Kim and I have been honing our soap making skills for an upcoming workshop that we are teaching on the 31st of August.
We have been practicing some advanced soap making techniques that we will be demonstrating in class just to make sure there are no disasters on the day. Perfect practice makes perfect!
Being the amateur chemist in the family, I get to put these together, and Kim invents the designs.
After having received numerous requests by alumni of our basic soap making course, we decided to up the stakes and teach more advanced soap making techniques during a new class. The demand is certainly there, so we have been busily developing new course notes and making up samples/examples for the class.
During this new class, we will be covering the techniques for making soap as follows;
- layer different colours and create swirls,
- marbling techniques,
- confetti, and
- curl patterns.
Additionally, our students will be shown how to include botanicals and exfoliants into their soap.
The students of this class will also make their own 1kg block of soap.
Sweet Orange Chilli Pepper with Calendula Flowers in mould
We are very excited to be adding this course to our repertoire. The only caveat is that only students who have been on our basic soap making class can attend the advanced class. Our reasoning behind this is because we need them to know how to make soap already, so that we can focus specifically on the techniques.
Lemon with poppy-seed in mould
Once they have been taken out of the mould and cut into bars, they look like this.
Sweet Orange Chilli Pepper with Calendula Flowers
The original orange colour softened a lot once it had hardened. We may have to add a little more colour if we want the bright shade, but I think that Kim is very happy with the result.
Lemon with poppy-seed
The Lemon with poppy seeds look fantastic. Kim used her new corrugated cutting tool to make the edges.
Both of these soaps smell heavenly. Good enough to eat, except I wouldn’t.
If you are interested in attending one of our classes, you can find the course details here as well as all the current information about our beginners soap making classes (which is a prerequisite). We now teach at Melton South and Hillside community learning centres, covering the west side of the Greater Melbourne area.
Various bars from batches we are perfecting
We both enjoy making and using our own soap. I use it daily, including the lather for shaving (with my little brush) and in place of shampoo. It certainly beats having to buy any of these toiletries, saves me a small fortune, and at least we know exactly what is in it.
Do you make your own soap? Do you experiment with any of the techniques that I have mentioned or do you just like to keep it plain?
How awesome do those soaps look, well done guys. You are going to have to start a market stall soon. Or maybe online gifts. I love the look of the lemon and poppy seed the most. I imagining it in muffin form.
Cheers Linda. Just happy with teaching others how to make it. If everyone knows how easy it is to make, then no need to sell at a stall. That is my theory anyway 😉
That soap looks very fancy and pretty. I made my first batch of soap last November and have run out so I need to get in and make another batch. I gave some as Christmas presents as well. Regards Kathy A, Brisbane.
Nice work Kathy. We are the same. Since we made our first 1kg block, we haven’t bought commercial soap since. They make the best gifts, don’t they.
I make my own soap too (as you know 😉 ) and love my rosemary oil Gav soap recipe soap. I’ve given some as a gift to my mother who has requested more. Christmas and birthdays are well sorted. 🙂 I’ve also made some soap using the tallow (fat) from the lambs we butchered a while back. I made it for a laundry soap and did so as I didn’t want to waste the fat from our lambs. You can use the soap on skin and I’ve a block in the shower now to see how it goes. It’s basic lavender scent. I washed my hair with it and LOVE the results. The animal fats make it easier for the body to use (we are but animals after all) and my hair was gorgeous and shiny. In saying that, I’ve used the veggie oil soap too and would never buy shampoo or conditioner chemical laden crap ever again. 🙂 Next time I make soap I will be making a batch for gifts from veggie oils and another batch for my family using some home made tallow. 🙂
I love the lemon and poppyseed cakes (of soap) too. I too can almost taste them!
Hi Rabidlittlehippy. Just wondering, do you use lye when you make your soap using the tallow?
Thank you Mon
Hi Monica. You cannot make soap without caustic soda (lye). The saponification process will not happen without it.
Gav x
Yes I do. I worked out how much to use with a soap calulator (just google soap calculator) and it was then the same process of any other soap. The tallow just needed a little longer to melt than other oils which are already liquid or close to. 🙂
Those soaps are very colourful, Gavin. I make fairly basic soaps including calendula soap, goat’s milk soap and my favourite is the simple Castile bubbles using olive oil and castor oil.
Gavin, I have often thought of trying soap making – I would love to attend one of your courses but I live too far away to attend. Is there any other way to attend a workshop even if by viewing a podcast?
Hi ennoh412. I have something that may help. Kim and I made a video tutorial. You can find it here at this link. The post also has a link to our recipe!
Enjoy
We have just started making our own cold process soap, using PVC molds to create circular discs. So far so good! We’re still in the experimentation phase, but I love knowing what’s actually in the soap we’re using! We already make and sell our own natural lip balm 🙂
Kudos to you Kelly! Keep up the good work with the natural products.
Gee they look gorgeous Gavin! I bet you’ll have lots of people wanting to do your course!
Hi, love your blog, I have been making my own soap for about two years now, and would love to come to your advanced class, would this be possible or do I still have to do the beginner class?
Hi Rebecca. I sent you an email.
Those soaps look amazing. I’ve just made my second batch of very basic olive oil and coconut oil soap and we love using it. My daughter in law says it has cleared up her skin allergy as well. Good pure ingredients, with no nasty petrochemicals, that’s the secret, isn’t it. I’m inspired to be more adventurous for my next batch and include some scents and textures from the garden. Thanks Gavin.
Cheers Deb. Well done on your soap making so far! It is a great feeling to know what is in your very own soap.
those soaps look incredible! – especially those colourful ones, I love them!