dry skin recipe

[petrolejka]

Hiya everyone, I've been trying to find a recipe that would not dry my skin and so far didnt have any luck.
I was wondering if any one is bored enough to play with sop calc? It would be greatly appreciated.

These are the oils/butters I have and want to use:

Olive Oil
Castor Oil
Palm Oil
Lard
76 Coconut Oil
Cocoa butter

Hazel suggested getting sunflower oil but I never see it in stores, not even walmart has it and they pretty much have everything. All I ever see is canola, corn or soybean

I want to add honey to the soap. My reasoning is that since sugar improves bubbles ( thanks for the tip hazel, works great) honey should improve it too??
I also love the feel the soap gets from coconut milk so I am thinking about experimenting with some other milks or maybe even heavy whipping cream.

What I want in soap:
It can't be drying - my other soaps I made so far all dry my skin like crazy.
I love creamy soap. Not slimy, just creamy. Good bubbles are a plus.

Also, all of my soaps except one batch developed DOS, I believe it was the OO, I since bought new one so hoping for better luck this time. I did read about the issue quite a bit but couldnt find any info on this: Does the curing place have any impact on DOS? I used to cure my soap on my window sill thinking the sun and heat will help cure it faster. Then I read it's better to cure in cold dark place thats well ventilated - is this to avoid DOS or some other reason?

Sorry for wall of txt

This is what I was thinking for recipe

lard 25%
OO 25%
Palm 15%
CO 15%
Cocoa butter 15%
Castor oil 5%
10% superfat
4% honey ppo
and 50% liquid will be milk or cream

the numbers on soap calc look good to me, except for the conditioning which I would like to be higher but at the same time dont want to use too much olive oil.

I have so much to learn, I wish I was filthy rich so I could afford to make lots of failed batches and learn that way lol

edit: now I see I should've put this in the recipe feedback section *sigh*

 

[Hazel]

JMO, but I think trying to cure it while exposing it to sunlight may have been a contributing factor to DOS. I've got bars of soap which are 2+ to 3 years which don't have DOS. Some I made with EVO and some with refined OO so I don't think the type of oil would make a difference. I cure all my soaps in a room which doesn't receive a lot of sun and set well away from the windows. I also use 35% to 75% OO in recipes. Also, I made one 100% OO batch 2 years ago and there wasn't any sign of DOS when I last checked the remaining bars. I have to admit that the last time I really looked at them was a few months ago. I should start using them.

This is just a suggestion but it would increase the conditioning if you lower the cocoa butter to 10% and increase the castor to 10%. This would put it in the value range that I like for body bars. The downside to increasing castor is the batch would trace faster so it's harder to swirl. On the other hand, so does cocoa butter so it might not make a difference in the time it takes to trace.

I like the look of the recipe below. It's not the oils I would use but the values are what I like for soap in which I use cream, buttermilk or half & half. I also use 7%-8% SF.

OO 30%
Lard 20%
Palm 15%
CO 15%
Cocoa butter 10%
Castor oil 10%

Hardness 39
Cleansing 10
Conditioning 57
Bubbly 19
Creamy 38
Iodine 59

You might already know this but a tip mentioned by another soaper is to dissolve the honey in water before adding because it will incorporate better. You could probably warm the dairy slightly and dissolve the honey in it. Be careful with honey. I've noticed my batches tend to get hotter when I use honey as opposed to sugar. You might want to check the batch for signs of overheating if you want to gel especially if you're using dairy in the recipe. I think the combination of sugars in the dairy and the honey produce a little more heat. I can't prove this but I've used the same FO in a regular batch with just water and sugar and I didn't have a problem with overheating.

Another thing I thought of when you mentioned itchy skin - how much CO have you been using in your other batches? If it's a lower percentage, you might be sensitive or allergic to coconut oil. You could try palm kernel oil, palm kernel flakes or babassu as substitutes for coconut.

I have so much to learn, I wish I was filthy rich so I could afford to make lots of failed batches and learn that way lol

I just wish I was filthy rich. Although, it would be ironic for a soapmaker to be filthy rich. :wink:

About sunflower oil - Did you ask an employee if they have any in the store? I found it in the baking aisle on the top shelf. I originally missed it the first time I looked. I blame it on being short so I have a tendency to look at eye level or slightly lower.

eta: I forgot to ask how long you're letting soap cure. Soap becomes milder with a longer cure. I like to cure at least 4 weeks but generally prefer 6+ weeks.

 

[petrolejka]

Hazel you are just awesome. The most helpful person I've ever met

I am 100% sure it was the olive oil that caused DOS,I got that oil from a friend and turns out she had for well over a year, half used - it was one of those giant bottles. She was moving and she wanted to throw it away and I thought I could make soap. That was before I knew anything about soap making and had no idea oil actually can go bad lol so pretty sure it was the oil. The sun and heat curing probably didnt help!

Can I use more than 5% castor? I could have sworn I've read that no more than 5% castor oil for some reason - too soft maybe? Or slimey soap? I can't remember. I would lvoe to use more castor so 10% would be great. I don't plan on swirling this soap, I actually want to layer it ( making coffee soap) plus I don't have a stick blender I could use! So faster trace would be appreciated.

Speaking of stick blender, how do I find out if the blender is made of aluminium? Mine looks like its stainless steel but it wont stick to my magnetic strip holder thing for kitchen stuff so I am pretty sure it's not stainless steel.

That recipe looks great. Thank you for spending the time and playing with it. The numbers always confuse me

I don't want to gel as I don't like the look and texture of gelled soap. So maybe I will use sugar instead of honey, just to be sure.

I've been using babassu until now and only made one batch with coconut so far, I am pretty sure the dry skin is not from coconut.

I did not ask an employee about the sunflower, but I was just there yesterday and I snapped a picture of the pathetic oil selection. It must be because it's not the super walmart with the full grocery store in it. I might drive up to the big one today and check there. I do need to grapeseed oil for a scrub I plan on making so I will check.

Ha, didnt even realize how ironic that must sound, to be filthy rich while making soap

The soaps I have had been curing for about 6 weeks before I moved them in a box in my closet.

 

[Hazel]

Oh my! That is a pathetic oil selection. I'm sorry I didn't even think that the Walmart wouldn't have a grocery section. I shop at one of their superstores. I'd say you're right about the DOS being caused mainly by the old oil. But still, you want to keep the soap out of sunlight. :wink:

You can use more castor if you want. Castor does make soap a little softer and some people have mentioned a higher percentage makes their soap sticky feeling. I generally use between 5%-10% in my batches. I know one soapmaker who uses 15% in one of her favorite recipes and it's not sticky plus has wonderful lather. Other people have commented they never use castor. It's really personal preference so you might have to play a bit with the percentage.

I think you'd be okay using honey since you don't plan on gelling. Keeping the batch cool should help prevent overheating.

Do you still have the box for your stickblender? It should state on the box whether it's stainless steel. Not all stainless steel items will stick to magnets. It depends on how much iron, chromium and nickel have been added to the alloy to manufacture the item. I know my stickblender's shaft is stainless steel so I checked it and a magnet will not stick to it. So, being magnetic isn't a good test to determine if an item is stainless steel. If you don't have the box for your SB, you can probably search online to find the info on it. It should mention in the description whether the shaft is stainless steel.

I hope the extra castor will help with the dry skin issue but it may not be the solution. I'm using the same soap I've been using for awhile and I've noticed my skin is drier than it had been back in the summer and fall. I think it has to do with the colder weather, the furnace being on, lower humidity and I'm drinking less water. (I know...I know...water is important but I just find it harder to drink enough in colder months.) I've been having to apply whipped shea but I may have to switch temporarily to a cream to help with my drier skin.

I'm glad I could help a little bit. Please let me know how this batch works for you.

 

[petrolejka]

I don't have the box for it anymore and I can't find any info on it anywhere on the internet. It's a generic brand called Crofton and they sold them at Aldi awhile back. What happens if it has aluminium in it and I use it for soap? SOmething horrible?

 

[marghewitt]

You may want to check your local Dollar Stores because that is where I find my Sunflower oil. Weird I know but that is where it is. My most moisturizing soap has both Sweet Almond and Avocado oil in them and only 5% castor oil.

 

[petrolejka]

I ended buying some sunflower oil in the super walmart but ended up not using it. Good to know dollar store has it though as its much much closer!

So I made the soap tonight and I used the questionable stick blender and I havent noticed anything out of the ordinary so I assume it is stainless steel after all.
But boy did it trace fast! I blended it for 30 second than went outside to smoke, came back 5-7 minutes later and it was so thick! When I was going out it looked like it didnt trace yet. I guess it did!
I got so panicky, threw the goat milk in there and the suger, hand stirred it, separated 1/4 of the soap in another container, added fragrance. Put half of that into another container and added cocoa powder to the last part, stick blended that and by that time it was so thick I couldn't pour it anymore so had to spoon it into the mold.
Wonder how my layers will turn out lol

But it smells awesome and is sitting in the freezer right now.

I ended up playing with the recipe some more and this is what I used in the end

 

[Hazel]

Yay! I'm glad to hear it turned out well for you. The recipe looks great and I really want to hear if you like it. :grin:

 

[petrolejka]

I took it out of the fridge and mold this morning and looks like I didnt separate enough of the white layer :/
It's not too bad, can't wait to cut it. Not sure how long to wait before cutting... kinda want to cut it now but it's only been 28 hours since pouring it in the mould.

 

[Hazel]

I think it looks great! You can cut it after you take it out of the mold if it's firm enough.

 

[melstan775]

I think you'll find both grapeseed and sunflower oil at your local walmart supercenter. Along with safflower seed, coconut oil, and a host of other useful soaping oils. My local walmart is renowned for being the worst in the region for keeping stuff in stock, and even they had it! If ours has it, yours will too!

 

[Pepsi Girl]

I say cut and post pictures:!:;-)

 

[Mildreds.naturals]

So how did the soap turn out?