Lost in lotion bars

[Dreams]

Thank you for explaining will have to try this brush method that is spoke about..yep do smoke and I think chocolate is a food group so 2 strikes

 

[debbism]

I've started with lotion bars long before I even thought about soap. Haven't had experience with soy wax or beeswax since I do strictly vegan products. But i've had good luck with this recipe

Candelilla wax 23%
Mango butter 32%
Liquid oil 35%
Vegan wax jelly 9%
Starch of some kind 1% (I prefer arclay white bentonite)

To scent them, THEN i add 2% floral wax and the appropriate EO or FO blend.

They are creamy and dreamy

Right now, i'm experimenting with Japan sumac wax and finding it even better BUT it needs to be closer to the usage rate of beeswax but i think i'm liking it even better than candellia. I have a base recipe of 30% japan wax, 40% butters and the rest liquid oils with the starch added as an extra

Everyone's tastes are different but my experience tells me to always wait til the next day so judge your testers so they fully set up

 

[debbism]

I should probably add that the recipe with candellia wax was for lotion sticks in pushup tubes and the sumac wax recipe is for bars in tins.

 

[Dreams]

I should probably add that the recipe with candellia wax was for lotion sticks in pushup tubes and the sumac wax recipe is for bars in tins.

Well thank you will have to try someday when I get different waxes and butters, I'm limited in my stock of goodies and was happy to get arrowroot and avacado oil recently to try,not working sooo.. on limited funds to play with,shhh don't tell my family I bought them

 

[Feelin' Soapy]

I started out using the same recipe as @Zing but later adjusted it a bit by replacing 25% of the coconut oil with avocado oil and adding a teaspoon of arrowroot. The new version made the bar less sticky and gave it more glide on the skin.

It's a great formula until it hits 85 degrees or so, then it gets too soft. Maybe I need to add a bit more beeswax for a summer version?

 

[Quanta]

I started out using the same recipe as @Zing but later adjusted it a bit by replacing 25% of the coconut oil with avocado oil and adding a teaspoon of arrowroot. The new version made the bar less sticky and gave it more glide on the skin.

It's a great formula until it hits 85 degrees or so, then it gets too soft. Maybe I need to add a bit more beeswax for a summer version?

You could try replacing a small amount of the beeswax with carnauba wax. It is much harder than beeswax. I would start with replacing 5% of your beeswax with carnauba, and go from there. Make sure you keep good notes so you remember exactly what you tried and what worked.

 

[Dreams]

I started out using the same recipe as @Zing but later adjusted it a bit by replacing 25% of the coconut oil with avocado oil and adding a teaspoon of arrowroot. The new version made the bar less sticky and gave it more glide on the skin.

It's a great formula until it hits 85 degrees or so, then it gets too soft. Maybe I need to add a bit more beeswax for a summer version?

That sounds about what I'm looking for glide and less greasy feelin'...

 

[earlene]

I've started with lotion bars long before I even thought about soap. Haven't had experience with soy wax or beeswax since I do strictly vegan products.

Just out of curiosity, what about soy wax would be non-vegan? I understand beeswax, of course, but soy wax is simply hydrogenated soy oil. Or was that second part of your sentence supposed to only pertain to the beeswax?

 

[debbism]

Just out of curiosity, what about soy wax would be non-vegan? I understand beeswax, of course, but soy wax is simply hydrogenated soy oil. Or was that second part of your sentence supposed to only pertain to the beeswax?

That applies to both. I've only used candelilla wax. I've tried olive wax & rice bran wax & laurel wax but didn't care for them. I really like the japan sumac wax

 

[Quanta]

That applies to both. I've only used candelilla wax. I've tried olive wax & rice bran wax & laurel wax but didn't care for them. I really like the japan sumac wax

How is soy not vegan, though? It doesn't require a pollinator.

 

[debbism]

It applies to both as in "I've not used them and have no experience with soy". But yeah...soy it vegan of course

 

[HoppyCosmetics]

The best way to learn is to work on the percentages of your ingredients until you are happy.

If a recipe says add 1% of something, how do you work that out in grams? All my recipes are in grams, and ive no idea how to convert that to percentages.

 

[Tara_H]

If a recipe says add 1% of something, how do you work that out in grams? All my recipes are in grams, and ive no idea how to convert that to percentages.

Well, if your recipe needs 100g of ingredients and you want to add something at 1% then you need 1g of that and 99g of the rest...

Likewise for 2% you need 2g and 98g of the rest.

If your recipe is not 100g exactly (more than likely) then you need to scale up by the amount needed for the total you want.

So for a total of 500g, multiply both sides by 5 -> 5g (1x5) of the new ingredient and 495g (99x5) of the rest.

 

[Quanta]

If a recipe says add 1% of something, how do you work that out in grams? All my recipes are in grams, and ive no idea how to convert that to percentages.

I made spreadsheets to calculate it. You enter how big a batch you want to make, and percentages for each ingredient, and it will tell you how many grams you need of each ingredient to make a batch that size.
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/my-spreadsheets-for-formulating-cost-testing.83570/
If you have weight amounts for each ingredient and you need to convert that to percentages so you can scale your batch size, Wholesale Supplies Plus had a calculator for that here:
https://www.wholesalesuppliesplus.com/calculators/Percentage_Calculator.aspx

 

[rparrny]

To convert percentages into weight take the percentage divided by 100 and multiply by the amount you want in grams. You could use whatever measurement you choose, it doesn’t have to be grams, it could be ounces… But it had to be consistent throughout.
(The ingredient percentage/100) x total weight (g) = ingredient (g)

 

[Peachy Clean Soap]

I've started with lotion bars long before I even thought about soap. Haven't had experience with soy wax or beeswax since I do strictly vegan products. But i've had good luck with this recipe

Candelilla wax 23%
Mango butter 32%
Liquid oil 35%
Vegan wax jelly 9%
Starch of some kind 1% (I prefer arclay white bentonite)

To scent them, THEN i add 2% floral wax and the appropriate EO or FO blend.

They are creamy and dreamy

Right now, i'm experimenting with Japan sumac wax and finding it even better BUT it needs to be closer to the usage rate of beeswax but i think i'm liking it even better than candellia. I have a base recipe of 30% japan wax, 40% butters and the rest liquid oils with the starch added as an extra

Everyone's tastes are different but my experience tells me to always wait til the next day so judge your testers so they fully set up

I've never heard of Floral Wax' sounds interesting. I gotta make Lotion Bars' its on my bucket list. But its trumped by other projects.

 

[Carly B]

If coconut oil is drying, why do you use it in lotion bars? I use a butter (mango, usually), an oil (a light one, like sweet almond or grapeseed) a bit of tallow or lard (I leave this out for vegan bars, of course), a small bit of arrowroot, and either beeswax or candelilla wax.

 

[HoppyCosmetics]

Thanks everyone for the help on percentages.

 

[AliOop]

I made spreadsheets to calculate it. You enter how big a batch you want to make, and percentages for each ingredient, and it will tell you how many grams you need of each ingredient to make a batch that size.
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/my-spreadsheets-for-formulating-cost-testing.83570/
If you have weight amounts for each ingredient and you need to convert that to percentages so you can scale your batch size, Wholesale Supplies Plus had a calculator for that here:
https://www.wholesalesuppliesplus.com/calculators/Percentage_Calculator.aspx

I've used your spreadsheet and am so grateful that you shared it with us.

 

[cmzaha]

If coconut oil is drying, why do you use it in lotion bars? I use a butter (mango, usually), an oil (a light one, like sweet almond or grapeseed) a bit of tallow or lard (I leave this out for vegan bars, of course), a small bit of arrowroot, and either beeswax or candelilla wax.

Coconut in lotion or lotion bars is not drying. It is actually quite nice, especially FCO.