ISO inexpensive ingredients at still make good soap

[DWinMadison]

So, experienced folks, give the newbies here the benefit of your experience. What are the best recipes/ingredients for the money that still make a high quality soap? Where do you find the best bargains on ingredients (oils, colorants and fragrances)?

 

[Gryfonmoon]

I like to use sunflower oil in my soaps. I've found that Walmart seriously has the best price per ounce, even beating out most online places I've seen. I made a 4 page spreadsheet that calculates lye cost per ounce, oil cost per ounce, and EO cost per ML that I use to keep track of certain prices at various places. Also it does cost per ounce and per bar of a certain recipe.

 

[lsg]

Lard, tallow, coconut oil, hydrogenated vegetable oil, palm oil and rice bran oil. Most of these can be purchased in bulk from Soaper's Choice.
http://www.soaperschoice.com/cgi-so...web_store.cgi?query_price_low_range=0&cart_id=

You can buy lard and hydrogenated vegetable oil at your local Walmart.
I buy a lot of essential oils from Camden Grey. I get my lye from Essential Depot

 

[DWinMadison]

We have a local Walmart. I can also find most oils including coconut, palm and castor at our local Kroger. I tried filtering some "gently used" canola through a coffee filter, but it still seemed to impart a "fried smell" to the batch even though I didn't use more than 25% in my recipe. For lye, the only place I've seen it locally is Lowe's in the plumbing section. I'm sure Home Depot has it too. I need to calculate a cost per bar, but it seems more expensive than I anticipated when you factor in color an fragrance. Not that I plan to go into the business, but how do people make a living at this?

 

[Relle]

So, experienced folks, give the newbies here the benefit of your experience. What are the best recipes/ingredients for the money that still make a high quality soap? Where do you find the best bargains on ingredients (oils, colorants and fragrances)?

Here are some recipes you can look at, at your leisure.
http://www.pureandnaturalsoaps.com/soap-recipes.html

Unless someone wants to share their recipe you will probably have to make your own up.

I can't help you out with the rest of your answer because I'm not in the US.

 

[Gryfonmoon]

I found AAA Chemicals to be a pretty decent price on lye.

 

[sweethavenarts]

See what you can find locally. The ace hardware down the street carries lye, my local costco carries olive oil and coconut oil. Some of the local health food stores have other oils and butters. While they may not be the 'best prices' being able to pick up your supplies and soap same day is always fun. I've done some bulk ordering through azure standard and they have pretty good prices on palm oil and coconut oil.
I was just pointed to an oil and butter co op on face book and they are some of the best prices I've seen- but you need to move fast, the co-op closes tuesday.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/caronscontainercorner/

 

[AlchemyandAshes]

I buy Refined Olive Oil (not EVOO) at Sam's Club for $10.88 for 3 liters, which is the cheapest I've found without buying it by the drum and soaps just fine. The only drawback is if you don't have a Sam's Club membership.
You can get LouAna brand Coconut Oil at Walmart for $5.84 for 32 oz. About double what I pay in bulk per pound, but it gets the job done in a pinch. I actually just picked some up tonight because I'm jonesing and not ready to place my big order yet this month
You can get Spectrum brand Organic Sustainable Palm Oil (sold as Vegetable Shortening) in most health food stores. It's almost $7 for 24 oz here in Tampa. It soaps great, even if it is pricey. You could try a local Middle Eastern/Asian market for Vegetable Ghee made from Palm Oil, which would be the same thing. Some of them carry it in bulk. Just make sure it says Vegetable, otherwise it's made from milk (like butter).
A 6 oz bottle of Castor oil can be found in the pharmacy for around $3.
Lard and Tallow are available at just about any grocery store for varying prices.
You can get lye (make sure it says 100% Sodium Hydroxide!) from Ace Hardware (the only place in FL that carries small quantities of it behind the counter), but it's $7.99 for 16 oz. I usually buy my lye from Essential Depot...32lbs for $33 plus shipping = $52.
If you aren't making large quantities of soap and are just making it for yourself, then picking up supplies locally is just fine. If you decide to go large scale, bulk is the best option, and if you don't live locally to a supplier, that means incurring shipping costs, of course, but it still usually works out MUCH cheaper.

 

[CaliChan]

Cheep ingredients that still make good soap, Crisco, Lard, Olive oil, Coconut oil, and Corn oil
my first batch was
50% Olive
30% Coconut
20% Crisco

I dont by oils that i cant find either at the grocery store or the health food store.
you can get natural colorants cheep in the spices isle

 

[Ruthie]

You've already gotten lots of good advice. I just want to point out that WalMart brand shortening (the beef tallow, palm one) is listed in SoapCalc's oils list.

 

[thefarmerdaughter]

The only thing I have to add is, My Ace ordered a case of lye for me. I didn't have any shipping costs, and the price dropped by 2$ a pound, vs buying individual containers. So it's a straight up 5.99/Lb. And yeah those two old timers behind the counter looked at me funny, but they didn't ask no questions.

 

[Gryfonmoon]

The only thing I have to add is, My Ace ordered a case of lye for me. I didn't have any shipping costs, and the price dropped by 2$ a pound, vs buying individual containers. So it's a straight up 5.99/Lb. And yeah those two old timers behind the counter looked at me funny, but they didn't ask no questions.

You're lucky. I called a few Ace Hardwares in my area and they said they don't carry any lye anymore. Lowe's is literally the only place I can buy it off the shelf where I am. I wish I could get it at Ace's; Lowe's charges $14.99 for two pounds around here!

 

[Lilahblossom]

14.99 per lb for lye????? I buy it at Menards locally. Well it's thirty miles away. But I don't pay that much for it. I would def look at buying it online. That way you won't have to worry about people thinking you are making dope or something. And I ordered tallow from Soaper's Choice also. I paid 43.00 for 50 lb. of it. You can't beat that. And it's rendered to a snowy white. Was sixteen dollars for shipping for two fifty lb. cubes. I keep it on the porch where it is freezing right now. Beef tallow makes the hardest whitest creamiest bar and it is the standard by which all other soaps are judged. Just that it isn't popular right now because of it being animal. I was buying so many buckets of lard at walmart that it finally paid for me to buy it in bulk. And it took me so long to render tallow that it pays to buy it online.

 

[Genny]

14.99 per lb for lye????? I buy it at Menards locally. Well it's thirty miles away. But I don't pay that much for it. I would def look at buying it online. That way you won't have to worry about people thinking you are making dope or something.

Which Menards? I used to get it at the one on Clairemont Ave in E.C., but I couldn't find it last time and was told, "If you didn't see it, we probably don't carry it anymore." :wtf:

Just to let you know, Ace Hardware over on Birch Street in E.C. carries it as well. The one in Mondovi might have it, too. I should have one of my cousins check for me.

 

[Gryfonmoon]

14.99 per lb for lye????? I buy it at Menards locally. Well it's thirty miles away. But I don't pay that much for it. I would def look at buying it online. That way you won't have to worry about people thinking you are making dope or something. And I ordered tallow from Soaper's Choice also. I paid 43.00 for 50 lb. of it. You can't beat that. And it's rendered to a snowy white. Was sixteen dollars for shipping for two fifty lb. cubes. I keep it on the porch where it is freezing right now. Beef tallow makes the hardest whitest creamiest bar and it is the standard by which all other soaps are judged. Just that it isn't popular right now because of it being animal. I was buying so many buckets of lard at walmart that it finally paid for me to buy it in bulk. And it took me so long to render tallow that it pays to buy it online.

Yeah, it's ridiculous how much they charge for it, so I just get it online. I'm going to have to check out soaper's choice for my oils.

 

[CaliChan]

The only thing I have to add is, My Ace ordered a case of lye for me. I didn't have any shipping costs, and the price dropped by 2$ a pound, vs buying individual containers. So it's a straight up 5.99/Lb. And yeah those two old timers behind the counter looked at me funny, but they didn't ask no questions.

that is the only place ive been able to get Lye as well. Its one of the few things ive gotten use out of from there, But over here its 3.95/lb so it depends on were you live

 

[CaliChan]

Speaking of lye tho, what does every one here pay for P. Hydroxide? I payed 10 bucks for 2 lbs on Bramblebarry is that normal?

 

[Genny]

Speaking of lye tho, what does every one here pay for P. Hydroxide? I payed 10 bucks for 2 lbs on Bramblebarry is that normal?

Try Essential Depot. Right now it's $3.49 for 2 lbs

http://www.essentialdepot.com/servlet/the-Potassium-dsh-Hydroxide-dsh-KOH-dsh-Potash/Categories

 

[Gryfonmoon]

Speaking of lye tho, what does every one here pay for P. Hydroxide? I payed 10 bucks for 2 lbs on Bramblebarry is that normal?

I paid about $20 for 8 pounds of lye on AAA Chemicals.

 

[DWinMadison]

Yeah, it's ridiculous how much they charge for it, so I just get it online. I'm going to have to check out soaper's choice for my oils.

It's about half that at Lowe's. $14.98 for 2lbs

http://www.lowes.com/pd_146450-331-HD-CRY-6+CRYSTAL+DRA_0__?productId=3465780&Ntt=drain+opener&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNtt%3Ddrain%2Bopener&facetInfo=