scotsman
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- May 17, 2014
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As others have said, coconut oil lathers well in hard water. If I remember correctly I do believe it is one of the only soapmaking oils that will later well across the spectrum of all types of water, even salt water. I also have hard water and have developed a base recipe that I find lathers beautifully even in my hard water. I use a higher percentage of coconut oil than most would suggest as it can dry out the skin but my family and I have had no issues with it. If you find it to be too drying you could try reducing the coconut oil and increasing either the olive oil, lard, or both. Also, if you don't dig animal oils in your soaps you could always replace the lard with palm oil or even canola if you are going for cheap. If you go with canola I would take it down to about 30% and increase the olive oil. Again, this is a base recipe I use for home. If you sell your soaps currently, or plan to in the future I would decrease the CO so as not to dry anybody out, lol!
40% Lard(Manteca)
30% Coconut oil
25% Olive oil(any is fine...I use EVOO for my uncolored bars because I dig the natural yellowish-green color it imparts)
5% Castor oil(for bubbles, of course!)
5-7% superfat depending on what I'm using it for
In some batches I will also reduce the OO by 5% and add 5% of either cocoa butter, Shea butter, or red palm butter. Be mindful that red palm butter will color your soap a light yellow by the time it comes out of the mold. It is a wonderfully moisturizing oil. Anything above 7%, however, and you run the risk of staining your washcloths. I hope this helps. Sorry for the veritable novel but I'm on my third cup of coffee this morning and I'm a bit hyper at the moment.
40% Lard(Manteca)
30% Coconut oil
25% Olive oil(any is fine...I use EVOO for my uncolored bars because I dig the natural yellowish-green color it imparts)
5% Castor oil(for bubbles, of course!)
5-7% superfat depending on what I'm using it for
In some batches I will also reduce the OO by 5% and add 5% of either cocoa butter, Shea butter, or red palm butter. Be mindful that red palm butter will color your soap a light yellow by the time it comes out of the mold. It is a wonderfully moisturizing oil. Anything above 7%, however, and you run the risk of staining your washcloths. I hope this helps. Sorry for the veritable novel but I'm on my third cup of coffee this morning and I'm a bit hyper at the moment.
