WHAT a GLORIOUS disaster! From time to time I have to simply sit back and admire the grandeur of the mess, the mighty mighty mess, that I am often capable of creating. Yes, it was on accident of course, but wow, what a ride. I have to admit, when I was in the middle of the downhill turn on this particular soap pour, I wasn't all grins and giggles about it. I, was in fact, rather sad because I was using my favorite of favorite scents (Sandalwood) and I had added a bit (just a touch) of Caribbean Teakwood to add just enough of a coastal smell. I was going to call the bar "Sand" or "Surf" I hadn't decided. Now, I guess if I was truly honest with myself, I could call "Rice Krispie Treats Smothered in Maple Syrup" because that is exactly what it turned out to resemble. What do you think? Yes?
If you know me at all, and you should by now, you would know that I am the biggest goofball this side of the Pecos. I am by far the least tech wizard you'll find, and I could also be described as a royal dork! I am just not the best at really anything, but I do pride myself at being at least able to handle my own in the kitchen. Well, as it turns out, the kitchen may be where I succeed when I cook or bake, but when it comes to following soap recipes I have a bit more learning to do -- or just maybe I'll not learn more, and just give it a rest for a good while until I can find another reason to pick it back up again. Christmas, birthdays, anniversaries, you know, reasons like that. I don't need to actually make a bunch of money on the soaps I make, not after I sell the last of my success stories.
This mess was brought to you via me (Jude) trying to skip a corner or two, and not really doing the needed research to do that. I'm like most people, I'm rather impatient, and since I've convinced myself that I already know most of everything there really wasn't a really good reason to do any research! I mean C'mon, how hard can it be to substitute palm oil in a recipe for solid soap? The little research I did manage to read between bites of my ham and avocado sandwich, led me to believe that using more avocado oil (good choice usually) was an excellent substitute....but maybe I wasn't supposed to use as much as I did. I'm not saying that out right mind you, but the fact that I could literally pour the oil off the soap after it sat for 24 hours in the molds makes me think that yeah....maybe, I did not do it the way a professional soapster may have completed the task....but only MAYBE.
There was so many other issues rather than just the extended overuse of avocado oil. I decided to use less hardener as well because the batch I made the night before was too hard. Granted, the batch I made the night before had palm oil, and it also had more mango butter than this batch. I used a brand of fragrance oil that I hadn't used before, and or but there was a reason for that too! I had ordered the Sandalwood from two other places and the shipments have yet to arrive. Soap takes 18-22 days to cure! I was already behind on the Valentine's orders, so yeah, I just sort of ... fudged it. I used WAY, (WAY) too much of the Arabian Sandalwood from Aroma Depot, and RIGHT THERE on the bottle I had a warning about doing just that. I promise, I do know HOW to read...but I'm just well, you know.
Way too much avocado oil, way too much Arabian Sandwood (just a touch of Caribbean Teakwood nothing went wrong there) but yeah, then I think I may have added the lye water at a temperature that could have maybe caused the bubbling and the guey gloppy thing that sort of took over and made a ball of brain matter in the pot. I did the ultimate no-no, and used the electric hand mixer to try to even things out. LOL...if you're a soap maker you're laughing right now. If you're not, you can just start laughing and feel like you're in the right to do so. I was the problem from the beginning, the soap had nothing to do with its demise.
Well, here before you is the end result. I let it sit in the silicone molds as long as I could really because I need them to make a good batch of something tonight. I cut the loaves after I scraped off what appeared to be chicken fat but was really just the guts of the event. I cut the loaves into pieces and they are now taking their 18-21 day rest before being hauled off into little packages to friends and family with a bow or something to try and make them seem more appealing. I could actually lie and say I planned it this way, and give each recipient of my master disaster a box of Rice Cereal and a jar of marshmallow cream! I could do that. I could pretend it was preplanned, organized, and precisely accomplished, but then I'd have to give up the fun of kicking myself in the backside! I need a good boot from time to time.
There you go! I'm so freaking human! Just proved it again.
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