MMS Sweetgrass

[artemis]

I just purchased Sweetgrass FO from MMS (my first order from them). It smells interesting. I have no idea what real sweetgrass smell like, so I can't judge how true it is be OOB.

The info at the site is limited. The closest I can find to a description of how it behaves is that it may turn my soap yellow. Does anyone else have experience with this FO?

I am visiting a friend who is learning how to soap. She requested this FO for our soapy session while I'm here. I would rather be prepared for weirdness rather than surprised!

I will let you know what I learn about it during the soapy process.

 

[DeeAnna]

I use MMS sweetgrass and NG (Nature's Garden) sweetgrass. They aren't exactly the same, but after trying them both, I use them interchangeably. The difference (to my nose, at least) isn't big enough to prefer one over the other. Which is nice because the NG scent is cheaper than the MMS version. I also grow real sweetgrass.

The FOs are more of a sweeter spicy herbaceous riff on the real sweetgrass scent. There's an odd note in the real scent -- I suppose it's the coumarin -- that doesn't come out as strongly in the FOs and that's probably for a good reason. If you have real sweetgrass, you accept that it smells like it smells. If you smell the FO outside of the context of real sweetgrass, you want the aroma to smell nice.

I often blend the sweetgrass FO with green tea FO for a bit more depth. About 2 parts sweetgrass to 1 of green tea.

Both FOs in CP soap have a medium strength and the scent sticks. I use them at the high end of their recommended usage rate. I color my soap with an infusion of sweetgrass as well as with oxides, so I don't have any personal info about discoloration. The NG FO is listed on their website as having no discoloration.

 

[earlene]

Thank you for this information, DeeAnna. Your description makes me want to try out these scents together.

 

[artemis]

Ok! Back again. Thanks for in info, DeeAnna.

My friend came for her soapy visit today. I made her help me formulate a new recipe with soapee. Then, I made her do most of the work measuring and mixing. She's not totally new and has even made one or two batches on her own, so I didn't have to hover.

This FO is exactly what she was hoping for. It soaped nicely, I think. The batter got a little thick, but it could have been due to too much stick-blending. She chose spirulina powder for a light green. I didn't notice any discoloration in the uncolored portion.

 

[bountifulsoaps]

I just ordered and received my sweetgrass from MMS. Concerned on usage. My oils will be 80 ounces and it says at the high end 2.25 ounces. That seems low and that is their high end? How did yours turn out?

 

[artemis]

It seems fine to me. It is strong enough to my nose, anyway. I have a cinnamon bun fragrance that uses a very small amount and that one is quite strong. Another FO I has a much higher recommended amount. They seem to all be different.

 

[bountifulsoaps]

I turned out nice but the scent didn't last as long as I would have liked. Pretty though with the green swirl and everyone seemed to like it. Just needed to be stronger than what MMS recommended.

 

[artemis]

I turned out nice but the scent didn't last as long as I would have liked. Pretty though with the green swirl and everyone seemed to like it. Just needed to be stronger than what MMS recommended.

That's interesting to me. There bar I still have from this summer is still strong enough (for me, anyway). I used the strongest amount suggested by MMS. Different nose preferences, I suppose.

 

[DeeAnna]

I use sweetgrass FO or the sweetgrass - green tea blend at 5-6% by weight of fats. That would be 4 oz FO total for 80 oz of fats.

This is not a knock-your-socks-off strong scent, but the fragrance is pleasant and distinct. I sell soap with this scent, so I'm interested in the fragrance being strong enough to attract shoppers. It obviously appeals to shoppers even after several months of the soap sitting in a store display, because this one sells as well as my other soaps do. If it didn't smell good, it wouldn't sell.

 

[shunt2011]

I too use NG's Sweetgrass at 6% and it sticks well. I have a couple bars I kept for myself that are a year old and still smell nice. It's not a super strong scent but just a nice one.

 

[bountifulsoaps]

Have a couple ounces left of the sweetgrass from MMS. I do not want to buy more but want to use it up with an essential oil blend. How about eucalyptus? or Lemongrass? or Litsea? Would those be too overpowering that you wouldn't even notice the seagrass fragrance?

 

[DeeAnna]

I could see any one of the three blending well with the sweetgrass FO, but I couldn't say anything about proportions without testing. Put drop(s) of the FO with a drop or two of one of the EOs on a strip of coffee filter or paper towel and see what your nose thinks.

Eucalyptus can be a lot like mint -- a little goes a long ways. I'd start with it as a small % of the total. (Maybe 1 drop euc with 5 to 10 drops of the FO?)