Basic Balanced Bar Recipe Check

[toxikon]

Hi all,

I'm trying to come up with a nice simple "go-to" recipe to play with. One with a nice balance between cleansing, creaminess and bubbly lather. Let me know if this sounds like a decent starting point. I picked up a bottle of avocado oil on a whim, which is why I've included that particular oil!

For additives, I'd like to add 1 tsp SL PPO for extra hardness and 1 tsp of sugar PPO for extra bubbles.

Anything you'd improve?

Thank you!

 

[shunt2011]

Hi all,

I'm trying to come up with a nice simple "go-to" recipe to play with. One with a nice balance between cleansing, creaminess and bubbly lather. Let me know if this sounds like a decent starting point. I picked up a bottle of avocado oil on a whim, which is why I've included that particular oil!

For additives, I'd like to add 1 tbsp SL PPO for extra hardness and 1 tsp of sugar PPO for extra bubbles.

Anything you'd improve?

Thank you!

No recipe posted.... Unless I'm just not able to see it on my work computer...which is possible..

 

[lionprincess00]

Shunt, there's a pic from soap calc. Must be the computer acting up.. here, it is
50% lard
20% co, 20 olive oil pomace
5 avocado 5 castor
5% sf 30% lye concentration total 2lb batch

 

[shunt2011]

Shunt, there's a pic from soap calc. Must be the computer acting up.. here, it is
50% lard
20% co, 20 olive oil pomace
5 avocado 5 castor
5% sf 30% lye concentration total 2lb batch

Thank you!! It's my computer. I've had that happen before here too.

 

[lenarenee]

That's a nice recipe. Have you used lard before? You'll get the big bubbles from the coconut in the first seconds of using the bar - then the creaminess will kick in quickly. Lard's creaminess has a lot more volume to it than most "creamy" oils.

 

[Steve85569]

Looks good!
The real question for you is ( after the cure period) if there's anything you would like to change.

 

[Seawolfe]

If I had a bottle of avocado oil lying about I would either bump that 5% to 10% (lower the Olive oil if you do) or take it out altogether and use it for a lotion or sugar scrub. But that's just me - it seems that 5% seems too little to let it shine. Otherwise I think that looks like a fabu recipe, even if you don't change anything.

Oh - double check the TBSP SL ppo - that seems high to me, but Im not where I can check it.

 

[toxikon]

Thanks everyone! I originally had the avocado oil set to 10% (and OO 15%) but was waffling over it. Perhaps I'll stick with the 10% AO, I have heard good things about its qualities.

You're right Seawolfe, I was confusing the suggested SL per PPO amount - it should be teaspoon. I'll correct that.

I haven't soaped with lard before so I'm very excited to try it out! I'm sure I'll be fiddling with the recipe after I get the first batch under my belt, but I just wanted to make sure I had a good starting point.

 

[toxikon]

Another quick question... what would be a good soaping temp for this recipe? I usually just follow the guides I've seen and try to combine lye water + oils around 120F, but it seems like soaping at room temp is pretty popular around here. Does temperature matter much? I assume it effects trace speed, and soaping at too low of a temp can result in oils re-solidifying... but does it matter beyond that (for a simple recipe anyway)?

 

[CTAnton]

Toxicon what I've been doing lately thanks to members on this forum has been to soap the oils as cool as possible; as long as what oils you're soaping with are clear and not cloudy IMHO you're good to go...

 

[Scooter]

Toxicon what I've been doing lately thanks to members on this forum has been to soap the oils as cool as possible; as long as what oils you're soaping with are clear and not cloudy IMHO you're good to go...

Ditto.

I cannot afford a fancy thermometer so I basically just make my lye water, prepare everything else (including heating the solid fats to melt them), then mix everything together.

I do not use anything like beeswax, however, neither do I use fancy FOs or any colors that might accelerate or decelerate the process.

I have had no problems.

 

[toxikon]

Ditto.

I cannot afford a fancy thermometer so I basically just make my lye water, prepare everything else (including heating the solid fats to melt them), then mix everything together.

I do not use anything like beeswax, however, neither do I use fancy FOs or any colors that might accelerate or decelerate the process.

I have had no problems.

It's funny, I always thought temperature mattered A LOT. I'd follow the Soap Queen tutorials and very carefully cool my lye water and oils until they were practically the exact same temperature. I'd put the lye water outside in the snow so it would cool faster, time the oils in the microwave perfectly...

Now I find out it doesn't actually matter!? Argh!

 

[cmzaha]

Just make sure your oils are warm enough for the lard to be thorougly melted and clear. Lard and tallow to cool can cause problems, just as a false trace. False Trace is when the hard oils/butter start to re-solidify making you think it is a thick trace

 

[Arimara]

If I had a bottle of avocado oil lying about I would either bump that 5% to 10% (lower the Olive oil if you do) or take it out altogether and use it for a lotion or sugar scrub. But that's just me - it seems that 5% seems too little to let it shine. Otherwise I think that looks like a fabu recipe, even if you don't change anything.

Oh - double check the TBSP SL ppo - that seems high to me, but Im not where I can check it.

I was about to say the same thing. Olive oil can even be bumped down to 10% and avocado oil up to 15% in this recipe.

Toxikon, I pay attention to temps when I mix my lye for the soap. given this recipe has lard in it, I would probably not let the oils reach a temperature higher than 100F and make sure that the lye is a little warmer than the melting point for lard. The goal is to really make sure the lard is melted and clear but not too warm either, if you want to avoid that infamous piggy smell that can creep out.

 

[Scooter]

It's funny, I always thought temperature mattered A LOT. I'd follow the Soap Queen tutorials and very carefully cool my lye water and oils until they were practically the exact same temperature. I'd put the lye water outside in the snow so it would cool faster, time the oils in the microwave perfectly...

Now I find out it doesn't actually matter!? Argh!

Well I soap with OO, CO, shea butter, and just a little castor. I do not use FOs or colorants or other additives except a little salt and maybe, rarely, some pretty tame EOs (lavender, peppermint, cedar). If one were doing something more complex then it might indeed matter to have the temperatures and stars aligned just so. This is just my experience.

 

[mx5inpenn]

The recipe looks fine to me. It's fairly similar to my usual one. I am a fan of avocado oil and would bump that up to 15%, taking it from olive, but that's just me.

I use lard at a higher % and less soft oils than you do so "room temperature" should be fine for that recipe. As others already said, just make sure the lard is still clear. I even use cold lye solution (stored in the unheated garage in NW PA) without trouble. I usually bring it in 30-60 minutes before using it while prepping everything. I've never checked the temp, but I'd be surprised if it's over 60 by the time I use it.

 

[toxikon]

Thanks everybody, you all rock!

 

[Susie]

That is rather a large batch for one you have never tried. Are you sure you want that much of a soap you may not like? I mean, I think it will be awesome, but you may hate it.

 

[toxikon]

That is rather a large batch for one you have never tried. Are you sure you want that much of a soap you may not like? I mean, I think it will be awesome, but you may hate it.

Oh, I just plugged a random amount into SoapCalc for the sake of posting the recipe. I'm more concerned with getting the percentages right, then I'll size the recipe to fit one of my smaller loaf molds or maybe one 6-cavity mold.

 

[BrewerGeorge]

That's quite close to my go-to recipe, though I will usually sub half the lard with tallow. FWIW, do think 5% avocado is noticeable and worthwhile.