Hello!

[BrandyW]

Hello! I've been a lurker for a while now. I have been dabbling, researching, and testing bath and body products for almost 2 years. It all started with an autoimmune disorder that has messed my skin up. I found I enjoyed making things, and I would like to turn it into a part time business.

I ran into a problem that I think I have a solution for, but I would like some input. I picked my oils for a basic bar that I thought was perfect. I made two batches and gave some away to friends and family. We have used it in the house for months now. When I went to a larger scale, something changed. I don't know if it was that I started buying my lye from a different place, if my water has changed, or if I mistakenly upped the coconut % when upscaling the batch on soap calc. (I threw out the original recipe) Everything seems the same, however, when you rinse off, you get that squeaky clean feeling. You literally squeak when you rub your skin together.

I will say that when I started making soap with other people's recipes (Brambleberry, Ellen Ruth, etc.) I get the exact same feeling from their recipes. Every Triple butter bar I've tried also gives me this feeling.

This is what I have been making:
35% Olive Oil
30% Palm Oil (too high?)
25% Coconut Oil (I'm thinking this is my problem)
5% Hemp Oil
5% Castor Oil

Superfat is 5%

If I'm criticizing the recipe, I instantly go to palm and coconut oil percentages. If I mess with those, it changes my linolenic to 2.

My questions for you all are:
Do I need to change the recipe completely? Is this not a good bar? I LOVE the lather and feel of it until the rinse.
Should I just use a chelator?
Should I up my superfat?

Help Please
And thanks for letting me join the forum.

 

[not_ally]

It looks OK to me - especially since you really liked it before - albeit (for me) a little high on the CO, as you've already mentioned. Some people like that squeaky clean feeling, is it accompanied with dryness/tightness for you now? If so I'd drop the CO to 20% and see if it goes away.

Personally I would also reduce the OO and get another hard oil in there, your combined palmitic/stearic total is only 24 now and it's going to drop even more if you reduce the CO. So for me the bar would not be hard/durable enough. Do you use lard or tallow?

 

[BrandyW]

I do not have any experience with either. I have thought about trying lard. I don't currently have any though.

You don't think a chelator will help any? I've seen people mention it, but all my research says it is for cutting back on soap scum?

Thanks for your suggestions!!

 

[not_ally]

Yes, a chelator is for cutting back on soap scum (basically it binds the metal ions in hard water to reduce the scum), I don't think it is going to help with your squeaky clean problem, though. You should try lard, you can get it at many grocery stores in the US. I get mine from Walmart.

It has the conditioning qualities of OO without the goo in use (absent a long cure) and will boost the hardness of the bar as well, lard and/or tallow are often used as substitutes for palm. Plus it's cheap. It is one of the favorite oils of soapers for good reasons. I would get some lard, cut your CO down to 20%, then do a couple of sample batches, first substituting lard for the palm and then another substituting lard for the OO and see what you think.

 

[lsg]

Welcome to the forum. I love coconut oil in soap. As stated previously, lard or tallow are both good substitute for palm oil. Check out the reviews for suppliers, especially if you have swithched suppliers. All suppliers are not equal. You might try increasing the superfat. The lower the superfat, the more cleansing a soap will be.

 

[Tammyfarms]

Welcome to the forum! I also am a fan of lard soap. My recipes vary from 55% to 75% lard. It makes a lovely bar of soap that does not strip your skin. I do recommend a chelator to cut down on soap scum.
When I started out I kept all of my recipes in a spiral notebook. Now I print my recipes from soapcalc and put them in a document protector in a three ring binder. Each batch is dated and I add notes for anything that was unusual. Later, I can also add notes as the soap cures.

 

[BrandyW]

Welcome to the forum! I also am a fan of lard soap. My recipes vary from 55% to 75% lard. It makes a lovely bar of soap that does not strip your skin. I do recommend a chelator to cut down on soap scum.
When I started out I kept all of my recipes in a spiral notebook. Now I print my recipes from soapcalc and put them in a document protector in a three ring binder. Each batch is dated and I add notes for anything that was unusual. Later, I can also add notes as the soap cures.

I also had all mine in a notebook, but when i decided i had found the one i liked, i put it in soap calc, printed, and tossed the book.