Winter Solstice Soap

Today is the shortest day of the year. To celebrate the solstice, I thought I would make some new soap. Surprise!
I broke out of my hot process mode and made a cold process Sea Salt bar of coconut milk, coconut oil, avocado oil and castor oil and as much sea salt as oils. I scented this batch with Tahitian flowers, mango and melon essences. I colored the soap a cheery tangerine color. I sliced it up and placed the pieces on top of my credenza to cure for the next 4 weeks.
This type of soap gets very hard, very fast. The sea salt soap is much beloved and revered by some, and disliked by others. I like the salt soaps in the summer if I have suffered insect bites. I find the salt clears the sting and bites fast.
I have christened this batch "Figi Sea Salt Bars".
Can you tell that I am dreaming of the tropics?
Next up, I made another soap with lots of coconut milk, palm oil, castor oil and cocoa butter. The cocoa butter has that delicious aroma of chocolate, which worked nicely with the French Vanilla scent I concocted. I added nutmeg essential oil, lemon & myrrh.
I attempted a pale blue swirl with a touch of iridescent mica, but I don't know how that will turn out. I will find out when I unmold the batch tomorrow. I am anxious to try the coconut milk soaps. More experimentation going on - I have used coconut milk as an additive, but now I am subbing it for my distilled water. Stay tuned...
In honor of the first day of winter, I am posting some photos of the hot process soap I have been churning out
lately:

Above is a beeswax and honey hot process soap. The bar on the left is unscented and smells divine. The bars on the right were scented with rosewood essential oil and Turkish Rose of Otto. Curiously, the rosewood bars are not as perfumed as the unscented. Go figure?

Above is "Snow White", a pure olive oil soap. No scent or color. Lovely. My photo is a tad out of focus...must have been that pearly white blinding me! This soap will take a good 4 months to cure even though it was hot-processed. With castile-type soaps (olive oil), the longer the cure, the better the bar. Castile might be the perfect bar if aged well. Perhaps a year will do it. Seriously.

This is my hot processed "Gingerbread Soap" with Blackstrap Molasses, colloidal oats and a bit of cocoa. This soap is nice and hard. I like the faint swirl in the body of the bar. I added some vanilla (just like the bread recipe) and that usually turns soap dark. It is a good thing in soap. Think of the the vanilla bean, or the vanilla extract used in cooking...dark and delicious.

Last, but not least, here is my "Winter" soap that was as fussy as a prima donna. I added so much shea butter to this batch that I will be fortunate if it fully cures before next fall! It is a vanilla scented soap with tangerine to brighten it up a bit. I even rebatched this soap which accounts for the marbling appearance of the colors. See the tiny bit of gold mica on the tops?

I love the way these hot process soaps appear rustic. You can recognize the process by the distinct look of the soap. Most of the cold process soaps appear silkier and smoother and can be swirled like divinity.

Well - I like 'em both! Come on. We all know that I am a soap addict.

Happy Yule and Winter Solstice everyone!

In Beauty, Peace & Love...

The way I create soap...

Above is a photo of my assistant, Rambo, awaiting the next batch of soap. He looks tired, doesn't he?  We have been working very hard to fill orders. Our partner-in-business, Chandra, also pitches in. We depend on Chandra for his invaluable help, primarily the marketing, sales and public relations end. He also whips up batches of cold process soap when needed (no small feat). Chandra is responsible for the photos and documentation of our products. What would we do without him?!
There is another show coming up on Saturday, November 7 in Valley Ranch. The facility is at the corner of Valley Ranch Parkway and MacArthur in Irving. This show benefits the USO, a very worthy cause. Please stop by! Price of admission is a child's book. The show is from 9 - 4 this Saturday. Stop by and say hello!  We have some new "birthstone soaps" to unveil. They are quite lovely. In fact, I am bedazzled by them! Special pricing for these soaps! Get them while they are available!
Rambo, Chandra and I need to have some coffee, or a nap. Rambo thinks that he needs a snack, or a dozen, or two dozen....

I make handmade soaps with premium ingredients that are beneficial to skin and senses. My soap is designed, made, cut and packaged by hand - from start to finish.
The cold process soaps start with food grade oils and fats, preferably organic. From there, I add various luxury ingredients such as exotic butters (mango, shea, avocado, almond) and  amendments to enhance the particular recipe at hand. Some amendments include calendula, rose petals, French clays, coffee, green tea leaves, herbs, honey, yogurt, nuts, seeds, oats. All of these additional items are carefully chosen to enhance and enrich the soap's purpose and meaning.
The soap is aged from 1 - 24 months to ensure mildness. The cold process soaps are usually made in limited editions of very small batches (1-2 lbs). These soaps can be custom-ordered, allowing enough time for the cure (minimum of 1 - 2 months).
Most of my soaps are suitable for vegans, as the base is typically olive, coconut and other food grade vegetable oils. I also make milk-based soaps (goat, cream, half and half). There is also a lard-based recipe that is excellent for winter use (non-vegetarian).
Personally, I find myself returning to that last soap again and again in the bath. It is "old fashioned" with lard, olive and coconut oil, oatmeal and orange oil. I cut it into oversized wedges, like an oat and honey cake. It is nice to have on hand.

For special occasions, I will produce novelty soaps that are usually glycerin-based, melted and poured into molds. There are many themes to choose from - angels, peace, holiday, valentine's day, Celtic (see above photo of Celtic Knot), gardening soaps, floral, wine grapes, gemstones, sea salt and crystal birthstone/geode soaps. I have wine and chocolate soaps ( a romantic choice for St. Valentine's Day), as well as beer soap for St. Patrick's Day. I typically have fun with this last soap by using Irish stout, goat's milk and Irish oats! Very good for the skin!
If you have a particular event in mind, I can suggest some soap varieties. These soaps usually have a 1-2 week turnaround, depending on the amounts ordered.
What you will not find in my soap: Sodium Laureth Sulphate, Sodium Lauryl Sulphate, Artificial Colours, Propylene Glycol and Parabens. I use natural and food grade colorings. I use essential oils for scent, but sometimes the cold process "eats" up the some of the pricey essential oils at an alarming rate. Then, I may turn to fine, yet skin-friendly fragrances for a stronger scent.
None of the soaps are ever tested on animals, although Rambo tries to nibble the packaging from time to time (especially if it is shiny).The soaps are put to the test on Chandra and myself. The dogs and cats get shampooed with the products after quality control. The cold process Triple Mint with mint leaves and parsley swirls is especially good for summer. The pets enjoy the emollient properties of an Oat (both rolled oats and colloidal) Cake with honey, citrus and emu oil (not for vegetarians!) in the cooler months.
All of these fine products are made in America.

Please visit my weblog:
http://criticalalchemy.blogspot.com/

A true confession ....

I will let you in on a well-kept secret: my love is.....a luxury bar of cold process soap! The bills can mount up, the house can be falling apart, my mood can swing like a pendulum, but throw me in a tub or a shower with a bar of great soap and I am ready for the revolution!

A little background: cold process soap is Grandma's old fashioned lye soap. Lye + fat = soap. I make my soap from scratch the same way as Grandma did, but in limited, small, artisan batches. After aging for a few months to a few years (yes!), the soap is turned out in rustic slices. The aging gives creamy lather and mildness and assures a long-lasting bar.

My soap has a few contemporary additions that Grandma's did not have - luxury butters (think shea, avocado, mango, almond), organic and food grade vegetable oils like olive oil. sunflower oil, grapeseed oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, almond oil, I like adding ground vanilla beans, dark chocolate, white chocolate, ground almonds, heavy cream, various milks, honey- you get the point. I am also fond of sparkling micas, French clays and exotic essential oils.

This soap looks good enough to take a bite of (like the bar pictured above), but please do not eat the soap!

The soap slice above is a triple lemon soap with poppy seeds and lemon peel. The fragrance is lemon, lemongrass, lemon verbena and some other secret essential oils.
This soap is good, People! And good for you!!

Image above is of a goat milk and almond soap slice. With ground almonds tossed in for gentle exfoliation, this is a mild, creamy bar of goodness. Very lightly fragranced, this soap would be a great complexion soap. Speaking of complexions, I only use my own soap. My skin is highly sensitive (think "redhead"). I started making soap out of sheer desperation (and vanity).
I am passionate about making my soap!
The possibilities and endless combinations are artistic and pleasurable to me. The pricing of these soaps is affordable too. Once you use a good bar of real soap with wholesome ingredients and non-irritating fragrance, you may toss even your chemical-laden body washes!
Now, I control what goes on my face and body (no preservatives or chemicals!!) - and at the risk of tooting my own horn, my skin has never looked nor felt better.

Now - hand me my soap and scrub brush - I am going in!!

Let the revolution begin!!