Soaping update

Three week update on my first batch of soap that was then rebatched into this
The color has richened deeeeply into a dark, DARK brown.

The smell remains ABSOLUTELY amazing, but due to the high HIGH amount of Dark Rich Chocolate fragrance added in comparison to the Turkish Mocha, it resembles chocolate more-so, with an underlying mocha.  Did you know that in rebatched soap, you don't need to add as much fragrance as in the initial cold process (CP) soap?  So, yes folks... these bars pack a whopper of smells!!!!!

Two little slivers of edging had been cut off the ends, and being almost three weeks into curing, I jumped into testing the soap out yesterday!

NOTE:  Go EAAAAASY on the coffee grounds, folks!  This most definitely is going to be a soap I keep in the kitchen, which is typically where we wash up after being outside in the garden.  The coffee grounds are an EXCELLENT exfoliating and scrubbing additive!

Recall: 1/4 cup of grounds had been added to the 850g batch

Three week UPDATE on the original FIRST-EVER bar of soap, made by yours truly:  

There were a few things that lead me to rebatching my first soap...

#1)  There was a concerning 'off' odor, almost like spoiled milk, that the bars had.  Uggghers!  {{Come to find out, that odor was nothing to be concerned with.  The one lil' bar I kept no longer had the odor about 2 weeks into curing.}}

#2)  The cuts were horrendous!  Check out the rebatch post to see if you agree!

#3)  Jeni, my soaping MENTOR, dropped off an old 2 lb mold she no longer used AND a small collection of fragrance oils she wasn't interested in.  I mean---hel-LO!  It was like divine intervention!  I HAD to play with a rebatch!!!!!

Anyway---that one lil' bar I kept out of the rebatch has now reached its three-week old birthday.  It was time for a test-run!!!!!

This was a simple recipe of 30% coconut oil and 70% olive oil, with the additive of coffee grounds.

Lathered and bubbled decently;  no burning;  a bit 'drying' sensation about 15 minutes after washing (I've read that high amounts of coconut oil may cause this, therefore suggestions say to keep coconut oil amounts <=30%).

After placing it in the soap holder and picking it back up a minute or two later, there was almost a slime-like appearance to it, but after another 10 minutes of drying, it was back to a muted, solid bar of soap.  

No other soaps have been test-run yet; they (not-so?) patiently await their turn...

Caitlyn's Lemon Energy yogurt soap

Spiced Amber Ale yogurt soap
(with parsley flakes)

Oatmeal & Honey yogurt soap

Ginger Patchouli Oatmeal & Honey yogurt soap

Cherry Explosion yogurt soap
(my first experience of a soap partially gelling -- I'm not a fan)

Ginger Patchouli Oatmeal & Honey soap [Rebatch soap]

Continuing on my soap-making adventure...

Some research was done about incorporating oatmeal and honey into soap (it's actually quite simple), and how to naturally color soaps without dyes, clays, or even proclaimed "natural" soap colors.

The game plan...

The result...

Yes, it's quite pretty;  overall I'm pleased with using spices and other true natural colorants to soap, but.....

This screams a bit more like "Spiced Pumpkin," instead of "Oatmeal and Honey" to me, wouldn't you say???

SO.....

A rebatch was planned.

Using the microwave method...

All but one bar was grated into a microwavable-safe glass bowl.  The soap weighed about 2.5 pounds as it entered the microwave.  ONE Tbs of milk was also added.

This is FRESH CP soap;  it was made up two days ago, so the melting of this rebatch didn't take much time at all.

In minute-long spurts, the final 'melting' lasted 4 minutes.

After the last minute, 12g of Ginger Patchouli fragrance oil (a sample from Brambleberry with my last order) was added and mixed well.

OH WOW!  LOVE this fragrance!!!!

Spooning the sloppy mixture into the mold did lend a few difficulties, and I feared a few air-pockets would be prevalent.  However, this afternoon, the unmolding was seemingly unceremonious.

OH MY GOODNESS!  This Ginger-Patchouli sample fragrance from Brambleberry -- nailed it!  What an amazing smell!  By no means is my nose a fragrance connoisseur (is that word used for fragrances???), but...

there's an underlying musky fragrance (the patchouli, most likely) -- AMAZING!!!!  HUGE hit!  Can't wait to cut this and for the bars to cure!

TWO-WEEK UPDATE

The rebatched Ginger Patchouli is two weeks into curing.  It's softer than the original bar of Oatmeal & Honey; I suppose that's due to the lil' amount of milk added to the rebatch.

The smell----- oh yuppers, folks!  Brambleberry found a new customer for the Ginger Patchouli fragrance oil!

Ginger Patchouli Oatmeal & Honey yogurt soap -- 2 weeks after rebatching

And the original bar of the Oatmeal & Honey yogurt soap....
The tumeric color has calmed down quite a bit from the 'spiced orange' look.  I'm glad I saved one bar from heading into the rebatch -- the subtle honey fragrance is soft, and actually a bit too light (for me).  When I use the Honey fragrance oil next, I'll either increase the amount or mix it with another fragrance

Original Oatmeal & Honey yogurt soap -- 2 weeks of curing