As you know, I ordered some lye to make soap. The first batch came out pretty nice. I did a cold process, which means you add lye to oil, mix it, put it into the mold to set up for 24hrs, cut it into bars, and then let it cure for weeks in the saponification process. Then I decided to try the hot process, which is the same except that you cook the soap in order to hasten the saponification process. This did not go so well for me. The stank that came off that soap was disgusting and unfortunately it never went away – in fact, I think it got worse the longer it sat. The bars were certainly very pretty, but the stench was both powerful and deceptive. It was one of those smells you couldn’t quite figure out where from it camest. Holding the bar of soap up to your nose, it didn’t smell too bad (which in and of itself is not good – one should never smell a bar of soap and say ‘it doesn’t smell *too* bad’), but then this really awful smell would start to appear after you put the soap down. I soon realized that it was the scent that was left on my fingers after handling the soap. And it was bad – rotten, rancid, pukish.
So, if anyone needs a great April Fool’s item, I have it for you. It’s outside, because the stink is so bad. They sure do look pretty, though.
Hot and Cold Process Soaps - Some are not with us anymore...
