Genny's Shampoo Bar recipe--and question

[MGM]

I hope this is ok...I'm reposting Genny's Shampoo Bar recipe, because unless you know to search under "shampoo bar--thanks Lindy" you won't find it! ;-)

I'm not planning on using it as a shampoo bar, just as a conditioning soap. BUT, I have no soy oil. Obviously, whatever I change I will run through SoapCal, but I wanted advice on what would be the best sub. I've got coconut, rice bran, grapeseed...would any of those work? Or if I increase one of the others, which one?
THANKS!

Genny's Shampoo Bar recipe

I'm feeling so good about it, I'm going to share the recipe I created:
Water as percent of oil weight: 35%
Superfat: 6%

Avocado Oil: 30%
Castor Oil: 10%
Olive Oil: 40%
Shea Butter: 10%
Soybean Oil: 10%

I infused chamomile in all my oils, not in the shea though. Plus I use a TBSP of sugar in my water for added bubbles.

For scent, I used Tea Tree EO, Peppermint EO & Lavender EO at a 1:1:1 ratio.​

 

[Obsidian]

I subbed it with avocado. After awhile I started adding in coconut at 5% and avocado at 5%, just to help boost the lather a little.

 

[Dawni]

@Obsidian, and whoever else has tried this.. how's the soap with that 10% castor oil?

I've been through that thread but can't remember if I saw the answer there.

Sorry to hijack MGM.

 

[Obsidian]

Its a nice bubbly soap, even before I added coconut. I figured it was from the castor.

The overall bar is a little soft but not squishy. I've used 10% castor in my regular high lard bar and its really nice.
IMO, 10% is a perfectly safe amount to use in soap.

 

[Dawni]

Its a nice bubbly soap, even before I added coconut. I figured it was from the castor.

The overall bar is a little soft but not squishy. I've used 10% castor in my regular high lard bar and its really nice.
IMO, 10% is a perfectly safe amount to use in soap.

I've actually not tried more than 6% I think, and I rarely actually use it. Thank you!

 

[Obsidian]

I use it in almost all my soap. In fact, my soap making is on hold because I had to order more.
I generally use 5% but I think I'm going to up it to 10 since I recently lowered the coconut in my base recipe.

 

[shunt2011]

I subbed it with Sunflower or just up the Avocado. I love it as a gentle cleansing bar. I make a batch or two a year of it. I like to cure it a bit longer.

 

[Cellador]

You could sub with sunflower or more avocado. I think rice bran might also be nice, but I haven't tried it yet. I made it with soy and, although it was a nice bar, it developed DOS fairly quickly. I also cure it for 3-4 months before use.
And, this recipe encouraged me to use higher %'s of castor. I now use 7% in my regular recipe, and I do not find it slimy or sticky.

 

[IrishLass]

I sub out the soy with HO safflower. It surprisingly makes a very lovely, bubbly soap in spite of not having any CO in it.


IrishLass

 

[MGM]

Yikes, so many options! I think I might go with an extra 5% avocado and 5% coconut.
Not a hijack, @Dawni , since you got me thinking about how ALL my soaps have 5% castor but now I will pay attention to this one with twice as much. @Cellador ,oh no, not DOS? I don't want THAT. My soaps are spotty enough, thanks.

 

[Obsidian]

It boils down to you can replace it with your favorite HO oil. I just used avocado because I had it on hand, I've also used safflower and olive without seeing any real difference.

 

[Mobjack Bay]

I just started using my first bar of this soap this past weekend. I was worried about the 10% castor oil causing stickiness based on something I read somewhere in my travels, but I didn’t get that at all. My initial impressions of the soap were positive. I subbed something in for the soybean oil, probably avocado oil.

 

[KiwiMoose]

I regularly use RBO and find it a good addition to my soap. And FWIW I originally started out using 10% castor in all my recipes because I love it so, and have only reduced it to 5% in latter months in favour of cheaper oils. I never had problems with sticky bars. I accidentally used it at 20% once ( noob mistake) but after 8 months these soaps are now hard and very nice to use.

 

[penelopejane]

I do the same as kiwimoose - castor at 5% (I don’t ever go above 5% but I like it at 5% it’s one of the only oils I can detect at 5%} and RB instead of the Soybean oil. I’ve tried it with 10% CO and it’s nice too.

 

[MGM]

I tried to unmold this last night, after about 28-30 hours, but it was way too soft. So, will try again tonight, and hopefully post some pics.

 

[Obsidian]

Yes, this one stays soft for awhile. I always used a paper lined PVC pipe so I could unmold easier.

 

[Hammer]

I was going to try this for a shampoo bar but when I run it through SoapCalc it has 0 for cleaning. Just wondering won’t it just leave your hair oily ? And, when I read about shampoo bars they all mention other chemicals being used... anyone know about this?

 

[Dawni]

Hallo @Hammer

Think of cleansing as stripping in this case. You want it low otherwise you'd spoil your hair. All soap will clean, even with a 0 cleansing factor. The lower that goes the milder your soap is.

The other shampoos with the very long names in the ingredients list are syndets - synthetic detergents - which came about as an alternative to liquid shampoos but with less harsh ingredients, and more of the good stuff. If done correctly they are much milder on hair than any lye soap can ever be.

 

[shunt2011]

I was going to try this for a shampoo bar but when I run it through SoapCalc it has 0 for cleaning. Just wondering won’t it just leave your hair oily ? And, when I read about shampoo bars they all mention other chemicals being used... anyone know about this?

Soap will still clean with a 0. However, I can honestly say that this does not work for shampoo. It totally ruined my hair The PH is too high in CP Soap for many. It does make for a great mild facial soap or body soap.

 

[Hammer]

Thank you very much for explaining Shunt