Patchouli and Anise?

[AliOop]

@KiwiMoose - Cinnamon has eugenol in it. Eugenol is a trace accelerant. I use a few drops of cinnamon EO to accelerate trace in high-temp HP.

 

[lucycat]

I think that sounds a lot better than a 3:1 blend. I will be curious of what you think in a month or so. I think the cinnamon sounds nice with the anise. I think it was the cinnamon that accelerated so much. If the anise accelerates I don't remember it being much. Cinnamon is always a freight train.

 

[KiwiMoose]

Oh yes - I know cinnamon accelerates but I don't recall it moving that fast before.

 

[KiwiMoose]

This has now mellowed out to a nice warm sweet smell - at first it was a bit clinical smelling. I have found with other times using anise that after a month or two it adds a sweetness to the overall scent. Nice.

 

[soapgeek]

Never used it, but sounds lovely! I might steal that one and use it in a soap for my mom
Be aware that the use of star anise is restricted, so run your recipe through an eocalc before making soap with this blend.

Hi, hope you don't mind me jumping in on this one?

I believe recommended rates are different between countries - for example, in the EU, the maximum recommended dilution rate for rinse-off products is 3%.

I've attached a screenshot from the website of a UK company that does the cosmetic safety reports - the maximum recommended safe dilution for Star Anise in UK/EU is 0.15%.

Never used it, but sounds lovely! I might steal that one and use it in a soap for my mom
Be aware that the use of star anise is restricted, so run your recipe through an eocalc before making soap with this blend.

 

[KiwiMoose]

I only use 3% in total of essential oils - 30g in a 1 kilo ( of oil) batch. So when I blend it's rare that they go over the recommended amounts. However I note that I'm actually using Aniseed and not Anise, so that means I can use 0.05% more than the star anise recommendation - woohoo!

 

[szaza]

Thanks @soapgeek I wasn't aware of that. I've recently gone up to 5% and really liked the intensity of the smell at that percentage. I don't sell, but it's still good to know the officially allowed maximums.

 

[soapgeek]

Thanks @soapgeek I wasn't aware of that. I've recently gone up to 5% and really liked the intensity of the smell at that percentage. I don't sell, but it's still good to know the officially allowed maximums.

Modern Soapmakings 'EOCALC' is a good guide anyway, as it lists whether oils are safe at 1%, 3%, etc... It's good for flagging up potentially unsafe oils, but I'm not sure if it tells what the usage rates are for 'hot' or potentially unsafe oils, eg clove, cinnamon, etc... for example, I read recently that usage advice has changed for cinnamon, to 0.07% I think it was. On the screenshot I attached, it's still 0.5...

 

[Mobjack Bay]

I read somewhere that the IFRA guidelines have tended to get tighter for a number of EOs, like basil, which contains carvacrol. I've seen some very expensive basil EO that does not have much carvacrol, but most of what's readily available and affordable does, including the bottle I bought before I did my homework

Plus, different EOs can contain the same offending/regulated constituents, can't they? I think that complicates blending. I bought Tisserand and Young's book so I don't go too far astray.

 

[soapgeek]

I read somewhere that the IFRA guidelines have tended to get tighter for a number of EOs, like basil, which contains carvacrol. I've seen some very expensive basil EO that does not have much carvacrol, but most of what's readily available and affordable does, including the bottle I bought before I did my homework

Plus, different EOs can contain the same offending/regulated constituents, can't they? I think that complicates blending. I bought Tisserand and Young's book so I don't go too far astray.

I'll have a look for that book... I've got some basil oil, I'd better have a read up before I start using it! Thank you

 

[Mobjack Bay]

I'll have a look for that book... I've got some basil oil, I'd better have a read up before I start using it! Thank you

It's this one: https://www.amazon.com/Essential-Oi...inements=p_27:Robert+Tisserand&s=books&sr=1-1

 

[soapgeek]

It's this one: https://www.amazon.com/Essential-Oil-Safety-Health-Professionals/dp/0443062412/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&qid=1590327076&refinements=p_27:Robert+Tisserand&s=books&sr=1-1

Ah, fantastic, thank you!