Liquid Soap ?'s

[GoldCountryNaturals]

Hey everyone, forgive my ignorance here and incompetence to navigate this forum correctly from my phone I tried to do some searches and didn't exactly find what I was looking for. Apologies in advance if this ends up being a longer read and a lot of questions but you guys and gals are amazing!

I'm not new to the soap making world, but I recently got the crafting bug after a 10yr break on making soaps and I have never made a liquid soap yet!

I don't care if it ends up being a crystal clear soap or not, but outside the realm of 100% single oil soaps, does the same oil qualities apply to LS as it does CP? Like the cleansing values, bubbly, creamy, conditioning?

How do you decide on the SF of a LS? 1% for cleaning soap, 2% hand + all purpose, 3% if used on body + short hair? Or if I do 1% with 100% CO is it going to be insanely stripping on my hands if I do dishes with it?

Is there any way to make true castile lather a bit better, more body and less slimey? I've heard dual lye helps with both
Does adding sugar to the lye mix boost lather in LS like it does CP? That was actually the biggest question I found no answer to with Google.

Looking forward to learning and thank you to anyone who can answer!

 

[LidiaG]

Hi @GoldCountryNaturals
Welcome back into soapmaking!

does the same oil qualities apply to LS as it does CP? Like the cleansing values, bubbly, creamy, conditioning?

I'm not sure how to explain, i believe so.
Liquid soap you can not as easily superfat like you do in bar. It will separate. So the superfat should stay 1-2% or even 0%. There's ways to add things to be able to superfat. Like polysorbate. But overall liquid soap can feel more cleansing in my opinion, if I use the same recipe and make a bar soap. So I look at the fatty acid profile

How do you decide on the SF of a LS? 1% for cleaning soap, 2% hand + all purpose, 3% if used on body + short hair? Or if I do 1% with 100% CO is it going to be insanely stripping on my hands if I do dishes with it?

you will have to see what you like.
Make some small batches, like 200g of oil, cook at lower temperature and see.
Probably single oils would be nice for you to test.
I make 85%OO, 10%CO and 5% castor 1%SF and I use in the shower and handwashing.

Is there any way to make true castile lather a bit better, more body and less slimey? I've heard dual lye helps with both

I believe you're asking about bars here, try ZNSC
Castile liquid soap is not slimy. The paste is gooey and take some time to dissolve compared to high CO

Does adding sugar to the lye mix boost lather in LS like it does CP?

Yes it will! Add the sugar to the lye water the same way as for bar soap

 

[AliOop]

Oil choices aren't the same for LS as they are in bar soap. For instance, high amounts of castor oil in a bar soap makes it soft, rubbery, and sometimes even sticky. But a high amount of castor oil in LS is just lovely.

One of the best resources I've found for LS is the Ultimate Guide to Liquid Soap. This e-book covers the science in great detail, and in the process, teaches you how to create your own recipes. Plus, the purchase price includes access to private YT how-to videos, as well as email support and online support via their Facebook group.

There is also a great recipe here on this forum, @IrishLass' Creamy Cocoa-Shea LS. I make this regularly for my son-in-law; it's the only "body wash" that doesn't make his skin itch. Her recipe includes thickening ingredients as well as PS80 so you can increase the superfat. It isn't a beginner recipe, but since you already know basics of bar soapmaking, you'll probably do just fine with this one, too.

Have fun, and hope you will post pics of your creations!

 

[GoldCountryNaturals]

Thank you both!! You answered everything for me thats great to know about the castor too, I use tons of it for salve making so I always have a lot on hand.
I will download that ebook as well, thank you!

I've actually haven't tried 100% OO LS, I can't find it locally or online/amazon, its all mixed with CO, hemp and other stuff. I had thought I read somewhere it had a bit slimey texture and low lather, similar to the bars - but I likely am remembering that incorrectly.

I'm going to try out a small batch of 100% OO, and CO, and go from there, but was curious if this recipe would be a bad idea, or turn out nice.
60% OO, 25% CO, 10% Shea, 5% Castor at 2% SF.
Hoping for a nice lather and a bit less drying, while keeping the OO content a little lower because of how expensive it is here ($40-43 for 3qts).

 

[AliOop]

60% OO, 25% CO, 10% Shea, 5% Castor at 2% SF.

Sounds nice, but honestly, I'd knock the SF down to 1% and see what you think. If you want to superfat it a bit more after dilution, you can add a SF (and FO, if desired) with some PS80.

I'd also consider upping the castor to 20% and reducing the OO to 45%. Castor is really nice in LS!

 

[GoldCountryNaturals]

Sounds nice, but honestly, I'd knock the SF down to 1%. and see what you think. If you want to superfat it a bit more after dilution, you can add a SF (and FO, if desired) with some PS80. I'd also consider upping the castor to 20% and knocking the OO down to 45%.

Ok! That sounds good to me, castor oil is cheap here too so I'm not opposed to using more, thank you for the tips!!