# 100% coconut oil soap



## Soapstars (Dec 10, 2017)

Hiya Soapers,

I usually make soap with 4 oils, 40% olive, 25% shea butter, 25% coconut and 10% castor oil. That is my standard recipe and it works well with fragrances or EO's.

However, I prefer 100% coconut oil soap (superfatted) with half coconut and half water in the recipe. I find this is the best lather and the creamiest soap. Nice hard bar too, but I don't usually add any fragrance or EO to it at all.

Can anyone advise me if it is good to add fragrances or EO's to 100% coconut oil soap as I can't see that others do this?

Thank you for your help.


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## Cellador (Dec 10, 2017)

I've made a 100% coconut oil soap, with fragrance. It is not a soap that my skin tolerates well, so I doubt I'll make it again.
In any case, maybe some people prefer an unscented 100% CO bar due to allergies or sensitivities to other ingredients. 
I think it's just a matter of preference.


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## Soapstars (Dec 10, 2017)

Cellador said:


> I've made a 100% coconut oil soap, with fragrance. It is not a soap that my skin tolerates well, so I doubt I'll make it again.
> In any case, maybe some people prefer an unscented 100% CO bar due to allergies or sensitivities to other ingredients.
> I think it's just a matter of preference.



Thanks for your reply. Why do you think your skin does not tolerate 100% coconut oil soap well? Have you tried it with 30% superfat?


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## MorpheusPA (Dec 10, 2017)

I find it incredibly drying even with high super fat, so I might personally be a little sensitive to coconut.  However, I'm fine with it in a standard recipe at 10-20%.

Regardless, you can certainly add scent if you want to!  As Cellador noted, some might be sensitive to it, but some people will be sensitive to anything.  If it's just for you and you're OK with the scent, then by all means, go for it.


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## shunt2011 (Dec 10, 2017)

I have made and used 100% CO with 20% SF. Not a favorite at all. Also dissolves quicker. But, I love a salt bar, I don’t use 100 co though and SF 15-20%. I use FO with no issue.  Also, the only allergy I’ve had in my years of selling is a coconut. Alt least that I’m aware of.


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## Soapstars (Dec 10, 2017)

MorpheusPA said:


> I find it incredibly drying even with high super fat, so I might personally be a little sensitive to coconut.  However, I'm fine with it in a standard recipe at 10-20%.
> 
> Regardless, you can certainly add scent if you want to!  As Cellador noted, some might be sensitive to it, but some people will be sensitive to anything.  If it's just for you and you're OK with the scent, then by all means, go for it.



I am trying to develop my range of soaps for sale. I have a range of olive oil based soaps already and they are fine. But just to offer something different I want to offer coconut oil/milk soap too. Just looking for ideas really.

Thanks for help.


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## Cellador (Dec 10, 2017)

Soapstars said:


> Thanks for your reply. Why do you think your skin does not tolerate 100% coconut oil soap well? Have you tried it with 30% superfat?



I can tolerate higher amounts of CO, like a salt bar. But, for some reason, 100% CO bars (even with a high SF) sting body parts with more delicate skin (like armpits & face). I have no explanation for it- I don't find it drying but it definitely stings.


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## lenarenee (Dec 10, 2017)

Even with a highly superfatted 100% co bar, your skin's natural oils still get stripped by the saponified co. The unsaponified oil then "replaces" your natural oils. 

The skin's acid mantle is made of sweat and sebum. The pH is about 5 - hence the "acid" part of the name.  It's part of the immune function as bacteria get used to the acidity of the skin, and should they get through it to the blood stream they'll have a higher alkalinity to deal with and usually are killed. 

It's one of the reasons I don't use a salt bar very often. It's just my somewhat educated opinion that messing with the skin's mantle is not a good thing, so my daily soap is a 15% co, with a 3 - 5% sf. 

Even too much exfoliation is a bad thing as it disturbs the stratum corneum layer (keratinized, mostly dead skin cells) which protect us from outside invasion.


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## Obsidian (Dec 10, 2017)

I really like 100% coconut with 20% SF and yes, I do scent mine with FO. Really no reason not to scent it, its just like any other soap.


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## IrishLass (Dec 10, 2017)

As with Obsidian, I also like 100% CO soap with a 20% superfat, and I always scent it with FOs. Although the soap does not last as long in the shower as my other formulas, it's still  a favorite in my household and also amongst my family and friends.


IrishLass


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## Soapstars (Dec 11, 2017)

Thanks everyone for your opinions. I will steam ahead with some lovely fragranced coconut oil soap, with plenty of coconut milk. I just love it! I find its creamier and a better lather than my olive oil base soap recipe.


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## penelopejane (Dec 11, 2017)

Obsidian said:


> I really like 100% coconut with 20% SF and yes, I do scent mine with FO. Really no reason not to scent it, its just like any other soap.



What scents do you find stick in salt bars?
And at what rate do you use them?


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## Soapstars (Dec 11, 2017)

Well I have never actually made one. For essential oils I find that rosemary, lavender and lemongrass stick ok in cold process soaps though.


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## Obsidian (Dec 11, 2017)

Well, for salt bars I actually have trouble getting scent to stick since I cure them for 6-12 months. Cucumber wasabi cilantro from NG is a good sticker, so is DB I get at a local shop. I found a really old bar scented with china rian that still smells but I don't remember where I got it. I was using .50 oz PPO but have been using 1 oz PPO lately.

For my 100% coconut without salt, I find any FO that is a good sticker, works for them.


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## Seawolfe (Dec 11, 2017)

I scent my 80% CO salt bars with a minty herbaceous mix of EOs at about 1.1% and Im using up bars over a year old that are still well scented.


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## dixiedragon (Dec 11, 2017)

I make a salt bar that is 95% coconut, 5% castor and 20% superfat. Because coconut has a low melt temp (72F) I soap this very cool - at about 80 or so degrees. My lye is room temp when I add it. After I add my lye water, salt and fragrance, I put the pot back on the stove on low heat and stick blend to bring it to trace.


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## Adi5 (Dec 11, 2017)

I have prepared 100% coconut oil with rosemary oil. The soap is awesome. I too am partial to 100% coconut oil soap. The soap lathers a lot and cleans well. However, even after superfatting it does dry the skin. I added 2 ml of rosemary oil to about 400 grams of soap and the soap smells mild but very good.


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## Soapstars (Dec 17, 2017)

Adi5 said:


> I have prepared 100% coconut oil with rosemary oil. The soap is awesome. I too am partial to 100% coconut oil soap. The soap lathers a lot and cleans well. However, even after superfatting it does dry the skin. I added 2 ml of rosemary oil to about 400 grams of soap and the soap smells mild but very good.



Thanks for that, it does sound good and I will try that next.


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## Dahila (Dec 17, 2017)

lenarenee said:


> Even with a highly superfatted 100% co bar, your skin's natural oils still get stripped by the saponified co. The unsaponified oil then "replaces" your natural oils.
> 
> The skin's acid mantle is made of sweat and sebum. The pH is about 5 - hence the "acid" part of the name.  It's part of the immune function as bacteria get used to the acidity of the skin, and should they get through it to the blood stream they'll have a higher alkalinity to deal with and usually are killed.
> 
> ...


thank you for this post


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## penelopejane (Dec 17, 2017)

lenarenee said:


> Even with a highly superfatted 100% co bar, your skin's natural oils still get stripped by the saponified co. The unsaponified oil then "replaces" your natural oils.
> 
> The skin's acid mantle is made of sweat and sebum. The pH is about 5 - hence the "acid" part of the name.  It's part of the immune function as bacteria get used to the acidity of the skin, and should they get through it to the blood stream they'll have a higher alkalinity to deal with and usually are killed.
> 
> ...



lenarenee,
What you  are saying here is that the high CO soaps are stripping for the skin's mantle not the high salt bars.  Is that right?

You can make a salt bar with no CO.  That wouldn't necessarily be stripping for the skin would it?


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## lenarenee (Dec 17, 2017)

penelopejane said:


> lenarenee,
> What you  are saying here is that the high CO soaps are stripping for the skin's mantle not the high salt bars.  Is that right?
> 
> You can make a salt bar with no CO.  That wouldn't necessarily be stripping for the skin would it?



I don't know what to say about a non co or pko salt bar. I don't know if there's any affect of using a lot of salt on your skin - in terms of affecting your skin's immune function anyway. 

Any soap high in co (and pko, I won't list babassu as I don't know anything about it) whether it be a standard or co salt bar is probably damaging to the integrity of the skin. We know that saponified fatty acids of lauric and myrisitic are great "de-greasers".  

The mantle of our skin  sounds gross - but its there for a reason. The sebum, sweat and dead skin cells have a purpose. Disrupt them with too much cleansing, exfoliation or both - and your skin no longer has the structure or chemical integrity to fulfill it's immune function. 

Heavily superfatting a high co soap may make you feel moisturized - but it's not your skin's sebum. It doesn't replace it - at least fully. 

My knowledge of this is a work in progress. I'm lucky to have had an anatomy and biology professor who loves handmade soap so I get to ask him lots of questions!


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## lenarenee (Dec 17, 2017)

Dahila said:


> thank you for this post



You're welcome - and thanks for bothering to read it!  That's two semesters of biology and anatomy class work you just validated!


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## penelopejane (Dec 18, 2017)

lenarenee said:


> I don't know what to say about a non co or pko salt bar. I don't know if there's any affect of using a lot of salt on your skin - in terms of affecting your skin's immune function anyway.
> 
> My knowledge of this is a work in progress. I'm lucky to have had an anatomy and biology professor who loves handmade soap so I get to ask him lots of questions!



Yes I agree with you about CO.  

My DH has bad eczema.  If he goes to the beach everyday or if he goes sailing and washes himself only in salt water (no soap or fresh water at all) for 2 weeks or longer his skin is the very best it ever is.  

I don't know why this works but he's not the eczema sufferer i know whose skin has this positive reaction to salt water. 

I make him 50% salt bars with OO, AO and castor.  He really likes them. A lot of bubbles aren't really a priority for us but they don't seem lacking to me.


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## lenarenee (Dec 18, 2017)

penelopejane said:


> Yes I agree with you about CO.
> 
> My DH has bad eczema.  If he goes to the beach everyday or if he goes sailing and washes himself only in salt water (no soap or fresh water at all) for 2 weeks or longer his skin is the very best it ever is.
> 
> ...



It's fantastic that his skin likes the salt bar!  I'll have to email my FORMER professor and see if he has explain what the salt is doing!

This class is officially over and sayonara to it!  What an arduous, unpleasant class!  The powers that be really need to revamp the way anatomy is taught - smashing hundreds of facts into your head nearly every week isn't learning because it doesn't ever make it into your long term memory.  It's a crying shame to go through all that work and not remember anything from the previous week!


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## penelopejane (Dec 18, 2017)

lenarenee said:


> It's fantastic that his skin likes the salt bar!  I'll have to email my FORMER professor and see if he has explain what the salt is doing!
> !



I’d really like to know but it might be as simple as the skin is clean and dirt free. Chlorinated pools work the same and some people w. Eczema find relief in bleach baths. Hopefully sea salt is a little milder in the skin. 

Congratulations on finishing Anatomy I’ve heard it is a tough course.


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## shunt2011 (Dec 18, 2017)

Obsidian said:


> Well, for salt bars I actually have trouble getting scent to stick since I cure them for 6-12 months. Cucumber wasabi cilantro from NG is a good sticker, so is DB I get at a local shop. I found a really old bar scented with china rian that still smells but I don't remember where I got it. I was using .50 oz PPO but have been using 1 oz PPO lately.
> 
> For my 100% coconut without salt, I find any FO that is a good sticker, works for them.


 
China Rain is from NG.  I use it in salt and regular soap as well as sugar scrub.  It's pretty popular.  

NG Eucalyptus Mint, WSP Rosemary Mint, NG Cracklin Birch, Peak BRV, NG OMG Olive works but is a bit weak.  I use them at about 7% in salt bars.


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## Felgie (Jan 4, 2018)

I heard high amount of superfat may cause dos and soda ash. If we put the supefat to 30% to counter the drying results of the bar, wont it cause the problem to arise? Or is there a trick to avoid it?


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## shunt2011 (Jan 4, 2018)

Felgie said:


> I heard high amount of superfat may cause dos and soda ash. If we put the supefat to 30% to counter the drying results of the bar, wont it cause the problem to arise? Or is there a trick to avoid it?


 
No, not necessarily.  However, I would never go to a 30% SF ever.  I make salt bars and do a 17-20% SF.  They are 80% CO, 15% Avocado and 5% Castor.  Never had DOS but when in individual molds do get some ash but that's not due to the high CO it's because individual molds don't generally gel and take longer to saponify therefore causing more ash.  I usually spray well with alcohol and leave them covered for 24 hours and it help.


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## Felgie (Jan 4, 2018)

shunt2011 said:


> No, not necessarily.  However, I would never go to a 30% SF ever.  I make salt bars and do a 17-20% SF.  They are 80% CO, 15% Avocado and 5% Castor.  Never had DOS but when in individual molds do get some ash but that's not due to the high CO it's because individual molds don't generally gel and take longer to saponify therefore causing more ash.  I usually spray well with alcohol and leave them covered for 24 hours and it help.


What is your lye percentage for the salt bar??


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## Steve85569 (Jan 4, 2018)

Felgie said:


> What is your lye percentage for the salt bar??



Different soap makers use different percentages ranging from 50% to 100% by weight of oils. In other words - if a batch of soap has 500 grams of coconut oil they would use between 250 and 500 grams of salt - depending on the soap makers wishes.
(hint) lower salt is easier to work with and pure coconut oil soaps tend to move fairly quickly.


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## cmzaha (Jan 4, 2018)

Regarding the comments about salt water healing or helping eczema I can absolutely say it is true, at least, for some of us. As many here know I have quite bad eczema, or at least can tend to have severe flare-ups. When I was in my teens I went to the beach at every opportunity because it would help control my eczema. When we had our boat in the harbor I was on it every weekend and my eczema stayed under control, so I love salt bars and use them daily with no skin damage. Mine are made with 100% Pacific sea salt or a mix of table salt and Pacific Sea Salt @ 17% superfat. 

Coconut Oil is still the best for making salt bars since it is soluble in salt water. "Sailors" soap is usually 100% CO because it will lather in salt water. Palm oil will make a salt bar waxy and hinder lather, and butters will also hinder lather.


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