Cosmic Wave Soap - Soap Challenge Club (November 2016 entry)

Hello, everyone,

This is my 11-th Soap Challenge hosted by GreatCakes Soapworks and Amy Warden) I am very happy I could participate in it and managed to make some several nice soaps although my daugther is still having her teeth epopea(((((

This month technique is called Cosmic Wave and it was created by one of the most talented modern soapmekrs Tatsiana Serko from Creative Soap by Steso (Tatsiana was also my guest for the Soapmakers of the World interview serial here as well as Holly Shelton and Debi Olsen). The technique was created as a result of soap “duel” with another wonderful and very talented soapmaker Jelena Vasiljeva from Soap Techniques. Both of them are teaching in Savonnerie private school, which I am a proud pupil of.

To be honest I did not like the technique at first. Some several month ago I made two soaps in different variations. I liked the one with circles (or like I call after Soap Baby Whirlwind swirl). But the waves… no… It seemed to my like I made sausage soap))) I saw the direction in which my soap was poured and it made kind of hot dogs in the pattern… While I prepared for this challenge I looked at some very nice soaps made in this technique and I understood what was my problem… Sausages…. In sense of making soap - bad trace.. So I was trying to achieve the right trace for this pour, so there are no bright boundaries between the waves))

Those were my first soaps in that technique:

 

I made 6 attempts in a week before the end of the competition) I used a shoe box (the cover of it) as my mold as I have no mold with low sides. As I started to sell my soap, here in EU I had to use recipe and color scheme I have certificate for. The recipe includes olive, coconut, castor, shea, babassu, cocoa and jojoba wax.

So my first attempts were with my Jojoba and Bamboo (with bamboo charcoal, scented with tea tree, rosemary and lavender EOs) soap that normally looks like that:

I liked the way it looked, but it seemed to me, that I had too little colors in it, too little color soap (I made those recommended 15% of all batter) and too thin trace for this technique…

The second try was worse I think….

All other tries were with my Jojoba and Lemongrass soap (colored with yellow, tropical teal and brown moca NS micas, scented with lemongrass and lavender EOs). That is how it looks standardly:

First one attempt was very nice, seemed to me very harmonic, but there were kind of color “spots” instead of waves, so I wanted to make another try.

 

My shoe box soap mold))))

 

 

Second one try with this recipe ended up overmixed))) So, first one or two waves perfect, then I could only give my soap to a mold and the end)))

The third try was ended up like not very nice soap, because I used too much colored soap (more than 15%) and too thick trace again. I did not like the soap at all, so I normally have forgotten to take pics of it)))) So here is the only one I made before I died from that cold outside) SAUSAGES)))))) 

 

And last one try is my best I think as for the cosmic wave design. I over-CPOPed my soap, so there are little air bubbles in the structure of the soap.. I hope I can forgive myself one day for that))

My entry this month – Fresh Wave.

Just poured in my wonderful shoe box mold)

All soaps together:

 

Thank you for stopping by and have a very good luck with this so very hard technique!

Nasta

Soapmakers of the World: Debi Olsen’s doing it herself (USA)

Dear all, my special guest this month is a very creative and hardworking soapmaker, who ranked within the top 10 for all her entries in Soap Challenge Club except two. She managed to place three times: first place for the Location Theme, 2nd place for Sculpted Layers and 3rd for Circling Taiwan Swirl. This wonderful person is also a writer (that is no surprise for those who are reading her blog because it is just impossible to stop to read her interesting posts), a farmer, a businesswoman and much more… but first of all she is an incredible mother and wife! 

Please be happy to read about Debi Olsen from Medoitmeself.com

Wood grain soap - Soap Challenge Club (October 2016 entry)

Hi, everyone,

This month challenge in Soap Challenge Club hosted by Amy Warden is to make a wood grain soap))
As my daughter teeth saga still continues, again I made only one soap) that pretends to look like wood grain))

Unfortunately I have no pictures of the process this time, my camera was broken for some time, so only the result is here)

Piping technique - Soap Challenge Club (September 2016 entry)

 Hi, everyone, 

This month challenge was another very hard one for me, as my daughter’s teething marathon still continues (for the 5-th or 6-th month). So I made my entry soap last night untill 3 a.m. I am not satisfied with it at all, but it is the only thing I managed to make)) 

 This was also one of the funniest challenges I made. 

 I was thinking a lot about the soap theme I would like to tackle. I don’t really like soap cupcakes or soap cakes etc. But while speaking with a friend of mine who likes weddings a lot, I started to think about unusual weddings people have sometimes, like marine weddings for instance. And I remembered that I liked how interesting those gothic weddings are and decided to make my soap in that style. 

Soapmakers of the World: Holly Shelton's Sipmle Elegance (USA)

Lemon Mint Teardorp

All photos are from Holly Shelton's personal archive

This time, my soapmaking friends, my guest is from USA. She won Soap Challenge Club three times, ones placed second and several times was very close to the top positions. Her soaps are very recognizable as they are not only both very simple and very elegant, but also are all natural. Queen of Natural Colors*, Amazingly Talented Soapmaker, very kind and grateful person and simply beautiful woman – Holly Shelton from Kápia Méra Soap Company.

Dancing Funnel technique - Soap Challenge Club (August 2016 entry)

Hi, everybody,

This month challenge in Soap Challenge Club is about making a Dancing Funnel technique, that was created by Tatsiana Serko (read my interview with her here) from Creative Soap by Steso and Jelena Vasiljeva from Soap Techniques.

This is my seventh entry in SCC and first time doing this technique. I used no bottles, just paper cups... This is also the first time I am taking part in all natural category. I promised myself in February when I was not participating to choose this category for my entry next time and so this is it))

Pipe Divider Swirl - Soap Challenge Club (July 2016 entry)

Hi, everyone,

This is my seventh time in Amy Warden’s Soap Challenge Club (Other entries – Impression Mat, Circling Taiwan Swirl, Rimmed Soap, Location Theme, Tear Drop Swirl, Sculpted Lyers Soap). This is my first time doing Pipe Divider Swirl technique.

Soapmakers of the world: Tatsiana Serko’s Art of SoapMaking (Belarus, USA)

From Belarus with love

 Russian version                                    

Photos from Tatsiana Serko’s personal archive

My friends, today we have a unique opportunity to touch the world of high art, the art of soapmaking of course. You would definitely recognize my guest from the first photos of her soaps because they embody originality, refinement, elegance, the creator's intricacy and at the same time they have incredible lightness and airiness. Let's get acquainted with Tatsiana Serko (Creative Soap by Steso) a little bit closer.

Мыловары мира: Искусство мыловарения Татьяны Серко (Белоруссия, США)

"Из Белоруссии с любовью"

  English version                                   

Фото из архива Татьяны Серко

Друзья, сегодня  у нас с вами есть уникальная возможность прикоснуться к миру высокого искусства. Искусства мыловарения, конечно же. Наверняка, вы узнаете мою сегодняшнюю гостью с первых фотографий ее мыла, ибо они заключают в себе всю неординарность, изысканность, элегантность и замысловатость творца и в тоже время обладают невероятной легкостью и воздушностью. Давайте познакомимся с Татьяной Серко (Creative Soap by Steso) поближе.

Sculpted Layers - Soap Challenge Club (June 2016 entry)

 

Hi, everyone,

This is my sixth soap challenge. It was the hardest one so far.

I had a difficult month again full of tooth ache (my daughter), other health problems (my dog) and no sleeping))) I did only one try making soap fulfilling the guidelines and one experimental soap.

First I saw Sculpted Layers technique at Auntie Clara’s blog in her Lace Soap tutorial and liked it very much and wanted to make it someday. 

I don’t like soap made all with this technique (though they are wonderful) because they seem to me too unnatural. Unfortunately I also hate landscape soaps as much as embedded soaps)))) So it was hard for me to got some idea on geometric shapes for the soap..