I'm Really Tired of Making Mistakes

Yes, we all do it. But it gets frustrating when mistakes are made a little too often.

I just finished a batch of soap: Shea butter soap with Lavender oil, calendula and ground Chamomile. Should be soothing and great for bothersome skin and eczema. Referring to the directions and tips in Smart Soapmaking by Anne Watson, making soap really is pretty easy, as long as you take the right precautions: gloves, goggles, prudence. And using stainless steel submerged in a cold bath to mix the lye in - SO much better then glass! It cools off in just minutes, verses what seems like an hour when using glass.

But i misread my recipe and put 14 oz of shea butter instead of 12. That's a big difference, and if i'd known it i should have upped the lye to about 5.83 oz instead of the 5.6 i used. Sigh.

But i just worked out the INS value of the ingredients, and got a value of 156. The ideal range is 145 - 160, so hopefully this soap works out after all. I'll know in about 3 weeks. Feel free to place your orders if you're interested, and i'll be sure and update then to let you know if it's viable and happy soap.

AND i realized in the middle of the night while being kept awake by a perpetually stuffy yet dry nose: i forgot to line my mold with freezer paper. What does that mean? It means i have no freakin' idea how to get the soap out of the pyrex. Big sigh number two.

Anyone know if i can freeze the mold without damaging the soap quality?

So now, what to do with this 1 oz of shae butter left over? Perhaps i'll go rub it in my hair while trying not to make any more mistakes.
Sigh.

*********Happy Update: i froze the soap in its mold (after cutting at the edges and making a mess of it) and it easily shrunk away from the sides of the mold and popped right out. Hopefullyt eh soap quality is unharmed, and at least it's out and ready to be cut into bars!

Recent Projects

My husband and i have long been planning a joint business venture of crafting, growing veggies and making cheese for market: selling our co-produced wares. It's mostly a future plan, but we've been gearing up to sell crafts and homemade products at a farmer's market this Fall. I was tinkering with some logo ideas the other day, and the very next day was approached by a friend asking me to sell at a small event she's putting together for mother's day.  

!

A bit sudden, and i'm not entirely prepared, but i felt it was 'a sign' or at least a catalyst to get off my duff and start working. I plopped down a decent chunk of change (investment costs?) on some soap making supplies, paper for packaging, and other items i'll need for my part of our project, and i'm getting some good work done!

The project will be known as The Relic Jar, and is a combination of my husband's brainchild and gourd art, with sewing assistance and herb knowledge by me. I've tacked on my own facet to the project, to be known as Tinctures and Tonics: assorted bath and body products, as well as candles and other crafty novelties. I'm also working on our little blog/website, TheRelicJar.wordpress.com - so bookmark that and check out the cool stuff being born over there.

In the meantime: here's a quick glimpse of what's going on in MY studio:

New desk from Thriftland, plus old spice rack to hold spools of thread and some curing soap (plus my old sewing stool, finally being used for actual SEWING)

Curing soap. Not entirely homemade this time, just some glycerine soap that i added botanicals, natural colors, and essential oils to. I quite like it - feels and smells good on the hands. Looking forward to playing with lye, though.

Recycled cup candles, and the first draft of packaging printed on paper made from hay.

And isn't this just pretty? 

I'll try and scatter some of this poppy's seeds by the Salvia 'Hot Lips' as their colors go so well together:

 

Here's to a productive week, happy Monday!