# Man Soap Recipes



## Jnice999 (Jan 22, 2009)

So i am in the process of buying supplies for soapmaking right now. My husband is a big lever 2000 fan so i want to come up with a manly scented soap that he will like. I know for me handmade soap was awesome from the beginning even if i didn't care so much for the scent. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks


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## Healinya (Jan 22, 2009)

http://www.wholesalesuppliesplus.com/Pr ... uctID=2984 Here is a lever 2000 type scent... but once your soapmaking begins, your hubby is going to get realy girly about it, and start wanting to try the cucumber and lavender scents.


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## dagmar88 (Jan 22, 2009)

hahaha   true
you could also try bay rum, oakmoss or musk...


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## Barb (Jan 22, 2009)

scentworks carries an irish spring which i thought i would be a smart alec and make for the hubby so he would consider switching from the real irish spring to mine way back when.

after all these years he's still kind of stubborn about using my soap, because he can't allways smell it on his skin after he showers so he thinks he's not clean. that and the fact that he can go thru a bar in about a week. it reverts back to that i don't think i'm clean scenerio, cause i don't smell like soap and soaps up like 20 times each shower. since i have tons of soap around i refuse to put store detergent bars on my grocery list or in the shower. he wants it, he buys it.

but when winter rolls around he always asks for a bar or two now and then. he won't admit it but the dry winter skin drives him bonkers. he knows why he has it, but won't give in completely.

he likes the following:

green clover and aloe ( tony's)
green irish tweed ( tony's)
drakkar ( wsp)
commando ( bayousomething)
kilo, or phoenix: axe duplicates( daystar )

i find that men do seem to be harder on a bar of soap, the tend to wash with the bar itself rather then the lather so they go thru it faster. the extra body hair might factor in there somewhere.

i make my men's soap a little heavier on the cleansing then on the conditioning compared to what i like for myself.


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## digit (Jan 22, 2009)

Barb said:
			
		

> i find that men do seem to be harder on a bar of soap, the tend to wash with the bar itself rather then the lather so they go thru it faster.


I have heard this sooooo many times. Must be a man thing. I even got my DH a manly brown nylon scrubbie. Still wouldn't use it. So I got him a nylon soap sock, put his soap in it and hung it in the shower. NOW he uses it. I don't get it. 



Digit


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## dagmar88 (Jan 22, 2009)

I wash with the bar itself but as far as I know I'm 100% woman


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## Greenman (Jan 22, 2009)

Speaking of men and soap, when I had made my Christmas soaps, I was not expecting this reaction. When I would tell my friends/Co-workers about it 80% of the men including my co-worker who is a Rodeo rider all got very very excited by the pomegranate Vanilla, A scent I was planning on giving primarily to my female friends. 

So it just goes to show you never know.

Roy


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## IanT (Jan 22, 2009)

vanilla  is good for men too!!! i think its actually one of those that can go both ways


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## MikeInPdx (Jan 22, 2009)

IanT said:
			
		

> vanilla  is good for men too!!! i think its actually one of those that can go both ways



I agree.....I love Pinaud Clubman Classic Vanilla after shave.

If you want a scent that's manly, AND sticks on the skin after the shower, I know of one and it's my own personal favorite. Saveonscents makes a Green Irish Tweed knockoff that's powerful and true.  If you haven't smelled it before, try and get a whiff of Davidoff's Cool Water....it's very similar.

Good stuff!


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## abigtroutt (Jan 22, 2009)

Bonsai is a very strong sent through Oregon Trail .  It also sticks to the skin.  I've had both male and female like the sent.


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## Pug Mom (Jan 22, 2009)

I got Mayan Gold from WSW, I haven't used it yet...but it smells kind of manly to me...


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## jenn624 (Jan 22, 2009)

my hubby loves the Cool Water knockoff that WSP carries. It rocks.  8)


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## Jaaret (Jan 22, 2009)

*Manly Scents*

If you want to go the essential oil (EO) route, I recommend any combination of Cedar, Ginger, Vetiver, Bay, Nutmeg, Spruce, Myrrh and Frankincense. (Depending on your budget - some of those are pricy!)

I don't mind floral and sweet scents as long as they are anchored by one of the scents, above, and are subtle. However, many men avoid floral and sweet scents (vanilla being an exception.) My brother-in-law is a big fan of my soaps but he passes on the ones with Geranium (floral) and Ylang Ylang (sweet) blends.


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## Lindy (Jan 23, 2009)

I make a spice soap that has Allspice, Cloves, Cinnamon, Bay Leaf & Mint, all ground to a very fine powder.  Men seem to like the scent...


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## Jaaret (Jan 23, 2009)

*Scent*

That combo sounds great, Lindy. I'm going to create a batch with that combo. I'll be happy to give you full credit for the scent combo.


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## Lindy (Jan 23, 2009)

Hey Jaaret - no need - I hope you like it...I've used it for straight soap, shaving soap & soap on a rope... 8)


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## neeners (Sep 11, 2013)

Barb said:


> i find that men do seem to be harder on a bar of soap, the tend to wash with the bar itself rather then the lather so they go thru it faster. the extra body hair might factor in there somewhere.


 

I completely agree with this statement.  when i'm by myself, I find soap lasts way longer.  now that i'm living with my bf, it seems like we go through a bar a week!  i'm glad I've started making soap b/c buying all this soap gets expensive!!!


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## Obsidian (Sep 11, 2013)

My hubby likes neem (yuk), peppermint or unscented. The coffee with frankincense & myrrh was also liked but he didn't like the "gravel" in it (the coffee grounds)


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## Skatergirl46 (Sep 11, 2013)

I made shaving soap with Green Tea FO and some loaves of regular soap with Cucumber Melon and Pearberry. My husband likes all of them. Oh, Ginger Lime also.


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## Kleine Teufel (Sep 12, 2013)

Vetyver from Brambleberry leaves them smelling pretty good for quite awhile. Even when my oldest gets home from school, he still smells of it.
A blend of peppermint and spearmint EO's is another good one that is unisex.


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## judymoody (Sep 12, 2013)

My husband prefers recipes with a higher cleansing number to get rid of that man stink.  For him, I up the coconut oil.

Scent wise - I've had men go for lavender, rose, and other florals in addition to the man cologne kind of scents.  Also citruses and pumpkin fragrances.


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## shunt2011 (Sep 12, 2013)

I too make a high cleansing number for my man soap.  My husband is a huge fan of The Perfect Man and Cracklin Birch from NG.   I find men really run the gamut on what they choose.  Cucumber, lavender, beer or manly.  You just never know.


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## lsg (Sep 12, 2013)

Lemongrass/Sage, Bamboo, and Oakmoss/Sandalwood are all great fragrances for men. I think soap on a rope is another good way to make a bar for men. Here is a soap that I recently made using bamboo fragrance.


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## lizflowers42 (Sep 12, 2013)

My husband has always used whatever I put in the shower!


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## green soap (Sep 12, 2013)

Men have really diverse taste in soaps just like women.  I bought gardenia FO because my husband requested it.  He loves one of my blends that contains both rose and jasmin FOs.  I make a rose blend I call 'gypsy rose' and he likes that one too.

The other day I was selling a soap to a former co-worker (dude), and of all my different scents, including unisex ones, manly ones (bay rum and others) he chose the lilac.   Go figure!   

Many of my male customers like sea salt soaps a lot, and also the beer soaps.  A few guys want unscented and a very short list of ingredients.  Some other guys like complex scent blends like bay rum (I do my own EO blend).  Tea tree peppermint is very popular, so is lemongrass and coconut, and also tea tree and lemongrass.  Vanilla patchouli is a winner, and also liked by many women.  I have cedar blends that although I meant for dudes, are much liked by females too.

Another male customer loves different lavender blends, and he is very careful to check that I use all EOs in the blend (he cannot tolerate any FOs at all).  I have an older male customer that loves my lemon/lime all EO blend, subtle citrus scent.  Some guys like my liquid bath soap, either mint or lavender.  Also, my Frank and Myrrh blend is popular with dudes and girls alike.  A good friend (guy) loves my Autumn spice in the winter (orange, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg and ylang ylang) and mint eucalyptus in the summer.  Mint eucalyptus is unisex and men love it, but so do many women.

And again, some men seem indifferent to scent, and they just have their wives smell the soap.  If the wife likes it they buy it because she will then like the scent on him.  Makes sense to me....

All my soaps (except for my goat milk castille) have high cleansing numbers but are also very conditioning.  So I don't get the complaint that they are not cleansing enough because they are very cleansing.


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## Robert (Sep 13, 2013)

Barb said:


> i find that men do seem to be harder on a bar of soap, the tend to wash with the bar itself rather then the lather so they go thru it faster.


This is a remarkably persistent & widespread generaliz'n.  I read decades ago that women are more likely than men to use washcloths.  Worldwide AFAIK.

How could this possibly be a cultural thing?  I suppose something might have been picked up in communal showering, but if that were the source, you would think that men would be more likely than women to use liquid soap (because that's what was more commonly supplied in communal showers) rather than vice versa (which is what is seen).

Maybe other people aren't as much creatures of habit as me, but my use of a washcloth may be mostly because that's the way Mother & Daddy taught us.  So that would explain things being passed down family-wise, but it would not explain a boy-girl difference, considering that we all have parents.


> the extra body hair might factor in there somewhere.


A bio-morphologic difference like that is attractive because of the difficulty of figuring out how it could be cultural.


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## cerelife (Sep 13, 2013)

My husband's soap preferences are my salt soap with only Tea Tree EO, and my signature recipe with the following scents:
1) Acadian Homecoming EO/FO blend from Scentworks
2) my personal EO blend (Patchouli, Vetiver, Black Pepper, and Cedar...with a bit of Blood Orange as a top note) 
3) Black Tie FO from WSP
4) Vanilla Vanilla from BB...not your typical vanilla scent. Nothing at ALL like cake; more of a sultry, sexy, dark scent! The fact that it discolors to a dark rich brown fits perfectly with this scent.
@ Robert: I'm a southern girly-girl who was taught to wash with a washcloth in childhood, but I never use one now in my own home...just a personal preference.


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## MOGal70 (Sep 13, 2013)

Robert, I was also taught to use a wash cloth, but prefer to use just the bar of soap.


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## Kleine Teufel (Sep 13, 2013)

I use the bar of soap if it's an exfoliating type. If it's not exfoliating, I use a pouf or washcloth. Hands only for face, nether regions and feet... Because I don't want my feet/butt afterthoughts on my face.


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## Robert (Sep 14, 2013)

Kleine Teufel said:


> I use the bar of soap if it's an exfoliating type. If it's not exfoliating, I use a pouf or washcloth. Hands only for face, nether regions and feet... Because I don't want my feet/butt afterthoughts on my face.


So you don't believe in washing them in a certain order?  Or are you thinking about the next time you use that washcloth?


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## Hazel (Sep 14, 2013)

I also use a slightly higher coconut percentage plus a lower superfat. Scents: Peak's Black Canyon (very strong - can use at .5 oz ppo and still strong), Lime Mint (actually everyone likes this scent) and WSP's Dragon's Blood (another scent which is liked by males and some females. I like it, too.). 



Kleine Teufel said:


> Hands only for face, nether regions and feet... Because I don't want my feet/butt afterthoughts on my face.



I hope you don't take offense but this sentence made me laugh out loud. Thanks! I needed a good laugh.


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## Robert (Sep 14, 2013)

There's a picture that got around very widely online some years ago of a baby bathing in a kitchen sink alongside dishes, as some sort of time saving measure; I think it was originally an ad.  The world is divided into two:

Those whose first thought is, "Yuck! Poor baby being washed in dish detergent."
Those whose first thought is, "Yuck! I'm not eating at that house."
I'm in the 2nd group, because I know most hand dish detergent isn't much different from body wash.

If you looked closely though, it was a 2 chamber sink, and they weren't in the same water.


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## OliveOil2 (Sep 14, 2013)

I love South Pacific Waters from WSP, I would say it was unisex or Masculine, couldn't decide, so I took it to work for feedback. All of the men said a 'sexy woman' and the women said a 'hot man' I love this scent and it really sticks. But my coworkers left me without an answer.


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## Jaccart789 (Sep 14, 2013)

Brambleberry has a scent called "Shave and a Haircut". I received it as a sample and I think a very nice masculine scent.


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## Kleine Teufel (Sep 14, 2013)

Robert said:


> So you don't believe in washing them in a certain order?  Or are you thinking about the next time you use that washcloth?



Lol. Of course there's an order, lol. You still have to use that bar for the next month or so, so just think of everything it would've cleaned off of you in that time! I'm well aware that soap does not transfer bacteria/viruses, but it still wigs me out anyways.


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## Kleine Teufel (Sep 14, 2013)

Hazel said:


> I hope you don't take offense but this sentence made me laugh out loud. Thanks! I needed a good laugh.



Of course not. I'm just glad nobody was offended by my comment, but it had to be said! This is Bettacreek. Not sure if you remember me or not, but somehow my account got messed up, so this is what I'm using.


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## Hazel (Sep 14, 2013)

OMG! Bettacreek! How are you? Of course, I remember you! I was just thinking of you the other day and wondering where you'd gone. I figured you were busy with school. It's been awhile so maybe you've already graduated. I've missed seeing you around and I'm glad you're back. I love your username, ya lil' devil. 

I'm sorry your old account was messed up. Have you contacted Austin about it?


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