# Made my first milk soap (pics)



## Amylb999 (Jan 28, 2007)

I decided to make an oatmeal, milk and honey bar. I froze my milk in cubes,,just like everyone one suggested,,and added the lye/ milk mixture to the fats as soon as the lye dissolved and the milk was melted. What surprised me was the bright orange color it turned, then changing to kind of a pumpkin orange:









My mold is just some scrap boards I put together. This time I lined it with butcher paper which worked really well, it peeled right off when I took it out the next morning. I added my ground oatmeal at trace and sprinkled some whole oatmeal on the bottom of the mold and the top of the soap









I use a cheese cutter to cut my bars, although I think I should get a wooden one instead of the marble because the soap slides around a little while I'm trying to cut.









Here are my finished bars. I was hoping it would be a little lighter in color but this is less than 24 hrs so maybe it will lighten up when it cures more.









Happy soaping!!


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## PETSNEGGS (Oct 7, 2005)

congrats, they are beautiful


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## linn (Jul 19, 2005)

That is beautiful soap. The honey probably cause the soap to heat up during the gel phase. Did you use any essential oils or fragrance? The reason I ask is that I can almost smell a cinnamon smell looking at your oatmeal honey soap. Just goes to prove the theory of the power of suggestion.


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## Amylb999 (Jan 28, 2007)

No, I didn't use any EOs or fragrances. Would you believe the soap kinda smells like oatmeal cookies,,yumm.


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## Dandish (Feb 8, 2007)

I've only made soap once, last year, so I'm no expert...lol... hope to get back to it soon. But, in gathering my supplies/tools, I found a digital scale on sale at Staples for about $25, and I got a stick blender, stainless steel pot, ladles, etc., from the thrift store on the very cheap (I think it was about $7 for everything). Just an idea for you. Have fun!


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## Amylb999 (Jan 28, 2007)

I have a postal scale that I keep in my kitchen for everything. It's perfect for measuring my soap ingredients as well. You must be thinking I need new supplies because of my mixer, lol. The hand mixer works quite well,,I usually get a good trace in about 40 minutes. I have a few plastic bowls and wooden spoon that are kept in the basement just for soap making. I only do 3lb batches so I don't need anything large. DH was wondering why I was making more soap when I still have a basket full. I can't help it,,it's just so darn fun.


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## Dandish (Feb 8, 2007)

No, no, no! I'm SORRY! I tried to post that on another thread, got the dreaded "page not found" screen and when I got back in I posted it on your thread by mistake! It was meant for the thread where someone was asking about specifically needing a stick blender, and using the same tools as used for everyday cooking! I'm embarassed...

But your soap (and your tools) looks lovely and I hope I can do it like that some day!


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## beaglady (Oct 7, 2002)

Your soap looks great. That tan color is what you can expect if you've added oats and honey. I love that toasty oat smell.


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## Amylb999 (Jan 28, 2007)

beaglady said:


> Your soap looks great. That tan color is what you can expect if you've added oats and honey. I love that toasty oat smell.


oh, ok thank you. I thought maybe the milk got too hot.


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## goatsareus (Jun 23, 2007)

nice looking soap!


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

Looks perfect! and I bet it smells devine!

sometimes, and only sometimes, if you have lard in your recipe, it will turn an orange after adding the lye solution. I've never been able to figure out why this is. Did your recipe contain lard?

I don't recommend using wooden spoons. The lye will cause the wood to weaken and splinter off in your soaps. Safer to stick to stainless steel or heat resistant rubber spatulas.


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## RideBarefoot (Jun 29, 2008)

Wow, what pretty soap! (Adds soapmaking to my list of skills-to-learn)

Twila


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## Amylb999 (Jan 28, 2007)

Yeah Cyndi there is lard in it,,I guess that explains the orange color. I didn't know that about wooden spoons, I'll pick something else up next time I'm at the store.


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## linn (Jul 19, 2005)

I think you soap is a beautiful cinnamony color. Like I said, it makes me think I am smelling cinnamom


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## Shazza (Nov 20, 2004)

Your soap looks gorgeous...I am planning to start mine tommowrrow arvo.


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## InHisName (Jan 26, 2006)

Would you mind sharing the recipe? Just rendered some lard, and would love to try again. Is it the one from the fiasco farms website?


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## Amylb999 (Jan 28, 2007)

I use a recipe that Cyndi (MullersLaneFarm) helped me come up with:

6.66 oz lye
17.28 fl oz water
29 oz lard
10 oz coconut oil
9 oz corn oil

I've used this recipe a few times and it comes out great. For this batch I replaced the water with milk, added honey to my fats, and added ground oatmeal at trace.


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## kidsngarden (Mar 24, 2006)

Nice looking soap!

If you can find a stick blender at the thrift store or something you will be a happier soaper - 40 minutes is a long time to trace I think! I get light trace within a few minutes and thick trace no more than 10 most of the time (though I never go much past thin trace with my SB before adding my fragrance, etc so I have time to swirl)

ETA How much honey did you add? My bet is that it got dark because of the honey - it can really heat things up!


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## krissy (Dec 29, 2008)

It's the sugars in the milk that caused it to turn orange actually. I'm new here a friend told me about the site but soaping is my business and i also teach soap making. Which is why i know it was the sugars in the milk that did it. 


But the soap sure turned out pretty !!!! 
Good Job !!!!


You can pick up a stick blender at walmart for just a hair under ten dollars. It's a investment worth taking. It will make your life a whole lot easier !!!


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## kidsngarden (Mar 24, 2006)

I agree with you that it is the sugars in the milk that turn it brown, but I make a lot of white 100% goat milk soap. Too much honey or sugar added to the soap can cause overheating and overheating is what turns the milk brown hence the brown soap.


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

krissy said:


> It's the sugars in the milk that caused it to turn orange actually. I'm new here a friend told me about the site but soaping is my business and i also teach soap making. Which is why i know it was the sugars in the milk that did it.


That is what I originally thought also years ago, but the phenomenon *can and will *happen when the milk/lye solution is low in temp (i.e. 75*F or below) and only a creamy color and/or no milk/honey/sugars are added.

The first time I heard about this was from a non-milk soaper about 6 years ago. I've had it happen to me also with a milk soap when the only difference was using a small quantity of store bought lard. I really didn't believe it myself until it happened to me.

(in business for 10 years next month and teaching soap for 8.)


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## tytbody (Dec 29, 2008)

I was told it was the heat, lye and oils that made the orange color. If you didn't get it right, it's kaakaa. but lard, heck I have that. you could tempt me into trying something but I also want scent. 
do any of you use the soapmaker calculator?


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

If you have the correct combination of lye solution for the oils you are using, the resulting soap will be fine. It may not look the prettiest, but would still be soap.

What tipped me off that Amy's lye solution wasn't burnt by the natural sugars in the milk, even though her soap pot has a bright orange mixture in it, was the resulting soap.

A soap made from a burnt milk/lye solution would have been a much darker brown.

I've never bought Woody's Soapmaker software, but always direct folks to a free online lye calculator www.soapcalc.com


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## tytbody (Dec 29, 2008)

i like my woody cause then I won't have to go online


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

very true!

I created my own lye calculator on Excel in 2001/2002 with a fatty acid analysis. Input of oils by either weight or percentage, liquid amount could be determined as a % of oils or saturation of the lye solution. It also gives you the IV and INS values. Has over 100 oils listed. I still use it today 

It was the basis of the www.soapcalc


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## tytbody (Dec 29, 2008)

I used to have an excel one, someone passed it along but have since stop using it. don't know why...


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