

     5. Grate up the soap and for every cup of grated soap add one cup Epsom Salts and one cup
     medium grind sea salt , along with a few more drops of essential oil for scent. Mix well. You
     have just made a fabulous foot scrub.

      If those suggestions are too high end for you try one of these solutions

     6. Gift the bars as is to all your blind friends.

     7. Gift the bars to those in your family who always want all your stuff for free. This might stop
     future requests.

     8. Cut the bars into perfect 3 inch squares. Top with Cool Whip and serve as "Individual
     Cheesecakes" to those family members who gave you Bear Claw Slippers for Christmas last year.

     9. Hide the bars in the back of your underwear drawer. Your things will smell great and when
     you finally clean out your dresser five years from now you'll find them, compare them to the
     gorgeous soap you'll be making in the future and feel really good about yourself.

     10. Give them to your husband to use. As long as they don't smell like dead wish, he'll use them
     and tell you how wonderful they are. You know how he is.

12 comments:

  1. Yep. Been there. I hate it when it gets too hard way too fast. I feel like I'm throwing the soap in the mold, too!
    So I have always let the lye water get within 10 degrees of the oils - usually at 90-100 degrees. Do you let the lye water cool to room temperature? That would be interesting to try. I was taught to soap with both at the same temp, but I know there are LOT'S of ways to soap!
    I'm so glad the scent turned out well - it sounds like a really great combination!

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    1. On a good day, when patience rules, I soap when the lye water is cool to touch (on the outside of the pitcher) and the oils are close to the same. I do not ever measure the temp.of either one anymore. I know full well when the lye water is too hot but sometimes I just like to gamble!

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  2. Glassmakers in the UK used to make something called 'Friday night glass'. They would take all the week's leftovers and make something to sell, or give, to their friends. Your soap could easily be called 'Friday night soap'.

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  3. I'd love some of that Friday Night glass. I'd make a lovely door of it for my new house. In the meantime this shall forever be known as Friday Night Soap

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  4. What's really fun is when you are doing a squeeze bottle design and already have the soap in bottles when it does that. Not fun!!!

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    1. Lois, is that when you unscrew the tops and madly squeeze the entire bottle with both hands?!? Folks have no idea the emotional pain and turmoil that's goes into making a bar of soap. We should all raise our prices to $20 a bar. We won't sell any but we'll feel better. Thanks for dropping by!

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  5. This post really made me laugh. I have a friend that buys my fuglies at raw cost. She doesn't care what it looks like, but she loves handmade soap. My husband, as well, gets lots of the fuglies.

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    Replies
    1. My sisters get my experiments as well. Hope they are not reading this post or their Christmas surprise will be ruined.

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  6. Laughing. Love #9 & 10, especially. I think the soap is pretty cool actually. Looks like the ocean when you go underwater.

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    Replies
    1. Susan, love your view of the world. I think now I must change my soap name (again) to "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea"

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  7. I apparently lack a sense of aestethics, because i love your fugly soap. I decided to use up all the soap i have on hand before buying more and am working my way through a bottle of body wash (I used to use this when i played hockey at a rink 30 minutes from home and would shower after my game before leaving). My skin is as dry as the Sahara, and think i'll cave and buy handmade soap before too long.

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  8. OMG, I snorted cola through my nose reading your blog. As a fellow on the edger, I can totally relate. Soap making is on my list of "to learns" and I will adhere to your suggestions when my fugly soap comes to fruition. Cuz if my last experiences are any indication, fugly will appear. Thank you for your truth and humor. Awesome!

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