Best Oils/Butters to Start With

[Lizayle]

I've made 5 different batches so far and I know I used the same main ingredients for the last 3 (the first one I know I did something wrong because it's wildly different.

I had beeswax, olive oil (EV - which I now know makes things yellow), shea butter and coconut oil. My breakdown has been as follows:

15% coconut oil
15% beeswax
30% EVOO
40% shea butter

I know thats a LOT of shea, but I felt it was the only ingredient I had that I could safely use that much of. I was testing different additives, fragrance and color (food coloring doesn't work well at all I discovered). Coffee grounds worked well, so did ground almonds + almond milk.

I ordered castor oil because I learned that makes the lather better, but what else should I be getting? I don't want to get too many or the wrong ones to start.

Advice?

 

[KristaMarie]

That's a lot of beeswax and a lot of shea. You're going to get a LOT of recommendations for lard, so go with that if you're not opposed to animal fats.

How is that current recipe working out for you? As a beginner, I would say don't even bother with the beeswax yet.

Using those oils, plus the castor you ordered, I would do something like:

60% olive oil
20% coconut oil
15% shea
5% castor

That recipe would need a long cure, because of the amount of olive oil, but it's something my skin would dig.

To get more customized advice, what features are you looking for in your soap and what is your skin type?

 

[cmzaha]

Lard or palm oils are great staples. That is really way to high with beeswax, 2% is about the average in soap, and shea. Both will kill your lather. Keeping shea @ 10-15% is a pretty good number. You mention the first one is wildly different. Which batches had all the beeswax and shea? Those would be the less than perfect bars. . But that is my opinion, you may love them. Lard and tallow make wonderful soap even in high percentages. Palm is the veggie sub for tallow and lard which give longevity to soap. Nope, food coloring is not optimized for soap, although blue food coloring will morph to a pretty purple. If you have a Costco they carry Pure Olive Oil which is reasonable in price and light colored. It is actually Grade A olive. I even like canola but most do not. Fortunately I never run into problems with canola and is great mixed with Olive Oil, in the 15% range.

 

[lsg]

The trinity is coconut, olive and palm. I also use Castor in most every batch.

 

[Lizayle]

Thanks. That's very helpful. I am opposed to using lard, I just went into this thinking I wouldn't use any tallow at all. I didn't realize my bees wax was so high too. Thanks for the feedback, I'm going to have to grab some palm oil now.

I used the shea because I knew it was good for you, despite being too much. I want something moisturizing with a lather, which is why I ordered castor. I wanted to keep the coconut oil down because I hear it dries out skin and I have sensitive dry skin.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

The properties of an oil are not always the properties of a soap made with that oil. As you know the coconut, the soap is drying but the oil is not.

 

[Lizayle]

I'm going to need to find a list of oils and their effects on soap. Also I've attached the batches I've made so far. The little white ones are bath bombs ypu can ignore them.

 

[Dana89]

If you are opposed to lard I will throw in a recipe that a lot of my family enjoyed.
20% coconut
30% Palm
35% Olive
10% Shea
5% Castor
7% superfat or lye discount

Here is an oil properties chart that you can download and print.

http://www.lovinsoap.com/oils-chart/

 

[Lizayle]

Here is an oil properties chart that you can download and print.

http://www.lovinsoap.com/oils-chart/

YOU RULE! Thanks so much!

 

[Dana89]

Your welcome. you will get a lot of great info here, there are a lot of very experienced soapers here, I have only been making soap a little less that 2 years and am still learning so much from the people on this forum. Stick around and you will as well.

 

[dixiedragon]

That's kind of a weird starter recipe - what was your goal there? Was it just what you had on hand? I am very curious to see pics and to hear it a follow up on it!

Where are you ordering from?

What are you interested in making?

If you are interested in making all veggie soap:

Palm, castor, coconut oil (76 degree), olive oil (grade A or pomace, you want cheap stuff). If animal fats are okay, then lard instead of palm. You can get your coconut oil and lard for a reasonable price at Wal-Mart. Costco has the best price for olive. Walmart also has tiny bottles of castor in the pharmacy section with the laxatives. For a larger bottle of castor, the best price I have found when not ordering online is at the Vitamin Shoppe.

 

[Lizayle]

That's kind of a weird starter recipe - what was your goal there? Was it just what you had on hand? I am very curious to see pics and to hear it a follow up on it!

Where are you ordering from?

What are you interested in making?

If you are interested in making all veggie soap:

Palm, castor, coconut oil (76 degree), olive oil (grade A or pomace, you want cheap stuff). If animal fats are okay, then lard instead of palm. You can get your coconut oil and lard for a reasonable price at Wal-Mart. Costco has the best price for olive. Walmart also has tiny bottles of castor in the pharmacy section with the laxatives. For a larger bottle of castor, the best price I have found when not ordering online is at the Vitamin Shoppe.

Thanks that's really helpful!

These are just the things I had to start out. I did some research but got antsy and just wanted to make something. I posted a picture on the previous page.

Also- I have been ordering from amazon and bramble berry... I am open to cheap soap suppliers though!

 

[IrishLass]

I like . . .
50% olive
25% coconut
25% shea
. . . and it doesn't lack in lather. Can be pricey though.

Oooh! That sounds really nice! Thanks for sharing!


IrishLass