Rosemary Oleoresin Extract (ROE)

I like to use some oils that are soft and have a shorter shelf-life in my recipes, like sunflower oil.  In the past, I have used a mixture of Vitamin E (.5-1%) and Vitamin C (.25-.5%) to help retard rancidity in my soaps.  I haven't had many issues with rancidity to date, which has been great!  Due to how quickly I've been using my oils lately, I just add the extract directly to my master batch when the master batches are prepared.

However, when I was digging around on the internet for something else unrelated, I stumbled across this interesting study which seems to indicate that while Vitamin E & C have many great skin benefits and can help defer rancidity in oils in general, Rosemary Oleoresin is a better performer to preserve shelf life of oils in soap.  The article is written by Kevin Dunn (author of Scientific Soapmaking) and is a very interesting read:  http://cavemanchemistry.com/HsmgDos2006.pdf.

Since the ROE rancidity effect appears in this one study (I am trying to find other studies which will confirm these results), I wanted to give it a shot in some soaps to test drive it a bit.

I made a 2-loaf batch of a repeat of the soap I made for the mica swirled top challenge, and added the ROE to the oils at .5% of the oil weight.  However, while I was mixing the oils to trace, the ROE didn't mix in well with the rest of the soap batter.  There was a layer of reddish orange stuff floating on top of the batter, even as I stick-blended it through medium trace.  I didn't think to take a photo while this was going on.  Now that I've re-read the articles, I have definitely over-used the ROE in my soap batter (recommendation of .02-.1%, depending on where you're reading).  I also tried to soap cooler than normal - around 75 degrees, instead of my usual 110 degrees or so. Since these kind of challenges go in threes, I had also forgotten to put in the EO blend I had mixed up for this batch, so I'm going to make another batch tonight WITH the scent this time :)

What's interesting is that when the soap batter was poured, the top of the yellow layer looked pretty green.  However, when I went downstairs tonight to take pictures after it had set up for a couple days, the green layer on top has gone away. It must have re-absorbed into the soap?  Very strange.

Here you can see a very slight variation of color between the top and the side.  However, I had just unmolded the soap, so the color difference could be the more wet soap vs the drier top.

In this picture you can see the color a little, too, but the top doesn't look green like it did when it was soap batter.

Here's a picture of how they turned out cut.  I really like these colors for the scent, even though these ended up unscented :)

Another show-off picture

Here is a good blog post which looks at the anti-microbial claims of ROE and whether it can function as an effective general preservative:  http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com/2012/01/essential-oils-rosemary-essential-oil_17.html  (in short- it is not a sufficient stand-alone preservative system).  For anyone interested in cosmetic chemistry knowledge, Susan's blog is a great resource, and has some excellent starting recipes for lotions, shampoos, etc.

I've been researching what happens if one uses too much ROE in soaps, but I'm not finding a ton of information.  This soap will be relegated to personal use until I can determine whether it is safe to use.

Also, I had a friend over a few weekends ago to help me take some pictures and show me how to use my little old point-and-shoot.  She took some amazing pictures with the natural sunlight, and she showed me some good ways to set up and use my camera, too.  I'm so happy with how the pictures turned out!

Some Chocolate Mint cupcakes - they look like edible cupcakes!

The Challenge #3 soap - mica swirled tops

Yuzu / Orange soap

Soap Challenge #2 - Elemental Swirl

This one I took myself :)  Rosemary Mint.  It looks similar to the ones my friend took with her SLR camera, even though you can tell hers are better.

Have a great Monday!

~Chrissy

Spam!!

I have been paying attention lately to how popular this blog seems to be getting, which makes me really proud!

One new measure of popularity that I seem to have achieved is my very first spam comment!  I haven't come up with a plan for how to deal with spam comments yet (I hadn't figured I'd get them yet...)

Image from Tom Sweeney, startribune.com

Question for you bloggers out there - how do you deal with non-offensive spam comments?  I do not mean for illegal things or porn sites (which will immediately be deleted), but in my instance, a comment was made with a link goes to a website that sells dog shampoo.  Up until now, I haven't moderated comments, and now I need to develop a plan to address spam.

I'd love to hear how you deal with it!

~Chrissy

Improving Your Blog

I seem to be spending a lot of time on weekend mornings learning stuff relating to blogging, soap making, crafting, and personal development lately.  I suppose that it's good that I'm always learning, and I know the laundry and dishes will be waiting for me so my hands can work while my head is processing all this new information :)

This morning, I've been learning about improving blogging:  editing / creating blogs in HTML / CSS, attracting new readers, available classes on better blogging, finding blogging voice, and more!  I have mentioned that I love Google Reader to help me keep on top of blogs, but I wanted to document some of the specific posts and places I've been using to learn about improving my blogging so I can re-read later (and hopefully absorb more!)

HTML / CSS:

Katrina at Pugly Pixel has put up some very informative videos on basics of HTML and CSS.  I have watched both, and I'm now inspired to work on updating this blog even more...  later, after I have some breakfast, wash the dogs, etc...  

I used to dabble in programming with my dad growing up - anyone remember 3-2-1 Contact Magazine or TV Show? - and also had some programming classes in college.  This is reminding me of why I'm not a programmer now :)

I loved this comic every month in the magazine.  That and the monthly BASIC program that my dad and I would work out on our computers.  This magazine and TV show were such great ways to get kids interested in science, math, and computing!

Finding Your Blogging Voice:

Kira at Her New Leaf guest blogged this post on Finding Your Voice for Noisette Academy.  I can certainly relate to her posts - I've found myself trying to imitate other blogs I found funny, thoughtful, charming, etc.  This has been a great reminder that people will read my blog for ME because it will be more genuine.

Primp My Blog:

Kira also wrote a series of blog postings (for both WordPress and Blogger users) on improving blogs at Primp My Blog.  This has really gotten me thinking, and in fact has taken me down a number of different rabbit trails on blog improvement.  This has really inspired me to re-look at this blog, my goals, and how I can be more purposeful about blogging going forward.  She really has some great tips and ideas, so make sure to check out her series!

Blogging Better:

Lindsay at Shrimp Salad Circus (love the name!) makes great use of blog post tags to highlight her articles on blogging better.  I had read the One Minute Makeover post on how to use pictures to look more professional.  And did you know you can schedule blog and facebook posts, and tweets, too?  Schedule Your Way To A Better Blog has some great tips on batch writing posts, but scheduling them to post over time so you're not releasing multiple posts within a short amount of time and diluting readership.  Since I tend to do my blogging on the weekends, this is going to be huge for me!

There are so many ideas I have now from the above - now to put them into action!

~Chrissy

How do YOU stay informed?

On this early Sunday morning, I was going through the 25-30 blogs I subscribe to with Google Reader, investigating new information sources, and catching up on reading about soap making, small business considerations, and being more awesome at life, and I wondered how others stay on top of it all?

There is SO much information out there on the internets.  And since anyone can put anything up there, it's so hard to know what's accurate!  Sometimes I struggle with my own education in this soapy industry - the hardest for me is identifying things that are partially true and knowing what is true and what isn't.  I try to conscientiously not disseminate false information, and that requires a lot of fact checking (and even then, sometimes I find later that I was misinformed)!  I often feel frustrated when people just click or share articles, thoughts, etc without checking whether they are correct first.

Who didn't see this at least once on Facebook last June, even though the actual destination date in the movie is Oct 21, 2015?

So, for me, I try to keep up with new information / techniques / ideas through all of these following ways, and I think my favorite format tends to vary with what I am searching for.  I love books for understanding the nuts and bolts of how processes work.  I love blogs (and Pinterest!) for inspiration.  I love forums for general "sniff tests" for information.  Here's what I use and why:

• There are plenty of forums that I visit, which are helpful for me, including Teach Soap and Talk Soap Forum.  I like this format, because I can learn from questions and answers from other soapers.  Incorrect information is often identified and corrected relatively quickly by the prolific writers on those blogs.  I still will try to validate with other sources where possible.

"But don't take my word for it!"  <side note, I really loved this show growing up!  I loved to read anyway, but it's one of those shows that have stuck with me into adulthood>

• I subscribe to so many blogs, for so many topics, and I add to that list weekly.  It is so great to see inspiration and ideas from others!  I get ideas for more than just my next soaping technique or ingredients, though.  I read blogs for news, for personal improvement ideas, for recipes, all kinds of ideas.  I love Google Reader :)
• I love books.  I really do.  In college, I used to read at least one a week (wait... those were required books.  Does that count?).  Now, I'm probably closer to one a month for fun and one a quarter for personal or professional improvement.  Rereading this last sentence, I need to up my professional and personal development a little bit, but sometimes those books can be so dry!  My next soap making book will be "Scientific Soapmaking" by Kevin Dunn.  I'm excited to dig into that book.
• There are in person information sharing networks, too, like classes or networking groups.  I haven't plugged myself into those too much yet - I haven't been looking too actively for soapy friends in my neck of the woods (but if there are any of you out there, we should definitely meet!).  I did start my soap making journey with a local class.  The only attendants were me, my mom, and my best friend.  It really opened my passion for this craft, and I'd love to teach when I can be a better knowledge source for those who want to learn.

What's your favorite way to educate yourself?  Or do you have a method that I haven't considered above?

UPDATE:  I forgot to mention TED Talks above.  Man, those are awesome.  I just wish I could find a way to listen to them while in the car - I don't have a way to hook up my iPhone to my car speakers on my 11 year old car.  Here is the article that reminded me about TED Talks.

~Chrissy

New blog look

While there are many things that I am good at, visual design / marketing type of stuff is something I can definitely continue to improve myself on.  

I started this blog with a free template that I thought was cute, but it didn't really gel with the name I had chosen or even with the type of blog I wanted to do.  So, after many frustrating hours last night, I have changed the look of my blog to more of a literary, story-type feel, which at least matches the title of my blog.  I had seen myself using this blog to tell stories about my soaping journey, recipes I have created, lessons learned, etc. 

I may continue to adjust the blog design as I learn more about Blogger, and as I develop more fully the essence of this blog.  Just wanted to give you all a heads-up that this is indeed the same blog - just trying out some new things!

Let me know your thoughts on the new design and layout - what you like and what doesn't quite work for you.  

~Chrissy