# Butters



## lillybella (Jan 27, 2015)

I just made an emulsified sugar scrub! WOW! It's wonderful on my skin! I never knew these could be so wonderful!

I used shea butter and cocoa butter as the butters in it. All I can smell is the cocoa butter & I'm not a big fan of the cocoa butter smell!

What butters don't have a scent? Are there any?


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## IrishLass (Jan 27, 2015)

Yes! You can use deodorized cocoa butter- it doesn't smell. Neither does refined shea, refined mango butter, and refined kokum butter. I have all 4 and none of them has any discernible smell to my nose at all.

I have illipe butter, too, but that one has a faint smell. It reminds me of the paste we used to use in grade school- the kind that we used to eat when the teacher wasn't looking (because it tasted so good!). lol


IrishLass


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## lillybella (Jan 27, 2015)

Thank you, IrishLass 

I did use the refined Shea; so anything with refined doesn't smell?


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## snappyllama (Jan 27, 2015)

Look for "deodorized". Sometimes those have a faint scent if you really sniff at them, but it's totally obscured once in a product.


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## snappyllama (Jan 27, 2015)

Thought I'd share my absolute favorite sugar scrub. I wish I could say I came up with this one, but the props are totally due to Sarah Milroy at Spicey Pinecone. It's hands-down nicer than anything I've tried at any fancy-smancy spa... I've been using it to shave (working it to a lotion in the shower)... just amazing!

I do switch out the soy wax for beeswax and the Optiphen Plus for Phenonip since that's what I keep on hand.

30 oz (or more) of Granulated Sugar
9.5 oz. Sweet Almond Oil
3 oz. Coconut Oil
2 oz. Soft & Silky Emulsifying Wax
2 oz. Fragrance Oil
1.65 oz. Avocado Oil
1.5 oz. Stearic Acid
1.35 oz. Pumpkin Seed Oil
1 oz. Soy Wax (I sub out beeswax)
12.5 grams Optiphen Plus (I use phenonip instead)


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## lillybella (Jan 27, 2015)

Thanks Snappy 
Why do you use 1 oz. Soy Wax (I sub out beeswax)?
Oh I see. You didn't use any butters.

Here's the one I used:

36 Ounces White Sugar
 9.6 Ounces Apricot Kernel Oil 
 8.2 Ounces Grape Seed Oil 
 3.2 Ounces Emulsifying Wax 
 3.2 Ounces Stearic Acid 
 3.2 Ounces Shea Butter - Ultra Refined 
 3.2 Ounces Cocoa Butter - Natural <-------------------------- :thumbdown:
16 mls  Fragrance Oil 
10 mls Vitamin E Natural T-50 
 14 mls Phenonip 
4-5 mls Mica


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## snappyllama (Jan 27, 2015)

I just don't have soy wax. I've got a bunch of beeswax though. 

I'll have to try yours out! I don't have any Apricot Kernel, but I think Sweet Almond would be a good sub for it.  Thanks!!


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## lillybella (Jan 27, 2015)

I just watched the video - very good! Thank you.

Almond Oil would be fine. I'm allergic to almonds & grapes; so I stay away from Almond Oil & grape seed oil! Oops! I used grape seed oil in this :crazy:

What a day!


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## lillybella (Jan 28, 2015)

What would adding IPM to this do? Make it even better?

The Cocoa Butter smell seems to have faded quite a bit this morning. When the hot water from the shower hits it, will I smell it again?

I have all this sugar scrub now that I love but hate the smell


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## lillybella (Jan 28, 2015)

Well I just used my sugar scrub in the shower. I love chocolate but the smell of the cocoa butter was sickening & I still had sugar on me when I finished! I had to get back in the shower & use my whipped soap to get everything off!

My skin feels wonderful, tho!

I'm going to throw this out!


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## IrishLass (Jan 28, 2015)

Gasp! No! It sounds too wonderful to throw out! How much did you make?

IrishLass


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## Obsidian (Jan 28, 2015)

Don't throw it out! Can you add a scent that will blend well with the chocolate? Something like peppermint or coffee?


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## jnl (Jan 28, 2015)

My refined mango butter has a fairly strong smell.  Every supplier can have different levels of scent, even in the deodorized versions.  I buy my cocoa butter from voyageur because its the stinkiest cocoa butter i have found (stinky in a good way!).  Brambleberry's cocoa butter has half as much smell, and its not deodorized.

Mango butter is an astringent, so test it with a small batch first to make sure it doesn't irritate your skin.  Its too bad its astringent, because I find mango butter is the softest and absorbs the best and is the least greasy of all the butters.  Unfortunately it irritates my skin (its possible I might also be allergic to it).

My refined (but not deodorized) shea has a scent, tho not as strong as my mango butter.  I have deodorized cocoa butter as well and that still has a tiny amount of scent, but not much.




IrishLass said:


> Yes! You can use deodorized cocoa butter- it doesn't smell. Neither does refined shea, refined mango butter, and refined kokum butter. I have all 4 and none of them has any discernible smell to my nose at all.
> 
> I have illipe butter, too, but that one has a faint smell. It reminds me of the paste we used to use in grade school- the kind that we used to eat when the teacher wasn't looking (because it tasted so good!). lol
> 
> ...


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## jnl (Jan 28, 2015)

Obsidian said:


> Don't throw it out! Can you add a scent that will blend well with the chocolate? Something like peppermint or coffee?



even if you don't want it, give it to someone!  its a shame to throw anything out.

i second the peppermint suggestion.  or coconut!  both of those scents compliment chocolate so it might mask the chocolate quite well.


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## lillybella (Jan 28, 2015)

:sad: too late! It's gone & I'm still smelling it!

I just finished the recipe Snappy directed me too. I tweaked the oils a bit & I added IPM.
I only made a 10 ounce batch. I based the IPM on 10 ounces. Is that right or should I have re-done the whole recipe?


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## snappyllama (Jan 28, 2015)

lillybella said:


> :sad: too late! It's gone & I'm still smelling it!
> 
> I just finished the recipe Snappy directed me too. I tweaked the oils a bit & I added IPM.
> I only made a 10 ounce batch. I based the IPM on 10 ounces. Is that right or should I have re-done the whole recipe?



I haven't worked with IPM before (just got some recently to fiddle with for a lotion). I think I remember reading somewhere (probably swiftmonkey) that adding IPM to a formulation normally requires a slight increase in the emulsifier.

Did you use IPM at 1%?  I'm interested in how that works out!


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## lillybella (Jan 28, 2015)

Hi Snappy, Thank you so much for directing me to that recipe. I'm going to try whipping it tomorrow. I really like the feel of it already.
I used IPM at 5%.

I didn't up the emulsifier. I will try to look that up on Swift Monkey!


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## hmlove1218 (Jan 29, 2015)

I have nothing worthwhile to add, but I'm going to say that I'm glad I'm not the only one who can't stand the scent of cocoa butter.


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## IrishLass (Jan 29, 2015)

hmlove1218 said:


> I have nothing worthwhile to add, but I'm going to say that I'm glad I'm not the only one who can't stand the scent of cocoa butter.


 
I, on the other hand would gladly roll myself in it. lol 


Off I go now to mourn the loss of Lily's sugar scrub. 





IrishLass


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## AMyers (Jan 29, 2015)

hmlove1218 said:


> I have nothing worthwhile to add, but I'm going to say that I'm glad I'm not the only one who can't stand the scent of cocoa butter.



Nothing worthwhile here either, except my first cocoa butter was divine smelling, and smell of my most recent purchase make me feel sick to my stomach!


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## lillybella (Jan 29, 2015)

I can not imagine cocoa butter being divine smelling! I don't think I will ever use it again!
I finally don't smell it anymore!


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## lillybella (Jan 29, 2015)

snappyllama said:


> I haven't worked with IPM before (just got some recently to fiddle with for a lotion). I think I remember reading somewhere (probably swiftmonkey) that adding IPM to a formulation normally requires a slight increase in the emulsifier.
> 
> Did you use IPM at 1%?  I'm interested in how that works out!



Yes it was SwiftMonkey but she doesn't say how much more emulsifier to add to compensate.

Any ideas?

I'm making another batch today! I've gone Sugar Scrub  :crazy:

Today I'm going to chill it & whip it!


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## DeeAnna (Jan 29, 2015)

"...I still had sugar on me when I finished! I had to get back in the shower & use my whipped soap to get everything off!..."

It sounds like you didn't have quite enough emulsifier in the recipe if it's not rinsing off cleanly. Been there done that!  I want the scrub to rinse off nicely, leaving just a pleasant lotiony film of fat on my skin, nothing more. I found the difference is pretty small between a scrub that leaves a greasy, sugary mess on my skin and a scrub that leaves me with that just-right, luxurious lotion-y feel. 

I might add another 0.5 to 1.0% of emulsifier to the recipe and see what results come from that. You might need a little bit more emulsifier above that, but it's easy to go too far the other direction too. Best to sneak up on the right percentage so you don't miss it.


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## snappyllama (Jan 29, 2015)

*Shines Deanna Beacon*

How much additional emulsifier do we need when adding IPM to a formulation?

LillyBella, did the IPM make a big difference? Did it feel less greasy?  I didn't consider that recipe to feel overly greasy once lotionified on the skin. After rinsing it off, I can even touch my tablet without leaving fingerprints.


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## snappyllama (Jan 29, 2015)

Wow, Deanna showed up while I was still typing out to shine the beacon!  AWESOME.


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## DeeAnna (Jan 29, 2015)

I haven't tried IPM in a sugar scrub, so I can't really answer your question, SnappyLlama. But maybe my thoughts about tweaking the emulsifier in general will give you a direction to head. I hope anyways!


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## lillybella (Jan 29, 2015)

Tomorrow's batch I won't use the IPM, then I will have something to compare it to! I'm kind of doing this backwards.

When I change one percentage in a recipe, do I have to change the whole recipe & reformulate?

This isn't like cooking - a pinch of this a little of that :lolno:


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## lillybella (Jan 30, 2015)

snappyllama said:


> Thought I'd share my absolute favorite sugar scrub. I wish I could say I came up with this one, but the props are totally due to Sarah Milroy at Spicey Pinecone. It's hands-down nicer than anything I've tried at any fancy-smancy spa... I've been using it to shave (working it to a lotion in the shower)... just amazing!
> 
> I do switch out the soy wax for beeswax and the Optiphen Plus for Phenonip since that's what I keep on hand.
> 
> ...



My sugar scrub came out pretty solid - no oil on top or to mix in. It didn't seem oily at all. Shouldn't it have a little oil to stir around?

I used the above recipe. Also any ideas on incorporating a solid butter like avocado butter into this?


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## snappyllama (Jan 30, 2015)

Nope, this one doesn't need to be stirred. I haven't adjusted it other than making the wax and preservative substitution. Sorry, I'm not sure how best to do it other than reformulating it.


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## lillybella (Jan 30, 2015)

Thanks Snappy :razz:


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## RhondaJ (Jan 30, 2015)

IrishLass said:


> I, on the other hand would gladly roll myself in it. lol
> 
> 
> Off I go now to mourn the loss of Lily's sugar scrub.
> ...



I'm with you, I shed a tear when I saw she tossed it all out! :cry:


Mmmmmmm cocoa butter!


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## DeeAnna (Jan 30, 2015)

In this particular case, I'd look at your emulsifier as a percentage of the total fats and not get too hung up, for the moment, on what % the emulsifier is of the total recipe. 

For example, here's Version 1 of my recipe:
Total fats = 60 g
E-wax 16 g
The emulsifier was 16 / 60 * 100 = 26.7% of the total fats

The balance of the recipe was preservative, fragrance, and a bit clay for color -- just 0.5% to 2% of each. I didn't change the proportions of these ingredients from batch to batch, so I basically ignored them for the purposes of tweaking my recipe. I added sugar at about 150% of the weight of my scrub base -- again something I ignored for the purposes of refining the recipe.

Version 1 left my skin feeling too clean and not very lotiony. So I reduced the emulsifier...

Version 2:
Total fats = 60 g
E-wax 14 g
The emulsifier was 14 / 60 * 100 = 23.3% of the total fats

This version with 3.4% less emulsifier left my hands unpleasantly greasy. Yuck. Need more emulsifier so more of the fats wash off, especially in cool water.

Version 3: 
Total fats = 78 g
E-wax 18.5 g
The emulsifier was 18.5 / 78 * 100 = 23.7% of the total fats

This version increased the emulsifier by only 0.4%, but the difference was noticeable. I got that just-right lotiony feel when I washed the scrub off with warm water. It left a trace too much fat on my skin when washing with cool water so I think I need a wee bit more emulsifier.

PS -- My scrubs are a firm paste in the jar, no runny oils. Once I warm the paste in my fingers, it starts to soften and loosen up, but it is never runny.


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## lillybella (Jan 30, 2015)

Thank you so much, Deanna 
I really appreciate all your help


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