Soap Making Class

So, I finally did it! I made my own soap. Was it a success? Only time will tell.

We had a nice small class, so there was lots of student/teacher interaction. That was nice. I measured out the lye, water and the fats: vegetable oil, lard, and tallow. We melted the fats, mixed the lye and water and when they were both at 100 degrees, they were mixed together.

Then came the stirring....

and stirring....

and stirring....

and about two hours later I had soap coating the sides. 

This meant that a trace should be soon to follow....

... but after another 45 minutes of stirring, still no trace, so the instructor said it probably wasn't going to.  She suggested quitting and just put it in the mold and see what happens.

She was with us through all the steps and helped us with measuring, etc, so she knew that everyone's should be right. But not all traced. Strange, eh?

She's not sure if it will set up or not, so we shall see after 24-48 hours. If not, I can remelt and try again.

Keeping my fingers crossed.

I must say it was a fascinating process and I will certainly try again. Next time, though, I use an immersion blender!!