For the impatient (that’s me , maybe you?) but it IS possible to make soap and then be using it in the shower just several hours later… the solution is simply to mix VERY thoroughly and that speeds up the saponification no end. Way to do this is using a stick blender and also having the fats/lye hotter (ie. don’t wait for them to cool, or use ice etc.). Have a look at something like this link, and you’ll see some pics of the sort of blender I’m on about (http://waltonfeed.com/old/soap/soapnow.html). The hotter fats/lye speeds up the chemical reaction.

Mike (soapmaker in the UK!)

I like the shake and mold better than using a stick blender. I don’t have a stick blender, for one, but I have used one to make soap and though it was better than stirring it by hand nothing beats the convenience and safety of having a bottle at your side which you give a good shake every few minutes while you watch TV or play Wesnoth or whatever, until you notice it’s thick enough. That is of course for castile soap (high percentage of olive oil), which I make most frequently. More quick-to-trace soaps probably get there quite quickly with the bottle shake.