"I want to start today!" you find yourself saying, as you begin to root through the kitchen, ruthlessly casting aside anything that stands in your way. You are in search of the right equipment.  Every item, whether stainless steel, enamel, pottery, glass, or plastic gets the once-over, because not one possible candidate for a soap pot or mold is overlooked. After all the possibilities (and you) are exhausted,  the whole kit and caboodle is dumped into the kitchen sink to be washed clean of the years' worth of dust it has been collecting. These treasures are going to be put into service as your soapmaking equipment.  

Before you get too carried away and put your head in that soap pot, read this article. In it you will find information that will help you get set up to begin your soapmaking journey in fine style.  
 

Hand and Eye Protection (Safety First!) 

The first area of soapmaking requiring serious thought is safety.  Anyone who has ever seen the effect that liquid soap has when it's spilled on carpets or splattered on clothing, or who has had lye water splash on their forearms will agree that while making soap you must be protected.  

Soapmakers always wear two items when soaping.  They are gloves, and safety glasses.  

GLOVES 
"Purchase gloves that are somewhat close fitting, allowing you a degree of feel. Look for latex, neoprene/latex, heavy plastic, or natural rubber gloves", recommends Susan Cavitch, author of The Soapmaker's Companion.  

The gloves should allow you to grip objects without slipping. Turn down the upper edge a bit.  This keeps run away liquids from dripping down the glove and onto your arms.  It is also a good practice to wash and dry your hands with the gloves on after finishing each step in the soapmaking process: measuring oils and lye, mixing lye and water, making the soap, and cleaning up.  This not only lets you keep a grip on things, it lessens the chance that caustic materials will drip or rub onto your tender skin.  

SAFETY GLASSES 
Just as important as protecting your hands is protecting your eyes. Safety glasses and safety goggles are equally effective.   My personal preference is the glasses because they fit over prescription glasses, and are easier to put on and remove.  If you already own eye protection use whichever you have.  After all, if you have them on hand why buy more?  

Wear these glasses until the soapmaking process is complete.  

VINEGAR 
One more item of importance in soaping safety is plain white vinegar. Leave a bottle right on the counter while making soap so it can immediately be rubbed on full strength if a splatter occurs.  
 

Recipes 

START WITH A BASIC RECIPE 
For that maiden batch, try to choose a recipe that uses ingredients you are most likely to have on hand. And, depending on what you have for a scale, it may be easier to use a recipe which lists its ingredients in full ounce measurements. It's not necessary to get fancy or to use expensive oils for your first few tries. What is more important is that you find out how much you are going to enjoy this art, and that you have a good chance of success right from the beginning.  

Many soapmakers and teachers recommend "Tony's No Fail Soap" as a good one to start with.  
 
 
 

Weighing In 

SCALES 
A good scale is important to the soapmaker. You will need accurate measurements when you make a recipe, and most recipes use weight as the measurement for its ingredients. There are three main types of scale, all of which will work with soapmaking. They are spring/food/kitchen/diet, electronic balance, and triple beam.  

Price ranges are enormous. Expect to pay anywhere from  $12.00 at a department store for a diet scale to over $300.00 for the extremely accurate triple beam. As a beginning home soapmaker there are a few important things to ponder before you lay down your cash. How accurate is this scale? Can it be set to tare or '0' after placing an empty container on it? Does it weigh in small enough increments for measuring  oils and lye? (Depending on the recipe this may mean the scale must be accurate to 1/10 of an ounce.) Will it weigh the heaviest amounts I would ever want to use in soapmaking?  

Becky Erisch, list mom of Soapnuts@onelist.com says, "If you are wanting to be able to use your scale for things other than soap, such as creams and lotions, then you will want to be able to go down to the smaller increments of measurement such as 1g... I live with one that only goes down to 1 oz, and am happy with it... I really don't think you have to invest that much in a scale, even though I know several soapmakers who do. 

"[Something that only measures up to] 4.5 lb. really isn't going to work out in the long run if you get into large scale production and start producing 40 lb batches, lots of room for error in forgetting what count you were on."  

After considering all my personal needs and options I purchased a Pelouze electronic office scale for $109.00 in Canadian funds at Staples Office Supplies. It weighs from .2 ounces to 10 pounds. The buttons work by pressing on a bubble to initiate the 'on' and 'tare' buttons. Because of this switch design the theory is that spills are not a worry. The electronic workings are protected by the bubble. Before I start to measure I place a fresh piece of plastic wrap over the entire unit. Even a tiny splash of a fragrance oil will mar the plastic finish.  

Scales can be found in many places if you are willing to do the leg work to find them. These types of  businesses are worth calling with your scale queries: department stores, office suppliers, kitchen suppliers, and, of course, soapmaking suppliers.  

Containers 

Containers are something that you can never have too many of in the soap room. The most common are glass or plastic for mixing lye and water, and weighing other ingredients. I like to have a tall plastic container in my work area to hold lye or soap laden spoons, thermometers, spatulas and the ever famous stick blender.  

Because lye water can reach temperatures over 200F, the container for mixing it must be heat resistant. It must also offer a dripless pour. Your best bet is glass, either a bowl with a pouring spout, pitcher or measuring cup will do. Dishwasher-safe plastics are safe to use as well.  

For weighing oils I use a plain old 2 liter ice-cream container.  
 

Tools with long handles 

SPOONS 
As it is with all the other equipment we have talked about so far, the mixing spoons must be made out of heat resistant material.  Some soapmakers like to use wooden spoons; others use plastic, melamine, or nylon.  Whichever ones you decide on, buy ones with long handles so that your hands stay out of the soap pot.  The mixing spoons are used to stir lye and water mixtures, melting oils, and the soap in the soap pot.  You may want to have others to use as scoops for solid oils.  

Some recipes call for adding fragrances by the measuring spoonful.  If you follow one that does this please, use only stainless steel measuring spoons.  You would be surprised what some of these oils can do to plastics.  

Mark your soapmaking equipment to keep it separate from your baking equipment. Permanent marker quickly fades in this venue so you will want to find another way to make your mark. Perhaps using a knife to score the handles will work for you.  

SPATULAS 
These are handy to have for scraping oils out of the weighing container.  Make sure they are firm, not the flimsy kind.  
 

STICK BLENDER  -  HAND BLENDER 
Because of the home soapmaker, the stick blender is now famous. It is the soapmaker's best friend. Since I started to use mine, my stirring time has been cut from almost an hour to between fifteen and twenty-five minutes, depending on the recipe. There are differing opinions as to which brand is best and I may be going out on a limb by saying this, but it seems that from the discussions at the soapnuts e-mail list, the multi-speed Braun is choice number one. Whatever you use, it should have variable speeds so you have the option of a lower setting. Be sure you don't start the thing until it is completely submersed in the soap pot or else liquid soap will go flying and that is definitely not a good thing! 

As to a method for using the blender in soapmaking, well, it seems everyone follows a favorite routine. Soapmakers use the stick blender in short spurts ranging anywhere from thirty seconds to two minutes. Any longer than that will burn out the motor. Read the manual for guidelines. I gently move mine around the soap pot trying to reach the hard-to-get-at places as I move in a figure-eight motion. When you work on your method, remember to stir frequently with a spoon. Not only does this give the blender's motor a break, it also avoids a false trace reading. I like to stop using the blender when I am getting really close to trace (when the soap is ready to pour) just so that I have more control over the end of the process.  

Of course If you don't have a stick blender you can still make soap! Use a mixing spoon and/or wire whisk to stir the soap until trace.  
 

Thermometer 

Will a candy thermometer work in soapmaking? Yes, if it registers temperatures as low as 80F. Soap is mixed when the lye water and oils have cooled to temperatures ranging from 80 to 125 degrees. There is much to be said about temperature ranges, but we will save that for another time. As a beginner, and someone who really wants to get your foot in the door here, a candy thermometer with a clip attachment will do. Actually you will need two; one for the oil pot, and one for the lye water. The best thermometer would be an Easy Read.  
 
 

The Soap Pot 

In an interview with Lori Storey of 'Lori's Laughing Lambs' Lori says this about her soap pot:  
 

Interviewer:  What piece of soaping equipment could you not do without? 
Lori:  Oh, that would have to be my old enamel-         ware pot!! It's the only pot I've used. I got it at a flea market years and years ago and it's like an old friend!  (Read the whole interview)

You needn't spend a fortune on the soap pot. Stainless steel, glass, or enamel all work. It is a good idea to have a tall pot with handles on the sides if possible... one that has a thick enough bottom that heat is evenly dispersed. This pot is used to melt the oils together, and  freshly traced soap will be poured into the soap mold directly from the pot so you will need to be able to get a firm grip on it. If a bowl or bucket is the mixing container of choice, a soap pot is still required to melt oils together.  

A pot may be purchased at a department store, house wares store, kitchen store or (better yet) a local yard sale or flea market.  
 

The Mold 

The final piece of soapmaking equipment to discuss is the mold. The easiest and most available mold can be found in a department store. Look in the kitchen plastic wares section for plastic drawer liners, or food storage containers. If the molds are oiled and lined with waxed paper flexibility is not important, but it does help.  

Another choice among many is to purchase a mold designed specifically for soap. These can be simple wooden molds that yield one large soap slab to be cut after unmolding or one with dividers which yield pre-cut bars of soap.  

Soapmakers have used shoe boxes, Jell-O molds, candy molds, styrofoam cups, stainless steel muffin tins, cake pans,  and so forth to form and shape their creations. Imagination is the limit!  
 
 

Miscellaneous 

Here are a few more items you may find helpful:  
Waxed Paper for lining molds  
Paring Knife & Vegetable Peeler for cutting and shaping bars  
Aerosol Cooking Spray to oil molds  
Scissors to miter corners of waxed paper  
Paper Towels  
Cotton Balls for dabbing vinegar on lye burns  
 

Acknowledgments:  
Pictures of rubber gloves, Easy Read thermometer, and electronic and triple beam scales courtesy of Majestic Mountain Sage  <http://www.the-sage.com/>  

Picture of Max and Rita mold courtesy of Rita Richards <http://www.angelfire.com/tx/kelseiscreations/index.html>