Coffee soap drama

[heartofnebraska]

I made a soap with 50% cows milk and 50% coffee. Both were frozen when lye was added. I waited until the lye mixture had cooled to under 100 degrees before adding it to my oils that were 10 degrees cooler. I added my coffee fragrance oil, the highest percentage I could according to their website.

So what I'm saying is that I did everything right. We are 3 days past and I don't smell the coffee scent. This happens every time I make a coffee soap. What am I doing wrong??

 

[dibbles]

You probably won't get much, if any, scent from the coffee itself. Which fragrance oil were you using? You might need to try another one - they aren't all created equal. Also, sometimes a fragrance will disappear during cure but come back, although I don't think that happens often. And sometimes it will seem a fragrance is gone when the soap is dry, but be present during use.

 

[Zany_in_CO]

We are 3 days past and I don't smell the coffee scent.

It's really too soon to tell. For one thing, I've found that milk dominates the fragrance until it mellows out as the bar cures.

I added my coffee fragrance oil, the highest percentage I could according to their website.

I'm a little concerned about this. The maximum IFRA percents are often higher than the use rate. It would be helpful if you could provide a link to the fragrance.

 

[TheGecko]

So what I'm saying is that I did everything right. We are 3 days past and I don't smell the coffee scent. This happens every time I make a coffee soap. What am I doing wrong??

Sorry, I missed the part that you had used a Coffee FO, so again, it's not anything that you did wrong, it just may be that you have a scent that doesn't last long. One straight coffee scent that I have used with success is Coffee House by Rustic Escentuals.

As an aside, whenever I use a liquid that could scorch/burn, I never allow the mixture to get above 70F. So far I have only used Goat and Coconut Milks, but the results are worth the extra time it takes to make up the Lye Solution.

 

[earlene]

I made a soap with 50% cows milk and 50% coffee. Both were frozen when lye was added. I waited until the lye mixture had cooled to under 100 degrees before adding it to my oils that were 10 degrees cooler. I added my coffee fragrance oil, the highest percentage I could according to their website.

So what I'm saying is that I did everything right. We are 3 days past and I don't smell the coffee scent. This happens every time I make a coffee soap. What am I doing wrong??

What kinds of reviews are written about that particular FO from that particular vendor? If they don't have any on their website, you can look it up on other sources and see if their are reviews elsewhere. A couple of other places to look if the website isn't forthcoming:

http://soapscentreview.obisoap.ca/

SMF Fragrance Oil Reviews: See this post for links for this review (scroll down to lower part of the post: Fragrance Oil Review Chart Link

 

[Obsidian]

Have you used the same coffee FO everytime? Could be its not suitable for lye soap.
Its also possible you went nose blind to the scent, can you have someone else sniff it?

 

[heartofnebraska]

Have you used the same coffee FO everytime? Could be its not suitable for lye soap.
Its also possible you went nose blind to the scent, can you have someone else sniff it?

I have used 4 different coffee scents. They've all done this. I'm wondering if it's the combo of coffee and milk?

 

[Arimara]

Coffee has a tendency to get rid of smells (i did not sleep so i'm lacking words). It could be that the coffee in the soap worked a little too well.

 

[KiwiMoose]

Coffee has a tendency to get rid of smells (i did not sleep so i'm lacking words). It could be that the coffee in the soap worked a little too well.

Got rid of its own smell you mean? lol!


@heartofnebraska - my coffee soaps never smell particularly coffee-ish either. I notice the usage rate for coffee FOs seems to have gotten lower in the last few years too!

 

[Kimimarie84]

I make goat milk and coffee soap fairly often. I freeze the coffee and the milk before adding the lye, and then I add fragrance oil to either lye solution or at trace.
I use Midwest Fragrance Company oils, and I’ve used Bramble Berry coffee fragrance oils in the past.

Could it be the flash point of the coffee FO you’re using? It’s also possible that the brand of FO you’re using isn’t good for soap.

I don’t think it’s the milk or the coffee that’s causing this problem, but I could be wrong.

 

[heartofnebraska]

It could be the FO. I added it at trace with clay to anchor it. I have tried a few different coffee scents and I feel like I've had the same result. This one was from Bescented. I am DETERMINED to get this figured out to add to my line!

 

[Arimara]

Got rid of its own smell you mean? lol!


@heartofnebraska - my coffee soaps never smell particularly coffee-ish either. I notice the usage rate for coffee FOs seems to have gotten lower in the last few years too!

Yes, thank you. I used 20% unrefined cocoa butter so that soap should have definitely retained that scent (like my other soaps did that did not have coffee in them).

 

[heartofnebraska]

Got rid of its own smell you mean? lol!

Ha! Wonder how you can market this!

 

[Tracy Mooney]

I have used 4 different coffee scents. They've all done this. I'm wondering if it's the combo of coffee and milk?

I have an Essential oil that is coffee and my soap definitely smells like coffee. You don't need much and the smell never wanes.
Fragrances don't seem to last as long

 

[heartofnebraska]

I have an Essential oil that is coffee and my soap definitely smells like coffee. You don't need much and the smell never wanes.
Fragrances don't seem to last as long

Oh interesting. Can you give me the link of the one you buy?

 

[Tracy Mooney]

Yes, it is : Voyageur Soap & Candle
It last a long time and you need very little

 

[KiwiMoose]

Yes, it is : Voyageur Soap & Candle
It last a long time and you need very little

Gosh I never knew you could get coffee EO.

 

[Nona'sFarm]

Yes, it is : Voyageur Soap & Candle
It last a long time and you need very little

Looked on the site. I did not see any essential oils. Maybe they don't carry them anymore or maybe they don't ship them to the U.S. or am I missing something?

 

[Catscankim]

Gosh I never knew you could get coffee EO.

You can't lol. I will admit, when I read this thread I got a little excited, but then thought...what did I miss? Definitely not an expert, but I have studied and researched essential oils on one level or another for many many years.

I did a quick google search and found plenty of sites with "coffee essential oil", but they aren't reputable distributers. I then went to Mountain Rose Herbs and they do not have a coffee EO. Finally I consulted my trusty "little" book by Valerie Ann Worwood, and it is not listed.

I even bit the bullet and checked Young Living. They don't have it either.

Yes, there are lots of sites that claim to have coffee eo, none of them are well-know distributers. At least one site that I visited even described how its made. Still, its not real. I wish it was. They need to go to facebook jail.

Back on topic, I think adding coffee in its natural form stinks. I made a couple of batches last year...one with just coffee as my liquid, one with just coffee fo, and another with coffee as my liquid and coffee fo. The smell of the coffee as your liquid does not go away imo. It stinks and while your fo might fade after a while, the stinky smell of coffee combined with lye seems to last forever. Its not a pleasant smell. Like burn lye or something. But all that is just my opinion.

 

[ClaudiaO]

https://voyageursoapandcandleusa.com/products/coffee-essential-oil-roasted
Not cheap.