Ever feel that the FO reviews on vendor websites is bogus?

[JusDin]

I just wonder sometimes. Sooo tired of spending hours combing reviews specifically for CP experiences with fragrances, reading the RAVING reviews of how absolutely AWESOME a FO is and how a fragrance was so good a reviewer was brought to tears!! (I might be exaggerating here.) And then purchasing it, batching it up, and being disappointed by the poor result. And by "poor", I mean more specifically downright sh*tty. There's nothing exotic about my basic recipe or process, so what gives? I realize that scent accuracy/desirability is highly subjective but a few of the rave-reviewed FOs I've tried recently are not worth a plug nickel!

Maybe I should stick with my original plan to use only EOs. I was trying to expand my offering though for when I start to sell. Among other disappointments lately I tried a peach FO that was well-reviewed in CP. Although it smelled great OOB, the smell morphed immediately upon soaping. It has now cured for 5 weeks with no change. I've asked 17 different people in the past week what they thought the soap scent reminded them of. I got answers ranging from "iced tea" to "grapes". Not 1 person said peach. I guess I should be glad for the grapes answer, at least it's a fruit!

Yes, I know about the Soap Scent Review Board. Truthfully, I rarely find any useful info pertaining to what I'm looking for. I have been able to get a little help from the Peak chart, but it's spotty at best.

For the vendors that offer points for reviewing, I have to wonder if this corrupts the integrity of the review at all. Are reviewers submitting bogus reviews on items they have not yet used just to get points, or do they possibly feel obliged to give a good review just because they are being rewarded for their review?

Ah well. Soap-world problems, eh?

 

[dixiedragon]

I am a big Brambleberry fan. One of the reasons I am so confident in them is that a) their descriptions include problems with the fragrance. (Will discolor, not for CP, etc.) b) There are actually some luke-warm and negative reviews on their site. If a site doesn't have those, I don't order from them, unless there's a sample sale and I don't mind if something is a bust.

Peach seems to be one of those difficult ones, though. So people have lower expectations. The best reviewed coconut fragrances are, IMO, not that great, but since they're better than anything else available, they get rave reviews.

 

[cmzaha]

It is hard when everyone's concept of an fo is relative to the way they smell it. I do leave ratings on fo's I am extremely pleased with or not pleased with. One problem is recipes can play a big difference in how some fo's react, for instance, I have a Almond Cherry that many say accelerates badly, I use a slow trace recipe with a 2.2 water to lye ratio and it is actually very slow. So ratings are quite subjective and should only be used as a quideline not considered bogus

 

[LuckyStar]

You have to remember, scent is relative and what smells amazing to one soaper may very well smell like absolute garbage to another. For example i absolutely ADORE brambleberry's energy can do get a fair amount of depth; however, a good amount of people seem to describe it as over sweet and one note. Not only that, you have to keep in mind that different base recipes are going to have their own scent, and attribute (at least a bit) to the scent of the final product.

All that aside, i have heard that peach is just one of those scents thats hard to get to stay true in soap. I hear its great for fizzies and salts though

 

[clhigh29]

I just used 2 oz. of BB's Southern Peach last night and added the remainder of my Oatmeal, Milk and Honey (about .3 oz.). My kids like it, and it does smell like peach. I stick with BB only because of the honest feedback. I get lost on the other websites ... too many FABULOUS fragrances. I don't want to do just essential oils, because I find that most people find them heavy and old. People who use my soap like new designs and exciting scents.

 

[dixiedragon]

Lucky Star likes Energy from BB - to me, it smells sickly sweet. I dislike it intensely.

 

[DeeAnna]

I have to say I dislike the gushing, over-enthusiastic descriptions that make each FO sound like the most amazing thing since sliced bread. I am increasingly reluctant to wade through the hyperbole.

I bought one FO that is described with these phrases: "...clean, herbal, falling leaves, invigorating, masculine, fresh air..." and another that is described as a true feminine rose scent with glowing allusions to how it is so very suitable for mother's day gifts, etc.

In my CP bar soap recipe, the two smell very nice ... but regrettably and surprisingly they smell about the same to me and my husband. You can tell there is a ~slight~ difference -- the guy FO is a bit more woodsy; the gal FO is a bit more floral -- but not enough for me to say they are clearly different. I would honestly use either one again, but definitely not both.

<...sigh...>

 

[fuzz-juzz]

Yeah, every know and then I fall into trap of those raving reviews, buy the FO, soap the full batch and turns out not what I expect and sometimes really awful.
About a month ago, I made full batch of new FO that I bought on reviews, it smelled OK OOB but now I' m pretty certain I'm going to bin it as I can't stand the fragrance. I've realised that views on fragrances are individual and so relative, but still, as I've said, now and then I fall for something others say it's nice even though it might not be the case with me. For example, BB energy is loved by many, but for me it's so awful and makes me nauseous.
I'm getting smart now, every new FO is used in one bar only and if it's not good, of it goes in the candle if it's really bad, in the bin and I make a piece with the loss. I made big batch of my favourite FO yesterday, left a little bit of batter on te side to try this new tropical fruit FO that I bought. I don't think I'll even use it in candles, it smells like bubblegum mixed with dirty socks, it's shockingly bad, I'm not sure how it got those 5 star reviews.
Live, soap and learn I guess.

 

[kylie_au]

Another vote for BB Energy FO.

My bad FO experience was Bay Rum. I had been using sweetcakes version, and adored it, every man that tried it loved it not to mention the ladies too.
Then, I ran out, couldnt get it due to out of stock, so.....

First mistake: ordered the BB version. Sniffed it oob, yuck!
Must be label mix up? Re read info on site, ok, maybe just my nose doesnt like clove smell?
Why does BB version smell so different?

Second mistake: oh well, ppl seem to like it must be me.
I went ahead and soaped it, well soap on a stick'ed it, couldnt believe my eyes. So proceeded to bash it into submission into mould, covered it and gelled it in 5 minutes flat - had to get out of kitchen away from that awful smell.
Next day, unmoulded, cut, trimmed to see what I could salvage still smelt awful. Thought maybe it just needed curing time. NOPE

Lesson Learnt: just because it claims to be the same thing does not mean it is.

 

[not_ally]

I've wondered about that too. Another vote for BB products, they are so upfront and helpful about everything I just don't see them editing the reviews. I know when I have posted it goes up right away (ie; does not appear to be time for someone to confirm that it is positive or edit/delete it otherwise.) I kind of love it when I see a bad review of an FO, it makes me think that the company is not vetting them before publishing, for example SOS. You often see bad reviews there in conjunction with good ones for a given scent.

 

[KristaY]

Another vote for BB here too. I've posted several reviews - good, bad and neutral - all were posted exactly as I wrote them and are still there. I also like the reviews on NG's website and usually choose products based on what people have had to say as opposed to what NG says. Oftentimes I read in the description "No acceleration, no discoloration, no ricing. Very easy to work with, scent held up well in CP" or something similar. Then many reviewers say to soap cool due to quick acceleration, or the FO caused discoloration, or it faded quickly. That kind of info makes me ponder how the vendor got certain results but the majority of soapers got something completely different. But like many people said in previous posts, I buy nothing if all reviews are 5 stars with glowing descriptions.

 

[LunaSkye]

Most of my FOs came from a site called saveonscents.com and I am very much satisfied with their reviews. The offer a points to anyone who writes a review and I have seen some pretty honest reviews. One of them would have spared me the self-inflicted torture of an awful scent had I taken heed to it (my only excuse is that every nose is a different nose). This is my main experience with scent reviews, but I have not ever had a problem.

 

[Aline]

Yes, I think SOS has genuine reviews. There is one person who writes nonsensical reviews just to get points though - mostly about the therapeutic qualities of FO's LOL

 

[not_ally]

Writing reviews for points, that is crazy, that person must have a lot of time on their hands. The point thing can be pretty silly, too. Eg, I think WSP gives you points towards/discount on the fragrance you are reviewing. If you don't like it in the first place that is not a great incentive

I think WSP is great for a lot of things but that practice is pretty self-serving, and definitely creates a situation where the reviews are probably less reliable. I trust reviews which are objective (ie; either no points like BB or points whether reviews are good or bad like SOS) much more. Not to dismiss people who have reviewed WSP fragrances positively in good faith, I have done that myself.

 

[not_ally]

Oops, sorry, inadvertent duplicate post.

 

[eucalypta]

Living in Europe, we only have so many US FO's to choose from (all with low flashpoints - no air travel - are nonos).
A.t.m. we have a limited amount of BB and Natures Garden FO's.
Both websites give adequate information on the behaviour of the FOs in CP soap (A, D, fading, strong, morphing).
I've not yet been disappointed in A & D info.

But... we've got the Soap Scent Review Board.
The information you find ther is contributed by us - soapers.
So register and check it out - and contribute your findings.

 

[HoneyLady]

I'm going to add a big BUT to what Eucalypta said.

BUT, before you visit the site she recommends, check out the FO posts HERE on SMF first.

You see, there are a fair number of us who have had nothing but difficulty dealing with that other site. Some don't. YMMV. It is run by one woman alone, and while I admire that, I also think she needs another pair of hands and eyes. (Don't we all? I want 2 more clones: one to sleep for me, and one to do housework.)

Many people report applying and not hearing back for months, if ever. Others report that all the reviews are old and outdated, new scents aren't there, and discontinued scents are.

In my case, living in a rural area, I am limited by my access to internet providers, and she will ONLY accept PAID service addresses. Free addresses, aol, gmail, yahoo, Hotmail, and many others are unacceptable. I got a robot reply when I applied, and I had explained that paid services are not available where I am. I wrote and explained again. I explained here. I've never heard back. And many more email addresses are free than paid, in comparison to even 10 years ago. It leaves an impression that she doesn't care.

In response to this continuing pattern of "too bad, so sad", several members here on SMF are making an effort to update reviews of FOs here. See the Stickies.

Please check the SMF site before you go anywhere else. At least here, you know somebody will answer, even if they say, "I dunno". :-D I hesitate to recommend a site so many members of this forum have had bad luck with.

Keep on sniffin'.
~HoneyLady~

 

[DeeAnna]

And to that end .... has anyone noticed this useful report on the Nature's Garden website? http://www.naturesgardencandles.com/mas_assets/pdf/fragrtest.pdf I found it at the very bottom of their home page http://www.naturesgardencandles.com, if you don't want to click my link.

It's a PDF file of all of their scents. The report lists each scent name as a "clickable link", a brief description for the scent if the name isn't self explanatory, the results from using the fragrance in CP soap, and NG's recommendations for the maximum % of fragrance CP soap. Their % is equal to or less than the IRFA guidelines, which you can also look at if you go to the webpage for the particular scent you're interested in.

I like Nature's Garden for this kind of detail -- very helpful. The report doesn't tell you what the reviewers are saying, but it will let a person find, for example, scents that have a flash point above 200 deg F and don't discolor. Or whatever.

 

[not_ally]

That is useful. Another thing I like about NG is that they put the flashpoint on the FO bottle, seems like only a couple of co's do that. I know it is not an issue that often, but every once in a while I use an all citrus FO and have to run to look up a flashpoint in case it is super low. If I was designing company labels I think I would include flashpoints (at least for FOs w/fpts under, say, 150 degrees) and vanilla content on all of them. I know label space is valuable, but it would be helpful.

 

[lpstephy85]

I love NG for all the info they give! Since I have so many of their FOs I forget which one does what in soap so I have that PDF saved in my bookmarks on my phone so when I'm soaping and grab a random FO, I can quickly look it up. When buying from NG I just go off their info on the oil but other sites like WSP I have to try and go off the reviews and I have had some failures with that.