Rocky Mountain soap

[user 58006]

Hey everyone .
So I made this post on here when I first started making soap .

My mom and I love Rocky Mountain soap company . Now that I’ve been making soap for sometime now I thought I would plug away at a similar recipe for my momma .

I don’t use sunflower oil to often . I made this recipe last night for my mom . It’s a lavender , bergamot, patchouli . With lavender buds and a touch of mica .

But here my recipe was wondering everyone's thought .

Also with Olive oil prices going up would be nice to have a recipe that could be a bit cheaper than my main recipe .

Also I was wondering where everyone get their sunflower oil the cheapest . I’m in Canada . Is there a certain type or just any sunflower oil is okay?

Thanks soap fam

 

[not_ally]

Don't know about Canada since I'm in the US, but if using sunflower, you should use the high oleic version. Here's a couple of useful links from the forum:

https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/sunflower-oil-vs-ho-sunflower-oil.83666/

https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/olive-vs-ho-sunflower-safflower-canola.83491/

Re the formula, 30% CO would be too high for me, my skin has gotten drier as I've aged, as is typical with women, I think. Maybe reduce that a bit (I never go above 20%). Also, you probably have already noticed this, but lavender buds (like most non-liquid plant materials) go brown in CP because of the lye and become, ahem, less decorative (the most commonly used description is "mouse turds" ).

 

[user 58006]

Don't know about Canada since I'm in the US, but if using sunflower, you should use the high oleic version. Here's a couple of useful links from the forum:

https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/sunflower-oil-vs-ho-sunflower-oil.83666/

https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/olive-vs-ho-sunflower-safflower-canola.83491/

Re the formula, 30% CO would be too high for me, my skin has gotten drier as I've aged, as is typical with women, I think. Maybe reduce that a bit (I never go above 20%). Also, you probably have already noticed this, but lavender buds (like most non-liquid plant materials) go brown in CP because of the lye and become, ahem, less decorative (the most commonly used description is "mouse turds" ).

Okay . I think the Shea balances it out ? But I will do some tweaking . I know the mouse turds lol might replace with something different. But never put lavender buds in soap before and it’s a lavender soap so have to try it .

If you superfat a soap is it less drying ?

 

[not_ally]

The easiest way for me to figure out if a soap is going to be too drying on my skin (especially my face, since the skin is more delicate there and increasingly so as we age) is just to check the "cleansing" number on soapcalc, I used to carefully examine all the relative benefits/disadvantages of the various fatty acids in oils when I changed my recipes, but I've been using the same ones for so long now I don't anymore. Superfat will make a soap less drying, but the fatty acids in the oils will come into play as well. ETA: with CP you won't be able to choose the oils which make up your superfat, it will depend on various factors, eg, which oils include the greatest amounts of unsaponifiable fatty acids. Although I do think that shea is good in that respect (high in unsaponifiables) you could still drop the cleansing number by reducing the CO. Hopefully one of our chemistry experts will step in and do a better job of explaining all this.

I like to keep my cleansing number close to the bottom end of the cleansing scale, 13 or 14. Since that range is a small one, every point will make a difference. Even with the shea butter, yours is at 17 so you could drop it a bit and see if it works better for her. Soap will cleanse at 0 on that scale, it just strips the skin of its natural oils and makes it drier the higher you go.

 

[user 58006]

The easiest way for me to figure out if a soap is going to be too drying on my skin (especially my face, since the skin is more delicate there and increasingly so as we age) is just to check the "cleansing" number on soapcalc, I used to carefully examine all the relative benefits/disadvantages of the various fatty acids in oils when I changed my recipes, but I've been using the same ones for so long now I don't anymore. Superfat will make a soap less drying, but the fatty acids in the oils will come into play as well. ETA: with CP you won't be able to choose the oils which make up your superfat, it will depend on various factors, eg, which oils include the greatest amounts of unsaponifiable fatty acids. Although I do think that shea is good in that respect (high in unsaponifiables) you could still drop the cleansing number by reducing the CO. Hopefully one of our chemistry experts will step in and do a better job of explaining all this.

I like to keep my cleansing number close to the bottom end of the cleansing scale, 13 or 14. Since that range is a small one, every point will make a difference. Even with the shea butter, yours is at 17 so you could drop it a bit and see if it works better for her. Soap will cleanse at 0 on that scale, it just strips the skin of its natural oils and makes it drier the higher you go.

Sounds good . thank you

Sounds good . thank you

I would love for someone to explain how Rocky Mountain does it !!!

The bar check off in everything really . Other then the cleansing being bit high . I don't want the bar to go bad buy superfatting to much. But im thinking maybe trying a 7% superfat could fix the issue .

I would like to talk more about oleic acid and understanding high oleic acid numbers affecting the bar ?

Lauric + Myristic - 20 to 30
Palmitic + Stearic - 20 to 30
Oleic - 32 to 42
Linoleic - 7 to 14
Linolenic - 0 to 1
Ricinoleic - 4 to 7

the recipe im most interest in is the 25% for all ingredients . I think that one close . Plus cost effective . Just have to do something to adjust the dryness .

Im wondering recommended super fats for this recipe .

 

[dragonmaker]

I don’t like high super fat because my pipes don’t like high super fat. I recommend a low super fat like 1-3% and lowering the amount of coconut oil instead of trying to fix a high coconut oil recipe with pipe-gumming superfat. Just my 2 cents

 

[AliOop]

@dragonmaker that advice was worth at least $1!

 

[user 58006]

@dragonmaker that advice was worth at least $1!

ahahaha

I don’t like high super fat because my pipes don’t like high super fat. I recommend a low super fat like 1-3% and lowering the amount of coconut oil instead of trying to fix a high coconut oil recipe with pipe-gumming superfat. Just my 2 cents

okay sounds good . Thank you . Ive never really messed around with my superfat unless I was making my coconut soap. You taking about your water pipes lol ?

 

[AliensrReal]

I use 8% super fat with my recipe that contains 25% coconut oil. I love it.

 

[KiwiMoose]

Are you using those 4 ingredients because that's what the Rocky Mountain soap uses? Can you get Rice Bran oil over there at a good price? Here in NZ it's one of our cheapest oils.
And how about castor? That's always good at 5%.

 

[user 58006]

Are you using those 4 ingredients because that's what the Rocky Mountain soap uses? Can you get Rice Bran oil over there at a good price? Here in NZ it's one of our cheapest oils.
And how about castor? That's always good at 5%.

Hi KiwiMoose ,

I am at the moment . Im trying to make this soap base for my mom . She loves Rocky Mountain soaps and always spoils herself with it . Saying to me make me this one lol. So ive been trying to figure it out for her to save her some money .

Yes we have rice bran oil and castor . I normally put castor in all my soaps recipes. I haven't used rice bran but I do have some in my soap room. But at the moment im trying to figure this out for my mom .

What are your thought on rice bran ?

Are you using those 4 ingredients because that's what the Rocky Mountain soap uses? Can you get Rice Bran oil over there at a good price? Here in NZ it's one of our cheapest oils.
And how about castor? That's always good at 5%.

I just did a bunch of looking around . Sounds like rice bran oil is an amazing sub for olive oil . Now im going to be on a new mission . Thank you . Cost effective and amazing for your skin

 

[artemis]

So ive been trying to figure it out for her to save her some money .

Have you asked her what exactly she likes about it? When I have quizzed non-soaping friends about what they like it always boils down to fragrance in the end. That, and "it makes my skin feel better that store bought." If that's your mom's case, I'd probably just make a really nice soap recipe without duplicating Rocky Mountain and focus on replicating the fragrance.

 

[dragonmaker]

ahahaha


okay sounds good . Thank you . Ive never really messed around with my superfat unless I was making my coconut soap. You taking about your water pipes lol ?

Yes, I’m talking about my water pipes/plumbing.

 

[user 58006]

I use 8% super fat with my recipe that contains 25% coconut oil. I love it.

Okay good to no. I went to 7 on the bars I made yesterday . I wanted to try it out . I might raise to 8 to see. I have a few more testers im going to do today .

 

[KiwiMoose]

I use RBO at 20% in my standard recipe. The main attraction, quite simply, was the price at only $NZ5 per 1 litre. But I like that it brings a bit more palmitic to the recipe as well, given that I don't use palm oil.

 

[user 58006]

I use RBO at 20% in my standard recipe. The main attraction, quite simply, was the price at only $NZ5 per 1 litre. But I like that it brings a bit more palmitic to the recipe as well, given that I don't use palm oil.

I noticed the palmitic go up . I changed out the olive oil and made a batch rice bran . Which im super happy about . Im can't wait for the bar to cure. I never use palm either . Im super happy . Thank you very much .

 

[janesathome]

I don’t like high super fat because my pipes don’t like high super fat. I recommend a low super fat like 1-3% and lowering the amount of coconut oil instead of trying to fix a high coconut oil recipe with pipe-gumming superfat. Just my 2 cents

I agree, less SF and a low cleansing score works for me!

 

[janesathome]

I noticed the palmitic go up . I changed out the olive oil and made a batch rice bran . Which im super happy about . Im can't wait for the bar to cure. I never use palm either . Im super happy . Thank you very much .

@Mike I’m in Alberta as well - I’ve bought high oleic sunflower oil from Costco at a MUCH lower price than the going (up, up, up) rate for olive. I’ve been playing with the HO sunflower for a couple months and while it’s early days, I like it.
The Costco business centre sells it in the 20 litre box.
I find rice bran oil to be very pricey - partly because I can’t find it for sale near me and the shipping costs are crazy. But it is a nice oil in soap!
I’m sure you can make something just as nice (ahem, or NICER!) as the RMSC bars for your mom! I like a non drying soap so use a max of 15% coconut oil, usually 10%, with a SF of 3% as our AB water is hard and I dislike soap scum. I also add 2% citric acid.

 

[user 58006]

@Mike I’m in Alberta as well - I’ve bought high oleic sunflower oil from Costco at a MUCH lower price than the going (up, up, up) rate for olive. I’ve been playing with the HO sunflower for a couple months and while it’s early days, I like it.
The Costco business centre sells it in the 20 litre box.
I find rice bran oil to be very pricey - partly because I can’t find it for sale near me and the shipping costs are crazy. But it is a nice oil in soap!
I’m sure you can make something just as nice (ahem, or NICER!) as the RMSC bars for your mom! I like a non drying soap so use a max of 15% coconut oil, usually 10%, with a SF of 3% as our AB water is hard and I dislike soap scum. I also add 2% citric acid.

Amazing where in the same area. I don't no anyone around me that make soap lol.

Ive been using Costco for olive oil and I actually went there today having a look at things at the sunflower oil. Super cheap. No rice bran tho. The rice bran oil I got was from voyageur soap and candle . I did a big order a long time ago but never used it . Cant remember remember the pice .

Citric Acid . Please give more insight of this ? Im going to do some reading also. What are the benefits of it ?

 

[user 58006]

Here are my soaps I’ve made in the past 2 days

Lemon honey tea , tea tree bergamot , brich sweet cypress , peppermint, black stout outmeal, lavender bergamot patchouli

My soap cutter doesn’t cut that style of car so I just cut them with a knife lol . None of them are even but it’s was fun to just make a bunch of small batches this week !