Behind the Scenes: SOAP! (pic heavy)

So I decided to make 6 batches of soap the other day and thought I would bring along my camera to give you a behind the scenes look at what happens when I'm doing what I do.  This is one day that I wish I'd had about 3 more hands though because it's not easy to make soap and photograph yourself while doing so which is why only my parts of my hands are in the pictures! :0)

First, I start by measuring all my oils and butters and then mixing my lye water for all the batches. 

Here's the oils/butters measured into a stainless steel bowl.

After several minutes on the stove top they are melted.

I then add the lye water to the oils/butters and beging using a stick blender to combine the two. 

(Look there's part of my hand) 

Once the two are combined the mixture becomes a creamy white color. 

This is Creamy Orange Coconut, so I've made a mixture of yellow and red oxides to create a dark orange color.  Then I add it to the soap.

Stick blend some more........

Stick blend together until evenly colored

Add fragrance oil.  Sometime I do it before I color if I know that the fragrance oil is going to make the color of the soap funky so I have to adjust from there.  Stick blend until a light trace begins. (Trace is when the stick blender begins to leave grooves in the mixture while you are stirring. Kind of like when you make whipped cream and it begins to firm up). Different fragrances oils make soap "trace" faster or slower than others. So I always do tests before make a complete batch.

Poor soap into a lined mold (my molds are wooden - thanks Dad!!!) 

I like to leave it sit for a few minutes so it firms up a bit so I can give it a swirly top! 

I use a wire whisk to create swirls on the top.  Then I set it in the oven to gel.

 This is French Vanilla - went to quick to take pics during.

This is Oakmoss being blended together.  

This is Oakmoss getting a swirly top! 

This is Lemongrass getting an in the pot swirl! 

Lemongrass on top and Pure Rain on the bottom.  I did not take pics of Pure Rain because it's multiple layers and the soap was firming up before I got the second layer on so it was a rush situation! 

Orange Sherbet - everything is ready to go in the big bowl.  The small bowl has the white portion that I set aside earlier to add as a reverse swirl in the soap! 

Orange Sherbet swirled up and ready to go in the oven! 

So that's it!  That's how I make soap or at least the very quick not a lot of time to take more detailed pictures version!   Hope you enjoyed this little sneek peek into my soap studio!  I'll do more behind the scenes posts in the future. 

Any questions?

Tomorrow I'll post pictures of the soaps all cut up and looking pretty! :0)

My Fantasty Football woes!

Being born and raised in a family of football fanatics and then marrying one it's easy to see why I am a huge fan of the game myself.  It has nothing to do with guys in tight pants either.  It has to do the game.  Watching a perfectly timed throw from a QB land in the waiting hands of his Wide Receiver in the last minute of the game to then run it in to the end-zone to win the game by 1 or 2 points is amazing to me.  It's the pure excitement of it all that catches my fancy.

Until this season though I've been a one game a week girl.  Always the Bears - hey I'm from Chicago what did you expect?  Well last year my brother started this fantasy league and everyone was in it except me and I was like - "Hey, what the heck!  Why didn't I get invited?"  So this year, my brother sent me the e-mail and I joined his league.  My husband (who played fantasy football most of his adult life except the past few years) said you're gonna get mad.  I didn't understand.  But he said because you're going to have to care about a lot of teams and players and when they don't do it right your gonna get mad at me.  I said no I wouldn't and shook it off like he was crazy - I'm a cool and collective kind of gal, what do I care if my guy scores any points or not.  Ladies, there is a time to listen to your husband and if you've been married for 10+ years, there's a chance he knows you pretty darn well!

It's week 4 now and my brother and I played each other this weekend, we were both 0-3 because both our teams seem to suck big time (pardon my french) but it's the truth.  We talked tons of trash prior to the games starting and even though I didn't fully expect to win I really really wanted to!!  But I suffered my biggest loss of the season 122-72 - give or take a few.  What the heck man!?  His QB alone scored 49 points and mine scored a whopping 7 - idiot! 

I have never in my life though football would make me a screaming at the TV, cursing out players for throwing to the wrong receiver, wishing a team would kick a field goal instead of going for 2 maniac but it did!  All the while my husband sits next to me on the couch laughing with that "I told you so" grin on his face.  I'm not sure what's more annoying, the fact that I'm 0-4 now or the fact that my husband was right and can now hold it over me forever!!

So I beg you please, cross your fingers and send me some luck that I don't end up 0-5 next weekend!

My Birthday Sale is about to end!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

LOOK, I made presents :0)  No, really I did.  A client of mine wanted small gift packages for her store this holiday season.  So I got to work and came up with 10 different Sample Combo Packs!  I must say they are adorable!!  3 are up on the site now, the other 7 will be up just as soon as my soaps cure so I can make up the little goodies!

But, it was also my birthday on Monday and I forgot to celebrate with you so I'm having a 20% OFF everything sale!!  Just use coupon code BDAY20 during checkout and the savings will appear in your cart!

http://shoprachelrene.com/