Had a request, need a hand.

[Shalisk]

Hey there, I had someone at the metaphysical shop ask me to make a soap for them with "amber" and all I can find is amber Fragrance oil, this person is fairly special in my 'circle' of soap wanters, so I want to make sure i make the right thing.

They sell Amber oil (Essential?) at the metphysical shop but for .7-.8 oz is gunna run me damn close to 30 freaking dollars O.O so either I need a source, or im looking at the wrong stuff.

 

[Obsidian]

Here is some priced a bit better but if I was you, I would let your friend know about the price and see if they are willing to dish out that kind of money. http://www.wellingtonfragrance.com/Amber-Essential-Oil-P1369.aspx


Brambleberry's amber FO is really nice if you want to go route. Since amber is petrified tree sap, you can't find it in true EO form.

 

[SparksnFlash]

You can find it on line, and it is pricey. Since this person has a metaphysical shop can she get it for you at her (hopefully) reduced cost? I got some at edenbotanicals.com. It smells like a combo of leather & sort of piney. Hard to describe. If you find some, and CP with it, know it will seize like a bad donkey.

 

[LunaSkye]

I checked out some info on amber and found (from one site that was not selling it) that it doesn't smell like much to some people:
http://aromatherapy4soul.wordpress.com/2009/02/28/amber-essential-oil-amber-potion/

Another site said that amber is actually a combination of three other scents:
http://www.fragrantica.com/news/What-is-amber-anyway--1704.html

Then there is Ananda Apothecary:
http://www.anandaapothecary.com/aromatherapy-essential-oils/amber-oil.html

I'll admit I didn't read everything on the sites, but I am thinking that an FO would be out of the question, though it may be easier to use. Is the soap for a special purpose or just because they like the smell?

 

[Dorymae]

Wait. Do they want amber fragrance??? I know some soap is made with amber resin. I haven't heard of amber fragrance.

I'd double check what they are looking for.
Here is Amber resin:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001B67C1M/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

http://www.somaluna.com/botanicals/amber-incense-resins/amber/

http://www.themagickalcat.com/Granular-and-Resin-Incense-s/60.htm


Also found this about using it in soap:
For Soap melt down slowly in your base oils. In a base perfume gently warm in base oils such as jojoba or sweet almond. Add 12 tsp per pound of soap. The resulting oil may be used as is or in lotions, etc.
To use Dark Amber in soap formulas, finely chop or crush the resin and add it to the oil portion of your formula. Heat the oil and resin to its melting point of approximately 103 degrees. Once melted, stir to mix the amber evenly. Then proceed with the saponification process. In addition to the enticing fragrance, the amber resin will lend a pleasing deep brown color and a slight texture to your soap.

 

[Genny]

First I'd ask this person if they are wanting the scent of amber (which most people I've found mean the balsamic vanilla-like scents that are out there) or the resin (which does not have that vanilla-like smell) or whatever.

I just had someone ask me for an amber soap recently and after asking what exactly kind of scent they were looking for, it was the balsamic vanilla-like scent they were wanting. They had no idea of the different ambers out there.

 

[Shalisk]

Well they sell amber oil by the dram, and to get the amount I need im looking at about 35 bucks. But she pays (wholesale) damn near 3.50 a bar for it. I could get about 22 bars of the size she quoted so there is that.

But the amber I have seen in her store is in a oil form, so...I simply don't know, but she did say it was pricy, and I dont think I could get it at her cost, especially as it may end up being sold in her place.

So is she getting fragrance oil or somthing else? Im simply confused at this point.

 

[Dorymae]

"Amber as such is a solid mass of tree resin. Amber oil is produced from this resin. Its botanical name is Pinus succinefera fossil because it is the fossilized sap of conifer tree Pinus Succinfera. When the fossil resin is made to undergo dry distillation process, crude Amber oil is obtained. When the extract of this resin is blended with Sunflower oil, Frankincense, agar wood and some other exotic oils, the end product is Amber oil."

quote from: http://www.theresearchpedia.com/health/aromatherapy/health-benefits-of-amber-oil

So it sounds like amber oil is amber resin heated in sunflower oil until melted and then mixed with frankincense and other oils. If this is the case you can probably mix your own using the resin, or a fair facsimile. I don't know how you would distill the resin.

Edited because that sounds wrong. You probably could not make the oil, but you could make something very similar that would work in soap. (That is what I meant to say...)

 

[Obsidian]

It all comes down to what she wants. If she wants it to contain actual amber, then you will need the pricey amber essence oil like she sells. If she is just want a soap with a amber scent, then get some FO.
Keep in mind that the pricey oil probably won't give the soap much of a scent, if any at all.

 

[LunaSkye]

Well they sell amber oil by the dram, and to get the amount I need im looking at about 35 bucks. But she pays (wholesale) damn near 3.50 a bar for it. I could get about 22 bars of the size she quoted so there is that.

But the amber I have seen in her store is in a oil form, so...I simply don't know, but she did say it was pricy, and I dont think I could get it at her cost, especially as it may end up being sold in her place.

So is she getting fragrance oil or somthing else? Im simply confused at this point.

Whether or not she wants a soap that only smells like amber is what I would want to know from her if I were in your shoes. My personal thought is that she may want the soap to include amber, but I have know way of knowing.

As for whether oil she wants used is in fact an essential oil, I can only deduce that many "amber"-scented oils are replicas made by combining various essential oils and may include traces of amber. Amber has a distinct scent, can be made into a solvent, and is pretty valuable in both aromatherapy and perfumery. Whether you are getting something authentic or something else is a tough call, but I think at the very least it is not an FO, though I'm sure you should be able to find that as well. The link Obsidian shared seemed to be the cheapest price I've seen.

note: I only read material from my links posted.

 

[Shalisk]

There are several sites, that say "Essential oil" and then turn around and list 50 things IN the essential oil (INCLUDING OTHER EOS!) so I am starting to wonder if its possible TO get the EO at all. And the link Obsidian sent (Thank you) Does not say whats in it, they also have a 'service fee' for orders under 50 bucks and charge shipping on top of that, wtf. o.o

Then I found this:

Amber is a highly sought-after fragrance, with its subtle, euphoric, warm and exotic aroma. Contrary to popular belief, there is no true 'Amber essential oil' - rather, Amber oil is an extract of one or more tree resins, generally found in a solid or semi-solid form. There is no one tree that produces amber resin, so there is a great variety of products sold as 'Amber Oil' that vary greatly in aroma and quality. This amber is very earthy, without a hint of harshness that may sometimes accompany tree-oils.

more here:

http://www.anandaapothecary.com/aromatherapy-essential-oils/amber-oil.html

 

[Obsidian]

Of course there is no way to get true amber EO. True amber is a unscented fossilized pine tree resin, you can't get EO from that. Some of the amber essential oils do have some of this kind of amber used in it but they have to use a carrier oil for the base and add other EO's to scent it.

You will find a number of modern amber resins around but they are just recently harvested pine resins that have been scented. This is what is being sold in that link.

No one can help you until you answer one simple question that multiple people have asked you. Does she just want a amber scent or does she want actual amber in the soap?

 

[Shalisk]

Well, as I understand it, she wants some sort of scent.

Because she mentioned the oils and the like, and I have yet tofind a 'amber oil' that is unscented.

Sorry, I have out of state company so I must have missed (more than once) the question.

So, lets go with the assumption that she wants oil with a scent to it.

Is there a 'naturally accepted' scent of 'amber' or am I going to have to trial and error this?

The next time I am in the shop I will ask her directly but im assuming the scent is the safest guess.

 

[Obsidian]

This is the amber FO I use. Not sure how it will compare to the amber oil your friend sells but its a really nice scent.

http://www.brambleberry.com/Amber-Fragrance-Oil-P3882.aspx