Lard...smell

[blender]

I'm new to soap making....

the last batch I made was 50% lard, 50% olive oil...I fragranced it with peppermint essential oil.

It smelled great...

but then I tried the soap....It left the smell of wet dog on my skin!!

My question is..does all lard do this? My lard was Armour brand by the way. I'm wondering if I should just decrease the amount of lard in the recipe.

Anyone have experiences with stinky lathering soap?

 

[carebear]

odd. I soap with that brand all the time and even at 75% have no issues.

some folks swear they can smell it at any level though - maybe you are one of the sensitive ones. or perhaps yours was rancid? or did you perhaps overheat it when melting it - again I've had no issue but some say you have to melt carefully to avoid the "piggy" smell.

 

[LomondSoap]

I've never soaped lard but I'm involved in a single oil soap swap. I've got palm , PKO & lard. They are all to be unscented so I'll let you know how mine goes.
Lard/tallow are very rarely used in the UK in handmade soap.

 

[clearhearts]

Gah, bad. Might be the olive oil, I made an unscented batch with no lard but quite a lot of olive oil. It was slimy and smelled a bit funny. Very moisturising though! I'm sure someone with more experience can help more

Also, hi Lomond Soap. I'm from Scotland too! I was excited to see a UK soaper then I seen you were from Scotland! Look forward to seeing you around the forum!

 

[blender]

Perhaps I did overheat the lard while melting it....

I don't think it was the olive oil...I kinda like the olive oil smell on soap. This smell was very much a wet dog/pig/animal smell. A shame since the soap would have been gorgeous otherwise.

Thank you all for your replies.

 

[topcat]

Hi blender! Maybe you could rebatch this one and add some strong (but pleasant :wink: ) FO or EO? To couteract the 'piggy' smell perhaps a rosemary or tea tree or eucalyptus-toned one? A lemongrass and eucalyptus EO blend may neutralise the earthy animal odour IMHO.

Tanya

 

[LomondSoap]

Oh no! I'm not looking forward to making piggy smelling soap
Hey Clearhearts, imagine, 2 Scots on one thread

 

[reallyrita]

Lard....smell

I am one of those soapers who is very sensitive to the smell of lard and yet I really love my lard soaps. They are so easy on my skin. I use a lard-olive oil and coconut basic recipe and I learned very early on to melt the lard at the lowest possible heat and to also put it in a double boiler so no direct heat on the bottom of the pan. I am vigilant and turn off the heat the minute the lard is nearly melted. I then stir the melting oils to get them all to melt together without more heat. It is really really important to stay on top of this and never let the heat get too hot under the pan....otherwise that piggy smell comes through nice and strong. I can never overcome it with fragrance....I just have to start over with fresh lard. I also keep my lard in the fridge especially in warm weather. Hope this helps....lard soaps are so nice!

 

[IrishLass]

I use Armour, too, and have never had a piggy smell with it, even when I heat it directly on my burner to 120 degreesF (48.8 degreesC).

Was the lard strong-smelling while still in its container? It could be that it was stale or rancid lard. My fresh Armour brand lard has a very clean, fatty (not piggy) smell, and it is pure white. I've bought Morrell Snowcap lard before and it was tan and as smelly as a barnyard right out of the container. I never did use it. You can deodorize smelly lard before using by wet-rendering it in water and baking soda. That's what I'm going to try to do with the bucket of smelly Snowcap I bought.

IrishLass

 

[LomondSoap]

Thanks for the tips IrishLass. Having never used animal fats before I've no idea how to render anything except maybe a wall
How is it done?

 

[IrishLass]

Thanks for the tips IrishLass. Having never used animal fats before I've no idea how to render anything except maybe a wall
How is it done?

This is what I have in my notes:

Take 5 lbs. lard and put in in a big pot. Pour in enough water to just cover the lard. Pour in 2 to 3 tablespoons of baking soda, making sure to dissolve the soda in the water before heating the pot or you'll have a mess on your hands. Bring to the boil and then turn it down to a low simmer, cooking and stirring it it for about 30 minutes. Take it off the heat and let it sit in the fridge or some place cool overnight. When completely cooled, remove the solidified lard and throw everything else out. Store the lard in the fridge. I haven't tried it yet myself, but I know of a soaper on another forum who has and hers came out great.

Hope that helps!

IrishLass

 

[LomondSoap]

Great to know, thanks IrishLass