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Anybody into soap making?

Kimbersmama

Well-Known Member
Any other soap makers on this board? I'm waiting on my next batch to cure. I made a batch of dog soap to try out the other day. I'm pretty confident that it'll go over well! :) I'd love to talk to some other dog owners that do soap. Swap recipes and such.
 

Kimbersmama

Well-Known Member
I've been making it for a couple years now. The batch of puppy suds I just made came out to 19 bars. It'll last a while. I just hope it lathers the way I expect it to!
 

Kimbersmama

Well-Known Member
This one has a PDF you can download.
http://http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/cold-process-soap/free-beginners-guide-to-soapmaking-cold-process/

There's also some good tutorials on YouTube.

I'd recommend buying a beginners kit to see if it's something you like doing. It a kit comes with all the oils and scents you need to make that specific soap for the kit. You just need the supplies to make it come together.

I also have a "wal-mart bar" recipe you can make. It's just using all the ingredients you need that you can buy from Walmart.

This website is the best place to ask questions and get feedback on recipes http://http://www.soapmakingforum.com/
 

Duetsche_Doggen

Well-Known Member
This one has a PDF you can download.
http://http://www.soapqueen.com/bat...e-beginners-guide-to-soapmaking-cold-process/

There's also some good tutorials on YouTube.

I'd recommend buying a beginners kit to see if it's something you like doing. It a kit comes with all the oils and scents you need to make that specific soap for the kit. You just need the supplies to make it come together.

I also have a "wal-mart bar" recipe you can make. It's just using all the ingredients you need that you can buy from Walmart.

This website is the best place to ask questions and get feedback on recipes http://http://www.soapmakingforum.com/

Wow thank you VERY much! :)
 

Boxergirl

Well-Known Member
I'm a soapmaker. One thing any potential soaper should know is that it's not an inexpensive hobby. This link got me started - http://www.millersoap.com/ I dissolved my business a couple of years ago but continue to make soaps and lotions for family use. I have people begging for my Body Shop butter knock-off and my dry oil spray. Maybe I can get back into it when my kids are out of college and I have money again, lol. I love the chemistry involved and experimenting to see what different oils can bring to a bar. Unfortunately unless you can buy in bulk it can get pretty expensive.

Kimber, I don't know how long you've been soaping so you may know this already but I've always been told that dog skin has a different pH than human skin which makes formulating a soap for them problematic. Same goes for syndet bars for animals. I don't have a link handy but can probably the info again. I did make, once upon a time, a dry dog shampoo that worked pretty well on oily dogs.
 

ruthcatrin

Well-Known Member
Ruth looking at those soap bars make me want to eat them....:D

I love her soap lol, its all we use for bar soap these days. She did up a custom batch for me, two years ago now, spearmint and eucyliptus, I gave away a bunch of bars as gifts and we're finally down to the last couple bars of that (plus we use alot of her Chef Soap), its awesome stuff.
 

Kimbersmama

Well-Known Member
I tested the ph. It was recommended that it be around 7 and I came right in around 6.
I've been doing it a few years, but this is my first go with dog soap. I used a high percent of olive, castor, and neem. All which are supposed to be better on dogs skin. I could have hit a 7, but I didn't want to over do it on the olive oil. I wanted the bar to be hard enough to last. I make baby soaps that are gentle enough for babies too. I use them on my own son. I just formulated a recipe around that. We shall see how it works. I only scent my soaps with E/Os so all of those are pet friendly too.

The cost is partially why I recommend buying a kit to try it out first.
 

Boxergirl

Well-Known Member
Dirty Dog Soap thats the one my friend makes for dogs. I use it on Arty. It doesn't screw with his skin and doesn't overpower my nose (I'm really sensitive to scents).

I know that a lot depends on the breed, climate, etc. Overall though, human skin tends to be more on the acidic side. The worry is that sometimes a bar soap can upset the acid mantle of the skin creating an environment that is more hospitable to bacteria. I also think that sometimes people bathe their dogs too much and that can create a problem in and of itself. I'm glad that you've found a product that works for Arty. The soaps are lovely and very reasonably priced. I'm sure your friend worked long and hard to come up with a formulation that works so well. Neem oil is awesome stuff and I see it in the ingredients.
 

Kimbersmama

Well-Known Member
I love her soap lol, its all we use for bar soap these days. She did up a custom batch for me, two years ago now, spearmint and eucyliptus, I gave away a bunch of bars as gifts and we're finally down to the last couple bars of that (plus we use alot of her Chef Soap), its awesome stuff.

That's one of my favorite things about making soap. You can make exactly what someone wants/needs, in whatever look they desire!
 

ruthcatrin

Well-Known Member
I know that a lot depends on the breed, climate, etc. Overall though, human skin tends to be more on the acidic side. The worry is that sometimes a bar soap can upset the acid mantle of the skin creating an environment that is more hospitable to bacteria. I also think that sometimes people bathe their dogs too much and that can create a problem in and of itself. I'm glad that you've found a product that works for Arty. The soaps are lovely and very reasonably priced. I'm sure your friend worked long and hard to come up with a formulation that works so well. Neem oil is awesome stuff and I see it in the ingredients.

To be fair Arty doesn't get frequent bathes, but she uses it on her dogs too, and they've not had any skin issues either.

She worked for several years to put together formulas before she started selling! She was constantly sending me little sample squares to see how they'd affect my nose, and what I thought.
 

cinnamon roll

Super Moderator
Super Moderator
Okay I have never used a bar of soap to wash my dogs. how many baths does a bar last you? and how is the rinsing?
 

Boxergirl

Well-Known Member
Kimbersmama, I wanted to come back to say that my original statement regarding handmade soap for dogs wasn't really directed at you. Clearly you, and Ruth's friend, have put in the time and research necessary to produce a safe product. I can't tell you how many people I've met that think soapmaking is a quick and easy way to make a buck. It's not hard to make soap, but it's hard to make GOOD soap. I wanted to mention the difference between human and dog skin pH so that anyone starting out would do a little bit of research.
 

ruthcatrin

Well-Known Member
Arty gets a bath every 3 months or so, we're still on our first bar, not even half way through it. And it rinses away quite well!