About Terry Knorr Expertise I can answer most questions concerning the making of handmade soaps. Those which I cannot answer, I am willing to research for you.
Experience Began making and selling handmade soaps under the name of Earth Soaps in 1994. Have since expanded under the name Good Earth Herbs to 24 different soaps. We do both retail and wholesale business. I also teach two different classes on soapmaking: a basic class and an advanced class.
Question I MAKE GOAT'S MILK SOAP BY THE COLD PROCESS. I LOVE THE SOAP BUT IT'S TO SOFT AND MELTS AWAY TO FAST. I USE 2 OZ.WATER, 1.5 OZ LYE 4.2 OZ. COCONUT OIL, 2 OZ. PALM OIL, 4.2 OZ. OLIVE OIL, 2OZ.GOAT'S MILK. PLEASE HELP. I'M TRYING TO START SELLING IS THERE A FILLER TO SAFE MONEY MAKING SOAP.
Answer Hi Carol!
Handmade soaps will never be as hard and long-lasting as factory-made soaps. In the factories, soaps are milled (pressed into bars under great amounts of force). Makers of handmade soap simply cannot reproduce this.
With that said, there is still hope. Two of your three oils tend to produce hard bars of soap; olive oil does not.
But, I would recommend that you keep the olive oil in your soap.
The goat's milk will tend to make the soap softer, but there are other ingredients which can be used to make the soap harder. If you don't mind using animal products, you can add lard or tallow to your list of ingredients (these would also reduce the cost of your soap).
I would also recommend reducing the amount of coconut oil. Generally speaking, if you use more that 20% coconut oil, the soap becomes very drying. I would recommend replacing half of the coconut oil with either one of the animal products or with cocoa butter.
If you choose the cocoa butter, adjust the formula accordingly: 3.9 oz water, 1.5 oz lye (sodium hydroxide), 2.1 oz coconut oil, 2.1 oz cocoa butter, 2 oz palm oil, 4.2 oz olive oil.
If you choose either of the animal products I mentioned, the above formula will work by simply replacing the cocoa butter with the animal product.
Another way to decrease the cost of the soap is to make more of it at any given time. Instead of making 5 bars at a time, make 50. It takes no more time to make 50 bars than it does to make 5. I make my own wooden molds and cutters and can make anywhere from 19 to 96 bars at a time (depending on the size mold I use). But, to make larger batches of soap, you cannot simply multiply your formula by whatever number. It must be reformulated.
I hope this helps you. If you have any more questions, feel free to contact me again. I wish you much luck!
