An Overdue Salute to...

Silvia from Taller de sabó!


Silvia is the talented soapmaker behind the wonderful soap shop Le botigueta del taller in Spain, and I'm also blessed to have her as my soap swap counterpart in Julia's International Soap Swap on her Soap Artists blog.


I have to admit that I was a little intimidated by the fact that I would be swapping soaps with someone as talented and as accomplished as Silvia.  After all, I'm just a hobby soap lover whose soap world pretty much ends at my own front door.   What do I have to share with someone so way out of my league?  But after a few email exchange, I found Silvia to be such a friendly and warm person that I felt a little more comfortable sharing my passion with.


We agreed to swap two bars of soap of our own choice, as a kind of surprise for each other.  And these are what I received in my mailbox....

Lavender with lavender essential oil from the Provence

I just love this bright, eye-catching blue!  Beautiful, stunning, and it smells oh so good!  For someone like me who doesn't normally soap with essential oil, this one is definitely a special treat.   It lathers so easily and the wonderful scent lingers afterwards.  I'm in love with it!

Marrakech, with organic shea butter fair trade of Burkina Fasso

This is one gentle, moisturizing soap!  I have to force myself to use it just so that I know what to say about this bar.  If I weren't going to write this blog post, I swear I would have kept it and cherished it for a very long time.  It has a mild citric fragrance to go with the beautiful orange hue.  A bar that brightens your day and wakes up your senses.

Didn't I just say we'd swap two bars of soap?  Apparently not!

Silvia surprised me with this unexpected gift, a beautiful felted soap.  Notice the small handle on top of the soap?  It's such a thoughtful touch.  Now I can hang it in the shower without worrying about it soaked in water.  I have yet to give this a try - again, love it too much - but I know for sure that I'll love it just as much.


I have to mention that each of these three soaps came individually wrapped and protected.  I was so very touched by the thoughts and efforts Silvia put into this swap.  Thank you so much, Silvia!

The soap I've made lately

Even though I haven't been churning out soap like I used to, I still find time to try new things with my soap.

Coconut milk with tapioca, anyone?

I wasn't so sure about tapioca balls in soap, but after giving it a try the other day, I've decided to make more!  The only problem is cutting - tapioca balls are way too hard for my soap cutter.   Have to come up with a better solution for my next attempt.

Buttermilk swirl.

I usually don't do multi-colours, but I decided to step out of my comfort zone and gave it a try.  Apparently pairing colours isn't my strong suit...

An ocean-themed sea salt bar.  It's got sea salt and seaweed powder!

I've made sea salt bars numerous times before, but this it the first time the bars stay dry, so dry as if the soap refuses to sweat.  I've never had that happened before, and I wonder if the sea salt I bought is really sea salt at all....  I know weather is not the issue because it actually rained on the day I made it.  Formula isn't responsible for it either because it's the same one I used for my other salt bars.   Sea salt bars that don't sweat are just not right...

A Touch of Sunset

Being Canadian means you live in one of the most wonderful countries in the world, but it also means you only get to enjoy warm weather five out of twelve months a year.  As the winter lazily drags to the end and the temperature climbs ever so slowly, I find myself craving the sunshine and the warm air.  

I like the look of gradients for soaps, in fact I've tried producing similar looks before but without much success.  I think I got it this time!  The key is liquid colorant and patience, lots of it.

These soaps have a slight hint of pink to them from buttermilk.  I started putting buttermilk in my soap when I was at the stage when everything I saw was potentially a soaping material.  As it turns out, buttermilk makes it to the list of my favorite ingredients.   Give it a try and you'll know why!

Lace

It took me more than a month to finish making these soaps.  I made my first two layers and then I ran out of lye.  Just when you need it the most!


This look is inspired by my last coffee soap.  Now instead of just simple coffee soaps, I came up with this "espresso with foamed milk and caramel drizzle" version.


My household has been battling sickness for the last two months.  Somehow we all take turns getting sick, and now it's my turn.  I hate being sick!!    I want to get back to soapmaking!

A Jolt of Java

I still remember the firs time I used coffee in my soap.


As naive (and ignorant) as a newbie can be, I was completely unprepared for the stink that was about to assault my nose as I poured my lye into my freshly brewed coffee.  The fragrant coffee aroma quickly turned into what I'd like to describe as the smell of deep-fried shrimps.   Not that I know what deep-fried shrimps (with shells!) smell like, but interestingly enough, some of my fellow soap friends all come up with the same description.  Deep fried shrimps.  With shells.

I stop adding coffee into my soaps after that horrible first attempt, but I never stop dreaming of soaps with natural coffee aroma (without using any fragrance oil).   With this recent attempt, I think I've got it!


I call these my Triple Shots - the oils are infused with fresh coffee grinds for 4 months, the water is replaced with super concentrated frozen coffee, and before the soap is pored into the mold, more coffee grinds!

The end result is this chocolate-like soap with a mild coffee scent - not the popular coffee fragrance, but the subtle smell of coffee grinds.   I love it!  Now I only hope that the scent stays and that I don't get brown suds with all these fine coffee grinds in the soap. ;)

Been Having Fun with Cans

I've been having so much fun using food cans as my soap molds lately.    Haven't felt this way for a very long time, my soap addiction is back!

(I'm actually running low on lye now because of my recent craves for soap making.  Hubby calls me an addict when I keep saying "I'm running low.... I'm running low.....").

   

I haven't found my favourite way to play with colours yet, but the process of discovery is full of surprises.


Now if only I have enough lye for my next batch....  (pacing... pacing... )

The Ugly Truth

Well, this is the Ugly Soap.

I finally convinced myself that Ugly had been sitting on the counter for way too long and it was about time to do something about it.

The top of Ugly is a flaky combination of dry soap and dry oil.  Yuk!  I removed the flakes and rinsed off the oil before cutting it.

As you can see clearly on this picture that I attempted to create layers.  I made two separate batches of the same recipe and same oil weight, but for some reason the lower layer came to trace in a matter of minutes while the top layer somehow went through oil/water separation before it came to trace.

After the top layer eventually thickened, I gave up on the original plan of funnel swirl and went for a regular swirl with TD.  I left Ugly in my oven (at the lowest temperature setting) for about two hours and somehow my semi-solid top layer turned into liquid entirely and all the TD sank and settled at the bottom.

There was also a thick layer of oil floating on the top when I took Ugly out of the oven.  My fear was that the soap might end up being lye-heavy.  After unmolding and cutting it today, I'm sure that Ugly is definitely NOT lye-heavy.  It is extremely soft and not crumbly at all.  If you look carefully, you might be able to spot my glove prints on the soap.

Since there's no safety concerns anymore, I'll just leave them on the curing rack for a very long time before giving them out or using them as laundry soap.


So there you have it, my Ugly (but usable!) Soap.   :)

That itch you get every once a while

Cocoa Swirl

The itch.  The itch that you have to make some soaps or you'd go crazy because this idea in your head just refuses to go away.  The itch that you know this next batch you're making is going to be your next masterpiece.  It'll come out perfect.


Well, I felt that itch yesterday, and it was the first time in months since I felt the urge to make soap.  Maybe it's a sign of me coming out of my soaping slump!

Cocoa Swirl

I took out all my tools, measured my oils, and lined my mold.  It was so therapeutic, so serene, and so enjoyable.  With beautiful sun outside the window, and some light jazz in the background, it couldn't be more perfect than this - except, it'd be nice if the soap turned out ok.

To be honest, I had no idea what happened.  I'm still scratching my head a day later, wondering what could be the culprit to my disaster.


So, everything went well.  The soap thickened and traced.  Poured it into the mold.  Put the mold in the oven (I always to CPOP my soap) at the lowest temperature.   To my horror, when I went to check on it two hours later, I saw the "soap" spilled all over the bottom of my oven, and the mixture in my mold was just some dirty-looking liquid!


I quickly took out the mold and let the whole thing cool overnight.  It has hardened up, but there's this layer of bright red oil floating on top.  I used red palm for the first time yesterday, and it's the only ingredient that I haven't worked with before.   I think it's red palm, I want to blame it on red palm!


Now I have this ugly soap sitting on my kitchen counter and I'm not sure if it's safe to use (since some of the red palm did not saponify).  It could be slightly lye heavy.  I don't want to rebatch it and use it for laundry because I've heard red palm stains your clothes.


I stare at the soap, and the soap stares back at me.  I really have no idea what happened and what to do with it....


ps.  The soaps in the photos are not my Horribly Ugly.  I actually made these last weekend with a few friends.  We talked, we laughed, and made soaps together.   :)








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More soaps that kiss your skin

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These are the same soaps as my Piano,  minus the keys.  

They came to trace so fast that I didn't get a chance to put in all the keys.  I was a little disappointed at first, but after unmolding and cutting them, I slowly came to appreciate the simplicity of the soap.

If you look carefully, you'll see two layers of soap, with the lighter layer at the bottom and a slightly darker layer on top.  The funny thing is, these two layers are made with the same recipe - same oil, same water discount, and same temperature.   They're made a week apart, but I'm not sure if it makes any difference.


The weather here in Toronto has been wicked all summer. It was cool and dry at first, making you wonder if summer would ever come at all.  Then all of a sudden, the temperature shot up practically overnight and put the entire city into the oven for a looooong roast.  I can deal with heat, but I can't handle heat with humidity.  My soaps have been sweating for weeks, and I'm so tired of wiping them every other day!



So, to those wise soapmakers out there, what do you do to deal with the summer humidity?




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Piano

One of my dearest friends from high school is expecting her first baby.   What do you, a confessed soap-addict, do when you hear good news like that?


Whip up a ton of soap of course!


These piano soaps are my tribute to my girlfriend's love for music.  She is aspired to be a music therapist because she believes in the power of music.  I know her baby will be the luckiest kid on earth!


The final product isn't exactly what I had in mind.  The "black keys" are kind of crooked, and the "white keys" aren't exactly white.   The yellowish tint comes from chamomile-infused olive oil, and I kind of like it this way because the color serves almost like a telling sign to my not-so-secret ingredient.

The infused olive oil sped up the thickening time and I only had very little time to put in the black keys.  I end up with only five of these piano soaps, but since I love them so much, I'll be sure to make more (so I can keep some to myself too!).

Versatile Blogger Award

Thank you, my dear friend Anita, for giving me the award!  Now I can't stay quiet anymore, can I? (smile)

So, the rules of the award are --

1 – Make a post and link it back to the person who gave you the award 

       (and include their website address)
2 – Share 7 random things about yourself
3 – Award 7 recently discovered bloggers with this award, 

        and contact them to let them know they have won.

Here we go...  7 Random things about me -

1.    In addition to soap making, I also enjoy sewing and baking.

2.    I love going to the beach and just do nothing.  So relaxing......

3.    I'm a dog lover but don't like small toy dogs.
       Especially the hysterical, loud, and aggressive ones.

4.    I find Captain Picard sexy and yes, my husband knows that. Ha!

5.    I'm still learning to wear heels.
      The last time I wore them (yesterday), I got blisters on 5 toes!  Ouch!

6.    I love baseball and listen to the game on the radio every day.
       Go Jays Go!

7.    I don't like eating olives because they're usually too salty to my liking and...
       and they look like little rubber rings/balls. :P



Now, it's time to forward this award to other interesting soapmakers in the blogosphere.  Ready?


bbee's soapsite

Jabones Ramy

My Daily Soap

Natural Aroma Beauty

Sparklebrook

The Fat Bottom Farm

Summerbaby - Seifen




These talented bloggers make some of the most stunning and creative soaps.  Go check them out and you'll know what I mean!


Stay cool everyone!

Between Friends Handmade Soap

To see my latest soaps, please find me at Between Friend's photo album on Flickr.

(Last updated: 2011-07-20)

Funnel Swirl

Funnel Swirl

I know it's been quiet here.
It took me a long time to write a new post, but I didn't expect it to be even harder to reply to all your warm comments.   A big heart-felt thank you to all of you who sent me your warm regards.
I'll continue to make soaps, but only quietly and slowly.


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