Whispering Pines Salty Bar | A Rustic Cold Process Soap Recipe

Grandma’s Journal

Whispering Pines Salty Bar

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In the still of an early quiet morning, with the dawn of a fresh fallen snow. Before the world has woken up, while the snow lays heavy on the branches of an evergreen tree line. That was the feeling I wanted tucked into this Whispering Pine Bar of soap, a bit of the woods, a bit of winter, and something pretty enough to leave beside the old washbasin during the holidays.

I called this one Whispering Pines Salty Bar. It’s a generous batch made with sunflower, coconut, palm, olive, castor, and avocado oils.  I stirred in kaolin clay and oats, two tablespoons of each, and 7.2 ounces of sea salt, just 10% of the oil weight. The salt gives this bar a little character of its own, while the oats and clay feel right at home in an old-fashioned country recipe.

For the color, I kept things simple with white mica. I wanted the finished soap to look like freshly fallen snow rather than something overly decorated. I chose a Winter Wonderland fragrance, which seemed just right for a bar inspired by evergreens and cold winter air.

But the top may be my favorite part.

After a simple spoon texture, I scattered just a touch of cranberry seeds across that creamy white surface and nestled a row of miniature pinecones along the top. Those tiny bits of deep red against the snowy soap remind me of berries peeking through the woods after the first frost.

Whispering Pines feels quiet and woodsy, the sort of bar that belongs beside a warm sink while the kettle is humming and the wind is moving softly through the pines outside.

Sometimes a simple solid color soap with no swirls, needs its turn on the curing rack.

-Soapmaking Hobby 🌲🤎

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• Oil & Butter Blend

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• Sodium Hydroxide

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• Oats

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• Fragrance Oil

• Mason jars for fragrance oils

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• Soap cutter

• Curing Rack(starter)

• Wooden Trays (for curing)

• Wooden Crates (for carrying)

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• Grinder(I like this for whole oats)

• Dehydrator (for citrus slices)

• Soap Journals

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• Twine

• Greaseproof wrap:

• -Gingham

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🌲⭐️ Whispering Pines Salty Bar Recipe

There’s something especially pretty about a creamy white bar dressed with little pinecones and cranberry seeds. This is a 72 oz oil batch with a 5% superfat, made with a blend of six oils and finished with sea salt, oats, and kaolin clay.

⭐️Oils

Sunflower Oil 23.04 oz (you’ll need 2)

Coconut Oil, (76°)18 oz

Palm Oil 18 oz

Olive Oil 5.76 oz

Castor Oil 3.60 oz

Avocado Oil 3.60 oz

Total Oils 72 oz

⭐️Lye Solution

Distilled Water 27.42 oz

(optionally, replace 5 oz of water with 5 oz of Coconut Milk added to the cooled oils)

Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH) 10.14 oz

⭐️Additives

Kaolin Clay 2 Tbsp

Colloidal Oats  or Ground Oats 2 Tbsp

Fine Sea Salt 7.2 oz (10% of total oils)

White Mica enough to color the base 1-2 tsp

⭐️Fragrance & Decoration

Fragrance 4.5 oz

Suggested Scent: Winter Wonderland

Top: a light sprinkle of cranberry seeds and a row of mini pinecones.

⭐️Grandma’s Little Note

Keep the design simple and snowy. The creamy white base is what makes those tiny brown pinecones and little cranberry-red specks stand out so beautifully. Once the soap is ready for use, remove the decorative pinecones before washing with the bar.

As always, run the formula through your own soap/lye calculator before making it, especially if changing any oils, and follow full lye-safety practices.

🌲 Method

Whispering Pines Salty Bar

1. Prepare your workspace. Put on gloves and safety goggles, measure all ingredients carefully, and prepare your mold.

2. Make the lye solution. Slowly add 10.14 oz sodium hydroxide (NaOH) to 27.42 oz distilled water, never water to lye. Stir carefully until dissolved, then set aside in a safe place to cool. Use proper safety precautions.

3. Prepare the oils. Weigh and combine the sunflower, coconut, palm, olive, castor, and avocado oils. Melt the solid oils completely and combine with the liquid oils. Allow the oils and lye solution to cool to your preferred soaping temperatures.

4. Prepare the additives. Measure 2 Tbsp kaolin clay, 2 Tbsp oats, and 7.2 oz sea salt. Have the white mica ready for the soap base.

5. Bring to light trace. Carefully pour the cooled lye solution into the oils and blend to a light trace.

6. Add fragrance and color. Stir in your white mica and fragrance. I am using 4.5 oz of fragrance (Winter Wonderland) follow the fragrance manufacturer’s recommended usage rate for cold process soap rather than exceeding its safe rate.

7. Add the oats, clay & salt. Stir in the prepared kaolin clay and oats, followed by the sea salt. Work steadily because salt can cause the batter to thicken.

8. Pour and decorate. Pour the batter into your prepared mold and texture the top with a spoon or spatula. Finish with a light sprinkle of dried cranberry seeds and a row of miniature pinecones, be sure to space them accordingly to your cutter. Mine has 1 inch between each pinecone.

9. Unmold and cut. Watch this batch closely as it firms. Salt soap can become hard and more difficult to cut if left too long. Unmold and cut when the loaf is firm enough to handle but still cuts cleanly. About 3 hours.

10. Cure. Place the bars in a well-ventilated area with space between them and record their progress on your 4-Week Curing Log. Remove the decorative pinecones before using the finished soap if desired.

Whispering Pine

A Salty Bar Topped with Cranberry Seeds and Pinecones

🌲🤎Whispering Pines Salty Bar FAQ

🌲What makes this a “salty bar”?

This recipe contains 7.2 oz of sea salt, equal to 10% of the 72 oz total oil weight. Not a true full salt bar.

🌲What oils are used?

Sunflower, coconut, palm, olive, castor, and avocado oils make up the recipe.

🌲What is the superfat?

The recipe is formulated at a 5% superfat.

🌲What additives are included?

I use 2 Tbsp of kaolin clay to add depth and silkiness, 2 Tbsp oats for a gentle exfoliation and 7.2 oz sea salt for extra hardness and easier un-molding with white mica added to the base

🌲What fragrance works with Whispering Pines?

The recipe suggests Winter Wonderland, with 4.5 oz fragrance specified for the batch. A balsamic pine or citrus would work well.

🌲How is the top decorated?

A light sprinkle of cranberry seeds and a row of mini pinecones give it that rustic woodland look.

🌲Do the mini pinecones stay on when using the soap?

They’re decorative, so I’d remove the pinecones before using the bar. 

🌲What is the finished look?

Creamy winter white with little touches of cranberry red and natural brown, a simple, cozy design that fits the Whispering Pines name beautifully.

🤍Choose your next soap journal entry…

✨ Bubblin’ Beer Tallow - rustic yet luxurious lather

✨Huckleberry Harvest Vegan- berry charming

✨Bluebird Lane-a blueberry scented- farmhouse bar

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