See also:
* [http://omnitech.net/soapmaking/supplies/ Supplies and Equipment] – [http://omnitech.net/soapmaking/ingredients/ Ingredients] – [http://omnitech.net/soapmaking/lessons-learned/ Lessons Learned]
* [http://omnitech.net/soapmaking/first-batch/ First Batch] – [http://omnitech.net/soapmaking/second-batch/ Second Batch] – [http://omnitech.net/soapmaking/third-batch/ Third Batch]

==Contents==
”’Net Product:”’ 3239g (40 bars/cakes/medallions)
”’Total Fatty Matter:”’ Approx 68%
”’Cost:”’ $0.032 per gram – Assumes Minimum Wage. Excludes packaging, Shipping and mark-up.
”’LABEL”’: OmniClean Almond, Lavender, Citrus Soap

”’Contains:”’ Soap (sodium salts of: cottonseed oil, coconut oil, hydrogenated palm kernel oil, castor oil, candelillia wax, palm oil, macadamia nut butter, sweet almond oil, cocoa butter, shea butter, lemon oil, lavender oil ; Water (16%) ; Glycerine (6%)).
”’Also contains less than 2%:”’ almond meal, sodium carbonate, sodium benzoate, orange peel, lavender blossoms.

==SUPPLIES==
I didn’t use all of this in this batch, and there were a couple of additives and shape molds that aren’t shown here

===First melt to 134F===
1.5oz Macadamia Nut Butter
2oz Palm Oil
1oz Cocoa butter
1oz Shea butter
15oz Coconut oil, 76 degree melt
8oz Hydrogenated Palm Kernel Oil
4oz Candelillia Wax

===Liquid oils added===
7.5oz Castor oil
39oz Cottonseed oil
1oz Sweet Almond Oil – scent
”’NOTE: 0.25oz oil sticks to large, plastic measuring cup”’

I forgot to get a photo here, but basically, it looked like corn oil, but was more thick.

LOW on back left burner is 199-200F
Cooled everything back to 111F
The oil mix was thickening up on the walls at 111F

===Added caustic solution===
28oz H2O
11.43oz NaOH

Was hard to detect light trace, so turned the heat back on.
Medium trace at 134F

===Added at medium trace===
59g Almond Meal – texture
15g orange peel – scent & texture
15g lemon oil – scent
5g lavender blossoms – scent & texture
11g lavender oil – scent
16g Sodium Carbonate – Prevents hard water from making soap scum
16g Sodium Benzoate – Prevents oils from oxidizing

”’NOTE:”’ FORGOT TO DISSOLVE CARBONATE & BENZOATE IN WATER! EEK!
”’NOTE:”’ FORGOT TO ADD 2-4 OZ SUGAR FOR EXTRA FOAM!

Softening & separation starts at 140F
Remelt/separation completed about 160F
Notice the thin layer of oil here after I stopped stirring

It came back together around 174F (with stirring)

The foam volcano started about 199F, but I turned off the heat.
I don’t need to cook off ALL of the water during prep.
The foamcano was just some whitish foam in the middle.
Might have added nice air to the bar, as would have a stick blender.

I was pretty much done once the texture became… hrm… uniform,
but it would peel off of itself when pulling the spatula out.
When not stirring, it looks sort of like mashed potatoes and gravy.

I cooked at about 180F for another 15 mins or so, and no change.
Some cooled blobs were tested, and showed up a pH of 10.0, +/- .1

When I did the final stir for pouring, I took away most of the additive floaties (almond skins, preservative) and put them into one specific bar.
Next time, I’ll try to remember to dissolve them.

My block mold wasn’t as big as I thought, so I also used a mini-loaf mold, small bar molds, and then had a small patty of leftovers.

Since it’s hot process, it’s safe to use as soon as it’s hard enough to use.
It’s a little early to really see how it will turn out, but it did lather, and it did rinse away.
My hands are pretty dry, but I washed and rinsed them MANY times due to cleaning up oil, and paranoia about Lye.

I should be able to unmold it tomorrow, and maybe even cut things to proper sizes.
After that, dry time should be fast (less than a week) under a heater vent (with a towel to protect from dust).

==THE FUTURE==
I have plans for a second batch without almonds.
It will be more moisturizing, and will have tea tree oil.

So far, everything is vegan friendly, but I also plan to do a small batch with some lard also.

==UPDATE 2013-01-26==
See http://omnitech.net/soapmaking/second-batch
Also, I found that, even after 3 weeks of drying, heater running, laid out on a wire rack (covered with cotton towels), that these didn’t really dry much. They lost maybe half a percent water at the most. They’re still pretty hygroscopic, in that they absorb water very readily, much more than commercial soaps. I’m guessing this is related to the glycerine content, but maybe soap really wants 6 months or 1000 BTUs of drying.

So, anyway, I went ahead and used up some cellophane bags that Erica had handy, and some mailing labels I have a bunch of. Here they are!

==Best References==
* http://www.zensoaps.com/hpsoap.htm
* http://www.wholesalesuppliesplus.com/FAQ/HP-Soap-Making.aspx
* http://www.soapcalc.net/calc/SoapCalcWP.asp
* http://www.soapworld.biz/soap%20calculator.html
* [http://www.essentialdepot.com/servlet/StoreFront?affiliate_no=642 http://www.essentialdepot.com] – For supplies you can’t get at the grocery store.

==Crosspost==
http://omnitech.net/reference/soapmaking
http://xaminmo.blogspot.com/2013/01/first-soap-batch.html
http://xaminmo.livejournal.com/1342331.html
http://xaminmo.blogspot.com/2013/01/soaping-update-to-first-batch.html
http://xaminmo.livejournal.com/1354119.html