I *love* cottonseed oil. Good ol' Crisco used to be 100% cottonseed oil. The brand name Crisco comes from the phrase "crystallized cottonseed oil". It was created and introduced as a way to use up cottonseed cleaned from the ginning process. It's still widely used in animal feeds.
Cottonseed oil was originally marketed specifically for soapmakers due to the high costs of importing olive oil in the first half of the 20th Century. Of course, the decline in the use of cotton fibers, and the widespread growth of Industrial Ag and GMO Soy has changed it all.
I buy cottonseed oil from Texas Natural Supply. I love the silky feel it adds to a bar. It takes a bit longer to cure, like a Castile bar does, but I like it a LOT better than a Castile bar. I make a special bar that includes CS and other classically TX products, like Pecan oil, Peach Kernel Oil, etc. that is a big seller for me.
It's kind of an item you have to go looking for these days, but don't turn it down just because you aren't familiar with it.
As for soy. . . :silent: As a beekeeper, I have deeply-held, strong, loud opinions about GMO, Round-Up Ready soybeans and its' oils. I don't / won't / don't want YOU to use it. It comes from one of the lowest Circles of Dante's Hell. :evil:
{deep breath. deep breath. stepping away from the soap box}
I actually *have* tried soy oil, and it makes a very hard bar. And it is very cheap and easy to find. And makes a very pretty, white soap. It also has terrible DOS, which I could not vanquish, even with 2% vitamin E oil in the recipe. YMMV.
I like the cottonseed oil, but it's cheap and easy for me to find. It's also a " " Suthin' " thang, like Sweet tea, Black-eyed Peas, Dr. Pepper, and boiled peanuts.
Dixiedragon, have you tried it?
~HoneyLady~