Feedback on my first facial soap recipe...

[FragranceGuy]

I’ve decided to make my first facial bar soap and I would love any feedback on my plans. While researching I’ve noticed a huge spectrum of qualities in “face soap.” Most of the recipes I’ve viewed look no different than bath soap. Some with CO percentages as high as 35% without a high SF! I’m wondering, what qualities make a facial soap to you? Thanks

 

[Aromasuzie]

@FragranceGuy, I’ve noticed the same thing. It would all depend on skin type, “mature” vs oily vs sensitive skin. In terms of the % of coconut oil stripping the skin of oils, you’ve kept that percentage low. When I look at the oils to make facial serums, I’m looking at what they contribute in terms of fatty acid profile, speed of absorption, whether they block the pores of the skin etc, but soap is a wash off product, so I would rate gentle cleansing high on my list. I personally love the feel of Shea butter in my soaps, as well as clay. You may get the same effect with your lard content. I’m sure some oils in other peoples facial soaps would be there for “label” appeal, but if you can explain why you’ve used the oils that you have, the buyer will be happy

 

[FragranceGuy]

Thank you @Aromasuzie I’ve often wondered how much wash off products actually help our skin. I’ve read that grape seed oil and avocado oil are good for many skin types so I decided to incorporate them, but I’m simply experimenting. For the last two years I’ve been washing my face with baby shampoo and I have no complaints, it’s a wonderful face wash. For the last 3 weeks I’ve been using my homemade 15% CO soap with no issues or breakouts, but my skin does get a squeaky clean feel even with such a low CO percentage. I don’t have any experience with homemade/leave on products. I’m learning as we speak! If I ever decide to sell my soap it sounds like communication is key!! Thank you!!!

 

[Sudds]

Baby shampoo is extremely drying! The pediatricians recommend it only when babies are first born to remove Cradle Cap and then say you can use it but, not every day.

 

[FragranceGuy]

Baby shampoo is extremely drying! The pediatricians recommend it only when babies are first born to remove Cradle Cap and then say you can use it but, not every day.

I suppose this is one of those skin type/everyone is different kind of topics. I’ve never used it on a baby, I don’t have children, but it’s not drying to my skin at all. My girlfriend says she thinks it would be too drying for her skin, but she’s never actually used it. (Because she says it would be too drying ) However, supermodel Heidi Klum has been washing her face with Johnson’s baby shampoo for as long as the public has been ogling over her. She has money to purchase any face wash available and she chooses baby shampoo. I guess it’s true that there’s no one soap for everyone. Or maybe her face would look radiant no matter what soap she uses I have no idea For what it’s worth, my girlfriend is BEAUTIFUL and she doesn’t use baby shampoo So...

 

[Tara_H]

I don't tend to wash my face with soap ( ) so by no means an expert, but a couple of things occur to me.

I would want a facial soap to be extremely gentle, but then I would also want that for a bath soap, so no difference there.

I would probably want a facial soap to be less strongly fragranced, both for reasons of sensitivity/sun reactions etc but also because I'm happy for a bath soap to leave scent behind on my skin but wouldn't want the same on my face.

When designing the lather you would need to consider how the person intends to use it - on the rare occasions I wash my face with soap I like to wet my face, lather up my hands with the soap, and use the lather to gently massage my face and then rinse it off. For that purpose you need a dense creamy lather (so it doesn't run down your wrists and drip everywhere and generally be a nuisance). But if someone applies it to a facecloth for example, it might need to behave differently. For a bath soap I would prefer it just a little more bubbly so as well as creaminess to the lather there's plenty of volume. But I know plenty of people like it considerable more bubbly than I do!

All this to come to the same conclusion you already did - it's a matter of personal needs and preferences

 

[jwarnerca]

I’ve decided to make my first facial bar soap and I would love any feedback on my plans. While researching I’ve noticed a huge spectrum of qualities in “face soap.” Most of the recipes I’ve viewed look no different than bath soap. Some with CO percentages as high as 35% without a high SF! I’m wondering, what qualities make a facial soap to you? Thanks

Hi, I am curious about facial soap recipes too, so thank you for asking your questions. I'm having difficulty reading the post clearly.
What is your 3rd oil listed and what website has the the third chart with the columns?
Thanks!

 

[earlene]

The only time I ever use soap on my face is if I run out of Noxzema when traveling, so also not much help in formulation. But what I have noticed is that pine tar soap feels slightly better than other soaps when I have used soap on my face.

If you want more bubbles you can add egg or sugar or aloe. Just subbing 5% Castor for some of the grapeseed oil would give you more lather.

Hi, I am curious about facial soap recipes too, so thank you for asking your questions. I'm having difficulty reading the post clearly.
What is your 3rd oil listed and what website has the the third chart with the columns?
Thanks!

Soapmaking Recipe Builder & Lye Calculator

 

[FragranceGuy]

@Tara_H Thank you for pointing that out! I wash my face in the shower after I wash my hair and body. I do the same as you, lathering in my hands and gently massaging my face. I didn’t even think about the lather running down my arms or making a mess around the sink. Thank you

@jwarnerca Yes, what @earlene said! I use the Soap Making Friend calculator and I LOVE it! And I believe it was developed by people here on the forum, which is probably why it’s the best I’ve found. My second favorite is Soapee, but I’ll probably never use it unless something happens with SMFriend.

@earlene
I think it’s time I start incorporating castor oil into some recipes. I really like my low cleaning soaps, but I do miss the bubbles. I can tolerate at least 28% CO perfectly fine (the highest I’ve made) but I know a lot of people can’t. I’m trying to develop my soaping skills with other people in mind in case I ever do decide to sell my soap.

 

[ResolvableOwl]

also because I'm happy for a bath soap to leave scent behind on my skin but wouldn't want the same on my face.

Once you've realised this, it can become very disturbing. When I wash my hands with a scented soap, the hands keep a bit of the scent, and that's a mere matter of taste. But when you wash your face, your face will smell, and your nose happens to be there, so everything will smell like that soap. I personally notice even the subtle scents of unrefined cocoa butter, red palm oil, or tallow, for quite some time after washing my face. Smells are not necessarily unpleasant, but you can't escape from them, because how should you hide your facial skin from your nose?

 

[FragranceGuy]

Once you've realised this, it can become very disturbing. When I wash my hands with a scented soap, the hands keep a bit of the scent, and that's a mere matter of taste. But when you wash your face, your face will smell, and your nose happens to be there, so everything will smell like that soap. I personally notice even the subtle scents of unrefined cocoa butter, red palm oil, or tallow, for quite some time after washing my face. Smells are not necessarily unpleasant, but you can't escape from them, because how should you hide your facial skin from your nose?

As much as I love fragrances, I’d prefer to be able to smell other worldly fragrances throughout the day as well

 

[Tara_H]

Yes, exactly! Too often lately I've been smelling something and gotten a little too close... End up being haunted by the smell for the rest of the day!

 

[AliOop]

Yes, exactly! Too often lately I've been smelling something and gotten a little too close... End up being haunted by the smell for the rest of the day!

... like when smelling new FOs in the bottle! Can't tell you how many times I've ended up with two or more on the end of my nose. ALL. DAY.

 

[sarahmarah]

I think the general reason soap is challenging for the face is because soap is not and never will be a good ph for the face. Soap disrupts the natural acid mantle and can upset barrier function. Some people may be able to withstand soap on their face without any noticeable reactions—but many will not. Upsetting the pH balance can lead to redness, breakouts, and dry skin. Unfortunately the unscented, super conditioning, zero cleansing, high oleic and long cured face bars that I made were still far too harsh for my face. Definitely not a solution for everyone lol. Plenty of soapers make face soap—so there’s definitely some kind of market for it. Get after it

 

[FragranceGuy]

Yeesss! @Tara_H @AliOop When I’m creating fragrance blends I’m mixing bases and waving EO caps under my nose while wafting my current mix. I’m inevitably getting oils on my fingers and nose. Meanwhile, I’m taking my time as quickly as possible to get something palatable before smell fatigue sets in. Then for the next two hours my olfactory senses are as overstimulated as a freshly maced bear!! Then I know I have to wait at least two days to get a semi-objective perspective on the fragrance. Then more wafting, more experimenting and finally... more waiting Then after a week of this I have to guesstimate what should be adjusted and then start over again. I’m not complaining, I love it!! But sometimes I feel like a half deaf musician trying to mix a record

 

[FragranceGuy]

I think the general reason soap is challenging for the face is because soap is not and never will be a good ph for the face. Soap disrupts the natural acid mantle and can upset barrier function. Some people may be able to withstand soap on their face without any noticeable reactions—but many will not. Upsetting the pH balance can lead to redness, breakouts, and dry skin. Unfortunately the unscented, super conditioning, zero cleansing, high oleic and long cured face bars that I made were still far too harsh for my face. Definitely not a solution for everyone lol. Plenty of soapers make face soap—so there’s definitely some kind of market for it. Get after it

I spent most of my first 25 years of life washing my face once a day with bar soap while in the shower. I’ve maybe had 25 pimples in 37 years. Meanwhile my sister struggled with acne from the age of 15-30. She was always obsessed with face products, washing 2 times a day, special moisturizers. Everything was expensive and changing parameters. One time when I was about 16 yo I asked her “Do you think it’s possible you might be doing too much to your face? I don’t do that stuff and I never break out.” I realize now that that was ignorant, presumptuous and unfair. I was young and I used the only reference I knew well... me!! I made the mistake of using myself as a baseline to measure other people’s problems Regardless of whether she was making things worse with her remedies, ultimately she had a deeper skin issue than I do, whether hormonal or any other reasons I’m unequipped to speculate on. Meanwhile I could wash my face with motor oil and gravel as an exfoliate and be fine. @sarahmarah Thank you for your observations on ph playing a key role! Who knows what causes variations from person to person, but ph is important to everything from cooking to infections, so maybe diet, skin types might dictate how soap is tolerated. A few months ago I tried “toning” my face with 2/3 apple cider vinegar and 1/3 water because It had a ph similar to what my skin is supposed to be. It threw off my balance (possibly the antibacterial/anti fungal properties of ACV) Whatever it was, I broke out for the first time in my adult life. For me, the less I do to my face the better. I do best with once a day washing with baby shampoo or a more gentle bar soap and a simple moisturizer. I’m told that my face looks younger than I am, but my salt and pepper hair makes me look older, so I probably look exactly as old as I am when all is said and done and I’m cool with that

 

[The_Phoenix]

*raises hand* I wash my face with soap. I'm fair-skinned, tend to have dry skin, acne-prone. At 48, I like to THINK I'm mature, but I'm just middle aged.

My favorite facial bar contains 50% lard, 18% CO, OO, and castor oil. I also use a stinky bar made with 5% neem oil--don't remember the rest of the percentages or ingredients. Facial bars don't need to be fussy. Just mild.

I follow up with rose hydrosol (I use my hands and don't wipe it off) and then immediately moisturize. If my skin feels dry (the humidity here can get into the teens and is murder on my skin) I use that super thick Mary Kay Emollient Night Cream. Oh, and I have a jar of hempseed oil that I keep in the fridge for my face. A lil'dab'l do ya.

@FragranceGuy The only way to find the right recipe for your face is to experiment.

 

[FragranceGuy]

@The_Phoenix You’re leaving me to speculate on the other percentages of your glorious sounding lard face soap

Lard 50%
CO 18%
OO 25%
Castor oil 7%

Am I getting warm?

Thanks @The_Phoenix Experimentation is in session!

 

[The_Phoenix]

@The_Phoenix You’re leaving me to speculate on the other percentages of your glorious sounding lard face soap

Lard 50%
CO 18%
OO 25%
Castor oil 7%

Am I getting warm?

Thanks @The_Phoenix Experimentation is in session!

I never go more than 5% with castor oil. And it’s hardly necessary. But that’s basically it. For my facial bar, the mainstays are 50% lard and 18% CO. Everything else is up to you. You could try any liquid oil. Have fun with it.

 

[AliOop]

@FragranceGuy Motor oil and gravel might sell with the Harley Davidson peeps.

The only facial bar I’ve ever been able to use without breakouts and peeling is:

75% lard (home rendered, no additives)
20% CO
5% castor
1Tbsp PPO goat milk powder
1 Tbsp PPO sugar or 1% sorbitol
3%- 5% SF

This needs a minimum 3-month cure. It doesn’t lather well before then, and is even better at 4 months or more.

Others here like @cmzaha have shared recipes for high-Shea bars and other recipes that I have bookmarked and intend to try someday, too. So much soap to make, not enough hours in the day.