Iced Cranberry Citrus

This soap is a bit "if-y"... I love how the colors turned out and the scent is to die for, but.... right now the soap is a little oily feeling to me.  It's almost like maybe I used a little too much fragrance oil (but I only used the recommended amount).   I have the loaf cut into slices and have the A/C on and the fan blowing on it to try to dry it out a little bit.  So, we'll just wait and see what happens.  I've had this happen one other time before and I believe it's just the fragrance oil.  The last soap loaf that this happened to me on cured out and was fine.  So, I'm keeping my fingers crossed on this one because it's really pretty and smells so good! 

How about some pics?  This is a 1/2 orange, 1/2 cranberry color mantra swirl with a vanilla cream poured down the middle.  And the top of the loaf is cool diamond glitter for some added sparkle.

This soap has my entire house smelling like cranberry!  I absolutely love the scent! 

Iced Cranberry Citrus

I also soaped this yesterday afternoon.  It went into a great gel (which I like to see happen) and after heating up and then cooling off overnight, the soap loaf was ready to remove from the mold this morning!  This is another wonderful scent!  It is making the entire house smell so good!  I removed the loaf from the mold this morning and then took the freezer paper off.  I'm letting the loaf "air" for a little while before I slice it.  It's still a little soft too.  I am anxious to see what it looks like sliced into bars.

The top and outside of the soap loaf look really nice.... the top is a swirled cranberry, orange and "vanilla" and dusted with some iridescent glitter.  Then, below that, one side is cranberry and the other side is orange.  I think this is really going to be a pretty sliced soap! 

Laundry Soap

Just to let you know what I'm soaping today.... Laundry Soap!

Yes, laundry soap - this is the soap that I personally use to make my homemade laundry detergent. Laundry soap is made from 100% lard and lye... that's it!

There are two different ways to scent your homemade laundry detergent - the first way is to start with scented "laundry soap". So, for this batch (in keeping everything natural) I scented this loaf with peppermint essential oil. This is the first batch that I've made scented with peppermint EO. So, I'm a bit anxious to see how the homemade laundry detergent that I make with it turns out :-)

The 2nd way to scent your homemade laundry detergent is to start out with unscented, plain laundry soap and add essential oil to your completed batch of laundry detergent. I don't prefer this method because it seems to take so much more essential oil than the first method.

Laundry detergent is easy to make from laundry soap, borax and washing soda. And it's a natural product that isn't filled with lots of chemical names that you can't pronounce. I've read that it's safer on septic systems and also better for the environment. An added benefit is that it is low sudsing and great for the new high efficiency washing machines!

I just checked on the laundry soap loaf and it's beginning to heat up and gel. I also poured several small sample sizes that I will be giving away as freebies in my Etsy orders about a month from now (after the soap has had time to cure out). I will also include the appropriate amount of borax and washing soda with the soap samples so that customers can make their own homemade laundry detergent and give it a try in their washing machines.

My plans for the future include offering an unscented, an essential oil scented (like the peppermint or maybe another EO) and a fragrance oil scented laundry soap. I will keep everyone updated on when these will be available in our Etsy soap store.

Tonight I have several soaps to make - first, the Christmas Sugar Cookies. I can't wait to make this soap. It's in the fragrance dup of Yankee Candles "Christmas Sugar Cookies". I LOVE LOVE LOVE that smell!

The next one that I am planning on soaping tonight is the "Iced Cranberry Citrus". I'll be doing the "mantra" swirl which I love doing. I just love how the swirls turn out. Plus, it's a fun swirl to do.

The last one (that I hope I have time to soap) is going to be our Lush "Karma" dup - which I'm calling "Love & Peace". This scent so reminds me of the 60's! I can barely remember the 60's with the "love & peace and not war" thing going on. I can remember the vivid, bright colors, the peace sign... So, I'm going to incorporate hearts and flowers into this soap loaf! I really think it's going to be a fun soap to make and I can't wait to share it with you!