Cherry Chocolate Valentine Soap Tutorial: Phase 2

So, you have your hearts and swirls all ready to go, now it’s time to make the cold process soap!   I’m assuming you’ve made cold process soap before, but if you need assistance Soap Queen TV has some great tutorials!  I’ve included links to Bramble Berry Soap Supplies for purchasing materials.  For this recipe, you’ll need:

• A 5 pound wooden loaf mold.  (My husband made mine for me, but it’s very similar to the one Bramble Berry sells.)
• 15 oz Olive Oil
• 13 oz Palm Oil
• 12 oz Coconut Oil
• 2 oz Sweet Almond Oil
• 2 oz Castor Oil
• 6.232 oz Sodium Hydroxide (this is superfatted at 5%)
• 14.52 oz Distilled Water
• 1.5 oz Dark Rich Chocolate Fragrance Oil
• 1.5 oz Black Cherry Fragrance Oil
• 1 tsp Pink Oxide (mixed with a carrier oil in a container).
• 1/2 tsp Cappuccino Mica (mixed with a carrier oil in a heat-safe, 32 oz container)

Make your cold process soap as you usually would. While you’re waiting for the lye and oils to cool, you can get out your hearts and swirls and give them a good spritzing of rubbing alcohol.  Place some swirls in the bottom of your soap mold; as many as you like.  Reserve some to place on the top of your soap.

Once you have a light trace, stir in the Dark Rich Chocolate and Black Cherry Fragrance Oils.

Pour about 1/3 of the soap into the container with the Cappuccino Mica.  Stir until the color is blended throughout. 

Pour your Pink Oxide oil into the remaining, 2/3, batch of soap and stir until the color is blended.  I didn’t get a dark pink color because my Olive Oil was very green. 

Pour your pink-colored soap into the soap mold.  Next, layer it with your cappuccino-colored soap.  Hint: pour your layer close to the mold so that it sits on top of the soap rather than sinks below.  Give it some time to set up before inserting your hearts.

Once the soap is firm (but not too firm), you can start inserting the heart soaps.  Start at one end and line them up one after the other, so that they are touching.  Press them about 2/3 of the way into the soap so that just the heart “bumps” are sticking out on the top.  Once you have your hearts firmly in place, you can add your swirls alongside the hearts.  You might need to press them into the soap a bit.  Below is a picture of how mine looked when I took it out of the mold but before I cut the bars.When you slice your bars, slice in between the hearts but close enough to the hearts that you can see them embedded in the soap.

Send me a comment if you have any questions.  Have fun!

Cherry Chocolate Valentine Tutorial: Phase 1

I’ve been asked how I made these cute Cherry Chocolate Valentine Soaps.  Here, I’ll provide the steps involved in making these soaps, however, I’m assuming you have a basic understanding of both the melt and pour method and cold process method of soap-making. I’ve provided links for purchasing the items you’ll need through Bramble Berry Soap Making Supplies.  I made the soaps in two phases.

The first phase is to make 18 hearts and a lot of swirls to be embedded.  Note: I didn’t record my measurements for the melt and pour phase, so these are estimates.  You’ll need:

• 5.5 lbs Bulk Clear Melt and Pour Base
• 1.5 oz Black Cherry Fragrance Oil
• .4 oz Dark Rich Chocolate Fragrance Oil
• Brown and Pink Colorant.  I used Bakery Beige from the Sweet Treats Colorant Set and Non-Bleeding Red Liquid Colorant.
• A silicone square tray mold.
• A silicone heart mold.

Hearts: Cut 3 lbs of the melt and pour base into cubes, place in a 32 oz Pyrex measuring cup (or other heat-safe measuring dish), cover with plastic wrap and melt in the microwave.  I melt mine in 20 minute increments until it’s all melted.  Let cool a bit and then stir in 1 oz of Black Cherry Fragrance Oil.  Then, add drops of Non-Bleeding Red Liquid Colorant while stirring.  Add drops of colorant until you like the color.  I wanted mine to be pink and somewhat translucent.   Pour into each heart cavity of your heart mold, spritz with alcohol and wait for it to set up. Note: I put mine in the freezer because I’m impatient that way. 

Swirls: In the meantime, you can make soap for your swirls!  For this, you’ll cut and melt 1 lb of melt and pour soap.  Follow the same procedures above for cutting and melting.  You’ll then use .4 oz of Dark Rich Chocolate FO and your brown colorant.  I added drops of Bakery Beige until I liked the color.  Then, pour it into the silicone square mold, spritz with alcohol and let set.

Hearts: Your heart soaps should be ready to pop out of the molds, so do that.  Then, you’ll use the remainder of your melt and pour soap and Black Cherry Fragrance Oil to make 6 hearts.  Again, I didn’t record how much melt and pour base I used, so it’s possible that you’ll either need more base or you’ll make more than 6 hearts.   Follow the hearts directions above.

Swirls: Slowly remove your slab of chocolate-scented soap.  On a cutting surface, slice the soap in 1 to 2 inch-wide strips.  Then, use a vegetable peeler to peel each strip.  As you peel, the soap will curl; creating swirls.  See my swirls below:

Once you have your 18 hearts and your swirls completed, you can store them in separate gallon-sized zip-lock bags until you’re ready for the second phase.

Cherry Chocolate Valentine

Don’t you just love it when you imagine a creation, follow the steps in your mind, and it turns out perfectly?!  I’ve been imagining this Cherry Chocolate Valentine soap for about a month and the steps needed to make it come to fruition.  I started this project over two weeks ago by making cherry-scented hearts and chocolate-scented swirls using melt and pour glycerin soap.  The next day, I was ready to make my cherry-chocolate scented cold process soap only to discover I didn’t quite have enough sodium hydroxide!  Yikes!  I ordered some right away from Brambleberry, but their order volume has greatly increased so my order wasn’t going to ship for a week!  They’re working hard to get back to their 24 hour turn-around, but I seriously need to do better about keeping up with my inventory and ordering supplies BEFORE I’m down to my last few ounces.   So, I had to put my hearts and swirls on the shelf and do the waiting dance.  Finally, my sodium hydroxide arrived last week and I was able to finish my creation!  I am so pleased and excited about these cute soaps.  And they will be ready the week before Valentine’s Day!

First Soaps of 2011 and A Look Back at 2010

Two new soaps are in store at Catie Beth! 

A favorite: Oatmeal, Milk and Honey!  It features real Oatmeal, Shea Butter and Geranium-infused Olive Oil.  Geranium helps invigorate the skin while improving its elasticity.And a newbie: Put de Lime in de Coconut!  It features Mango Butter, Avocado Oil and Lemon Balm and Lemon Verbena-infused Olive Oil.  Lemon Balm helps control oily skin while Lemon Verbena helps soften skin.  Catie Beth Bath and Body is committed to helping unite orphans with their forever families.  I believe the most personal (and best) way we can do that is to donate a portion of our profits to a family that is in the adoption process.  The family that we are currently supporting is the Schoenling family, who are in the waiting stages of a domestic adoption.  Since the company started in April, 2010, we’ve donated $173 to the Schoenlings!!  We will continue to support this wonderful family until they bring home their baby. 

My up-and-coming fashion designer

My daughter has always loved anything to do with fashion.  I stopped picking out her clothes to wear about three years ago.  I remarked (for the last time) that perhaps she should change her shirt so it matched her pants better, and I was met with a fist in the air and the exclamation, “I WANT FREE FASHION!”.

Since then, I’ve left her to her own fashion experiments, as long as she selects modest clothing.  She’s designed and worn many a unique outfit and has now graduated to receiving her own sewing machine for Christmas (with a gift card for taking sewing lessons at Joann Fabrics).  Above, she is modeling her first creation: a fleece hat.  She did a great job and I love the fabric she selected!  She’s such a creative and talented girl!