That was part of the issue! This was all back in 2018/2019 with the gallbladder issue. My doctor had me test foods and quantities prior to surgery and that did cause immediate issues. He had me eating more protein rich and fattier foods because that is what the bile is needed to break down. I had a HIDA scan done (along with other scans beforehand) to pinpoint the issue. After surgery, I was great for about 6 months and then started having issues again or rather - different issues. I had also changed my eating habits during that time. I know some people have issues when a non functioning gallbladder is removed but I did not have that at all. Now, the FODMAP/IBS issues are actually carbohydrate related, not fat or protein. I'm WAY better now but still have to watch my fructans - especially wheat, certain teas, and squash. I can eat almost everything again now, but I just know that if I eat too much of xyz then I need to be staying home the next day. I haven't had one of those attacks again since late 2019. The gallbladder issue with food caused me problems within an hour or so but the IBS/FODMAP has about a 12 hour delay in my system. I hope that all makes sense!

If you want to fart bubbles sure!

Oh my goodness! Thank you SO much! This really made my day.

Ohhhhh! Thank you so much! Such a huge compliment as your soaps are amazing!

Yes!

Same way as you would if it were hooked up to a light switch. The hot (black) wire runs through the dimmer switch and controls the power to the vacuum speeding up or slowing down the motor which adjusts the suction. Lower flow is better as it is less likely to hurt the bees. Be sure to use a smooth hose so the bees slide through it and don't get hurt. Also, don't leave the bees in the bucket for very long as it gets hot in there and they'll die so suck them up and go immediately to your hive, max 30 min or less if it's a hot day. You can also make a double bucket setup such that the first bucket has a screen in the bottom and the second bucket goes on the outside of the first. Then when you're done vacuuming them up, just remove the second bucked and they'll have air and it'll cool things down.

Did using the dimmer on this vacuum damage the motor?

Don’t put that HEX on me !!!! Lol but no. So far so good.

​@patrickt863 No, I actually used it couple weeks ago, still working great

Yes! You can! It does take a few days. They do offer perforated varieties as well but not sure if that is in the biofilm or the regular. I've never used the perforated due to my climate and because I make glycerin soaps as well.

@@The5thJourney thank you for the reply. yes I live in Hawaii it’s very humid. The cold process soap I have attracts customers because they can smell walking up to the booth. I just want to make sure because I want to start making glycerin melt and pour soaps

Thanks a bunch!

Thanks! I pulled out my notes, but I actually didn't write that part down! I'm pretty sure I did the base as half the soap and then a quarter went towards the greens (divided that in half for the two greens) and the final quarter divided into 6ths for the flower colors.

Thanks you so much!

Thank you!

Thank you!

Yes! It is pretty cool! We just found out that her prom is doing a donation to another safehouse, so she's going to donate to that as well.

@@The5thJourney that is something to be VERY proud of, Momma!!!❤️❤️❤️

Thank you so much!

Actually, thank you for commenting about that! I made this 4 years ago and it is still sitting there in a cabinet. I still use the box part for MP but just with a knife again (still hate doing it that way, but gives the cleanest cut). I was just looking at the uncle Andy's a month or so ago on a destash group and was thinking of maybe setting aside some money this year for one. Thank you SO much for the suggestion because I could totally do that!

Ahhh! Thank you! I still have one from when I made the batch and it is still gorgeous! I need to try this one again. :)

Thank you! This was a tough challenge for sure! I really feel like I lucked out on both of mine, and definitely this one. When I was pouring the sides, I definitely thought it was going to be wonky!

@@The5thJourney lol!

Thank you! I gotta say, I may have squealed when I cut these. I was super concerned because the red broke through the blue base layer when I poured it. It fixed itself!

@@The5thJourney HECK! I SQUEALED WHEN YOU CUT THEM!!!! GORGEOUS bars!!!!

😂 LOL testing phases are rough!

Thank you!!

Ah! Thank you SO much!

ahhhh! Thank you!

Thank you!

There are a few places where you can purchase them, but those have come about later after I made these origial ones. Some people even 3D print their own. For mine, which I made a while ago, I bought an inexpensive bubble wand kit - like in the kids section for blowing bubbles. I cut off the outer parts until it fit well in my mold. Then I cut up a wire hanger to make the handles. I had tried just using string the first time, but the plastic part flipped while pulling it out. It needs to be stiff enough where the handles are placed so it doesn't flip. I also sprayed my handles with a clear coat before using. Hope that helps!

Hello! I'm not sure if you will have a lot of luck finding it - It was a specialty item at Aldi. Label says Easy Home - Chunky Yarn Ombre. No color is otherwise listed. Bulky weight 100% acrylic. 14 oz aprox 257 yds. I no longer have the label for the complimentary nubby yarn.

Thank you so much! And other than the green, they have all stayed those same colors. The green is more of a light tan now with flecks of brown. But I expected that. :)

Yes, I did! So having my gallbladder out actually helped because instead of getting a "bucket full" of bile from it over functioning, it is now a steady stream. It has now been 4 or 5 years and as long as I don't eat certain trigger foods, then I'm fine. My system had been a bit wonky over the holidays, but that is my own fault. I now know that there are things that I can enjoy to eat as long as I'm staying home the next day. I still drink peppermint tea and eat ginger chews as needed.

Ahhh! Thank you!

Thank you so much! They do smell great. The scent changes in CP, but I like it both OOB and after the cure.

Ahhh! Thanks a bunch!

Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

Thank you! 13 years of dance instruction plus 20 years of teaching definitely helped with that. Though, my posture is pretty awful when I'm working at my computer. Yuck.

This is definitely a very high end FO company! They do not buy in bulk from others but create their own. That being said, it definitely isn't feasible for something like cold process soap that requires a lot of fragrance. But is for projects that require much smaller quantities such as solid shampoo bars, lotions, or MP soap (MP uses a quarter of the fragrance compared to CP). There are several of their FOs that are affordable though, even for CP. I haven't looked in a while, but there were some that had a great price. I'm very impressed by the quality, but I do not feel their target market is soapmakers. :)

Thank you! This one is from Kessenich Loom. The sticker on it is from a shop in Wisconsin, but a google search is showing Kessenich Loom in Michigan though I am not sure if it is still in business or not. The one I have is probably 30-40 years old.

Looks similar to the floor looms available at Woolery as well like the Schacht Mighty Wolf and Leclerc Nilus.

I didn't show the 2nd one at the very beginning, but you can see that second strand as I'm weaving. The 2nd strand is gray acrylic. I don't remember the exact type/brand, but one of the baby soft ones.

@@The5thJourney Oh yes. I see it now. Beautiful!!

Lovely and thank you! It looked like you just tied the yarn anywhere when you ran out of one skein. Is that what you did and why? I thought we have to tie to a nail. And did you slip stitch the final strand to finish the weave?

Hello! It depends on how thick the yarn is and how many strands. For this particular shawl, I used every other peg. I use between 360-400 yards per "strand" of yarn. For this particular one, I used the bulky Casa Blend plus a complimentary color of thinner yarn. I try to weave this a bit tighter, so the varying yardage depends on how much it stretches. So this one had about 800 yards. If you do every peg with a thinner yarn, I'd say at least 800 yards per type of yarn. I hope that makes sense!

Thank you! I was afraid that the bright colors wouldn't hold since the fragrance is supposed to cause discoloration by the time the soap cures - however, with the use of these bright ones, they have held their color!

It is real soap! I participate in a worldwide design challenge where every month we are given a new design to try. This type of pattern was the design taught to us for us to then put our own spin on and compete. Since I'm in the advanced category, I am expected to have additional elements, one of which was the multiple colors along with the pull through design. Though I probably won't repeat this design again because of the amount of time it took, it still turned into an awesome piece of functional art that I can share with others. :)