Lesson 6: Soapmaking Instructions: Part Two
Lessons five and six are meant to be reviewed together as they contain step-by-step soapmaking instructions from start to finish. Review all of the intructions first several times before embarking on your first soapmaking enterprise. Print these instructions and have them handy when you make soap. If you have any questions whatsoever, contact me in the Discussion Section before starting to make soap.
Step Eight: Unmolding your soap
The wrapping process insulates your soap from cold. Resist the impulse to check on your soap until 24 hours have passed as you will be letting out the heat generated by the chemical process that is taking place and saponification may not occur.
After 24 hours check on your soap. Unwrap the blanket and press your finger into the top of the soap. This should be covered by plastic wrap so you should not need gloves at this point. Knowing when to unmold your soap becomes easier with practice. If the tip of your finger meets with resistance and it takes some force to make an impression on the top of the soap, then unmold your soap. If your finger makes an impression more easily, unwrap the blanket from the mold and allow the soap to sit in the mold another 24 hours. If your soap looks transparent, it is still saponifying, don't panic this is called the gel stage, just wrap it back up again and wait 24 hours. If the soap is very soft and you meet with no resistance at all (e.g. like a knife through butter), wrap your soap up again and wait another 24 hours.
While there is no real hurry to unmold your soap, leaving in the mold for too long may mean that it becomes too hard to slice. If your soap is hard enough, but you are having trouble unmolding, let the mold sit in the freezer for 10 minutes and try again.
Once your soap is unmolded, depending on its hardness, you could let it sit in a block for another 24 hours or you could slice it right away. Knowing when to do this will become second nature after a few tries at soapmaking. If you do attempt to slice the block and your knife gets sticky and gooey, the soap in the center of the mold has not had enough time to harden. Leave the block of soap in a warm place with no drafts (out of the reach of children) for another 24 hours and try again then.
