Soap Lily: 5-8-15 Testing Some Fresh New Scents

#coldprocesssoap #homemadesoap #testingnewfragrances

Friday, May 8, 2015

On this particular day (and yes, I realize that I'm very past due posting this...), I - Alison - was flying solo in the soap kitchen, as Kath was out of town. We have several 1 oz. sample bottles of different fragrance oils - too little to do a whole batch, but we really didn't want to spend money on a huge bottle until we found out if we liked it. Some might say we're frugal, others might say cheap. We're cool with either...

The FOs and the colors that I chose to go with them are shown above:

Watermelon Punch from Aztec and Ooh La La Mica from +Rustic Escentuals

Light Blue (my favorite cologne) and Cornflower Celebration Mica both from +Rustic Escentuals

Amazon Mist with Pistachio Mica both from +Rustic Escentuals

Sherlock Homie from +Natures Garden and Toffeelicious Mica from +Rustic Escentuals.

I worked out a recipe that I thought would be a good blend of oils. It included Olive, Coconut, Palm, Grapeseed, Avocado, and Castor.

The above photo just gives you an idea of how many times I reformulated my recipe until I had it the way I wanted it. I LOVE soapcalc!

Above are the colors after I mixed them with a bit of safflower oil.

No silk or other additives in this batch. I just wanted to test the fragrances.

I knew I would be dividing the batter into four parts and would need time to get each fragrance ready without having the batter get too thick. So, I wanted a light trace, but I think I went more to medium. No biggie! It still felt fine to me at this point.

I developed the recipe so I could divide it into four equal parts with each part needing one ounce of fragrance (since we had 1 oz bottles of FO). Yay, Math! And I know kids who say they'll never use math. HA!

I added the Watermelon Punch to the first 1/4 of the batter. Aztec describes the fragrance as follows: Fresh orange adds fruity pop to this classic summer fruit scent. Sugared watermelon gets natural sensations from a blend of green tones for the fragrance signature. A hint of berry finishes the blend. Top - orange, fruity, juicy; Middle - watermelon, green; Bottom - berry, sugary.

Seriously - YUM!!

I poured a small layer of non-colored batter into the bottom of the mold (because I wanted to see if the FO would discolor the soap), then I colored a portion of the batter with the mica, swirled them together and poured the swirl on top of the uncolored batter. I used this same process with each fragrance.

Into the next 1/4 of the batter went the Light Blue Type FO. Rustic describes it as follows: This scent was introduced by Dolce & Gabbana in 2001. A sparkling, lively scent with juicy Granny Smith apple, Sicilian citron, jasmine, white rose, Asian bamboo, cedar wood and amber.

I will tell you that straight out of the bottle I was not excited. It really did not smell at all like the cologne that I love. I shouldn't have judged it too quickly, though. Once I mixed it into the soap batter, it was divine. I really love this fragrance.

In the background you can see where I poured a small amount of non-colored batter into the mold. In the foreground I am pouring the blue batter back into the white to swirl them together before adding it to the mold.

By the time I got to the 3rd 1/4 of the batter, it was getting stiff. See how the spatula stands straight up in it?

Not to worry. Once I mixed in the FO, the batter loosened up just great and it was very easy to work with. +Rustic Escentuals describes Amazon Mist as follows: Amazon Mist transports you to the depths of the jungle of adventure and excitement. The moist fragrance of fresh dew, alive with hints of flower gardens, exotic herbs, green grass, rain drops and light earthy tones. Reminiscent of Herbal Essences. This truly is a transporting fragrance.

LOVE it!

Again, small amount of uncolored into the mold first, then color a portion of the batter before swirling it and adding it to the mold. The Pistachio Green Mica is so gorgeous!

By the time I got to the final 1/4 of the batter, it had truly thickened up. But again, once I stirred in the FO, it loosened up just great. No troubles at all.

Into the last portion went the Sherlock Homie FO from +Natures Garden. I have images of Benedict Cumberbatch dancing through my mind, but Nature's Garden describes the FO as follows: a mysterious blend of watery notes with secret spices surrounded by precious woods. Top: Cucumber, Lemon, Lime, Ozone, Grapefruit Mid: Neroli, Cumin, Coriander Base: Musk, Patchouli. It is a yummy masculine scent - really! Mr. Cumberbatch can continue to dance!

Above shows the batter with Toffeelicious Mica added to it just as I am swirling it back into the uncolored portion of the batter.

Leftover batter went into our silicone molds. Ladybugs for Watermelon Punch, Butterflies for Light Blue Type, and Bumblebees for Amazon Mist. I couldn't bear to put Sherlock Homie into some cutsie bug design, so that left over batter went into the small square shapes. Much more masculine, right?

The above photo shows all four soaps in their molds. Love the colors! Love the fragrances! Today was a homerun! It will be interesting to see how they progress as the soap cures.

Now the fun part (NOT!)

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Saturday, May 9, 2015

I really should have waited one more day to take the soaps out of the molds because they were still a bit soft, but Kathy was still out of town, and I knew I would not be able to get back to the soap kitchen, so I went ahead and unmolded.