First soap recipe, what do you think?

[Meena]

Greetings all you tremendously wonderful new soaper friends!!!
(Is it still called "buttering-up" if every word is true???)

I just created a soap recipe for tomorrow and wonder what experienced soapers would think of it?

If you have time and the inclination, any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
I just realized i didn't put any number in for colorant -- is that required in the calc if it's 'just' a half tsp of powder?

 

[Dean]

CO and castor high. Not enough hardener. Thats a lot of oils for ur first recipie. Did u buy them already? If not cut it dn to 4
A latherer - CO
A lather stabilizer -castor
A hardener - palm if thats ur preference
A high oleic filler - Olive

20
5
40
35

 

[Meena]

CO and castor high. Not enough hardener. Thats a lot of oils for ur first recipie. Did u buy them already? If not cut it dn to 4
A latherer - CO
A lather stabilizer -castor
A hardener - palm if thats ur preference
A high oleic filler - Olive

20
5
40
40

Thank you, and want to mention that I bought Organic Sustainable Palm Oil. I would use soy, but that's GMO.

 

[Zing]

@Meena , adding castor oil to my basic recipe was life-changing and now it's a must. A little goes a long way, though. I use 4.5 to 5%. You can do 2% to 5%. More than 10% can make your soap too sticky and soft.

 

[Alfa_Lazcares]

Any reason why you are going for 470 grams of oils? And for that water as % of oils ratio?

You generally dont want to go with castor over 5-10%. Coconut can be quite drying, depending on your skin. I use 30% with no problems but a lot of people wont go over 15-20%.

I would suggest you google what different oils bring to the soap and what % people like to use to give you an idea.

 

[KiwiMoose]

Yes - too much castor. I did that once and my soap falls apart even though it's been curing now for 2 months.
I use 10% in my recipes but most everyone I know on here tells me to use less.
Just up the Olive to 30% and reduce the Castor to 5% - maybe reduce the coconut to 25% and increase the Shea to 10%?
That would get you using all the same oils but just with better ratios.
BUT - I'm a new soaper, so I'd wait for the gurus to chip in...

 

[Cellador]

I think you should reduce your castor oil to the 5%-10% range. Put the remaining 15%-20% into your olive oil.
Like others have mentioned, coconut oil can be drying for some. I like to stay below 20% & have a higher palm amount, but that's just my preference.
As for the color, you don't add it to the calculator.
I hope this helps! Good luck! Let us know how the first batch goes!

 

[Meena]

Any reason why you are going for 470 grams of oils? And for that water as % of oils ratio?

Hi Alfa! 470 g was my calculated amount. The beginner mold SO made is 3.5 x 1.5 (and a titch we didn't count, but Way too short -- I wasn't watching him) x 8.5 = 41.4375" x .4 = 16.575 ounces x 28.375 grams conversion = 470.3156 grams. Did i do that wrong?

The water ratio was given at a number close to my final. I just shaved off the decimal places.
I realized when i saw that question on Soap Calc that I don't yet know how to judge the ideal water % and more importantly, the Why of it.

 

[MGM]

For my first soap, I used a trusted recipe. For my second soap, I used a trusted recipe. For my third soap....you know it. I've only made 3 soaps. But there are enough trusted recipes online that I feel no need to make up my own for a GOOD LONG TIME.
For your first try, you should be way more concerned about whether your eye protection is solid, where/how you're mixing your lye, how to get your oils and lye at the right temperatures, and what shows you're going to watch while you mix your soap (with no SB ). I wouldn't add ANY OTHER distractions like, rethinking your recipe. Esp if you're soaping with a concussion :-(

 

[Alfa_Lazcares]

Hi Alfa! 470 g was my calculated amount. The beginner mold SO made is 3.5 x 1.5 (and a titch we didn't count, but Way too short -- I wasn't watching him) x 8.5 = 41.4375" x .4 = 16.575 ounces x 28.375 grams conversion = 470.3156 grams. Did i do that wrong?

The water ratio was given at a number close to my final. I just shaved off the decimal places.
I realized when i saw that question on Soap Calc that I don't yet know how to judge the ideal water % and more importantly, the Why of it.

No, I was asking because that number will give you uneven numbers on the recipe and to me its a bit of a paint to weight .34 grams ha! But thats just me.

Yes, i noticed about the lye because thr default on cals is as % of oils and that is the setting you kept. But something i learned here is that choosing “lye concentration” will give you better results (because the concentration is always the same but as % of oils will vary from batch to batch), in other words it will be more consistent.

One concentration that is very popular is 33% because it works very well with a lot of recipes and gives you a good starting point that you can later change. Personally thats the one i hse and has given ne good results.

 

[Meena]

For my first soap, I used a trusted recipe. For my second soap, I used a trusted recipe. For my third soap....you know it. I've only made 3 soaps. But there are enough trusted recipes online that I feel no need to make up my own for a GOOD LONG TIME.

This is excellent advice, and actually Cee phoned me this morning and one of her suggestions was to use a recipe out of my David Fisher book, "The Complete Photo Guide to Soap Making." Yes, no need to make up a recipe at this stage because @Alfa_Lazcares made me realize there are things I still don't "get".

For your first try, you should be way more concerned about whether your eye protection is solid, where/how you're mixing your lye, how to get your oils and lye at the right temperatures, and what shows you're going to watch while you mix your soap (with no SB ). I wouldn't add ANY OTHER distractions like, rethinking your recipe. Esp if you're soaping with a concussion :-(

I purchased 3M Professional Chemical Splash/Impact Goggle. Also, heavy duty gloves that are "chemical protective."
I am going to mix the lye in a #5 pitcher outside on the walkway in front of my door. Then I will wait for everything to come down to somewhere between room temp and 100 degrees F. before adding the lye water to the melted oils.

I am going to review the "how" of mixing the lye ("snow on the water", etc), review all the steps, probably make myself a simple step by step list so i don't forget anything, and proceed very carefully! I also may wait until tomorrow to put the plan into action. Today may be another prep day where i make sure my little duckies are all lined up.

Thank you SO much, your concern is super-appreciated, as is your great advice!

No, I was asking because that number will give you uneven numbers on the recipe and to me its a bit of a paint to weight .34 grams ha! But thats just me.

Yes, i noticed about the lye because thr default on cals is as % of oils and that is the setting you kept. But something i learned here is that choosing “lye concentration” will give you better results (because the concentration is always the same but as % of oils will vary from batch to batch), in other words it will be more consistent.

One concentration that is very popular is 33% because it works very well with a lot of recipes and gives you a good starting point that you can later change. Personally thats the one i hse and has given ne good results.

Thank you so much for this. I looked at that 'lye %g" several times, but realized that I didn't know what to put in as a value so, as you said, I left the default. You are very helpful, thank you!

 

[Chris_S]

Thank you so much for this. I looked at that 'lye %g" several times, but realized that I didn't know what to put in as a value so, as you said, I left the default. You are very helpful, thank you!

I started off using a recipe online and as i got more used to things and got more confidence i started to research into things like substitute oils then set to work on finding a different recipe and adapted it after the first try and since then have chamged things about. Now after about 5 months iv finially got to a recipe i really like however i have actually made changes to even that to see if i could get naughty fo to behave themselves with less butters and more slow moving oils but it didnt help. I got impatient today and tried a scrap of a soap i made just before new years si a few weeks ago and omg its lovely lathers really well and makes my hands lovely and smooth cant waut to use it in the shower will have to be more patient for that though.

Iv found 5% castor is absolutly fine and i use 15% coconut p
oil because when iv used higher % for shower soaps its had that dry feeling for a few minutes once its washed off. That dry feeling is the reason i stopped using commercial soap in the shower. It wasnt anything like as bad as commercial mass produced soap but still not something i liked.

Although i get what your saying about gloves but i find that blue nitrile gloves are brilliant can just be thrown away and they are actually chemically resistant to caustic soda i checked before i bought it. I was using marigolds but they got expensive and i had a box of these gloves for my beekeeping so once id used them i was happy they worked. I do always have long sleeved tshirt or hoody on so my wrist skin is covered! but use what you feel most comfortable with.

I noticed that too @dixiedragon but forgot to mention that. Iv never seen anything other than 76F coconut oil

 

[dixiedragon]

Welcome to the forum! Is there a reason you chose 92 degree coconut oil? I ask because that's not commonly available. The stuff you find in stores is the 76 degree, which is regular coconut oil. You may see the liquid variety but I don't recommend that for soaping.

Here's a recipe I suggest:

40-50% lard, palm or tallow
5% castor
10-20% coconut (of you
Remainder in olive, or divide between olive and some other liquid (safflower, sunflower and rice bran are good choices)
5% superfat

 

[MGM]

This is excellent advice, and actually Cee phoned me this morning and one of her suggestions was to use a recipe out of my David Fisher book, "The Complete Photo Guide to Soap Making." Yes, no need to make up a recipe at this stage because @Alfa_Lazcares made me realize there are things I still don't "get".


Thank you SO much, your concern is super-appreciated, as is your great advice!

You sound *very* ready, and I was *mostly* ready...I can give such specific warnings because I just went through my first (unsupervised) soap a week ago yesterday! Check out my description of how it actually went down here--and my top 3 lessons learned

 

[Alfa_Lazcares]

Thank you so much for this. I looked at that 'lye %g" several times, but realized that I didn't know what to put in as a value so, as you said, I left the default. You are very helpful, thank you!

There are several topics about lye concentrations here because i think that is something confuses us a lot of people at the begining, i was one of them.

I read that you plan to mix your lye outside, while that is fine and a bunch of people do it, my preference is to just mix it on the sink, since, if there are spills or whatever you only need to run water and thats it, while if you mix it somewhere else you are gonna need to take a few more steps. Also you dont need to wear a biohazard suit to work with lye haha, just be careful but a splash wont be too too bad, and the fumes wont make you drop dead. I feel that i read too many alarmist post about the lye (including someone who mixed the lye and went out running), that i really felt it was super dangerous when it really is not that bad.

I also made the mistake of putting too much castor on my first recipe, but i asked for feedback like you and people told me it was too much. Thats what prompted me to search for “apropiate” amounts of different oils. Same for the lye %

Finally i would also leave the colorants for a future batch, you dont need to make things harder on yourself.

 

[MGM]

I read that you plan to mix your lye outside, while that is fine and a bunch of people do it, my preference is to just mix it on the sink, since, if there are spills or whatever you only need to run water and thats it, while if you mix it somewhere else you are gonna need to take a few more steps. Also you dont need to wear a biohazard suit to work with lye haha, just be careful but a splash wont be too too bad, and the fumes wont make you drop dead. I feel that i read too many alarmist post about the lye (including someone who mixed the lye and went out running), that i really felt it was super dangerous when it really is not that bad.

I agree that lye was less of a big deal than I expected, but that was perhaps because I was being careful. I DID mix it outside both times and one benefit was that I never noticed any fumes. And because it's cold outside, the lye could cool quicker. Mind you, if the lye had been in the room with me the first time, I might have noticed that *it hadn't all dissolved* (I discovered a layer of undissolved lye on the bottom of my container as I poured it into the oils....)

 

[Alfa_Lazcares]

I agree that lye was less of a big deal than I expected, but that was perhaps because I was being careful. I DID mix it outside both times and one benefit was that I never noticed any fumes. And because it's cold outside, the lye could cool quicker. Mind you, if the lye had been in the room with me the first time, I might have noticed that *it hadn't all dissolved* (I discovered a layer of undissolved lye on the bottom of my container as I poured it into the oils....)

I just feel like there is a lot of people out there that makes you feel like this is radioactive and you will instantly drop dead if you inhale even just a bit of fumes and a hole will form in your arm in seconds if you get a splsh (by the way, just rinse the splash with water!). And it was soooo underwealming when i finally mixed my lye...

My house is open plan with a lot of airflow, thats why i find it easier to just mix on the kitchen sink, but it is personal preference, no right or wrong way to it, was just giving another option that to me is the easiest if anything were to happen.

The only time i do go oit of my way to mix on my back patio is when i am using coffee cause that thing stinks soooo bad!

 

[Chris_S]

I agree that lye was less of a big deal than I expected, but that was perhaps because I was being careful. I DID mix it outside both times and one benefit was that I never noticed any fumes. And because it's cold outside, the lye could cool quicker. Mind you, if the lye had been in the room with me the first time, I might have noticed that *it hadn't all dissolved* (I discovered a layer of undissolved lye on the bottom of my container as I poured it into the oils....)

Iv had that a few times and have had to break up the lye disc but i have found that a minutes or 2 of slow stirring when first mixing the lye and water was enough to keep that from happening.

@Alfa_Lazcares i felt the same it seems very daunting when first going into it but as long as you take the nessicary basic precautions its really not that bad like you say. I had never thought of mixing it in a sink although now that i have a room dedicated to soaping setup that would mean walking up stairs from the kitchen sink to the room i use and my bathroom sink i dont feel would be suitable because of how curved it is it wouldnt garantee the container is steady. Iv been adding the lye to the water and putting it on a windowsill in the room i use with the window open just because the fumes arnt particularly pleasent to breathe in as i found out last batch i made and all my windows are shut in winter to keep heat in so i feel that method works best for me for winter at least defo total overkill going for a run unless its to let it cool down and its just routine lol

Definatly agree with the coffee comment knocked me sick when i mixed that i luckily had my door a jar and it was just about possible to tolerate it with a lot of trips to get some fresh air unfortunately i think it was raining at the time so couldnt even move outside lol

 

[Savonette]

I started with Anne L. Watson formulae. It was the best start I could have ever asked for. I've found that 8% castor oil is perfect for most soap, and I can go up to 10% if I add clay.

 

[KiwiMoose]

I'm pretty blasé now when I mix the lye. Luckily for me I am not an accident prone person ( touching wood as we speak!) and I'm not a sloppy cook nor soap maker so I am fairly confident in my method.

My kitchen is well situated for proximity to stove top, sink and open windows etc. There is a portion of my bench that I use for mixing the lye water ( it has a silicone mat down now to protect the benchtop). It is right next to the stove AND an open window. I use the extractor fan on the stove. The lye water does not leave that area, as once my oils are ready they also move onto the silicone mat where the lye is, and it gets poured and blended and moulded all in the same area. I usually make an ice water 'bath' with a bigger container to sit the lye water in once it's mixed, and that cools happily away while I get the oils, fragrance, colours, etc ready on the bench on the OTHER side of the stove - so that i have no fear of bumping or spilling the lye water.

I still wear gloves, but I don't wear safety goggles anymore as I have glasses and they cover my entire eye area so any splashes would not get in.

The first time I did it I was very scared, but now it's like making a cup of tea