Troy needs to make a tutorial video for how he made your slab molds and how you use them, such as lining them! Looking to scale up, but also need to make more molds easy!
I asked Troy about it and he said: "it's just a box". Haha! We will definitely do a video on lining the molds (I almost made one today!) and I can also show the construction of the molds Troy made. :) Thanks for the ideas!
I love your book. In this Texas heat instead of getting on my lawnmower, I sat all day Sunday reading your book. I must say it’s been a long time since I sat that long..lol
Would absolutely love a "Scaling Up Series" maybe you could make that part of your RUclips subscriptions? I would definitely support that. Although I love your soaps, I would love a video dedicated to your packaging. Your design process, how you order your labels, what website you use to print them and even where you source the wrapping paper. I can tell how much effort you put into the packaging aspect of it and it's so impressive, would eventually love a video dedicated to that. I know you're probably super busy, but thank you so much for being a refreshing voice and presence in the soap making education space. We really need you, so keep going! Much love from Florida. I also have been reading your book and recommending it to everyone. It's so gooood. :)
Thank you sooooo much!!! Yes, a packaging video is in our future as we get this question a lot! It's funny how you just take things for granted and don't realize people might be interested in this aspect of business. I really appreciate the feedback and ideas, so keep them coming! And thank you for what you said about keeping going... I just recorded the same video 4 times, and we've had technical difficulties all 4 times! So, I needed to hear this today. :)
WOW.....I've watched 200 videos of soapmaking to find you. Finally, someone I can understand and who's like I am at simplifying things. I retired from the casino industry and make soap as a hobby. I don't want to make millions I just enjoy making soap and selling for craft shows. So many people are asking for my website, though. I was thinking on adding one to the business and just needed someone who's been there to talk about it. I was a bit afraid I wouldn't be able to keep up with demand but, knowing I can buy drums puts me at ease. I didn't know they existed! I have a lot to learn. I'm subscribing because I can listen to you all day.
Wow! Thank you so much for this sweet comment. I really appreciate it! Having a website is a great idea, but you can also start an Etsy shop. When I first started, I used Etsy and had my muddymint.com URL pointing directly there. This just saved the monthly fees on having a Shopify shop and allowed me to get more sales, as Etsy has a huge customer base built in. Thanks so much for subscribing! :)
I’d love to see a video on what tools and equipment you need to build a factory or warehouse. It’s very rarely talked about and lots of people (like me) would like to own a factory and warehouse someday. For example, the kind of large batch equipment you use, what to look for, and who to buy from. I love this video btw. You’re amazing!
More scaling videos please, including tools, organization, the biz aspects. You're right that many people think they like EO but actually walk out buying fragrance oil soaps or bodycare. I have the same issue as you breathing in FO and end up with headache that I switch to all naturals for my own health sake, but consumers don't understand because they don't breathe in that huge amount daily.
Please make more Soap Making Videos!!!! I have been watching Royalty Soap for the past 8 years and your personality and way for speaking and sharing knowledge is amazing. Please show us the making on all the soaps you guys sell in the future. I love watching soap making videos ❤❤❤
Aww, you're sweet. Thank you!! I absolutely love Katie at Royalty Soap. We are definitely going to keep making videos - it just takes forever to film and edit! Haha! We are releasing videos every two weeks on Tuesday for now. Hopefully we can get up to once a week in the future. Thanks!
It's definitely psychological when thinking about making lye solution and it stops me from being more productive. I'm definitely going to try 50/50 and using the additional with coconut milk. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and experience. I'm learning so much from you.
I would really love to see a video on ordering drums and all the little details for setting up to scale up. Thank you for this video. I really enjoyed watching the process and tips
Yes to the psychological aspect! For a long time. I kind of spun in my mind of what I wanted to do but never took a step to implement it! But now master batching is so "normal" for me! Appreciate your videos!!!
QUESTION: Another great video Simi. I would answer to your call out for questions re scaling, the following: 1.) What is actually happening when scaling? Is it a response to more individual customers, store orders, online marketing campaigns? In other words, when is the call for scaling appropriate? 2.) Is it possible to scale in your home-studio? 3.). When do you know you need to hire? How does all that work in terms of part-time or full-time? Are they on contract, or company employees? 4.) What are some of the unknowns of scaling you guys wish you knew beforehand to anticipate better decisions, or preparedness? 5.) Do you have funny stories you would share about scaling? Thank you in advance Simi & Troy!
Great batch of questions! I might need to make a whole video just to answer these! I love it, and that first question is especially good and something I hadn't thought about including in our scaling series.
@@muddymintsoap Yes to all of these questions! I have been a hobby soaper for 7+ years and this past year I have been selling at markets. As a result, I am being asked if I can stock...these five (tourist) stores, or make wedding favors, or use this byproduct to make a custom line, etc. Part of it is deciding who I want to cater to but I still am home-based and it is a little overwhelming. How can I best prepare for this next stage of growth (equip, inventory on hand, etc)? Any stories of when you made that initial transition up? Another question I would add is - what recommendations would you suggest for packaging when selling wholesale to boutique stores/gift shops? I stay away from plastic/shrink wrap and the individual boxes seem costly. Do we provide the displays, etc? With scaling comes all of these other factors to consider, and in some cases extra expenses. Thank you for all of your great videos and tips. I'll be looking for the bigger tubs now! I bought your book and have started to play with some of the recipes. You are a natural teacher - thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and experience!
Okay, yes! Lots of great question here too! I would say (for now) that you need to decide what to focus on. I personally tried to avoid any custom work or wedding favors (unless it was just cutting up bars I already had) because those projects are so time-consuming. You'll always get the most out of working off a product line you're already making. However, some people love custom work and wedding favors could be huge business as well! So, figure out what your focus is and be confident in saying yes (or no) to the business that comes. It's easier to say "sorry, I don't do custom wedding favors, but I'll be happy to cut up soaps into small favors if you like" than not being sure. Having said that, this is a huge topic and would be fun to make a video on!
@@muddymintsoap Thank you! Yes, the idea of custom orders is making my head spin lol. Maybe down the line... Like you said, it is very time-consuming! Cutting up already-made bars into favors is a great idea to offer. I can't wait to watch more of your videos. :)
Yes, getting comfortable with scaling your batches saves sooo much time. I met another retired soap maker and she sold me her stainless steel stock pots that hold 16 lbs each. I’m able to hammer out 48lbs in one day. I could do more of I bought more molds. I’d like to start using a slab mold, but I think I’ll wait another year.
That's awesome! I bought a stainless steel stock pot a while ago, but it was too big and heavy for me to use by myself, so it ended up getting retired to the corner. I've often thought of getting a pot tipper for it, but never did. Glad you can get that much done in a day!
I tried Ashley Marie’s stainless steel bowl style… that did not work for me! I was so bummed. Yes, the stock pots can be heavy. I usually have all my split color or scents lined up for me to pour at once
Those bowls always make me nervous when I see her! I love that she has her own unique way of doing things though. She’s great. Glad you found your own way! ❤️
I absolutely enjoyed watching this and wrote down a few pointers I learned! I am slowly scaling up, but due to limited space I try not to make way too many beyond what I can sell to keep inventory/loss at a minimum. I'm looking to possibly do farmers markets in the next year or two, is there a way to help advise on how best to make soap for farmers markets in terms of volume, due to curing times? I'm still at that small, just starting out level, but wanting to take that next step to producing more :) My current bottleneck is the "I don't want to make too much and not be able to sell it, but what if I sell too much at one event and don't have enough at the next shows before what I make can cure"
Hi there! Thanks for watching and I'm glad you picked up some tips! One thing you definitely don't want to do is run out of soap... we have a whole spreadsheet to keep track of sales and that helps us figure out what to make, but when you're newer it's a little harder to know what the demand will be. For a farmer's market, I'd focus on bringing a variety of scents. Even if you just have one loaf of each scent, at least you'll have lots of options for people. The other thing I used to do is do a discount for buying four or more soaps, which is where the variety of scents come in handy! If it's looking like you have too much stock, you could always have a sale (either online or at your next farmer's market). Another thing I've done is create sample packs, which are always popular, with any extra soap you have. If you sell 8 half bars for the price of four bars, that might do well. For sure, you'll want to make enough to cover your booth fee and then some! If you have too much, you'll have to get creative, which is where the fun of business comes in! :)
Thank you so much for a wonderful book! Your love for soap making shines through, and reading it brings vibes of chatting about soap with a good friend ❤
I love the idea that you're scaling down to spend more time with family. I have an odd situation. My wife and I only have one child(he's 8) and we had him late in life. I'm 47, shes 49. The job market isn't great, and my full time job is on the weekend so that affords me a good bit of time during the week. I'm wanting to do the opposite which is build up a business, something maybe I can pass on to my son in the future. Thanks for all your videos and for sharing all the knowledge you guys have built up over the years.
Love it! Hopefully your son is interested in your business, because mine certainly isn't! Haha! Good luck with everything. So happy our videos are helping in a small way. :)
The Soap Gal is less an artisan soap maker and more a soap manufacturer as she is a wholesaler. I don’t know if she sells anything under her own label anymore. I MasterBatch my oils/butters, but not in individual batch buckets…I have four large buckets that hold 50lbs that I make up. And I MasterBatch my Lye Solution which is ready-to-use 33% or 35% (depending on the time of the year) Lye Concentration. On the wall above counter is a spread sheet that lists everything mold I use and it tells my how much Oil/Butter, how much Lye Solution, how much Fragrance Oil (I don’t use low usage rate FOs). I use a commercial paint stirrer on a drill to give my Oils/Butters a good whiz, weigh out what I need and pop in the microwave. While that is going I weigh out my Lye Solution and add SL, weigh out my FO and add KO and disperse my colorant. Mix the batter, pour it into a mold, set it aside, wash my dishes and start the next batch
Hi there! The soap gal does focus on soap manufacturing, but she also does a lot of custom soaps for others and I believe they just got their own label going again. She's great to watch because, even if you're not doing things exactly as she is, she is at such a big scale that it is inspiring and shows what's possible. I used to watch her videos back in the day and they were the only thing that really helped me learn how to use a lye tank and drums. Masterbatching in larger quantities, like your 50 lb buckets, or even right into a 55 gallon drum is definitely a good idea if you're larger scale! Do you have a pot tipper for those buckets? Masterbatching your lye in a specific concentration is also a great idea! We use 50/50 because we don't use only water for our additional liquid. I love hearing about how you're set up, as we all find our own methods that works for us! The old paint stirrer on a drill is an awesome way to make soap!! We thought about doing this many times. Make, rinse, repeat. It never ends, right? Haha! Thanks for the comment!
MasterBatching for me was about convenience as opposed to scaling up. I work full-time with an hour commute and so when I got home, having to drag out all the ingredients, measure and melt, put it all away and clean up was just too exhausting. But MBing allowed me to come home and spend 20 minutes make at least one batch of soap. I don't use the paint stirrer to actually make soap, but to mix up the Oils/Butters. My recipe includes Olive, Palm, Coconut and Castor Oils and Cocoa and Shea Butters and so I need to make sure the Stearic Acid is well mixed, especially during the winter when the Oils/Butters are more like a cornbread mixture than the pancake one during the summer months (I'm in the Pacific NW). I then grab a bucket, tare it, then use either a plastic measuring cup or ladle (knowing how many approximate ounces each holds) and then scoop out xx number into the bucket and weigh it. I have been taking my time in building my business because 1) I work full-time, 2) I'm in my early 60s and got into the game late in life, 3) I fully intend to sell this business later by the time I'm 70.. And I don't just make soap, I also make other bath and body stuff, but that is information that is going to get covered in a book that I'm in the process of writing...which is going to cover the business end of starting and having a bath and body business...I'm an accountant so it's kind of in my wheelhouse. I want to encourage more people into starting their own home-based business, but at the same time, I want them to understand the realities of it given that there is so much disinformation out there. As someone who takes my business very seriously, I very much dislike all the 'get rich quit' advertising aka: "Soap that is safe to use and sell in 2 days". Bad soap makers reflect badly on all of us and there needs to be more responsibility and accountability. But I will have to continue this conversation at another time...bills don't pay themselves which means I need to head out to my day job.
I found your comment to be very informative and inspiring! I'm 50 years old and would like to start my own soap making business. The past few months have been research mostly and being realistic with myself and my expectations bcz I also work full time and if the energy isn't there,...it isn't there 😂. Look forward to your book. You are an inspiration for us older ladies😊@@LadyGecko
@@LadyGeckothat two days soap thing is just too much for me. I am a chemist and started my business due to health and skin issues when moved into this country almost twenty years ago. That is just irresponsible and should not be allowed, but that person sells more due to people lack of education.
@@JanetFayard - Starting a business is tough to begin with, most business fail within the first year or two. It can be even tougher when you don't have a lot of capital (money) to spend on a separate shop, equipment and advertising and/or when you have a full-time job. I thought I knew a lot about soap making before I started making soap, then went I started selling soap, I realized I didn't know as much as I thought I did. You have to put your knowledge to practice to get a better understanding of what you know. And knowing how to make soap is only part of it, you also need to figure out what kind of soap you want to make and who you are wanting to sell soap to. Example...some folks only make Goat Milk Soap; some folks only make soap with Essential Oils and Natural Colorants. I make the kind of soap "I" enjoy making and using. The last is key because if you business should fail...guess who is left using all that soap? I tend to follow the KISS rule when it comes to all of my products. I look at the folks in my local market...what kind of folks are they in general and how do you get someone who is used to getting a 4-pack of soap for $3.99 to pay $8.00 for a bar of soap?
Loving all of the videos. I missed the Live you did the other day but watched it on replay - thank you for sharing the video on replay. I have been enjoying your book and already tabbing pages and making notes for questions - if I can catch a Live, Live 🙂 Your explanations are amazing and the stories behind each bar/recipe.
Great video! Your book just got added to my list to get. I’d be interested in hearing your about how you scaled up in the customer department (I.e. your strategy). Thanks!
Thank you for going into scaling. I would love it if you could talk about getting my soap business out of my home. All of the pros and cons and processes and things to consider. Also, how to know that you're ready to do this. How to find a building to rent, what added expenses are involved in renting a place, etc. I think you could do a whole series on this topic. Thanks for considering it!
Glad to see you back making soap Simi! I love your new book, congratulations! What beautiful pictures and wonderful recipes!! I love your teaching style too. Keep up the good work!
I use mostly essential oils but I do use some natural fragrances from Wholesale Supply Plus! I'm very sensitive to synthetic fragrances as well but I have never gotten a headache with their natural fragrances!
That's awesome to hear! I know Brambleberry makes some natural fragrances as well, but I heard they didn't work great in soap... not sure if that's correct or not. I'll be sticking to essential oils, but I'm glad they're making more options for people to use. Thanks for watching our video!
New to making soap. First run made just last night. I ordered a book (not yours) today. As I watched this video and found you just released a book, I canceled the other and ordered yours. Thank for all the great info and looking forward to the book.
That's so exciting that you just made your first soap - congrats!! And, thank you so much for purchasing my book! I really hope you love it. Another book I highly recommend (if you're looking to purchase another natural soapmaking book) is Simple & Natural Soapmaking, by Jan Berry. Happy making! :)
I love your videos Simi! And I adore your book!! I have been a soap maker for 12 years selling at shows and out of my home on occasion. I have recently built my own website(terrified as well lol) and have it almost ready to launch, I am still working on the shipping part. Your part on master-batching lye has made me question myself and why the heck didn’t I do this years ago! I do “Milk in Oil” religiously lol 🤦🏼♀️ so I ordered the lye containers you mentioned in your book. Thank you so much for taking the time to teach even us seasoned soapers some techniques! I appreciate YOU!! ❤
That's awesome! Congrats on your website! If you're already doing milk in oils, then you should definitely try 50/50 lye! It's not a commonly used technique, so don't question yourself. We're always learning new things. :) I hope it helps you out a bunch! Thanks so much for watching!
I like humblebee and me too and sunshine soap. The skin care they make. I typed in bay laural soap that was fun to watch the mass production. Of course you dont pour yours on the floor as a soap mold technique ha.
Haha! Yep, those pours on the floor are impressive to watch! Marie at Humblebee & Me is fantastic. I have her book too, Make it Up! I'm not familiar with Sunshine Soap - I'll have to look them up!
Would love some tips sometime on what features worked best for you on your sales website. I'm struggling to convert from looks to sales. My photos are great and I worked hard on my descriptions but not getting the conversion. Thank you, you are a beautiful teacher 💗
Thank you so much! That's a great idea - conversion rates are tricky. My first thought about that is shipping. Are you charging too much? That's always a deterrent when you're checking out. Shipping costs are so tricky for soap! That could be a whole video alone! :)
Thank you for such an informative session. I’ve been making soap for a while now and your valuable experience and tips are so appreciated! Thank you and wishing you a wonderful journey ahead! 🥰
Excellent video! I would love to watch more videos about scaling up. I learned so much from this one video. I’m eager to learn more! Who knew you could order drums of blended oil?! Thank you!!
So happy you found it helpful! We'll do more for sure. There's still so much to talk about since we're so new at making videos. :) Thanks for watching!
Woohoo! We are finally on a schedule and will be releasing one every two weeks. Wild Lavender is next and it's coming out Tue Jun 18th. Thanks for watching! :)
Hello from Barbados. Great video. Thank you! I'm definitely interested in the drum video. I need to scale my coconut and olive oils up to drums, but am also trying to work out getting them off the vehicle and into the studio. Barbados being a small island, I haven't really seen trucks here with the tailgate lift. Also, many of the pumps on Amazon have average to bad reviews. So if there is one you recommend, I'd love to know that also. Thanks in advance.
The first 6 years of making my soaps i didnt have any type of mixer. I mixed exclusively by hand with a large wooden spoon.. Sometimes it would take 10 mintes to 30 minutes to trace.
I LOVE hearing from soapmakers that have been making soap long enough to not have used a stick blender! Ten to 30 minutes isn't too bad, actually. Did you ever add clove or anything to the oils to speed it up? I'm curious if you used any tricks to get it to trace faster.
Hi there! You can use soapcalc to resize your batch. If you know how much oils your mold can fit, you can enter everything into soapcalc as it's in the book and then switch the measurements to percentage (for the oils) and go to the top and change your oil amount. That should recalculate everything for you! Hopefully this helps!
Yes scaling up with tips is a great untapped topic. I watched your lye making video but have a question since you’re now using the canister. I’m assuming you shake it up before using? Is this kept at room temperature or are you warming it up a bit?
Hi there! Yes, I shake it up a bit, pour it out into another container (through a sieve), and then I put that container in a warm water bath to warm it up a bit. I hope this helps!
Do you heat up your lye solution to match the temp of the oil before pouring ? I think doing a 50/50 solution would help me make a lot more soap than I am right now, that’s such a great idea. 😊
Yes! We warm it up in a warm water bath, but if your additional liquid is water, you can actually re-activate it by adding more water to it, which also warms it up. I hope that helps!
I haven’t started master batching lye yet. When I do, how long is it good for? Should you try to make the soap within 3 months of making the lye? I’m beginning to plan for Christmas and I will definitely switch to the 50/50 lye method and master batching. Thanks!
Hi Jill! We’re currently using lye that we made in December, although it was in a lye tank until the end of February. So, I think it lasts a while, but I’d try and use it within 1-3 months to ensure there’s no evaporation happening between the time you make it and when you use it.
I'm really enjoying your videos! Question regarding the coconut cream - do you think there's a difference in the quality of the soap using the liquid form versus powdered coconut milk that can be mixed into the soap batter? Thanks!
Hi there! We use coconut milk (vs cream) and I DO think there's a difference between the fresh milk and powdered milk! It's purely based on my own experiments, but I think real milk results in a creamier bar with a nicer lather. That's just my opinion though, so I'd encourage you to try both and see if you notice a difference!
Hi there! The molds in this video are from Nurture Soap (nurturesoap.com) and they are the 5lb basic mold. Here's a link: nurturesoap.com/products/5-pound-basic-loaf-mold.
I’m very new to making soap and haven’t used lye yet. For someone making soap in their kitchen I’m concerned about cleaning the equipment safely in my sink after using lye. Any advice? I also just received your book and can’t wait to read it!
Hi there! I do have some information on this in my book, but keep in mind that sodium hydroxide (lye) is the same thing that is in drain cleaner! So, it's okay for it to go down your drain. If it's your first time making lye water, I recommend making it directly in your sink to ensure you don't spill. When I wash my lye water containers, I usually rinse them first with cold water in the sink and once I've done that, I'll go in with gloved hands and wash the container with soap and water (using a sponge/brush dedicated to soapmaking). I hope this helps!
Love your book and videos. I didn't see this asked anywhere, but where do you purchase the container that you hold your lye? Looking for something just like that but not ready for a big tank yet. THANKS!!!!
Hi Kim! Thanks so much! I do have a link to everything in the description for this video (under the video there is a gray box with information and if you click "more" it'll expand to show more). The link to the containers is: amzn.to/4aKfwYk. I hope this helps! :)
Love watching you make soap! Do you ever make goat milk soap or do you always use coconut milk? I. Dabbled in soaps several years ago and would love to get going on it before the holidays😊
Thank you so much!! Yes! We had four goat milk soaps as part of our main product line. One is Calming Lavender, which we have a video for her on our channel (check it out!). The process is exactly like using coconut milk. In any of our recipes, you can sub out goat milk for the additional liquid. Easy peasy! We tend to use coconut milk in order to provide vegan options for folks and it has a great shelf life when you buy it like we do. Goat milk however, has to be used pretty much right away, although you can store it in the fridge for a bit. I hope this helps!
@muddymintsoap Yes, it did us.Thank you so much! I completely agree about people wanting that vegan option. I spent my night last night Reading your book so i'm sure I will get to that part. I never thought of the shelf life!
Well made the coconut aloe and used lemon and cedarwood came out perfect. Actually borrowed a juicer and made sone carott juice for one of the other soaps. Thank you for such a great book
Love the book. Have made 3 recipes and have come out perfect( perfect for me lol) Anyway have a question with swapping out essential oils from one recipe to another. Example Want to use the recipe for lavender lemonade but want to use the essential oils from sweet mint. Is this an even swap?
Yay! So happy you love the book! Great question. Yes, it is an even swap. Just remember that if you are using essential oils that might accelerate trace, then the design might not work out as well as in the book. But, the swap you're suggesting sounds great! I love that you're switching things up - enjoy! :)
Simmi if we double the ratio of clay as advised in the recipe how much should we increase the water by? Clay can be accelerating so can we add it after trace? My soap turned out peachy color instead of pink 😅
Hi there! You don't need to change the water amount if you use more clay, particularly for this recipe where the amount of clay is so minimal. Note that if you're using orange essential oil, you'll definitely get a peachy color (I'm just guessing that maybe that's why you got a peach rather than a pink?) or it could be the brand of french pink clay that you have yields a different color. The recipe is a very small amount of clay, so you can certainly double it (without making any other changes)!
Great video Simi! Loved seeing you make soap! I am going to start doing that with the buckets now. Getting them master batched and then doing the 2 loaf molds per soap, although I think I can go up to 4 loaf molds now! That is going to be a game changer indeed! I do have a question though on scaling, I am not there yet in this area that I am about to ask you, cause I still work out of my home kitchen, but I can see in the future having a little backyard studio like you are back in now and I was curious on how you control the air temperature in there. Do you have an AC unit or a mini-split or a window with a window unit? I am sure you have electric hooked up to the building. Also, on a water hook up. Do you have water out there? I was thinking on cleaning up and having a sink and then that led me to think on hot water for clean up, and the need for a water heater as well. Do you have that kind of setup in your studio? I can't imagine hauling all my dirty dishes and containers back into my house for cleanup, so it got me to thinking on how yours is setup. Thanks so much for the videos and I look forward to the ones to come. I have already read your book twice now and it is so great! It really is like having a chat about soap with a friend! I have learned so much already and am so inspired! Thanks again! You are awesome! 😊 - Kim
It's good to get back to some soapmaking! Our studio does have A/C (we installed a mini split) a couple years ago, but when I was originally making soap in the home studio, we didn't have A/C. It's not too bad here in the summer with the windows open at night... we do have heat - it's basically a plug-in fireplace that looks cute, and also warms up the place. We do not have water in our studio, so I do have to bring all the dishes in the house. It's actually not too bad, once you get a system in place. I have a tub that I use to put all the dirty dishes in. The studio is very close to the house though (like, right next to it!), so that certainly helps. I hope that answers your questions! Thanks so much for the kind words! :)
@@muddymintsoap That helps a lot! I will keep that all in mind when the time comes to move into a backyard studio for me. I say when, not if! Ha! Cause I believe it will happen and it is a goal of mine. The tub for the dirty dishes is a good idea. Just have to keep it all in mind and see what costs are and such. Great tips as always Simi! Thanks! 😊
Hey friend, I love how much information you pack into your videos. I bought your little lye containers from your link a while back when I watched your 50-50 lye video. I have a specific question about that if you have time to answer it for me. What do you find is the perfect amount of weight to go into that container for the water and the lye for a 50-50 mix.
Hi there! Great question! If I remember correctly, I think I added 80 oz of water and 80 oz of lye to the container. You can also just fill it up less than halfway with water while it is on the scale, mark down the weight, and then use the same weight of lye. That's how I started and then I inched it up more and more until the container was at a good level of fullness for me. I don't like having the container too full, as it's easier to pour when it's not all the way up to the very top. I hope this helps! :)
Hi there! You can heat the lye-water back up by using a warm water bath. I boil water and put it in a container and then place my lye-water container in the hot water. This brings the lye-water up to temperature slowly and safely.
Great question! Egyptian geranium costs about $6 per ounce. It's one of the more expensive essential oils that we use in our studio. Rose geranium, which has a more rose-like scent, costs $33 per ounce. It is a really lovely scent, but over five times the cost. Rose absolute (real rose!) which smells absolutely incredible costs about $192 per ounce. That's 32 times the cost of Egyptian geranium! Since we only use essential oils, these are our only options for a "rose-like" scent. We'd have to charge a lot more for our soap (we currently charge $10 per bar) if we were to use real rose. However, we have used rose absolute in some of our body butters, as a very small amount goes a long way in those. Of course, we charge more for these luxury body butters. So, it's all about cost! I hope this answers your question! :)
I'm so excited for the scaling series! I do have a question for you. I have a lye tank but the spigot leaks slightly. Did yours do that? I have tried 3 spigots now and they all drip. Also, the spigot cakes up with dried lye. Just wondering if you had these issues. Thank you!
Yay! I hope you find it helpful... for the lye tank, we didn't have leaks, but it did kind of cake up with dried lye, as you mentioned. We did keep a bucket under it at all times in case of drips. Where did you get your tank from?
@@muddymintsoap They are really nice people. Yes, they have sent a replacement spigot twice and it still drips. Maybe I just have the worst luck ever! 😄
Hi there! You could add coconut milk powder as an additive (right to the oils) or you can hydrate your coconut milk first and use it just like I do in the video. Hopefully that answers your question! :)
@@muddymintsoap Thank you so much for answering. Yes it did answer my question. So then adding it at trace would be okay as well? Looking forward to reading your book! 🥰
You could add it at trace, but I'd personally mix it in with the oils, unless you're only using it in part of a batch. I don't think you'll get much of the benefits of using milk with just the powder, but it might impart some good properties on your soap!
Hi there! For a lot of our soaps, we texture right away. This video is pretty much real time, so you can see how long I waited. After a while, you get to know your soap (assuming you're making the same one over and over) and will know when to texture, but typically I will test the batter with a spoon and if it feels thick, then I'll go for it! If it's too thin, I'll wait, but not too long! Sometimes even just one minute can make a difference. On the other hand, I've had soaps where the batter didn't set up for ages. For those soaps, I usually just leave the tops flat. I hope this helps!
Ah, you mean the pre-mixed solution? I think it's a great idea! You could always ask the supplier. I know Joanna from SoapGal uses it and buys it in huge quantities with great success. Makesy also makes one that I've used and it worked great.
I personally just let it be and I kind of like it, but a steeper water discount will take care of ash. You can also cover your soaps or just wash or steam the tops.
W use a 2:1 water to lye ratio and soap between 85-100, typically, but we still get ash. If you want to do a steeper discount, make sure to soap cool so you have enough time. :)
Hi there! Yes, you can use olive oil and coconut oil from a store. For supplies, I'd try brambleberry.com or bulkapothecary.com or newdirectionsaromatics.com. They will have everything you need for soapmaking. For my book, you can purchase it here if you're in the US: amzn.to/3uIOFN0. If you're outside of the US, you can find it in most online bookstores by typing in "The Natural Soapmaking Handbook by Simi Khabra" in the search. I hope this helps!
Hi Anna - you can reheat the lye-water using a warm water batch. Simply measure out your lye water in a container and place that container in either hot or boiling water. Keep checking on the temperature until it reaches the temperature you want. We usually warm up our lye water to between 90-100 degrees F.
Hi there! These are the Nurture Soap Basic 5 lb Mold. You can find the molds and all dimensions here: nurturehandmade.com/products/5-pound-basic-loaf-mold
Troy needs to make a tutorial video for how he made your slab molds and how you use them, such as lining them! Looking to scale up, but also need to make more molds easy!
I asked Troy about it and he said: "it's just a box". Haha! We will definitely do a video on lining the molds (I almost made one today!) and I can also show the construction of the molds Troy made. :) Thanks for the ideas!
I love your book. In this Texas heat instead of getting on my lawnmower, I sat all day Sunday reading your book. I must say it’s been a long time since I sat that long..lol
Aww, thank you! I'm so happy you're enjoying it. Sounds like a great way to spend the day! :)
Would absolutely love a "Scaling Up Series" maybe you could make that part of your RUclips subscriptions? I would definitely support that. Although I love your soaps, I would love a video dedicated to your packaging. Your design process, how you order your labels, what website you use to print them and even where you source the wrapping paper. I can tell how much effort you put into the packaging aspect of it and it's so impressive, would eventually love a video dedicated to that.
I know you're probably super busy, but thank you so much for being a refreshing voice and presence in the soap making education space. We really need you, so keep going! Much love from Florida. I also have been reading your book and recommending it to everyone. It's so gooood. :)
Thank you sooooo much!!! Yes, a packaging video is in our future as we get this question a lot! It's funny how you just take things for granted and don't realize people might be interested in this aspect of business. I really appreciate the feedback and ideas, so keep them coming!
And thank you for what you said about keeping going... I just recorded the same video 4 times, and we've had technical difficulties all 4 times! So, I needed to hear this today. :)
WOW.....I've watched 200 videos of soapmaking to find you. Finally, someone I can understand and who's like I am at simplifying things. I retired from the casino industry and make soap as a hobby. I don't want to make millions I just enjoy making soap and selling for craft shows. So many people are asking for my website, though. I was thinking on adding one to the business and just needed someone who's been there to talk about it. I was a bit afraid I wouldn't be able to keep up with demand but, knowing I can buy drums puts me at ease. I didn't know they existed! I have a lot to learn. I'm subscribing because I can listen to you all day.
Wow! Thank you so much for this sweet comment. I really appreciate it! Having a website is a great idea, but you can also start an Etsy shop. When I first started, I used Etsy and had my muddymint.com URL pointing directly there. This just saved the monthly fees on having a Shopify shop and allowed me to get more sales, as Etsy has a huge customer base built in. Thanks so much for subscribing! :)
@@muddymintsoap Thank you!!!!
I’d love to see a video on what tools and equipment you need to build a factory or warehouse. It’s very rarely talked about and lots of people (like me) would like to own a factory and warehouse someday. For example, the kind of large batch equipment you use, what to look for, and who to buy from.
I love this video btw. You’re amazing!
Fantastic idea! I'll add it to the list! Thanks for watching. :)
More scaling videos please, including tools, organization, the biz aspects. You're right that many people think they like EO but actually walk out buying fragrance oil soaps or bodycare. I have the same issue as you breathing in FO and end up with headache that I switch to all naturals for my own health sake, but consumers don't understand because they don't breathe in that huge amount daily.
Okay, yes! After making the switch to EOs, it'll take a while for new customers to come but keep at it and they will!
Please make more Soap Making Videos!!!! I have been watching Royalty Soap for the past 8 years and your personality and way for speaking and sharing knowledge is amazing. Please show us the making on all the soaps you guys sell in the future. I love watching soap making videos ❤❤❤
Aww, you're sweet. Thank you!! I absolutely love Katie at Royalty Soap. We are definitely going to keep making videos - it just takes forever to film and edit! Haha! We are releasing videos every two weeks on Tuesday for now. Hopefully we can get up to once a week in the future. Thanks!
I love you videos. I would love more videos on scailing up. Different things you need to do thank you for this
Thank you and I appreciate the feedback on videos you'd like to see! :)
It's definitely psychological when thinking about making lye solution and it stops me from being more productive. I'm definitely going to try 50/50 and using the additional with coconut milk. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and experience. I'm learning so much from you.
I hope it helps you as much as it helped me! Let us know how it goes. :) Thanks so much for your comment and for watching!
I would really love to see a video on ordering drums and all the little details for setting up to scale up. Thank you for this video. I really enjoyed watching the process and tips
Thanks so much for watching! We'll definitely be doing a video on ordering drums! :)
Yes to the psychological aspect! For a long time. I kind of spun in my mind of what I wanted to do but never took a step to implement it! But now master batching is so "normal" for me! Appreciate your videos!!!
That's great to hear! It does make a huge difference to master batch. Thanks for watching our videos! :)
QUESTION: Another great video Simi. I would answer to your call out for questions re scaling, the following:
1.) What is actually happening when scaling? Is it a response to more individual customers, store orders, online marketing campaigns?
In other words, when is the call for scaling appropriate?
2.) Is it possible to scale in your home-studio?
3.). When do you know you need to hire? How does all that work in terms of part-time or full-time? Are they on contract, or company employees?
4.) What are some of the unknowns of scaling you guys wish you knew beforehand to anticipate better decisions, or preparedness?
5.) Do you have funny stories you would share about scaling?
Thank you in advance Simi & Troy!
Great batch of questions! I might need to make a whole video just to answer these! I love it, and that first question is especially good and something I hadn't thought about including in our scaling series.
@@muddymintsoap Yes to all of these questions! I have been a hobby soaper for 7+ years and this past year I have been selling at markets. As a result, I am being asked if I can stock...these five (tourist) stores, or make wedding favors, or use this byproduct to make a custom line, etc. Part of it is deciding who I want to cater to but I still am home-based and it is a little overwhelming. How can I best prepare for this next stage of growth (equip, inventory on hand, etc)? Any stories of when you made that initial transition up? Another question I would add is - what recommendations would you suggest for packaging when selling wholesale to boutique stores/gift shops? I stay away from plastic/shrink wrap and the individual boxes seem costly. Do we provide the displays, etc? With scaling comes all of these other factors to consider, and in some cases extra expenses. Thank you for all of your great videos and tips. I'll be looking for the bigger tubs now! I bought your book and have started to play with some of the recipes. You are a natural teacher - thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and experience!
Okay, yes! Lots of great question here too! I would say (for now) that you need to decide what to focus on. I personally tried to avoid any custom work or wedding favors (unless it was just cutting up bars I already had) because those projects are so time-consuming. You'll always get the most out of working off a product line you're already making. However, some people love custom work and wedding favors could be huge business as well! So, figure out what your focus is and be confident in saying yes (or no) to the business that comes. It's easier to say "sorry, I don't do custom wedding favors, but I'll be happy to cut up soaps into small favors if you like" than not being sure. Having said that, this is a huge topic and would be fun to make a video on!
@@muddymintsoap Thank you! Yes, the idea of custom orders is making my head spin lol. Maybe down the line... Like you said, it is very time-consuming! Cutting up already-made bars into favors is a great idea to offer. I can't wait to watch more of your videos. :)
Thank you for all the great ideas for scaling up. Any more scaling up ideas are welcome!
Awesome! Thanks so much for watching! :)
You are so beautiful
Thank you for showing me I can batch. This cuts down so much prep time!
I’m so happy you found this helpful. Thanks for watching❣️
Yes, getting comfortable with scaling your batches saves sooo much time. I met another retired soap maker and she sold me her stainless steel stock pots that hold 16 lbs each. I’m able to hammer out 48lbs in one day. I could do more of I bought more molds. I’d like to start using a slab mold, but I think I’ll wait another year.
That's awesome! I bought a stainless steel stock pot a while ago, but it was too big and heavy for me to use by myself, so it ended up getting retired to the corner. I've often thought of getting a pot tipper for it, but never did. Glad you can get that much done in a day!
I tried Ashley Marie’s stainless steel bowl style… that did not work for me! I was so bummed.
Yes, the stock pots can be heavy. I usually have all my split color or scents lined up for me to pour at once
Those bowls always make me nervous when I see her! I love that she has her own unique way of doing things though. She’s great. Glad you found your own way! ❤️
@@muddymintsoap Perhaps Troy, with his extra height and masculine strength, might make an excellent Pot Tipper… 😉😊
I absolutely enjoyed watching this and wrote down a few pointers I learned! I am slowly scaling up, but due to limited space I try not to make way too many beyond what I can sell to keep inventory/loss at a minimum. I'm looking to possibly do farmers markets in the next year or two, is there a way to help advise on how best to make soap for farmers markets in terms of volume, due to curing times? I'm still at that small, just starting out level, but wanting to take that next step to producing more :) My current bottleneck is the "I don't want to make too much and not be able to sell it, but what if I sell too much at one event and don't have enough at the next shows before what I make can cure"
Hi there! Thanks for watching and I'm glad you picked up some tips! One thing you definitely don't want to do is run out of soap... we have a whole spreadsheet to keep track of sales and that helps us figure out what to make, but when you're newer it's a little harder to know what the demand will be. For a farmer's market, I'd focus on bringing a variety of scents. Even if you just have one loaf of each scent, at least you'll have lots of options for people. The other thing I used to do is do a discount for buying four or more soaps, which is where the variety of scents come in handy! If it's looking like you have too much stock, you could always have a sale (either online or at your next farmer's market). Another thing I've done is create sample packs, which are always popular, with any extra soap you have. If you sell 8 half bars for the price of four bars, that might do well. For sure, you'll want to make enough to cover your booth fee and then some! If you have too much, you'll have to get creative, which is where the fun of business comes in! :)
I’d like to know more about how you packaging your soaps. Where do I look for suppliers for soap boxes or belly bands and such.
Great video idea! Thank you!
Thank you, Simi darling. This is a great video. Love and hugs from Pretoria, South Africa.
Thank you! :)
Thank you so much for a wonderful book! Your love for soap making shines through, and reading it brings vibes of chatting about soap with a good friend ❤
Thank you so much! That makes me so happy to hear. :)
I did my best textured top after watching you make this soap. And when I heard you mention your book…let’s just say I’ll have it tomorrow. Thanks!
Oh wow! I love it!! Congrats on the amazing soap top and thank you for ordering my book! That makes me so happy! :)
Can't wait to have your book-UK. I've bought all your recipes and they are amazing. Thanks for your kindness.
Thank you so much!
I love the idea that you're scaling down to spend more time with family. I have an odd situation. My wife and I only have one child(he's 8) and we had him late in life. I'm 47, shes 49. The job market isn't great, and my full time job is on the weekend so that affords me a good bit of time during the week. I'm wanting to do the opposite which is build up a business, something maybe I can pass on to my son in the future. Thanks for all your videos and for sharing all the knowledge you guys have built up over the years.
Love it! Hopefully your son is interested in your business, because mine certainly isn't! Haha! Good luck with everything. So happy our videos are helping in a small way. :)
I just got your book and am very much looking forward to your upcoming scaling videos. 💕
Thank you so much! I hope you love the book. :)
The Soap Gal is less an artisan soap maker and more a soap manufacturer as she is a wholesaler. I don’t know if she sells anything under her own label anymore. I MasterBatch my oils/butters, but not in individual batch buckets…I have four large buckets that hold 50lbs that I make up. And I MasterBatch my Lye Solution which is ready-to-use 33% or 35% (depending on the time of the year) Lye Concentration. On the wall above counter is a spread sheet that lists everything mold I use and it tells my how much Oil/Butter, how much Lye Solution, how much Fragrance Oil (I don’t use low usage rate FOs). I use a commercial paint stirrer on a drill to give my Oils/Butters a good whiz, weigh out what I need and pop in the microwave. While that is going I weigh out my Lye Solution and add SL, weigh out my FO and add KO and disperse my colorant. Mix the batter, pour it into a mold, set it aside, wash my dishes and start the next batch
Hi there! The soap gal does focus on soap manufacturing, but she also does a lot of custom soaps for others and I believe they just got their own label going again. She's great to watch because, even if you're not doing things exactly as she is, she is at such a big scale that it is inspiring and shows what's possible. I used to watch her videos back in the day and they were the only thing that really helped me learn how to use a lye tank and drums. Masterbatching in larger quantities, like your 50 lb buckets, or even right into a 55 gallon drum is definitely a good idea if you're larger scale! Do you have a pot tipper for those buckets? Masterbatching your lye in a specific concentration is also a great idea! We use 50/50 because we don't use only water for our additional liquid. I love hearing about how you're set up, as we all find our own methods that works for us! The old paint stirrer on a drill is an awesome way to make soap!! We thought about doing this many times. Make, rinse, repeat. It never ends, right? Haha! Thanks for the comment!
MasterBatching for me was about convenience as opposed to scaling up. I work full-time with an hour commute and so when I got home, having to drag out all the ingredients, measure and melt, put it all away and clean up was just too exhausting. But MBing allowed me to come home and spend 20 minutes make at least one batch of soap.
I don't use the paint stirrer to actually make soap, but to mix up the Oils/Butters. My recipe includes Olive, Palm, Coconut and Castor Oils and Cocoa and Shea Butters and so I need to make sure the Stearic Acid is well mixed, especially during the winter when the Oils/Butters are more like a cornbread mixture than the pancake one during the summer months (I'm in the Pacific NW). I then grab a bucket, tare it, then use either a plastic measuring cup or ladle (knowing how many approximate ounces each holds) and then scoop out xx number into the bucket and weigh it.
I have been taking my time in building my business because 1) I work full-time, 2) I'm in my early 60s and got into the game late in life, 3) I fully intend to sell this business later by the time I'm 70..
And I don't just make soap, I also make other bath and body stuff, but that is information that is going to get covered in a book that I'm in the process of writing...which is going to cover the business end of starting and having a bath and body business...I'm an accountant so it's kind of in my wheelhouse. I want to encourage more people into starting their own home-based business, but at the same time, I want them to understand the realities of it given that there is so much disinformation out there. As someone who takes my business very seriously, I very much dislike all the 'get rich quit' advertising aka: "Soap that is safe to use and sell in 2 days". Bad soap makers reflect badly on all of us and there needs to be more responsibility and accountability.
But I will have to continue this conversation at another time...bills don't pay themselves which means I need to head out to my day job.
I found your comment to be very informative and inspiring! I'm 50 years old and would like to start my own soap making business. The past few months have been research mostly and being realistic with myself and my expectations bcz I also work full time and if the energy isn't there,...it isn't there 😂. Look forward to your book. You are an inspiration for us older ladies😊@@LadyGecko
@@LadyGeckothat two days soap thing is just too much for me. I am a chemist and started my business due to health and skin issues when moved into this country almost twenty years ago. That is just irresponsible and should not be allowed, but that person sells more due to people lack of education.
@@JanetFayard - Starting a business is tough to begin with, most business fail within the first year or two. It can be even tougher when you don't have a lot of capital (money) to spend on a separate shop, equipment and advertising and/or when you have a full-time job.
I thought I knew a lot about soap making before I started making soap, then went I started selling soap, I realized I didn't know as much as I thought I did. You have to put your knowledge to practice to get a better understanding of what you know.
And knowing how to make soap is only part of it, you also need to figure out what kind of soap you want to make and who you are wanting to sell soap to.
Example...some folks only make Goat Milk Soap; some folks only make soap with Essential Oils and Natural Colorants.
I make the kind of soap "I" enjoy making and using. The last is key because if you business should fail...guess who is left using all that soap? I tend to follow the KISS rule when it comes to all of my products. I look at the folks in my local market...what kind of folks are they in general and how do you get someone who is used to getting a 4-pack of soap for $3.99 to pay $8.00 for a bar of soap?
Thank you for sharing with us, great tips and advice, much appreciated. I bet those soaps smell amazing. 😻
They do smell great! Thank you! :)
Loving all of the videos. I missed the Live you did the other day but watched it on replay - thank you for sharing the video on replay. I have been enjoying your book and already tabbing pages and making notes for questions - if I can catch a Live, Live 🙂 Your explanations are amazing and the stories behind each bar/recipe.
I'm glad you got to see a replay of the live! That was so fun! It was a very last-minute decision, so I'm surprised anyone was there. Haha!
Congratulations on your new book. I just got it yesterday and love the information!!! It is excellent for beginners like me.
Thank you! So glad to hear you're loving the book. Yay! :)
Great video! Your book just got added to my list to get. I’d be interested in hearing your about how you scaled up in the customer department (I.e. your strategy). Thanks!
Hi there! Thanks for watching and adding my book to your list! Great idea to chat about the customer side of things. Thank you for the suggestion. :)
Thank you for going into scaling. I would love it if you could talk about getting my soap business out of my home. All of the pros and cons and processes and things to consider. Also, how to know that you're ready to do this. How to find a building to rent, what added expenses are involved in renting a place, etc. I think you could do a whole series on this topic. Thanks for considering it!
That’s a great idea! Thank you for the suggestion! ❤️
love your videos and the special detail information you provided. THANK YOU . Looking forward for more of your videos!!!!!
Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying them. Thanks for watching!
I love texturing my soaps
Me too! It’s part of what makes it art, I think. 😊
Thank you Simi! I am really enjoying your book and the recipes I have purchased.
Thank you! :) So happy to hear that!
Glad to see you back making soap Simi! I love your new book, congratulations! What beautiful pictures and wonderful recipes!! I love your teaching style too. Keep up the good work!
I'm so happy you're enjoying the book and thanks so much for your kind words. :)
I use mostly essential oils but I do use some natural fragrances from Wholesale Supply Plus! I'm very sensitive to synthetic fragrances as well but I have never gotten a headache with their natural fragrances!
That's awesome to hear! I know Brambleberry makes some natural fragrances as well, but I heard they didn't work great in soap... not sure if that's correct or not. I'll be sticking to essential oils, but I'm glad they're making more options for people to use. Thanks for watching our video!
New to making soap. First run made just last night. I ordered a book (not yours) today. As I watched this video and found you just released a book, I canceled the other and ordered yours. Thank for all the great info and looking forward to the book.
That's so exciting that you just made your first soap - congrats!! And, thank you so much for purchasing my book! I really hope you love it. Another book I highly recommend (if you're looking to purchase another natural soapmaking book) is Simple & Natural Soapmaking, by Jan Berry. Happy making! :)
Yes, please do more scaling recipes with all the gritty how-to’s!
Yes! I'm think I'm getting the message... haha! I love the enthusiasm!
Yes, plz! A video all about the decision to purchase drums and all that’s needed, tips and advice! ❤
Yes! I definitely need to do this... hopefully I will get around to it soon! :)
I love your videos Simi! And I adore your book!! I have been a soap maker for 12 years selling at shows and out of my home on occasion.
I have recently built my own website(terrified as well lol) and have it almost ready to launch, I am still working on the shipping part. Your part on master-batching lye has made me question myself and why the heck didn’t I do this years ago! I do “Milk in Oil” religiously lol 🤦🏼♀️ so I ordered the lye containers you mentioned in your book.
Thank you so much for taking the time to teach even us seasoned soapers some techniques! I appreciate YOU!! ❤
That's awesome! Congrats on your website! If you're already doing milk in oils, then you should definitely try 50/50 lye! It's not a commonly used technique, so don't question yourself. We're always learning new things. :) I hope it helps you out a bunch! Thanks so much for watching!
@@muddymintsoap
Thank you ☺️
Do you insulate your "milk in oil soaps?
@@melodycross498 Hi! We don't insulate our soaps, no. :)
Great video! I make two buckets for my slab mold because I make a lot of two-color soaps too :-)
It's such a great technique! Makes everything so easy. Thanks for watching!
You made my day today !!thank you for sharing your experience and advice !!
Wonderful! Thank you!! :)
I like humblebee and me too and sunshine soap. The skin care they make. I typed in bay laural soap that was fun to watch the mass production. Of course you dont pour yours on the floor as a soap mold technique ha.
Haha! Yep, those pours on the floor are impressive to watch! Marie at Humblebee & Me is fantastic. I have her book too, Make it Up! I'm not familiar with Sunshine Soap - I'll have to look them up!
Love your videos thank you
I can't wait for your book
I tried your sea salt recipe. Oh my im sold. Thank you Thank you and may God bless you
That makes me sooo happy! I'm glad you like the recipe. Hope you get the book soon! Thanks for watching. :)
Would love some tips sometime on what features worked best for you on your sales website. I'm struggling to convert from looks to sales. My photos are great and I worked hard on my descriptions but not getting the conversion. Thank you, you are a beautiful teacher 💗
Thank you so much! That's a great idea - conversion rates are tricky. My first thought about that is shipping. Are you charging too much? That's always a deterrent when you're checking out. Shipping costs are so tricky for soap! That could be a whole video alone! :)
Thank you for such an informative session. I’ve been making soap for a while now and your valuable experience and tips are so appreciated! Thank you and wishing you a wonderful journey ahead! 🥰
Thank you so much! I really appreciate that and thanks for watching. :)
Very helpful and inspiring! Thanks!
Thank you! :)
Such excellent videos and lovely people.
Thank you so much! Appreciate you watching. :)
Thanks you so much for sharing your story, experience and expertise. Love your book . Wishing you the best of success.
Thank you! Appreciate your comment and thanks for watching!
another great video! Thanks Simi. I look forward to your scaling series...always looking for more efficient ways of doing things. :)
Thanks so much, Jessica! I appreciate you watching!
Excellent video! I would love to watch more videos about scaling up. I learned so much from this one video. I’m eager to learn more! Who knew you could order drums of blended oil?! Thank you!!
So happy you found it helpful! We'll do more for sure. There's still so much to talk about since we're so new at making videos. :) Thanks for watching!
Thanks for the video and tips! I appreciate it!
I'm glad you found it helpful! :)
definitely more scaling videos please.
Yes! Hopefully we'll get around to this soon! :)
You have very great helpful tips. I love the book. ❤
So happy you love the book - thank you!
Just bought your book!❤️👏👏
Yay!! Thank you and I hope you love it! :)
Love your videos, can't wait for the next one.
Woohoo! We are finally on a schedule and will be releasing one every two weeks. Wild Lavender is next and it's coming out Tue Jun 18th. Thanks for watching! :)
Hello from Barbados. Great video. Thank you! I'm definitely interested in the drum video. I need to scale my coconut and olive oils up to drums, but am also trying to work out getting them off the vehicle and into the studio. Barbados being a small island, I haven't really seen trucks here with the tailgate lift. Also, many of the pumps on Amazon have average to bad reviews. So if there is one you recommend, I'd love to know that also. Thanks in advance.
Hello and thank you for watching! Yes, I would love to do a video like this. These are all great questions!
Superb video. I watched till the end. And thank you. ❤
Thank you! :)
I love your book.going to make Milky Rose first
Yay! Milky Rose is one of my favorite scents... I hope you enjoy making it. Thank you for the kind words about my book. :)
I would like to see the finished product after you get the soap ready for setting like before and after
Yes, good point! This is just a solid bar, so we didn't show the cut, but we could include some pictures. Thanks for the suggestion!
The first 6 years of making my soaps i didnt have any type of mixer. I mixed exclusively by hand with a large wooden spoon.. Sometimes it would take 10 mintes to 30 minutes to trace.
I LOVE hearing from soapmakers that have been making soap long enough to not have used a stick blender! Ten to 30 minutes isn't too bad, actually. Did you ever add clove or anything to the oils to speed it up? I'm curious if you used any tricks to get it to trace faster.
I love the book!! I can’t wait to start making the recipes❤. I do have a question how can you adjust the recipe to fit your mold?
Hi there! You can use soapcalc to resize your batch. If you know how much oils your mold can fit, you can enter everything into soapcalc as it's in the book and then switch the measurements to percentage (for the oils) and go to the top and change your oil amount. That should recalculate everything for you! Hopefully this helps!
Yes scaling up with tips is a great untapped topic. I watched your lye making video but have a question since you’re now using the canister. I’m assuming you shake it up before using? Is this kept at room temperature or are you warming it up a bit?
Hi there! Yes, I shake it up a bit, pour it out into another container (through a sieve), and then I put that container in a warm water bath to warm it up a bit. I hope this helps!
Yes thank you!
Could you explain how to design/print labels, what filming equipment used and shipping options to use?
Great ideas! Shipping would be a loooong video. Haha!
Do you heat up your lye solution to match the temp of the oil before pouring ? I think doing a 50/50 solution would help me make a lot more soap than I am right now, that’s such a great idea. 😊
Yes! We warm it up in a warm water bath, but if your additional liquid is water, you can actually re-activate it by adding more water to it, which also warms it up. I hope that helps!
I haven’t started master batching lye yet. When I do, how long is it good for? Should you try to make the soap within 3 months of making the lye? I’m beginning to plan for Christmas and I will definitely switch to the 50/50 lye method and master batching. Thanks!
Hi Jill! We’re currently using lye that we made in December, although it was in a lye tank until the end of February. So, I think it lasts a while, but I’d try and use it within 1-3 months to ensure there’s no evaporation happening between the time you make it and when you use it.
I would love to see a video on soap cal and how to use it. I've seen videos but they are not very detailed and soap cal stumps me
Oh gosh... soapcalc is so wonderful, but also so daunting. That's a great video idea!
I'm really enjoying your videos! Question regarding the coconut cream - do you think there's a difference in the quality of the soap using the liquid form versus powdered coconut milk that can be mixed into the soap batter? Thanks!
Hi there! We use coconut milk (vs cream) and I DO think there's a difference between the fresh milk and powdered milk! It's purely based on my own experiments, but I think real milk results in a creamier bar with a nicer lather. That's just my opinion though, so I'd encourage you to try both and see if you notice a difference!
Can you please link some key equipment like your buckets? What size are they?
Hi there! We have a ton of links in the description for this video! Hopefully you can find them… 😊
Ariane arsenault shes also upscaled i dont if shes talked alot about it or not.
Yes, Ariane is fantastic! I watch her videos a lot as well.
Excelente trabajo ,donde puedo obtener esos moldes de silicona yan grandes ,en mi país nunca los he visto
Hi there! The molds in this video are from Nurture Soap (nurturesoap.com) and they are the 5lb basic mold. Here's a link: nurturesoap.com/products/5-pound-basic-loaf-mold.
I’m very new to making soap and haven’t used lye yet. For someone making soap in their kitchen I’m concerned about cleaning the equipment safely in my sink after using lye. Any advice? I also just received your book and can’t wait to read it!
Hi there! I do have some information on this in my book, but keep in mind that sodium hydroxide (lye) is the same thing that is in drain cleaner! So, it's okay for it to go down your drain. If it's your first time making lye water, I recommend making it directly in your sink to ensure you don't spill. When I wash my lye water containers, I usually rinse them first with cold water in the sink and once I've done that, I'll go in with gloved hands and wash the container with soap and water (using a sponge/brush dedicated to soapmaking). I hope this helps!
@@muddymintsoap I actually just read that part today so thank you that does help
If you could do a video on wholesale, I’d appreciate it!
We definitely will! Hopefully in the next few weeks. :)
i love katy and watching her on royality soap.
I love Katie Carson! She is seriously the best. I'll have to see if she has any videos on scaling up! I wasn't aware that she did. :)
Hi could you link what you store stir the soap in. Just got it from your description thank you and I love the video❤
Glad you found it! Thank you. :)
Love your book and videos. I didn't see this asked anywhere, but where do you purchase the container that you hold your lye? Looking for something just like that but not ready for a big tank yet.
THANKS!!!!
Hi Kim! Thanks so much! I do have a link to everything in the description for this video (under the video there is a gray box with information and if you click "more" it'll expand to show more). The link to the containers is: amzn.to/4aKfwYk. I hope this helps! :)
Love watching you make soap! Do you ever make goat milk soap or do you always use coconut milk? I.
Dabbled in soaps several years ago and would love to get going on it before the holidays😊
Thank you so much!! Yes! We had four goat milk soaps as part of our main product line. One is Calming Lavender, which we have a video for her on our channel (check it out!). The process is exactly like using coconut milk. In any of our recipes, you can sub out goat milk for the additional liquid. Easy peasy! We tend to use coconut milk in order to provide vegan options for folks and it has a great shelf life when you buy it like we do. Goat milk however, has to be used pretty much right away, although you can store it in the fridge for a bit. I hope this helps!
@muddymintsoap Yes, it did us.Thank you so much! I completely agree about people wanting that vegan option. I spent my night last night Reading your book so i'm sure I will get to that part. I never thought of the shelf life!
Enjoying your book. Going to try thev50/ 50 lye.
Great video
Yes! Can't wait to hear how it goes. Thanks for watching!
@@muddymintsoap will let ya know
Well made the coconut aloe and used lemon and cedarwood came out perfect. Actually borrowed a juicer and made sone carott juice for one of the other soaps. Thank you for such a great book
That's awesome! I'm so glad you enjoyed the coconut aloe soap and that's so fun that you made carrot juice. Yay!
Love the book. Have made 3 recipes and have come out perfect( perfect for me lol)
Anyway have a question with swapping out essential oils from one recipe to another.
Example
Want to use the recipe for lavender lemonade but want to use the essential oils from sweet mint. Is this an even swap?
Yay! So happy you love the book! Great question. Yes, it is an even swap. Just remember that if you are using essential oils that might accelerate trace, then the design might not work out as well as in the book. But, the swap you're suggesting sounds great! I love that you're switching things up - enjoy! :)
@@muddymintsoap thanks yes you have given me the tools to change it up.
Simmi if we double the ratio of clay as advised in the recipe how much should we increase the water by? Clay can be accelerating so can we add it after trace? My soap turned out peachy color instead of pink 😅
Hi there! You don't need to change the water amount if you use more clay, particularly for this recipe where the amount of clay is so minimal. Note that if you're using orange essential oil, you'll definitely get a peachy color (I'm just guessing that maybe that's why you got a peach rather than a pink?) or it could be the brand of french pink clay that you have yields a different color. The recipe is a very small amount of clay, so you can certainly double it (without making any other changes)!
Thanks for the vid Simi ❤
You're welcome! Hope you enjoyed it. :)
Great video Simi! Loved seeing you make soap! I am going to start doing that with the buckets now. Getting them master batched and then doing the 2 loaf molds per soap, although I think I can go up to 4 loaf molds now! That is going to be a game changer indeed! I do have a question though on scaling, I am not there yet in this area that I am about to ask you, cause I still work out of my home kitchen, but I can see in the future having a little backyard studio like you are back in now and I was curious on how you control the air temperature in there. Do you have an AC unit or a mini-split or a window with a window unit? I am sure you have electric hooked up to the building. Also, on a water hook up. Do you have water out there? I was thinking on cleaning up and having a sink and then that led me to think on hot water for clean up, and the need for a water heater as well. Do you have that kind of setup in your studio? I can't imagine hauling all my dirty dishes and containers back into my house for cleanup, so it got me to thinking on how yours is setup. Thanks so much for the videos and I look forward to the ones to come. I have already read your book twice now and it is so great! It really is like having a chat about soap with a friend! I have learned so much already and am so inspired! Thanks again! You are awesome! 😊 - Kim
It's good to get back to some soapmaking! Our studio does have A/C (we installed a mini split) a couple years ago, but when I was originally making soap in the home studio, we didn't have A/C. It's not too bad here in the summer with the windows open at night... we do have heat - it's basically a plug-in fireplace that looks cute, and also warms up the place. We do not have water in our studio, so I do have to bring all the dishes in the house. It's actually not too bad, once you get a system in place. I have a tub that I use to put all the dirty dishes in. The studio is very close to the house though (like, right next to it!), so that certainly helps. I hope that answers your questions! Thanks so much for the kind words! :)
@@muddymintsoap That helps a lot! I will keep that all in mind when the time comes to move into a backyard studio for me. I say when, not if! Ha! Cause I believe it will happen and it is a goal of mine. The tub for the dirty dishes is a good idea. Just have to keep it all in mind and see what costs are and such. Great tips as always Simi! Thanks! 😊
If you can add a laundry style sink or something, that would be awesome! And yes! It WILL happen. 😊❤️
GREAT JOB WONDERFUL
Thank you! ❤️
Where do you get a container for the 50/50 lye that doesn’t melt down
Hi there! My favorite one is linked in the description! You can find it here: amzn.to/4aKfwYk
Hey friend, I love how much information you pack into your videos. I bought your little lye containers from your link a while back when I watched your 50-50 lye video. I have a specific question about that if you have time to answer it for me. What do you find is the perfect amount of weight to go into that container for the water and the lye for a 50-50 mix.
Hi there! Great question! If I remember correctly, I think I added 80 oz of water and 80 oz of lye to the container. You can also just fill it up less than halfway with water while it is on the scale, mark down the weight, and then use the same weight of lye. That's how I started and then I inched it up more and more until the container was at a good level of fullness for me. I don't like having the container too full, as it's easier to pour when it's not all the way up to the very top. I hope this helps! :)
@@muddymintsoap Awesome thanks! I read back through my original comment, and voicetexting did not treat us very well this time. Ha! Be blessed friend
Haha! No worries - I didn't even notice! :)
@@muddymintsoap 💕
80 ounces of each was perfect. Whoop! Thanks!
Hi!! What hand mixer are you using? Thanks love your work
Hi there! I have it linked in the description. It is an All-Clad stick blender.
Thank you!!! Got your book and I love it
Thank you! So happy you love it. :)
Oi Simi! Como você fazia para esquentar a lixivia se estivesse fria nos dias seguintes ao deixar preparada? Att
Hi there! You can heat the lye-water back up by using a warm water bath. I boil water and put it in a container and then place my lye-water container in the hot water. This brings the lye-water up to temperature slowly and safely.
@@muddymintsoap I'll do it! Thank you for your kindness in returning the question.
Do you only use standard molds, or also tall and skinny? Is there one you prefer?
Hi! We have consistent bar sizes, so we just make the wide bars. I personally prefer them over tall and skinny, but it’s completely up to you!
Why do you use geranium scent for rose soap?
Great question! Egyptian geranium costs about $6 per ounce. It's one of the more expensive essential oils that we use in our studio. Rose geranium, which has a more rose-like scent, costs $33 per ounce. It is a really lovely scent, but over five times the cost. Rose absolute (real rose!) which smells absolutely incredible costs about $192 per ounce. That's 32 times the cost of Egyptian geranium! Since we only use essential oils, these are our only options for a "rose-like" scent. We'd have to charge a lot more for our soap (we currently charge $10 per bar) if we were to use real rose. However, we have used rose absolute in some of our body butters, as a very small amount goes a long way in those. Of course, we charge more for these luxury body butters. So, it's all about cost! I hope this answers your question! :)
I'm so excited for the scaling series! I do have a question for you. I have a lye tank but the spigot leaks slightly. Did yours do that? I have tried 3 spigots now and they all drip. Also, the spigot cakes up with dried lye. Just wondering if you had these issues. Thank you!
Yay! I hope you find it helpful... for the lye tank, we didn't have leaks, but it did kind of cake up with dried lye, as you mentioned. We did keep a bucket under it at all times in case of drips. Where did you get your tank from?
@@muddymintsoap Thanks for the reply. I got it from Discount Soap Equipment. I do keep a bucket under the spigot too.
Have you tried reaching out to them? We got one of our butter tanks from Discount Soap Equipment and it is fantastic!
@@muddymintsoap They are really nice people. Yes, they have sent a replacement spigot twice and it still drips. Maybe I just have the worst luck ever! 😄
Ugh! So frustrating? Do you have plumber’s tape around the inside?
What container do you use for your premixed lye solution?
Hi there! Our containers are linked in the description. It is this one: amzn.to/4aKfwYk. Thanks for watching! :)
Thank you for this!!
If you were to add coconut milk powder instead how would you scale the powder to the mix? 😊
Hi there! You could add coconut milk powder as an additive (right to the oils) or you can hydrate your coconut milk first and use it just like I do in the video. Hopefully that answers your question! :)
@@muddymintsoap Thank you so much for answering. Yes it did answer my question. So then adding it at trace would be okay as well? Looking forward to reading your book! 🥰
You could add it at trace, but I'd personally mix it in with the oils, unless you're only using it in part of a batch. I don't think you'll get much of the benefits of using milk with just the powder, but it might impart some good properties on your soap!
Simi , what is the size of the soap bucket pls?
Hi Katharine! These are 6 quart (or 6 liter) buckets. I have them linked in my Amazon shop.
Can we get a step by step of how you make your soaps and trace please ☺️
Yes! We plan to make a basic video for beginners. 😊
How long do you wait to texturize soap? I either do it too soon or too late.
Hi there! For a lot of our soaps, we texture right away. This video is pretty much real time, so you can see how long I waited. After a while, you get to know your soap (assuming you're making the same one over and over) and will know when to texture, but typically I will test the batter with a spoon and if it feels thick, then I'll go for it! If it's too thin, I'll wait, but not too long! Sometimes even just one minute can make a difference. On the other hand, I've had soaps where the batter didn't set up for ages. For those soaps, I usually just leave the tops flat. I hope this helps!
@@muddymintsoap Thank you!
I've considered using the 50% liquid lye but wondered if they are careful to use DISTILLED water in the solution.
Ah, you mean the pre-mixed solution? I think it's a great idea! You could always ask the supplier. I know Joanna from SoapGal uses it and buys it in huge quantities with great success. Makesy also makes one that I've used and it worked great.
@@muddymintsoap thanks. However, I meant the 50% I see on our grocery shelves in Trinidad
@muddymintsoap ...unnamed brand. I'm not sure I could import something like that easily, so I may have to play it safe and continue mixing the dry.
Hmmm... interesting! What do the ingredients say?
@@muddymintsoap just: Sodium Hydroxide. It seems we can get away with leaving out the other (obvious) ingredient in these parts.
Do you do anything in particular to avoid soda ash build up?
I personally just let it be and I kind of like it, but a steeper water discount will take care of ash. You can also cover your soaps or just wash or steam the tops.
With the high water discount what temperature do you soap at? It looks like you have enough time to play before things get dicey
W use a 2:1 water to lye ratio and soap between 85-100, typically, but we still get ash. If you want to do a steeper discount, make sure to soap cool so you have enough time. :)
Where do you get the longer neck blender
I have a link in my description. You can get it on Amazon here: amzn.to/4bG5KaT. I hope this helps! :)
Do you know where I can buy supplies and book?
can we use Olive oil and Cocunt oils from store? Or Must using specific oils to make soaps?
Hi there! Yes, you can use olive oil and coconut oil from a store. For supplies, I'd try brambleberry.com or bulkapothecary.com or newdirectionsaromatics.com. They will have everything you need for soapmaking. For my book, you can purchase it here if you're in the US: amzn.to/3uIOFN0. If you're outside of the US, you can find it in most online bookstores by typing in "The Natural Soapmaking Handbook by Simi Khabra" in the search. I hope this helps!
How do you reheat the lye? And to what temperature?
Hi Anna - you can reheat the lye-water using a warm water batch. Simply measure out your lye water in a container and place that container in either hot or boiling water. Keep checking on the temperature until it reaches the temperature you want. We usually warm up our lye water to between 90-100 degrees F.
Very nice mam. Mould size length And breath tellme
Hi there! These are the Nurture Soap Basic 5 lb Mold. You can find the molds and all dimensions here: nurturehandmade.com/products/5-pound-basic-loaf-mold