I want to thank the students who participated in the student evaluations for my soap making class at the Sunnyvale Cupertino Adult Education Center on 4/12/08. And I want to take this opportunity to respond to some of the requests for classes.
For those who requested candle making class, I would recommend checking out The Nova Studio (http://www.thenovastudio.com)in/ in Point Richmond. Lori's Eco-Friendly Candle Making Class was last offered on May 17, 2008. And it does not look like it is offerred over the summer. If you would like to check out the description of the class please click this link http://thenovastudio.com/descriptioncandles.htm. If you would like to request this class to be offerred in the future, please email Lori at email@thenovastudio.com or click on the request in the class description (link above). On September 9th, The Nova Studio has an Aromomatherapy Soy Candles class from 6:30-9:30pm. If Point Richmond is too far for you to travel, you may want to consider Opalz Zoaps (http://www.opalzoap.com/) in Palo Alto. Annie is looking for classes to teach. So if you are interested, contact Annie at annie@opalzoap.com. If you can travel to Fairfield, CA., Joan Morasis will be teaching a 3 day workshop October 25-26, 2006 on Natural Skin Care Products. But, she added a 4th day on October 27th a Soap and Candlemaking workshop for $195. If you are interested and want more information, go to http://www.joanmorais.com/classes/3DayWorkshop.html.
For those who requested a higher level of soap making and are interested in learning the Cold Process or Hot Process Method, I currently do not teach those methods because it is difficult to teach those outside of a studio environment. But I can recommend, The Nova Studio (http://www.thenovastudio.com/) in Point Richmond which has a Cold Process and Hot Process Method offerred on August 23rd. If you are interested in the Hot Process Method at The Nova Studio, there is prereq of taking a Cold Process Class. Another suggestion is in the Fairfield/Napa area. If that works for you, Joan Morasis teaches classes on this subject. And if you are interested, go to Joan's website at http://www.joanmorais.com/ or to contact Joan email her at info@joanmorais.com. Annie at Opalz Zoaps (http://www.opalzoap.com/) in Palo Alto is the nearest location that teaches the Cold Process Soapmaking Method. If you are interested in taking a class from her then contact her by email.
If Melt and Pour Soap Making is your thing, Annie at Opalz Zoaps (http://www.opalzoap.com/) has offered classes in the past in soap loaves and more. If you are interested, please contact Annie.
As for a bath salts class, I do have a class scheduled on October 25, 2008 through the College of San Mateo's Community Education (http://www.collegeofsanmateo.edu/). Look here for an annoucement when to register for that class. Or I will be offerring the class sometime in Quarter 2 through the Sunnyvale Cupertino AEC (http://ace.fuhsd.org/).
If those do not work for you, I would recommend checking out You Tube (http://www.youtube.com/). I found some instructional clips on soap making and candlemaking.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Simple Lavender Spray Recipe
Using natural lavender scent, this delicately scented pillow spray will make you naturally feel a little tired. Or...just use it as an air freshener.
Ingredients:
1 cup distilled water
8 - 10 drops essential oil of lavender
spray bottle, with a fine mist setting
label
Directions:
Pour the cup of distilled water into the spray bottle. Add the drops of essential oil and shake very well. Cap the bottle, and allow to sit for a few hours before using. Shake the bottle before each use to evenly distribute the scented oil throughout the water. Use the label to describe what sort of product is contained in the bottle. And be sure to use the fine mist setting on your bottle, so the spray will be nicely distributed.
To use: About ten to twenty minutes before going to bed, spray your pillows (and your linens, if you like) with the spray. Let the scent mellow slightly by allowing the ten to twenty minutes to pass before lying down. When you do lie down, the pillows will smell wonderful! But an even greater benefit is that lavender is a natural relaxant, so this wonderful spray may actually help you fall asleep easier, and sleep better.
Source: http://www.happyslob.com/lavenderspray.html
Ingredients:
1 cup distilled water
8 - 10 drops essential oil of lavender
spray bottle, with a fine mist setting
label
Directions:
Pour the cup of distilled water into the spray bottle. Add the drops of essential oil and shake very well. Cap the bottle, and allow to sit for a few hours before using. Shake the bottle before each use to evenly distribute the scented oil throughout the water. Use the label to describe what sort of product is contained in the bottle. And be sure to use the fine mist setting on your bottle, so the spray will be nicely distributed.
To use: About ten to twenty minutes before going to bed, spray your pillows (and your linens, if you like) with the spray. Let the scent mellow slightly by allowing the ten to twenty minutes to pass before lying down. When you do lie down, the pillows will smell wonderful! But an even greater benefit is that lavender is a natural relaxant, so this wonderful spray may actually help you fall asleep easier, and sleep better.
Source: http://www.happyslob.com/lavenderspray.html
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Field Landing Soap Factory Face Wash
Now you can create your own face soaps. Our vegetable based "Liquid Soap" will leave your skin and hair clean and soft with no soap film. Blend in our Fields Landing Fragrance Oils and Liquid Colorants to achieve the look and scent you desire. The following recipes are just a sampling of the many projects you can create with our Liquid Soap (clear unscented base).
Nourishing Rose Face wash
A little honey helps to soothe and soften your skin while the Rose Water adds moisturizing qualities. This wash is good for all skin types and gentle to use every day. Makes 1-¾ cups.
Materials Needed:
Liquid Soap: 1 cup
Fragrance Oil: 10 drops Victorian Rose and 5 drops Honey
Liquid Colorant: 4 drops Orange, two drops Red and one drop Blue.
½ cup Rose Water
¼ cup liquid Honey
Instructions:
Mix ¼ cup of the Liquid Soap gently with the Rose and Honey fragrance oils. Add the liquid colorants to make a rosy amber hue. This step must be done before adding the additives.
Gently mix in Rose Water and Honey.
Place the mixture in the microwave (or heat on stove) and heat on high for 10 seconds. Repeat until mixture has become warm and trapped air begins to slowly rise.
Avoid boiling mixture, which can create more bubbles. Let mixture cool.
Use a spoon and skim off surface foam. Gently stir in the remaining Liquid Soap. 6.
Pour into your decorative, labeled bottle and seal.
Wake-up Face Wash
This refreshing scented face wash is excellent for oily and normal skin types. Makes 1-½ cups.
Materials Needed:
Liquid Soap: 1 cup
Fragrance Oil: 10 drops Papaya Plum and 6 drops Lime.
Liquid colorant: 5 drops Yellow
½ cup Witch Hazel
Instructions:
Gently mix the fragrance oils and liquid colorants into ¼ cup of Liquid Soap. This step must be done before adding the additives.
Gently mix in the Witch Hazel.
Place the mixture in the microwave (or heat on stove) and heat on high for 10 seconds. Repeat until mixture has become warm and trapped air begins to slowly rise.
Avoid boiling mixture, which can create more bubbles. Let mixture cool.
Use a spoon and skim off surface foam.
Gently stir in the remaining Liquid Soap.
Pour into your decorative, labeled bottle and seal.
Source: http://www.eti-usa.com/consum/Soap/LSRecipe.htm
Nourishing Rose Face wash
A little honey helps to soothe and soften your skin while the Rose Water adds moisturizing qualities. This wash is good for all skin types and gentle to use every day. Makes 1-¾ cups.
Materials Needed:
Liquid Soap: 1 cup
Fragrance Oil: 10 drops Victorian Rose and 5 drops Honey
Liquid Colorant: 4 drops Orange, two drops Red and one drop Blue.
½ cup Rose Water
¼ cup liquid Honey
Instructions:
Mix ¼ cup of the Liquid Soap gently with the Rose and Honey fragrance oils. Add the liquid colorants to make a rosy amber hue. This step must be done before adding the additives.
Gently mix in Rose Water and Honey.
Place the mixture in the microwave (or heat on stove) and heat on high for 10 seconds. Repeat until mixture has become warm and trapped air begins to slowly rise.
Avoid boiling mixture, which can create more bubbles. Let mixture cool.
Use a spoon and skim off surface foam. Gently stir in the remaining Liquid Soap. 6.
Pour into your decorative, labeled bottle and seal.
Wake-up Face Wash
This refreshing scented face wash is excellent for oily and normal skin types. Makes 1-½ cups.
Materials Needed:
Liquid Soap: 1 cup
Fragrance Oil: 10 drops Papaya Plum and 6 drops Lime.
Liquid colorant: 5 drops Yellow
½ cup Witch Hazel
Instructions:
Gently mix the fragrance oils and liquid colorants into ¼ cup of Liquid Soap. This step must be done before adding the additives.
Gently mix in the Witch Hazel.
Place the mixture in the microwave (or heat on stove) and heat on high for 10 seconds. Repeat until mixture has become warm and trapped air begins to slowly rise.
Avoid boiling mixture, which can create more bubbles. Let mixture cool.
Use a spoon and skim off surface foam.
Gently stir in the remaining Liquid Soap.
Pour into your decorative, labeled bottle and seal.
Source: http://www.eti-usa.com/consum/Soap/LSRecipe.htm
Monday, June 2, 2008
Spicy Soothing Massage Oil
by Harvest McCampbell
Ingredients:
16-ounces of Al's Favorite Base Oil
Bay
Clove Bud
Lemon
Lavender
Directions:
1. Make a batch (16 ounces) of Al’s Favorite Base Oil.
2. Add the following essential oils to the base oil: 10 drops bay, 10 drops clove bud, 15 drops lemon, 5 drops lavender.
3. Shake well.
If you are looking for other recipes, check out some of the links in the side bar or check in my archive. There are alot of recipes in both places. I am always looking for new recipes to post on my blog, so please return in the future.
Source: https://www.massagemag.com/Magazine/2001/issue89/oilSpicy.php
Ingredients:
16-ounces of Al's Favorite Base Oil
Bay
Clove Bud
Lemon
Lavender
Directions:
1. Make a batch (16 ounces) of Al’s Favorite Base Oil.
2. Add the following essential oils to the base oil: 10 drops bay, 10 drops clove bud, 15 drops lemon, 5 drops lavender.
3. Shake well.
If you are looking for other recipes, check out some of the links in the side bar or check in my archive. There are alot of recipes in both places. I am always looking for new recipes to post on my blog, so please return in the future.
Source: https://www.massagemag.com/Magazine/2001/issue89/oilSpicy.php
Sunday, June 1, 2008
How To Superfat Your Home Made Soap Recipes
From David Fisher,
Superfatting is a commonly used but much misunderstood soapmaking technique. Most lye calculators will figure this for you automatically, but here's an explanation of just why you should do it.
Difficulty: Easy
Time Required: None-Just an adjustment to your recipe
Here's How:
(1) Superfatting (sometimes referred to as a lye discount) is either adding an extra amount of oil into your soap recipe but keeping the lye amount the same, or using the same amount of oil and less lye. For example, using 9.5ounces of lye instead of 10 ounces would amount to 5% superfatting. (5% extra oil). (5% superfatting is actually a fairly standard percentage amongst most soap makers. It's what I generally use...)
(2) There are two reasons to do this:A small amount of extra "free" oil in the soap adds extra moisturizing qualities to the soap. You will hear this sometimes referred to as "emollient" qualities. Basically, it makes the soap more moisturizing.
(3) It also gives you a bit of a "fudge factor". Having extra lye in your soap is a big problem...much bigger than having extra oil. Additionally, many oils will vary slightly in their their true SAP (Saponification value). Superfatting builds in some safety if your scale is not completely precise. Having a little extra oil in the recipe assures that every one of the lye molecules will have more than enough opportunity to pair up with an oil molecule.
(4) The thing you need to watch out for with superfatting is that while soap doesn't spoil quickly, oil does. The more "free" oil you have in your soap, the more likely you are to have spoilage, or what is often called DOS or Dreaded Orange Spots, which are small orange spots where a pocket of free oil has gone bad.
(5) Superfatting your soap is easy...indeed, most lye calculators will calculate it for you. If not, you can just figure your lye, and then 'discount' it by your percentage. For example, if your recipe calls for 10 ounces of lye and you want a 5% discount, multiply that by .95 (95%). That would give you 9.5 ounces of lye. Make the soap as you otherwise would.
(6) Once you have a recipe you like, you may also want to experiment with a higher or lower superfat percentage. Try a batch at 3% and try a batch at 10%.
Tips:
* Some soapmakers, like Susan Miller Cavitch in The Soap Maker's Companion suggest upwards of 10-15% superfatting! I think this is way too much! Soap with this much extra oil, while moisturizing, is very prone to spoilage.
*Some people and/or recipes will suggest holding out your most luxurious oils or butters to add in at trace as the "superfat" oils. I've never seen any concrete tests or data on this - but I don't think it's worth the trouble.
What You Need:
A Soap Recipe
A Lye Calculator
More How To's from your Guide To Candle & Soap Making
Superfatting is a commonly used but much misunderstood soapmaking technique. Most lye calculators will figure this for you automatically, but here's an explanation of just why you should do it.
Difficulty: Easy
Time Required: None-Just an adjustment to your recipe
Here's How:
(1) Superfatting (sometimes referred to as a lye discount) is either adding an extra amount of oil into your soap recipe but keeping the lye amount the same, or using the same amount of oil and less lye. For example, using 9.5ounces of lye instead of 10 ounces would amount to 5% superfatting. (5% extra oil). (5% superfatting is actually a fairly standard percentage amongst most soap makers. It's what I generally use...)
(2) There are two reasons to do this:A small amount of extra "free" oil in the soap adds extra moisturizing qualities to the soap. You will hear this sometimes referred to as "emollient" qualities. Basically, it makes the soap more moisturizing.
(3) It also gives you a bit of a "fudge factor". Having extra lye in your soap is a big problem...much bigger than having extra oil. Additionally, many oils will vary slightly in their their true SAP (Saponification value). Superfatting builds in some safety if your scale is not completely precise. Having a little extra oil in the recipe assures that every one of the lye molecules will have more than enough opportunity to pair up with an oil molecule.
(4) The thing you need to watch out for with superfatting is that while soap doesn't spoil quickly, oil does. The more "free" oil you have in your soap, the more likely you are to have spoilage, or what is often called DOS or Dreaded Orange Spots, which are small orange spots where a pocket of free oil has gone bad.
(5) Superfatting your soap is easy...indeed, most lye calculators will calculate it for you. If not, you can just figure your lye, and then 'discount' it by your percentage. For example, if your recipe calls for 10 ounces of lye and you want a 5% discount, multiply that by .95 (95%). That would give you 9.5 ounces of lye. Make the soap as you otherwise would.
(6) Once you have a recipe you like, you may also want to experiment with a higher or lower superfat percentage. Try a batch at 3% and try a batch at 10%.
Tips:
* Some soapmakers, like Susan Miller Cavitch in The Soap Maker's Companion suggest upwards of 10-15% superfatting! I think this is way too much! Soap with this much extra oil, while moisturizing, is very prone to spoilage.
*Some people and/or recipes will suggest holding out your most luxurious oils or butters to add in at trace as the "superfat" oils. I've never seen any concrete tests or data on this - but I don't think it's worth the trouble.
What You Need:
A Soap Recipe
A Lye Calculator
More How To's from your Guide To Candle & Soap Making
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