# First time using my new Kelsei Mold!!!!!



## Trysta (Apr 5, 2011)

I AM SOOOO EXCITED!!!! Today I made my first 'Kelsei-mold' batch of soap. I had been messing with all kinds of containers, but now I have the 3 log mold and I made what I thought was a big batch, but it only filled two of the three logs and then some little odds and ends with the left overs. Oh, I just can't wait to unmold and cut it, and see how it turned out!!! Made right away a new mix of scents, too, 'cause if you do something new, you might as well do SOMETHING NEW, so I mixed three FOs (manly smell of my own design...), added Vit. E and ground oatmeal, all of these for the first time. Ha, this could end up to be a disaster, but at least it looked like it's gonna be soap.... My daughter thinks it smells nice....

In all my excitement I made some stupid beginner mistakes I have been avoiding until now: like taking off my goggles with my (fresh traced soapy) gloves on so smearing it right beside my eye and in my eyebrow, and taking off the gloves before clean up so also getting some fresh traced soap on my arm. :nooo Dummy of the month club member coming up! Just wasn't thinking while staring at that awesome mold!

How long until I can unmold a log? So far I have been making 'tray-type' soaps. 

Well, I'm off to the barn to milk!


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## Lynn_Theesfeld (Feb 21, 2010)

Glad you have gotten your mold!!! 
I usually let mine sit overnight and unmold in the morning. 
Good luck with your new additions!!! Do show us a pic of your new creation!!!!

Enjoy!
Lynn


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## Guest (Jan 10, 2012)

Yes, would love to see pics, your soap sounds great..


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## MF-Alpines (Mar 29, 2010)

Congrats! I can feel your excitement!!! Isn't it great?!?

Pics are required.


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## Trysta (Apr 5, 2011)

Soap is still in the mold, I will get it out this afternoon or the end of the morning. It looks like it is stuck to the sides, but I'm sure I'll be able to run a sharp knife long the sides and get it out. 

I'll make pics (well, they won't look exciting.....it'll look like......soap), but I always have a hard time posting pics, so I'll try!

Thanks for sharing my excitement. I'm ready to make the next batch (different soap) as soon as these two logs are unmolded. Oh, do you guys cure the log, or cut it right away and cure the individual soaps? It's funny how I never thought of that until I looked at these logs this morning and wondered 'to cut, or not to cut??' :biggrin

Marion


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## Lynn_Theesfeld (Feb 21, 2010)

I let mine sit for a day turning it so the bottom side has a chance to "air dry" a little before cutting..... sometimes  Other then a day or two...I can't leave it alone that long  

Did you line the bottom of the mold with anything? plastic wrap works great for this. Then pop off the bottom and I just push it out instead of using a knife, but I also have no talent and my soap would look like crap if i did lol. 

Can't wait to see how your soap turned out!!


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## Faye Farms (Sep 14, 2009)

I usually cut asap and cure individual soaps.


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## Trysta (Apr 5, 2011)

I spam-sprayed the bottom and sides/dividers, but didn't line.... I guess in retrospect not the right choice (I was reading another thread where people apparently had trouble getting their soap out of this mold. I'm just going to let it sit a bit longer and then tackle it with whatever it's going to take... Next time I'll line the bottom and maybe go for a bit harder soap. Live and learn, live and learn.... soap smells good, though and from the smaller tidbits I made, it looks like it'll be decent soap if and when unmolded!


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## Trysta (Apr 5, 2011)

So, hmm, couldn't get the soap to 'drop' out of the mold nor get the dividers out, so I cut the sides loose and managed to get dividers out. Soap was still stuck (I can't take the mold apart, because the screws are those square ones and I don't have the right tool for those.... hmmm, will have to buy one, I guess), so I cut a bar of each top-end and bottom end, and now I'm going to wait and let it sit until tomorrow morning, see if I can get the logs out now that some air can get to it (soap is still pretty soft). I wish I had lined the bottom of the mold, then I would be done now!

Things learned: line the mold, cooking spray does nothing, check the screws and get the right tool, fill the mold somewhat higher than I did, because the soaps will be a tad bit too 'skinny' when cut. I tried a piece of loose soap I made: nice lather (very nice, but the smell of the soap is a bit 'too unnatural' piney. Not bad, just need to adjust my mix a bit, I guess. 4.3 oz of my 7 oz scents was 'Forever Pine' and I guess I need to go to to a bit less of that ('forever' IS along time.......). 

I made pics and will try to post them tomorrow (bed time now!)

Marion


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## Lynn_Theesfeld (Feb 21, 2010)

Awesome great to hear it, well not that you couldn't get it out, but the rest 

I have never unscrewed mine, I just use a skinny flat head screwdriver to lift up the corners of the mold and it all comes off- Not sure if taking it apart is a good idea unless you mark it somehow since you have to match the "UP" pieces together in order to put it back together- am I making sense?
If not I'll try to explain after coffee in the morning  good night! can't wait to see those pics!!!!


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## Trysta (Apr 5, 2011)

Thanks Lynn! I think I would have taken it apart if I would have had the right tool, but I'm glad I didn't. Soap's out, definitely not perfectly, but with a liner on the bottom next time I think I will be fine. I know I'm going to love this mold once I got the hang of it completely. I loved the big log coming out and knowing how much soap I can make at a time now ( :laughcry don't laugh you big soapers out there! It's a lot of soap for me!!!!!)


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## Guest (Jan 11, 2012)

Marion, Pam will do nothing, it turns into soap...wipe the sides of your mold next time with mineral oil and line the bottom either with a garbage bag or sarah wrap.. Put your soap in the freezer for a couple of hours and it will pop right out of the mold .....It will sweat from being in the freezer but that dries up...
Barb


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## a4patch (Oct 7, 2009)

Great news on your new mold. 

Scents can change a bit as they dry out and season, so don't make decisions yet on your new scent.


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## 2Sticks (Dec 13, 2007)

Lynn_Theesfeld said:


> I have never unscrewed mine, I just use a skinny flat head screwdriver to lift up the corners of the mold and it all comes off-


I do the same thing as Lynn. I line the bottom of my Vicki Mold with wide plastic wrap, put the sides on pour, then put the dividers in. When it's ready, I take a flat-head screwdriver, and lift the sides up starting in one corner where the cut out is and work my way around the mold. It helps to push down on the soap where you are lifting. After the sides are slightly lifted up, I hold it on both ends and pull up. I then take the screwdriver and put it under one end of the divider and lift so it removes by lifting the end you have the screwdriver under and lift it away from you.

It works real well. Like Vicki, I don't wash them unless just absolutely necessary, I usually just scrape off any left over soap on the sides of the mold and on the sides and bottoms of the dividers.


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## Trysta (Apr 5, 2011)

Do I understand it correctly that you guys pour the soap in the Vicki mold without any dividers in it, and then put the dividers in? 

Thanks for the tip on the liner and mineral oil, I will definitely try that. Learning a lot. 

I tried my 'test blob' in the shower and actually liked it. The lather is great (still doing a very basic recipe, with lard, coconut oil and olive oil), the scent could be more 'sophisticated', but it isn't bad. I was going to call this soap 'Great Outdoors', but right now it's still too much 'Pine Forest' only but where to find 'Riverbend' and 'Grizzly Bear' to add to it........ 

Cutting the soap went very well. Right off the block, without a miter box (which I will still get), the two logs resulted in 30 soaps with weights varying from 4.7 oz to 5.3 oz, not bad, I thought, and then I cut one of those bars into four square 'guest size bars', and I think that will work for give aways/samples (I am still giving away full size bars, too, but this would be nice for bigger events).

Fun, fun, fun!


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## Lynn_Theesfeld (Feb 21, 2010)

**Do I understand it correctly that you guys pour the soap in the Vicki mold without any dividers in it, and then put the dividers in?** Yes, unless I am wanting to make 3 different scents.

**It works real well. Like Vicki, I don't wash them unless just absolutely necessary, I usually just scrape off any left over soap on the sides of the mold and on the sides and bottoms of the dividers.**
I do the scraping, but after reading that y'all don't like to wash them, and knowing from experience, I now take a dish towel and wipe the sides off instead of using water to clean and that's working out wonderfully so far. 

Glad you are liking your new soap  now send us a photo lol


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## Trysta (Apr 5, 2011)

Trying pictures......... I resized the resized ones twice already......


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## Trysta (Apr 5, 2011)

So the pic above and these two are my first attempt in the kelsei mold. As you can see unmolding was a bit of a struggle, and I should have filled the mold a bit further to gett better sized soaps, but hey, they do look like soap a little bit, right? The close up is a macro shot of the face of the soap, so you can see the structure (I put a wee bit of ground oatmeal in it)


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## MF-Alpines (Mar 29, 2010)

Very nice, Marion!!!


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## Lynn_Theesfeld (Feb 21, 2010)

They look great!!!!! Don't beat yourself up you learn as you go! Besides i believe my first bars out of that mold were about the same size


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## Anita Martin (Dec 26, 2007)

Marion, if you fill those molds all the way up, it's harder to get the soap out, at least for me it is. I use exactly 113 oz of oils, 30 oz of milk and somewhere around 15.3 oz of lye for this mold (depending on the recipe) and I get exactly 24 bars that weigh approx 5.5 to 6oz each. (8 bars for each log). I wish the sides were higher so I could fill them fuller, then cut the bars thinner and make more soap per batch. It can be done, I just hate filling them to the very top as it can be messy if the soap misbehaves. A garbage bag works great for lining the bottom and can be reused several times. I use white and avoid anything with ink on it.

The dividers were meant to be added once your slab is poured. That way, if you are pouring on a level surface, all the logs should contain the same amount of soap. (that's my challenge in this crooked house). 

You should not need mineral oil after awhile. When I first started using my molds I wrapped the dividers with freezer paper and packaging tape. I was using a recipe very high in coconut oil, but eventually I was able to put the bare dividers in with no sticking. I simply push the soap out once I remove the bottom. Start at one end and (always use protection under your wrist or those sharp edges will cut you) I push down on the soap and go down the lenghth of the log pushing down. It's not a fast process, and the soap is still soft at this point so you need to be careful about denting it. It's really easy though. 

Here are a couple of my bars. If the bars are too square or odd shaped, they are not comfortable in your hand. The size you made, cut into small bars about 1/2 inch thick or so, would be absolutely perfect for travel bars or soaps for bed and breakfasts.


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## Guest (Jan 12, 2012)

They look lovely Marion....one of the things I look for if buying other peoples soaps are the rustic.. I want to know that it really is made from scratch and not melt and pour or something else... I would purchase yours for sure.. 
Barb


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## Trysta (Apr 5, 2011)

Thanks everyone! You guys are way too nice, I know I have soooooooo much room for improvement, but all these tips really help. Luckily I have my family to keep me humble: my husband thinks it smells like 'Vim' (which is a pretty harsh and vicious scrubbing powder sold for household use in The Netherlands, OUCH) and my youngest daughter thinks they all smell nice and look nice, but.......she'd rather uses something everyone else uses from the Walmart.... Oh, well! Luckily my husband was brave enough to take a shower last night using one of these vicious 'Vim' bars and he was peasantly surprised 

And Barb, I agree with you in that I personally like rustic, natural looking soap (if I want bright or smooth I can go to the Walmart), but not everyone likes that I guess. At first my plan was not to deal at all with coloring, but I'm a bit afraid I won't sell anything if all my soap looks the same.... 

By the way, I love the picture of the wrapped bars Anita. There's another beast to conquer: wrapping..... Not my forte, I'm afraid... I am thinking of getting small soap boxes with an opening in them. Not the cheapest solution, but pretty fool proof..... (yep, that fool would be me with my two left hands.... I'm just so much better in the barn than in the arts and crafts department...) :?


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## Lynn_Theesfeld (Feb 21, 2010)

Well with all the suggestions  here is another..Or at least something to make you think a little more lol... I do fill mine all the way to the top, with just a little room to make my "design" actually I just like to play with the soap, but it works  I get 15 bars about 5.8 oz ea. 

I use shrink bags with a card for wrapping, I just changed the way I wrap (again) and love it, but don't have any pictures as of yet. but to give you a basic idea if your not on my facebook  here is what my soaps end up looking like before being wrapped.


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## Trysta (Apr 5, 2011)

ooohhh pretty! So you put some oats on the side of the soap! Nice. A shrinkwrap bag is totally new to me. Going to google that...... And reading again over everyone else's replies...'after I take off the bottom'??? Can we take the bottom off the Kelsei mold? I didn't know that! Checking it out!


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

And remember it's just soap. So clean up your logs before you cut them into bars. Just take a wettish wash rag and run it down the edges, it cleans them right up, once dry I then cut them into perfect bars.

You can also use the molds for slab molds. Only pouring them a few inches deep so the top of the pour is the top of your soap....so you can do pretty swirls or textures. Using it as a log like you are doing makes the top of your pour the side of your soap. Get it? Vicki


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## Trysta (Apr 5, 2011)

Cleaning up the logs! Another new one, will do! Yes, I used it as a log mold so the top is the sides, and well, hellooooo, the bottom does come off (I feel like an idiot.... but hey, the mold came here with no paperwork or description or anything in it...) so that makes stuff a lot easier. Got a soap coming up that I'm very confident about and then a total weird experiment that i will share with y'all when it's done (unless it burns down the house, explodes, or kills me....


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## tlcnubians (Jan 21, 2011)

Congratulations! Looks very nice!


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