# Today’s Cuts



## Jersey Girl (Apr 21, 2020)

Still working on those photography skills!  Made these yesterday. The pink one was a redo of the one I made that got discolored by the addition of honey. I added sugar to the blue one and had no discoloration so sugar it is!


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## Todd Ziegler (Apr 22, 2020)

Was the sugar for harding the soap in the molds or for something else? Because I am running out of sodium Lactate and I am still laid off, so I can't buy anymore. Looking for cheaper alternatives now.


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## Obsidian (Apr 22, 2020)

Todd Ziegler said:


> Was the sugar for harding the soap in the molds or for something else? Because I am running out of sodium Lactate and I am still laid off, so I can't buy anymore. Looking for cheaper alternatives now.



Sugar is to boost lather. Salt is what you want to harden soap. Use 1 tsp ppo, dissolve it in your water before adding the lye. I like salt better then sl for hardening.


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## Jersey Girl (Apr 22, 2020)

Todd Ziegler said:


> Was the sugar for harding the soap in the molds or for something else? Because I am running out of sodium Lactate and I am still laid off, so I can't buy anymore. Looking for cheaper alternatives now.



I was using the sugar to boost the lather. I use SL for hardening and unmoldimg  sooner.


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## Todd Ziegler (Apr 22, 2020)

Jersey Girl said:


> I was using the sugar to boost the lather. I use SL for hardening and unmoldimg  sooner.


Thank you. I am going to try salt or vinegar when I run out of SL.

How much sugar are you using?


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## lsg (Apr 22, 2020)

Love the swirls!


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## Jersey Girl (Apr 22, 2020)

Todd Ziegler said:


> Thank you. I am going to try salt or vinegar when I run out of SL.
> 
> How much sugar are you using?



I used 1 Tsp PPO


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## Bari b (Apr 22, 2020)

They are beautiful!  I will have to try the sugar. Do you put that in the water prior to adding lye, similar to the salt?


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## Victoriaaa (Apr 22, 2020)

These look awesome!


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## blueginkgo (Apr 22, 2020)

Fabulous soaps. I love the distrubition of color in both batches.


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## cmzaha (Apr 22, 2020)

Bari b said:


> They are beautiful!  I will have to try the sugar. Do you put that in the water prior to adding lye, similar to the salt?


When I dissolve any additives I reserve some of the liquid to dissolve the additives and dissolve nothing in my lye solution. But to answer your question yes any additives are always dissolved before adding the lye. Sugar will crystalize on the bottom of your container if you try to dissolve it in lye solution. 

@Todd Ziegler I really think you will like vinegar better than salt.


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## Jersey Girl (Apr 22, 2020)

Bari b said:


> They are beautiful!  I will have to try the sugar. Do you put that in the water prior to adding lye, similar to the salt?



I dissolved the sugar in a small amount of reserved water from the batch and then added it after the lye solution had cooled.


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## dibbles (Apr 22, 2020)

They are both beautiful!


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## Jersey Girl (Apr 22, 2020)

Thanks everyone for the kind words and encouragement.


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## Mobjack Bay (Apr 22, 2020)

You really have a knack for making beautiful swirls!  Have you seen the Soaping101 YouTube video that shows how the different types of sugars affect the final color of  soap? Apparently, “reducing sugars,” like glucose and fructose, darken soap, while sucrose does not.  It has something to do with the chemical structure of the sugar.

@Bari b Another way to add sugar is as simple syrup (50% water:50% cane sugar, heated gently until the sugar dissolves). I make about a cup at a time and store in the refrigerator. I add it to my recipe by weight (2x wt of sugar I want to add) and subtract the water in the syrup (1/2 wt of syrup I’m adding) from the liquid in recipe. I add the syrup directly to the oils rather than to the lye water.


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## moodymama (Apr 22, 2020)

They are so gorgeous!


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## Nona'sFarm (Apr 22, 2020)

Mobjack Bay said:


> You really have a knack for making beautiful swirls!  Have you seen the Soaping101 YouTube video that shows how the different types of sugars affect the final color of  soap? Apparently, “reducing sugars,” like glucose and fructose, darken soap, while sucrose does not.  It has something to do with the chemical structure of the sugar.
> 
> @Bari b Another way to add sugar is as simple syrup (50% water:50% cane sugar, heated gently until the sugar dissolves).


What a great idea! I keep simple syrup in the fridge for adding to iced tea, margaritas, honey bee supplement, and to water down for hummingbird feed. So I now have another use.


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## Jersey Girl (Apr 22, 2020)

Mobjack Bay said:


> You really have a knack for making beautiful swirls!  Have you seen the Soaping101 YouTube video that shows how the different types of sugars affect the final color of  soap? Apparently, “reducing sugars,” like glucose and fructose, darken soap, while sucrose does not.  It has something to do with the chemical structure of the sugar.
> 
> @Bari b Another way to add sugar is as simple syrup (50% water:50% cane sugar, heated gently until the sugar dissolves). I make about a cup at a time and store in the refrigerator. I add it to my recipe by weight (2x wt of sugar I want to add) and subtract the water in the syrup (1/2 wt of syrup I’m adding) from the liquid in recipe. I add the syrup directly to the oils rather than to the lye water.



Thank you!  I haven’t seen this video but I’ll check it out. I love the idea of using the simple syrup. Sounds so much easier!


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## Adobehead (Apr 23, 2020)

Very beautiful and well photographed.  A pleasure to see your work.


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## ravenscents (Apr 23, 2020)

Todd Ziegler said:


> Thank you. I am going to try salt or vinegar when I run out of SL.
> 
> How much sugar are you using?



This recipe for Sodium Lactate was shared with me by a fellow soaper. I haven't tried it yet. 
measure out lets say 16oz water and weigh the pot with the water in it....make note of that weight....dont tare the scale....(make sure you weight out the salt before)....the heat the water up....to boil...take off heat...reweigh..add any lost water to get back to 16oz....add the 32oz salt...stir till its dissolved...set aside covered to cool off 


that gives you a 60/40 solution
then once its cooled off....add it to a clean sterile bottle....


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## Todd Ziegler (Apr 23, 2020)

ravenscents said:


> This recipe for Sodium Lactate was shared with me by a fellow soaper. I haven't tried it yet.
> measure out lets say 16oz water and weigh the pot with the water in it....make note of that weight....dont tare the scale....(make sure you weight out the salt before)....the heat the water up....to boil...take off heat...reweigh..add any lost water to get back to 16oz....add the 32oz salt...stir till its dissolved...set aside covered to cool off
> 
> 
> ...


My bad, I thought you were using table sugar. I have sodium Lactate but I am running out with no way to get more.


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## Jersey Girl (Apr 23, 2020)

Adobehead said:


> Very beautiful and well photographed.  A pleasure to see your work.



Thank you!!. 



ravenscents said:


> This recipe for Sodium Lactate was shared with me by a fellow soaper. I haven't tried it yet.
> measure out lets say 16oz water and weigh the pot with the water in it....make note of that weight....dont tare the scale....(make sure you weight out the salt before)....the heat the water up....to boil...take off heat...reweigh..add any lost water to get back to 16oz....add the 32oz salt...stir till its dissolved...set aside covered to cool off
> 
> 
> ...



If this works as well as SL it would sure be a convenient inexpensive alternative!  It’s worth a try!  Thanks for sharing.


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## Nona'sFarm (Apr 23, 2020)

ravenscents said:


> This recipe for Sodium Lactate was shared with me by a fellow soaper. I haven't tried it yet.
> measure out lets say 16oz water and weigh the pot with the water in it....make note of that weight....dont tare the scale....(make sure you weight out the salt before)....the heat the water up....to boil...take off heat...reweigh..add any lost water to get back to 16oz....add the 32oz salt...stir till its dissolved...set aside covered to cool off


Does it matter what type of salt? I have Iodized Table Salt and also granulated Sea Salt. Which would be better?
Do you use it in the same ratios as SL, about 1 teaspoon ppo?


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## linne1gi (Apr 23, 2020)

Here's the cut of my latest HP (hot process) soap.  Made with Lard, Olive, Coconut, Castor Oil and superfatted with Kokum Butter.  I added Coconut Milk, Sour Cream, Apple Cider Vinegar, Orange Juice, Sodium Lactate, and Mulberry Silk.


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## Jersey Girl (Apr 23, 2020)

linne1gi said:


> Here's the cut of my latest HP (hot process) soap.  Made with Lard, Olive, Coconut, Castor Oil and superfatted with Kokum Butter.  I added Coconut Milk, Sour Cream, Apple Cider Vinegar, Orange Juice, Sodium Lactate, and Mulberry Silk. View attachment 45355



They are beautiful!  I have yet to attempt HP. It intimidates me for some reason.


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## Cal43 (Apr 23, 2020)

Jersey Girl said:


> I was using the sugar to boost the lather. I use SL for hardening and unmoldimg  sooner.


Can you use sugar and salt in the same batch?


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## Belindasuds (Apr 23, 2020)

Cal43 said:


> Can you use sugar and salt in the same batch?


You sure can. Be sure to dissolve them in the water before adding the lye though. 1 tsp per pound of soap is the general rule for both when adding to your lye solution. People do push that higher though, particularly with salt in salt bars.

Those colours and swirls are lovely! @Jersey Girl


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## Regina Green (Apr 23, 2020)

Jersey Girl said:


> Still working on those photography skills!  Made these yesterday. The pink one was a redo of the one I made that got discolored by the addition of honey. I added sugar to the blue one and had no discoloration so sugar it is!  View attachment 45306
> View attachment 45307


Gorgeous!


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## Nona'sFarm (Apr 23, 2020)

linne1gi said:


> Here's the cut of my latest HP (hot process) soap.  Made with Lard, Olive, Coconut, Castor Oil and superfatted with Kokum Butter.  I added Coconut Milk, Sour Cream, Apple Cider Vinegar, Orange Juice, Sodium Lactate, and Mulberry Silk.


Very impressed with the layers (?) / swirls (?) that you made with a HP.  I have not attempted anything like that with HP.


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## Hinata (Apr 23, 2020)

is their a particular name for the style of swirl you did? 

How do you keep your batter thin enough to trace?  I don't know why I always seize even when I soap at 90 degrees-- both lye and oils.


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## Jersey Girl (Apr 24, 2020)

Hinata said:


> is their a particular name for the style of swirl you did?
> 
> How do you keep your batter thin enough to trace?  I don't know why I always seize even when I soap at 90 degrees-- both lye and oils.



The swirl is a hanger swirl. I used the tool that Brambleberry sells, but I’ve also made my own with a hanger covered with electric tape. I soap at temps usually in the neighborhood of 100-105 sometimes even a little warmer.  I stick blend to emulsion then start adding my colors and stir by hand. Sometimes I add my FO to the oils before I add the lye. When I first start pouring the trace is light, but by the time I’m finished layering the colors the batter is a more medium trace consistency. Too thin and the colors get muddled.  I usually have to work pretty fast though.  I always use a behaving FO. I always use some lard and between that and olive and usually one other soft oil they usually are around 50-55% of the oil content.



Mobjack Bay said:


> You really have a knack for making beautiful swirls!  Have you seen the Soaping101 YouTube video that shows how the different types of sugars affect the final color of  soap? Apparently, “reducing sugars,” like glucose and fructose, darken soap, while sucrose does not.  It has something to do with the chemical structure of the sugar.
> 
> I couldn’t find the video you were referencing although I searched YouTube Soaping 101 videos. Do you know where I can find it. Would love to watch it!


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## linne1gi (Apr 24, 2020)

Nona'sFarm said:


> Very impressed with the layers (?) / swirls (?) that you made with a HP.  I have not attempted anything like that with HP.


It has taken me a while (almost a year) to get my HP soap fluid enough to swirl. It is so different from CP which I have been doing for 7 years before starting with HP.  I so love the HP soaps quality - I am going to attempt a tall and skinny shimmy with HP next.


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## Mobjack Bay (Apr 24, 2020)

Here you go:


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## Carolyne Thrasher (Apr 24, 2020)

You've really mastered swirls! Those are very pretty!


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## Jersey Girl (Apr 24, 2020)

Mobjack Bay said:


> Here you go:




Thank you!


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## StarChild (Apr 29, 2020)

Nona'sFarm said:


> Does it matter what type of salt? I have Iodized Table Salt and also granulated Sea Salt. Which would be better?
> Do you use it in the same ratios as SL, about 1 teaspoon ppo?


I have used 1 tsp ppo of both sea salt and table salt and both times the soap came out good.


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## linne1gi (Apr 29, 2020)

I wouldn't use iodized salt in soap.  You don't want extra iodine in soap.  Use fine sea salt or fine table salt or Kosher salt.  The salts you absolutely can't use are Epsom Salt (which is magnesium sulfate - not a salt at all), and Dendritic Salt.


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## Garden Gives Me Joy (May 28, 2020)

Thanks to Covid19, I'm out of sea salt and was forced to buy table salt nearby. However, I want to try a salt bar. 
*Would the table salt be equally or comparably good (as sea salt) for controlling excessive oil (and acne)*? Do the 2 feel the same also?


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## Jersey Girl (May 28, 2020)

Garden Gives Me Joy said:


> Thanks to Covid19, I'm out of sea salt and was forced to buy table salt nearby. However, I want to try a salt bar.
> *Would the table salt be equally or comparably good (as sea salt) for controlling excessive oil (and acne)*? Do the 2 feel the same also?



Here is a thread that discusses different salts. Ive not yet made a salt bar myself so have no personal experience.
salt bar - what kinds of salt can and can't be used?


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## linne1gi (May 28, 2020)

Garden Gives Me Joy said:


> Thanks to Covid19, I'm out of sea salt and was forced to buy table salt nearby. However, I want to try a salt bar.
> *Would the table salt be equally or comparably good (as sea salt) for controlling excessive oil (and acne)*? Do the 2 feel the same also?


Table salt is fine for soap making.  It has smaller sized grains.  The only kinds of salt to not use in soap, are Epsom Salt (which is not really salt at all but magnesium sulfate) and Dead Sea Salt because it doesn't set up well and leaves you with gooey sticky soap.  If you use Pink Himalayan salt, you should grind it because the large grains are uncomfortably scratchy.  Oh and iodized salt is not a good idea - because you do not want excess iodine in your soap.


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## Kpg009 (Jun 26, 2020)

Jersey Girl said:


> Still working on those photography skills!  Made these yesterday. The pink one was a redo of the one I made that got discolored by the addition of honey. I added sugar to the blue one and had no discoloration so sugar it is!


They look absolutely gorgeous!


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## linne1gi (Jun 26, 2020)

Todd Ziegler said:


> Thank you. I am going to try salt or vinegar when I run out of SL.
> 
> How much sugar are you using?


Vinegar will not increase lather, nor will it harden the soap as salt does. Rather, vinegar will react a little with some of the NaOH, thereby increasing your super fat.


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## Jersey Girl (Jun 26, 2020)

linne1gi said:


> Vinegar will not increase lather, nor will it harden the soap as salt does. Rather, vinegar will react a little with some of the NaOH, thereby increasing your super fat.



Are you saying that vinegar will not harden soap as well as salt or that it will not harden soap at all?  This could be confusing to new soapers, Because from what I’ve learned here, it is used for that purpose quite regularly and successfully.  I think you may need to clarify this a bit Just to avoid confusion.


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## AliOop (Jun 26, 2020)

Jersey Girl said:


> Are you saying that vinegar will not harden soap as well as salt or that it will not harden soap at all?  This could be confusing to new soapers, Because from what I’ve learned here, it is used for that purpose quite regularly and successfully.  I think you may need to clarify this a bit Just to avoid confusion.


I use vinegar for most of my soaps. It definitely does increase hardness, and I believe it gives a very slight boost to lather, as well, especially when used in combination with sugar for a lather boost. Most of all I like how the lather with my vinegar soaps feels softer somehow. And my husband likes that I don't take all his distilled water that he needs for his CPAP.


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## linne1gi (Jun 26, 2020)

Jersey Girl said:


> Are you saying that vinegar will not harden soap as well as salt or that it will not harden soap at all?  This could be confusing to new soapers, Because from what I’ve learned here, it is used for that purpose quite regularly and successfully.  I think you may need to clarify this a bit Just to avoid confusion.


Vinegar when added to NaOH becomes sodium acetate, which is a mild salt.  In my opinion, it doesn't work as well as salt.  NaCl does harden soap better.  When adding vinegar to your soap you will definitely increase the superfat, unless you compensate by adding additional NaOH.  28 grams of vinegar neutralizes 1 gram of NaOH.  So, for example, if you would use vinegar for half of your liquid and the additional liquid as vinegar at 224 grams of vinegar, you would need 8 extra grams of NaOH.  Personally, I like to add citric acid instead to my soap for it's milk chelating properties as well as its ability to reduce soap scum.   In this case 10 grams of citric acid neutralizes 6 grams of NaOH.  You can use citric acid at 1-2% in soap.  So if you have 16 ounces of oils, you can use 1.6-3.2 ounces of citric acid.


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## AliOop (Jun 26, 2020)

linne1gi said:


> Vinegar when added to NaOH becomes sodium acetate, which is a mild salt.  In my opinion, it doesn't work as well as salt.  NaCl does harden soap better.  When adding vinegar to your soap you will definitely increase the superfat, unless you compensate by adding additional NaOH.  28 grams of vinegar neutralizes 1 gram of NaOH.  So, for example, if you would use vinegar for half of your liquid and the additional liquid as vinegar at 224 grams of vinegar, you would need 8 extra grams of NaOH.  Personally, I like to add citric acid instead to my soap for it's milk chelating properties as well as its ability to reduce soap scum.   In this case 10 grams of citric acid neutralizes 6 grams of NaOH.  You can use citric acid at 1-2% in soap.  So if you have 16 ounces of oils, you can use 1.6-3.2 ounces of citric acid.


I will admit that one advantage of using salt instead of vinegar as a hardener is that you can also use citric acid as a chelator if needed. Vinegar doesn't play well with citric acid, so a different chelator would be need to be used - IF you actually need one. I don't tend to need a chelator, so vinegar is fine for me except when making soap for family members with hard water. 

And while I do agree that salt or SL has more hardening affect than vinegar, I like the feel of the lather when using vinegar. And when I combine vinegar with a bit of salt for hardening and sugar for lather boost, the effect of the sum is greater than the parts, IMO. YMMV.


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## linne1gi (Jun 26, 2020)

AliOop said:


> I will admit that one advantage of using salt instead of vinegar as a hardener is that you can also use citric acid as a chelator if needed. Vinegar doesn't play well with citric acid, so a different chelator would be need to be used - IF you actually need one. I don't tend to need a chelator, so vinegar is fine for me except when making soap for family members with hard water.
> 
> And while I do agree that salt or SL has more hardening affect than vinegar, I like the feel of the lather when using vinegar. And when I combine vinegar with a bit of salt for hardening and sugar for lather boost, the effect of the sum is greater than the parts, IMO. YMMV.


I use ACV in almost every bar of HP soap I make - there I feel it improves the lather and the skin feel.  I don't notice an appreciable difference in CP soap.


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## AliOop (Jun 26, 2020)

linne1gi said:


> I use ACV in almost every bar of HP soap I make - there I feel it improves the lather and the skin feel.  I don't notice an appreciable difference in CP soap.


That's interesting. I alternate between CP and HP and like it in both. Could be a difference in the oils or process used?


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## linne1gi (Jun 26, 2020)

AliOop said:


> That's interesting. I alternate between CP and HP and like it in both. Could be a difference in the oils or process used?


Maybe I'm crazy, Hehe!   But seriously, I don't know.  I have many recipes I make, both CP and HP - so I don't just follow one - I make all my own - but of course there are similarities.   I have noticed that ACV tends to discolor my lighter colored soap - if I want a really white bar (of HP), I use white vinegar instead.  But really, we all use the same basic oils/butters: Coconut Oil, Shea Butter, Olive Oil, Avocado Oil, Mango Butter, Cocoa Butter, Castor Oil, Sweet Almond Oil, Safflower Oil, Palm Oil, Palm Kernel Oil - anyway those are the ones I use most often in some sort of combination.  So - I just don't know.  Personal Preference?


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## AliOop (Jun 26, 2020)

linne1gi said:


> Maybe I'm crazy, Hehe!   But seriously, I don't know.  I have many recipes I make, both CP and HP - so I don't just follow one - I make all my own - but of course there are similarities.   I have noticed that ACV tends to discolor my lighter colored soap - if I want a really white bar (of HP), I use white vinegar instead.  But really, we all use the same basic oils/butters: Coconut Oil, Shea Butter, Olive Oil, Avocado Oil, Mango Butter, Cocoa Butter, Castor Oil, Sweet Almond Oil, Safflower Oil, Palm Oil, Palm Kernel Oil - anyway those are the ones I use most often in some sort of combination.  So - I just don't know.  Personal Preference?


Well, there are times that my driveway doesn't go all the way to the garage, if you get my drift.   

Out of your listed oils, I mostly use CO, CaO, plus a lot of lard and tallow.  I only occasionally use shea, cocoa, olive, and avocado. I don't really use the others much at all. So maybe a difference of base oils? But each of us has such different skin reactions to soap anyway, so it's probably just that.


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## Catscankim (Jun 27, 2020)

Jersey Girl these are gorgeous!


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## Goldenearthgirl (Jun 28, 2020)

Pardon my ignorance, what is ACV?


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## linne1gi (Jun 28, 2020)

Goldenearthgirl said:


> Pardon my ignorance, what is ACV?


Apple Cider Vinegar


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## Goldenearthgirl (Jun 29, 2020)

linne1gi said:


> Apple Cider Vinegar


Thank you!


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## Zainab91 (Jun 30, 2020)

these are gorgeous. I'm in love with the pink bars


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