# Fixature In soap



## Spice (Mar 25, 2016)

I have been reading a lot on blending essential oils and that a fixative will help it last longer. Castor oil is a fixature that many use. But how do I use this fixature with my essential oil in CP soap? Do I pour as if it was straight essential oil or do I need to compensate for the oil base?


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## Susie (Mar 25, 2016)

I have never heard of castor oil being used as a fixative for EOs.  However, it is used frequently to stabilize lather in soap, a job it does admirably.  I use 5% castor oil in most of my soaps.  You just add it to Soapcalc.com, or your favorite soap calculator.


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## topofmurrayhill (Mar 25, 2016)

Spice said:


> I have been reading a lot on blending essential oils and that a fixative will help it last longer. Castor oil is a fixature that many use. But how do I use this fixature with my essential oil in CP soap? Do I pour as if it was straight essential oil or do I need to compensate for the oil base?



Everything you have heard about fixatives and anchoring for EO doesn't work. Some people will swear by certain things, but if anything worked then people would agree on it and they don't. It's all wishful thinking.

Your best bet for using EO is to use it in any process except CP. With CP, you can learn with experience which EOs work best. Many do not work (fade quickly) and most of the rest morph at least to some extent and some that work will cause your soap to discolor over time. Some are useless and you will still hear about people using them, like citrus EOs in CP.

My recommendation for citrus EO is to buy it and when it arrives walk over to the sink and pour it down the drain. This will save you some trouble compared to putting it in CP.


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## snappyllama (Mar 25, 2016)

I've had very good luck with the folded Orange EO from BB sticking. I think it's 10x Orange. It's really one of the few EOs I regularly use... Patch always sticks too. Clove works great, but it has a teeny allowable limit so I blend it with orange. 

I've tried clay and also avoiding gel to help with sticking. I'm not really sure whether they are really helping or if it's just wish fulfillment on my part. In my salt bars, I use a portionof dendric salt that I mix with my FO first. That one actually does seem to help with scent retention.


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## Susie (Mar 25, 2016)

Fast fading EOs work generally well in liquid soap.  So, don't throw them away if you have any intention of making liquid soap.


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## shunt2011 (Mar 25, 2016)

I agree with the others. The EO's that stick best for me is the WSP 15X Orange, Lemongrass, Patchouli, Eucalyptus, Peppermint, Spearmint, Rosemary and Lavender. Using Litsea Cubeba with the Orange helps too.


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## lsg (Mar 25, 2016)

I use Litsea Cubeba to anchor citrus oil.  There are a couple of other anchor scents, patchouli, benzoin and vetiver can be used to anchor other EOs.  By the way, I love citrus EOs and would never pour them down the drain.


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## Spice (Mar 26, 2016)

Thanks for the feedback, the reason why Im asking is that I was given some eos that have already been blended with a fixature. Not sure what kind of oil was used, but  it looks and acts like castor. I did find some info that castor can be used as a fixature. I was debating whether to use them in my soap. Either way, the info I got here has given me ideas  that I can use to  anchor essential oils.:clap:


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