Hot Process Soap - Help please!

[Juliesoapy]

Hello everyone!
I make HP soap bars and really enjoy this method. However, my soaps aren’t hard and my clients tell me they’re done fairly quickly. I reviewed my recipe and noticed that I had made it using 0% superfat. I have since corrected that to 5% superfat, which decreased the water amount. I read this article: Free Beginner's Guide to Soapmaking: Common Soapmaking Oils - Soap Queen
And realized I may have had the wrong propositions for my oils. I used 33% olive oil, 33% grape seed oil and 33% coconut oil. This article recommends 15% coconut oil, 15% grapeseed oil and up to 100% olive oil. Should I just reorganize my proportions (15% coconut oil, 15% grapeseed oil and up to 70% olive oil) or add a 4th and 5th oil? Thank you!

 

[Rsapienza]

You may need more hard oils, but I would suggest researching oil properties so you can formulate a well balanced bar. What lye concentration are you using? How long are you curing your bars for? Maybe you shouldn't be selling until you have a solid, tested recipe. It sounds to me like you may need to do some additional research. I mean this in the nicest way possible. We've all been there at some point.

 

[Juliesoapy]

You may need more hard oils, but I would suggest researching oil properties so you can formulate a well balanced bar. What lye concentration are you using? How long are you curing your bars for? Maybe you shouldn't be selling until you have a solid, tested recipe. It sounds to me like you may need to do some additional research. I mean this in the nicest way possible. We've all been there at some point.

Thank you!!
my recipe is:
- 10 oz olive oil
- 10 oz grapeseed oil
- 10 coconut oil
- 9.5 oz water
- 4.2 oz lye
- 1.2 oz EO (4%)
Since I do HP, my bars cure for 1 week or more.
All feedback is welcome! Thanks!

 

[shunt2011]

Your recipe is not a good one at all. Grapeseed is a good cause for DOS in soap and would never use it at 33%. Coconut at 33% would also strip the skin off most folks. Your soap isn't curing nearly long enough. It needs a minimum of 4 weeks maybe more as HP requires more liquid and you have no hard oils in your soap except CO. . You should not be selling at all personally. You are doing a disservice to anyone who buys your soap and to other soapers as well as yourself.

You need to do some research on the quality of oils, and formulate a better soap. There are many good recipes that have been shared here on the forum.

Use a soap calculator, learn soap properties and formulate a well balanced bar of soap. Then test it for a period of time to see if it's going to last, develop DOS etc.

 

[Arimara]

Your recipe is not a good one at all. Grapeseed is a good cause for DOS in soap and would never use it at 33%. Coconut at 33% would also strip the skin off most folks. Your soap isn't curing nearly long enough. It needs a minimum of 4 weeks maybe more as HP requires more liquid and you have no hard oils in your soap except CO. . You should not be selling at all personally. You are doing a disservice to anyone who buys your soap and to other soapers as well as yourself.

You need to do some research on the quality of oils, and formulate a better soap. There are many good recipes that have been shared here on the forum.

Use a soap calculator, learn soap properties and formulate a well balanced bar of soap. Then test it for a period of time to see if it's going to last, develop DOS etc.

I'm afraid I agree with Shunt on this- you need to work on your product more before you sell it. As a consumer, I appreciate people who take the time to learn their craft and do it properly more than people who learn it to make a quick buck. I'm not lumping you in the latter but it is concerning that you had to ask for help on a beginner's level. Please look at and study the following resources. They will help you formulate a better bar of soap.

Lovin' Soap
Soap & More
Soap Formulas oil properties
Soap Stuff by Classic Bells- This is DeeAnna's site. She really knows her stuff and you would greatly benefit from her knowledge.

 

[Juliesoapy]

Thank you. I was never trying to make a quick buck. I wanted to share something I enjoy doing with my friends and family.

 

[artemis]

Thank you. I was never trying to make a quick buck. I wanted to share something I enjoy doing with my friends and family.

I think referring to your friends and family as clients gave the impression you were selling.

We do get a number of new people here who start selling before they even know if their soap is any good. Glad you looked for advice first.

I used to make a 33-33-33 soap when I started out. Since then, I've changed it to 40% lard, 30% olive, 20% avocado,10% coconut. I don't HP, though, since the cure time is the same anyway.

 

[Juliesoapy]

I think referring to your friends and family as clients gave the impression you were selling.

We do get a number of new people here who start selling before they even know if their soap is any good. Glad you looked for advice first.

I used to make a 33-33-33 soap when I started out. Since then, I've changed it to 40% lard, 30% olive, 20% avocado,10% coconut. I don't HP, though, since the cure time is the same anyway.

Thank you for the feedback!

 

[shunt2011]

Yes, you said clients, not family and friends. I've never considered my family or friends clients though. The above suggestion is great if your not opposed to Lard, though I prefer more Coconut oil and less Olive oil and 5% Castor oil. Again, if you go through the forum you'll find lots of suggestions for recipes that are tried and true. But you need to be testing your soaps before giving them away or even considering selling.

 

[cmzaha]

We all have what we like but take a long time, sometimes years to actually get to our absolute favorites. My favorite oils are High Oleic Sunflower, HO Canola, CO, PKO, Avocado, Tallow, Lard, Palm, Castor, and Shea. Tallow at 40/27% in my non-vegan soaps and Palm at 40% in my vegan soaps, and CO and PKO split at 15-17%. I personally Hate OO in soap in any amount. This took me around 7-8 yrs to settle on the percentage I absolutely love.

I also felt you were selling the way you stated "Client." The word Client refers to a customer.

 

[Quilter99755]

I think referring to your friends and family as clients gave the impression you were selling.

We do get a number of new people here who start selling before they even know if their soap is any good. Glad you looked for advice first.

I used to make a 33-33-33 soap when I started out. Since then, I've changed it to 40% lard, 30% olive, 20% avocado,10% coconut. I don't HP, though, since the cure time is the same anyway.

My past was similar with the thirds split of some kind. And my favorite recipes are now similar to yours other than the olive oil. But I do HP probably for the clean up more than anything. When I put my soaping stuff away I want it all done and cleaning up CP pots and utensils is a pain when they are still oily....and I don't want to set them aside for a day or two.

Sharing soaps and getting a report back is beneficial to some degree. Everyone's skin is different so what works for me doesn't necessarily work for my daughter or niece or sister. And not everyone has the same water conditions. But I would always send what I called a score card with my soaps, so they would tell me their opinion on what they felt the soap was like. And as I read, and re-read, all the notes of DeeAnna's on Soapy Stuff, I learned more about what the different oils produced and what the figures meant according to my water and my skin. I still ask some of my family and friends to report back...especially if I want to test out a new formula that has been tried here. Without all of the reading that I have done I'd still be wondering why my soaps were a little too drying or didn't last as long as I wanted or what happened to the bubbles. Figure out what information you want from family and friends and you will probably learn a lot faster what is a good soap and what is a great soap. Have fun doing it, too!

 

[Juliesoapy]

My past was similar with the thirds split of some kind. And my favorite recipes are now similar to yours other than the olive oil. But I do HP probably for the clean up more than anything. When I put my soaping stuff away I want it all done and cleaning up CP pots and utensils is a pain when they are still oily....and I don't want to set them aside for a day or two.

Sharing soaps and getting a report back is beneficial to some degree. Everyone's skin is different so what works for me doesn't necessarily work for my daughter or niece or sister. And not everyone has the same water conditions. But I would always send what I called a score card with my soaps, so they would tell me their opinion on what they felt the soap was like. And as I read, and re-read, all the notes of DeeAnna's on Soapy Stuff, I learned more about what the different oils produced and what the figures meant according to my water and my skin. I still ask some of my family and friends to report back...especially if I want to test out a new formula that has been tried here. Without all of the reading that I have done I'd still be wondering why my soaps were a little too drying or didn't last as long as I wanted or what happened to the bubbles. Figure out what information you want from family and friends and you will probably learn a lot faster what is a good soap and what is a great soap. Have fun doing it, too!

Thank you ! Your feedback is very beneficial. I like the idea of the report card for feedback!

 

[Juliesoapy]

I found a new recipe to test that includes palm (organic and EcoSocial), olive and coconut oils (no more grapeseed oil). In my city, there's a well known soap ingredient supplier store, and they mentioned that the lye/water ratio can vary between 1.2 to 3. Is that true? When I use the Brambleberry soap calculator, I get a 2.2 ratio with that new recipe, and the recipe suggests a 1.39 ratio. I do HP method. Thank you for your replies!

 

[Arimara]

My past was similar with the thirds split of some kind. And my favorite recipes are now similar to yours other than the olive oil. But I do HP probably for the clean up more than anything. When I put my soaping stuff away I want it all done and cleaning up CP pots and utensils is a pain when they are still oily....and I don't want to set them aside for a day or two.

You're preaching to the choir with that. I regret buying another crockpot for HP but HP is easier to clean up (and the crockpot was $8 so...)