Fragrance usage above 6% -not enough scent

[BlackBoar]

Hey all!

I've gone around to many soap booths and smelled their products and they seem to have MUCH stronger scents than I'm achieving.
With CP soap I've generally assumed to put in 5-6 percent fragrance oil but I'm wondering if this is true for all things. Some oils, like the new Jolly Rancher type scent I picked up, have usage as low as 4 percent for the max exposure.

But when you have a scent where the max is say as high as 20 percent, can you maybe get away with a 7-8 percent usage in CP?

Does using things like kaotin clay really boost the pay off?

 

[shunt2011]

I have never exceeded 6% on any FO. If I can't have good retention at that I won't make it anymore or I'll try another company. Most work at 5% or less.

 

[maya]

fragrance oil or Essential oil?
What does your supplier say about max usage rate?
What does the IFRA say about max usage rate?
What is your formula for soap?

 

[DeeAnna]

I've run into trouble using scent at a rate of about 10%.

To explain why I did that -- I wanted to put all of the fragrance I'd normally add to a batch of soap into half of the soap batter. I wanted to do a swirl using a discoloring fragrance as one of the colors. The overall rate of scent was 5% which is pretty reasonable, but when I put all the FO into half of the batter, that means that portion was scented at 10%.

Despite stick blending the fragrance into the batter, I found a few small voids in the scented part of the batter -- kind of like tiny pockets of "alien brains" here and there. I also noticed small amounts of fragrance wept out of the soap during storage. I tried this for a couple of batches and got the same results. When I dropped the % of fragrance (still stick blending it all into half of the batter, just as before), these odd problems disappeared.

Increasing the amount of scent has some downsides -- cost of the added scent, potential for problems in the soap that I've described, and possible skin irritation or allergic reactions. I do like a distinct fragrance in my soap, but I'd rather reach that goal by finding and using FOs that are strong at lower %'s and also stick well.

 

[IrishLass]

6% ppo is the absolute highest I'll go with FOs in my soap, provided that it resides within the safe usage rate of the particular FO in question (always check for the safe usage rate for each FO you use).

Six percent translates to 1 oz. FO ppo in my soap batches, which is a lot of FO..... and a lot of money to my purse. If I can help it, I always try to find and use FOs that have strong scent throws at lower rates than 6%.

For what it's worth, the majority of my FOs do quite well at 4.7%, which translates to .75 oz ppo. And with others, I can go as low as 3% (.5 oz ppo).

If an FO is too light in my soap at a 6% usage rate- I do what Shari does. I either won't soap with that FO anymore, or I'll perhaps look for a different supplier who sells a similar scent, but with a stronger scent throw.


IrishLass

 

[mx5inpenn]

I've never gone higher than 5% and often use 3%. I've had pretty good luck with it and only had one FO that I really wasn't happy with so far. That one was a citrus scent, which are noted for fading. Granted, I've only tried 20-25 at this point. I feel I've been very lucky in this, because of those, there have only been 3 or 4 that I wouldn't buy again.

 

[lovinglife]

What suppliers have you found that have the stronger scents? I have the same problem with my soaps having very little scent by the time the cure is complete. I doubled up last couple times and the scent is great but I am worried about the skin irritation, I don't react to it but I don't have sensitive skin.

 

[DeeAnna]

Every reputable supplier has scents that stay strong in soap and scents that don't last. Suppliers sell to a diverse market -- candle makers, lotion makers, soap makers, household product makers, etc. What works great in one group of products -- candles or wax tarts for example -- might not work as well in other products such as soap. So it's better to identify scents within various suppliers offerings that work well for whatever you're making. Read the reviews on the suppliers' websites, check out the SMF fragrance oil reviews, threads here on the SMF forums, and such.

 

[dixiedragon]

What scents are you using? There are certain scents - notably citrus FOs and coconut - that are notorious for fading, regardless of supplier. Others, such as spice scents (cinnamon, clove, etc) tend to be stickers regardless of supplier. Others - like florals - tend to be hit and miss.

 

[penelopejane]

Try Brambleberry's champagne it sticks really well and it is very very strong. I used 1/2 oz ppl and it is strong. I thought it wasn't that great a scent but after testing loads of other fragrances I am thinking it was great! It smells like ginger ale.

I am thinking I will mix it with others for a different scent.

 

[penelopejane]

I've never gone higher than 5% and often use 3%. I've had pretty good luck with it and only had one FO that I really wasn't happy with so far. That one was a citrus scent, which are noted for fading. Granted, I've only tried 20-25 at this point. I feel I've been very lucky in this, because of those, there have only been 3 or 4 that I wouldn't buy again.

What FOs do you use?

 

[BlackBoar]

Thanks for the responses.

Do you all calculate fragrance percent based on oils or based on net weight including water?

This has been a problem with all my soaps from E/O to F/O, regardless of whether it's reported to be a strong or weak fragrance.
It's when I go to market and smell other soaps that I'm shocked at the throw. I'm a little jealous to say the least. I also have a hard time finding good info on usage rates for E/O.

I've used many fragrances and it seems I can get it to stick in melt and pour soap but not CP. Blackcherry merlot is the strongest scent I've ever come across but never tried it in CP. Apple Mango Tango, Coconut lime verbena, Oakmoss sandalwood, all weaker than vendors. I'll try to use scents at 6 % with the kaolin clay but that's all I can think of to do.


My recipes still are all over the place, since I haven't narrowed it down to what I like yet.

 

[shunt2011]

I do mine based on oils not the batch total. Hope you find some that work for you!

 

[Kamahido]

I too base my calculations on oil weight. My standard is 3% fragrance from Brambleberry. They have a fragrance calculator on their website.

 

[mx5inpenn]

What FOs do you use?

My favorite *stickers* so far are NG vanilla bean, lilac, deadly weapon, green irish tweed and om&h. From NS, karma is a strong scent at 6 weeks. I only used NS cinders and satsuma orange 2 weeks ago, but they are going strong and the last citrus I used had faded completely by this time.