How do you deal with the scent?

[maryloucb]

I just made a soap scented with spearmint, and I had it curing in our spare bedroom, and the scent just permeated the house. It's a wonderful scent, but just a little overwhelming. Just wondering what you all do while curing your soaps, especially if you have more than one scent going at a time. I ended up putting it out in the garage because it was just too much!

 

[Zing]

How do you get your usage rates? I use Find Free Essential Oil Blends - Modern Soapmaking or Bramble Berry's calculator and use the "high" amount. My soaps cure in the basement but it's not overpowering.

 

[maryloucb]

It was 2oz of essential oils for 36oz of oil. Total weight was 52 oz. I followed a soap queen recipe, after running it through the lye calculator.

 

[amd]

You may be above the safe usage rate if this is an essential oil. I used Enter Your Own Blend » Essential Oil Calculator
to check and it shows safe usage rates as follows

As far as storing my soaps goes, most of the time I don't notice them in the house (I typically use 5% usage rates on my FO's, rarely use EO's as they vary so much in what's safe and what sticks in soaps). When I do notice a scent in the house it's typically one that I don't like (Lavender Sage, looking at you). I have a room in the basement dedicated to soaping and soap storage, so that helps too.

 

[KimW]

As @amd stated, the 5.5% of Spearmint EO in the recipe you used is more than the typical "strong" amount of 5%. That said, since IFRA guidelines on safe usage rates are based on specific components within an ingredient (so, for EOs the IFRA guidelines will address the components within an EO, like carvone and limonene) the only thing I could quickly find on safe usage rates for Spearmint EO for Category 9 (soap), is this pdf for a specific brand of EO, but perhaps it is helpful:
https://www.oand3.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/ifra-statement-spearmint-essential-oil-organic.pdfAnother article, that I think does a good job of explaining how IFRA guidlines work for EOs:
https://milesawayfarmww.com/2015/12/14/essentail-oils-a-safety-primer/And, finally, the only IFRA guideline I quickly found with references to Spearmint EO (you might note Category 9 is missing)
https://ifrafragrance.org/standards/IFRA_STD_016.pdf
In the end, you used what most people would detect/smell as a strong level of Spearmint EO, but likely not an unsafe level (at least for one particular brand). Perhaps Soap Queen's sniffer really likes spearmint, whereas yours does not. Going forward, you have the EO calc to check the EO amounts suggested by recipes of other people, as well as in your own recipes. Personally, I find 3% is my usual, but if I don't like an EO even 1% can be too much for me. I still catch a whiff of patchouli here and there from a small sample bottle that leaked and that I threw away back in December. December...

@amd - teehee - "Lavender Sage, looking at you". I also only notice the scents in my curing soaps that I don't like. How funny.

 

[maryloucb]

Don’t get me wrong, it’s a lovely scent and I think it will be fine once it tones down a touch. I think I underscented my first couple of batches, so this one was just a little surprising!

I’m not a huge patchouli fan myself

 

[KimW]

I swear I got a whiff of the stuff on the coffee maker this morning!

 

[Becky1024]

A few years ago I scented a batch with anise. I hate how anise smells. My house reeked. I built a box in the garage to cure out there. Then the garage and car reeked. The soap sold well but I can't bring myself to make any more!

 

[TheGecko]

I just made a soap scented with spearmint, and I had it curing in our spare bedroom, and the scent just permeated the house. It's a wonderful scent, but just a little overwhelming. Just wondering what you all do while curing your soaps, especially if you have more than one scent going at a time. I ended up putting it out in the garage because it was just too much!

I cure in my garage.

 

[maryloucb]

I'm pretty sure my car, which is parked in the garage, now smells of spearmint!

 

[KimW]

I'm pretty sure my car, which is parked in the garage, now smells of spearmint!

maybe a happy accident to have a minty fresh car!

 

[hlee]

A few years ago I scented a batch with anise. I hate how anise smells. My house reeked. I built a box in the garage to cure out there. Then the garage and car reeked. The soap sold well but I can't bring myself to make any more!

Ha ha!
I love the smell of anise!
I have had a couple of soap batches that had to go in the garage also .
I can’t remember what the fragrance was now though.

 

[CatahoulaBubble]

I put the really smelly soaps that I don't care for the scent in cardboard boxes and put them in the back room. After 2 weeks it's usually toned down. But I will say I use about half the IRFA recommendation for Peppermint or Spearmint EOs in my soap. The same for Lavender. Using it at the recommended amount just makes the scent too strong in my opinion.

 

[msunnerstood]

I made a custom patchouli soap loaf for a good friend. I cannot stand the scent and it was everywhere.. I just made a loaf of a scent I liked after it.. it helped

 

[CatahoulaBubble]

I made a custom patchouli soap loaf for a good friend. I cannot stand the scent and it was everywhere.. I just made a loaf of a scent I liked after it.. it helped

Patchouli is one scent I won't allow in my house. I can't stand it and just making it would drive me out of my own home. I'd have to just burn it and start over 2 states away.

 

[Mobjack Bay]

I will take a patchouli soap any day

 

[AliOop]

Former patch hater here. Then I got a whiff of the truly good, aged, dark stuff. Oh my...

I still find it way too strong when it is first curing. But in a blend with lime, or lavender... oh my...

 

[Becky1024]

I love patchouli! Anytime I make a batch with patchouli my house smells wonderful!