I've never started a thread here before, so Hi Everyone!! I'm wondering if anyone else out there is into soap making. I am a new fan of diy soap and am having trouble. My soap is very powdery on the outside after drying. I have tried using less lye and it didn't help. Do you think it could be the humidity (or lack thereof) in my house? Any other ideas? Thanks in advance. I'd like to get good enough to sell my product.

I am a (successful) maker of handmade (CP method) soap.

Go here
http://www.millersoap.com/
and start reading.

Kathy Miller (above website) has VERY generously posted a wealth of excellent, reliable information, better than most books on the subject. Totally free.

If you want a book, go to Amazon and buy Alicia Grosso's books (I believe she has 2).

Be warned, there are a lot of BAD books, and a lot of BAD information on the internet on this subject.

Be sure that you run any recipe you intend to use through a reliable soapmaking calculator. I like this one:
http://www.soapcalc.net/calc/soapcalcWP.asp

Make sure you have an accurate scale, and measure your quantities by weight. Do not forget safety equipment, especially eye protection.

I cannot answer your original question because I do not have enough information. I bet if you start reading Kathy Miller's site, you will start to figure out how to fix your problem.

Best wishes.

I've never been a soap maker but I am a huge soap user! I'm all for it! I hope you have great success. And to all of you soap makers let me give a hearty THANK YOU!!

__________________
Where you are at in your relationship with Christ is where He has brought you.

It is your journey, not a standard for others.---Bob Marley



'Butt Kicking Women' is not responsible for lost or stolen egos.

You are very welcome! (Those that haven't tried great handmade soap don't know what they are missing).

I don't sell (yet... probably will eventually).

Here are 2 of my favorite people who do:

http://www.faeriemadesoaps.com/catalog.php?category=1

http://www.myskinsoapstudio.com/main.sc

Thanks for the websites Eliz. I went to them and neither one addressed my issue exactly. I e-mailed so maybe they can help. My olive oil soap turned out great, it's my plain lye with recycled oils that is an issue. I'm doing some research, maybe its the combo I'm using. I have used oil that is salvaged when I clean my deep fryer and old bacon and beef fat. The local drive in has offered to save their oil for me when they clean their fryers our. I'm wondering if the problem could be the soy based oil they use. Anyway, will keep on trying.

Couple of things: I do not personally like soy in soap. I think soy soaps are too prone to DOS (dreaded orange spots-- indicating rancidity/oxidation), and tend toward softness.

I personally would never use salvaged oils for soapmaking (although that is a personal decision). IMHO quality, fresh oils are necessary for good soap. Since your olive oil soap is good, that makes me think that oil quality is your issue with the other soap.

The other issue with salvage oils is that, since you don't know exactly what they are, you can't calculate your recipe (amount of NaOH needed per amount of oils) as exactly. Each different type of oil has its own "SAP" value, and that is what allows the soap calculators to determine the correct amount of lye.

When you calculate your recipe, what percent superfat are you using? 5% is a nice safe % for most recipes. A superfat % helps ensure that your soap is not lye-heavy. (That is because SAP values do have some variation from lot to lot of oils, and it is also insurance against MINOR inaccuracies in weighing).

Another thing- You should ZAP test your finished soap (wait about a week or so after making it). The ZAP test is an extra chance to make sure your soap is not lye heavy before using it, or even worse, someone else getting hold of lye heavy soap. (Check the Miller site for more info on this).

If you are making larger quantities of soap, you can order good oils in quantity from a place called Columbus Foods (look it up on the internet). That is cheaper than the grocery if your quantities are larger.

Welcome to the world of soapmaking. I hope you keep posting.