how to avoid a lye film on the soap

by Abby
(Italy)

I pretty upset I having more difficulty making soap in winter then in summer. The lye gets cool too fast and I have lye film on the top of the bars of soap. What can I do to avoid these situations. Thanks, Abby

Answer:

When you say lye film, do you mean the white powder residue that can sometimes coat the top of the soap batch? This film is not harmful and tends to wash away with the first use.

I have found that unwrapping the soap once it reaches a full gel and placing a fan to blow over top of the hot soap can sometimes help.

Unfortunately, I haven't found a fool proof method to completely avoid the powdery residue. Over the years I've learned to accept that sometimes it will occur and I just run with it.

Some people place a layer of plastic wrap over the freshly poured soap and this will work if your bars don't have textured tops. You just peel off the plastic wrap once the soap has completed the insulating stage.

You will notice that some of my soaps have textured tops and that some have the powdery residue...I don't mind the look and often people comment that they like it.

Hope that helps,
Cathy