scents all gone

[Guspuppy]

It's been probably a year since I have made any new soap. My old soaps are getting to be very lovely, as many have described on here. But every single one has lost every bit of scent! Is this usual? I mean everything from lemongrass and cedar EOs to strongly scented FO's - everything no longer has any scent. The recipe doesn't seem to matter either - 100% CO salt bars, shea bars, almond oil (main oil in each case). I'm wondering why even bother with scents and colors? I mean the colors are all still there but what good is pretty soap without a pretty smell to go with it? I did store my soaps on an open table in the basement - until the mice started eating them last winter, then I brought what was uneaten up and put it in the bathroom closet in a small pile. Should I have bagged them in plastic to retain scents after the 2-month cure? Or????

I was planning on actually making soap for Christmas gifts this year but if the scent doesn't stick, what then? Hrmm.

 

[IrishLass]

With the exception of litsea cubeba EO and certain others, EO's are notorious for fading. Although FOs in general are better 'stickers' in soap than EOs, they are just as capable of fading, too, but it depends greatly on the particular FO from whichever vendor it came from. Which FOs did you use and where did you buy them? I try to stick to purchasing only those that have shown themselves to stand the test of time (and different environments) in my soap. If they don't last at least a year in my soap, I scratch them off my list.


IrishLass

 

[KristaY]

If you left them open to air, that's probably part of the problem. Yes, I have had many scents fade into nothing after cure or a year, but most stick around without a problem. Like IrishLass said, I use FO's that have good reviews on their sticking power so that helps. Once my soaps are cured, they're wrapped up, or stored in zip top bags. Have you used them in the shower yet? Many scents will reappear in the steamy shower or sink side.

 

[Guspuppy]

I looked back at my recipe book and wow, I didn't actually realize I'd made my very first soap in March 2016! So that one (shea butter with lemongrass EO) almost lasted 2 years, it still had a very mild scent early last winter. I also used Cedar EO in a salt bar which was lovely and lasted a really long time, which quite surprised me as it was an EO. Otherwise I used Apple FO in a 60% lard from Nurture in July 2017, Lily of the valley in 60% lard from Brambleberry in June 2017 (this one was VERY strong freshly poured, I'm surprised it did not last a year), and a lettuce FO from Brambleberry in a OO castile in april 2016. Oh and another salt bar with Yuzu Cybilla, which I adore the smell of, and thought was less than a year old but it turns out I made it in sept 2016. (perhaps I should have looked at the book to realize some of them were 2+ years old already before posting this, but dang - it sure doesn't seem like I've made soap that long ago!!) I made a few others but some scents I did not like at all and gave away, they might have lasted better.

I have indeed tried everything in the shower, no scents have returned although I can still very faintly get a whiff of cedar from the salt bars. Those babies are from 4/2016 and EO so I am seriously impressed I still get anything. I expected the EO's to not last as long as FO, but curiously all my EO scents have lasted far longer than the FOs, for some reason. Lemongrass, cedar, and lemon eucalyptus, which I used in last September's ribbon pour challenge. It is gone now too but it lasted a fairly long time. I guess I'll start storing soaps in zip bags after they cure!

It's funny how my soap tastes change, too. When I first started, the salt bars were by far my favorite soaps. Now I am preferring my shea butter soap, or my 100% CO non-salt soap. Maybe my skin is changing, but maybe it's just the soaps changing as they age, too.

 

[Obsidian]

How much FO do you use ppo? When I first first started, I tried saving $ and was only using .5 ppo and it just didn't last a long cure.
A few did, found a 5 yr old salt bar that still smells, not enough to ID the fo but you can tell something is there.

Now days, I use 1 oz ppo and have stopped using EO, I still have some to use up but I won't buy anymore, at least not for soap.

Lemongrass doesn't even last 4 months for me. Found a lemon FO that is insanely strong, I have high hopes for it.

 

[Veggiebin]

1 oz. ppo - wow! That seems like a lot to me. Do other people use that much? For a forty bar batch that would be a full 8 oz. of fragrance. I don’t generally have an issue with the scents sticking around for a full year, and I use much less than that.

 

[Obsidian]

Many do yes. It depends on the scent and the person, not everyone wants that much scent though.

 

[Donna]

I'm with Obsidian. My standard is 1 oz of FO per pound and I have stopped using EO's for soap. If the FO is a real zinger scent wise, I will back off to .75 oz per pound. With the exception of a very few,
my scents have lasted for at least 2- 3 years. They stay in a rack until they are given away. I keep the end cuts to check the fragrances. I research scents before I purchase them.
Soap Scent Review is a great resource you might find helpful.

 

[DeeAnna]

Also check out SMF's own fragrance oil review: https://tinyurl.com/y8yqhtlt

I also use 6% of fragrance in most of my soaps. (that's 1 oz scent per 16 oz oils)

 

[shunt2011]

Another one who uses 6%. My scents too last a long time. I just donated some that we 6 years old and they still held a good scent.

 

[Veggiebin]

I suppose it’s a personal preference. As it is, with the small amount that I use, some are too strong for me, but others love them. They still have scent after two years, which works for me.

 

[Guspuppy]

Wow! I have never used more than 3% FO in soap. Even at that, some of the scents were way too strong during 8-week cure for me to even keep them in the house, they had to go out to the detached garage. But I suppose I might still have scent after a year if I used 6%! I remember one Rose Geranium, I think it was an EO I was trying for bug repellency help, that smelled so bad to me I had to throw the soap away. Luckily I had only made a pound to test.

DeeAnna, I do use our SMF FO review too. Thanks!

 

[Veggiebin]

I’m glad it’s not just me

 

[soapmaker]

1 oz. ppo - wow! That seems like a lot to me. Do other people use that much? For a forty bar batch that would be a full 8 oz. of fragrance. I don’t generally have an issue with the scents sticking around for a full year, and I use much less than that.

No it's not just you. I use 3% and the scent lasts well over a year. Storage is a big thing.

 

[cmzaha]

I am in the 6% group, even with most strong fragrances. If my customers cannot smell it they simply do not buy it

With Essential Oils it would depend on the EO, some such as Petitgrain and Thyme are totally over bearing and need to be used in small percentages and do hold well. While Eucalyptus is strong I find it does not hold well at all.

 

[Lin19687]

I'm pretty much a 5%, which most of my FO are listed at . Less if it is indicated for skin safe at that %

 

[psfred]

A lot of this depends on your nose. I have soaps I made nearly a year ago that have plenty of scent to me, but I've been told by others they can't smell anything at all, and wouldn't expect to even when they were fresh.

You will need to scent pretty heavily for sale, I think, as most artisan soap purchasers expect strong scents. For me, very light is the ticket, I find many commercial soaps too strong.

You will have to experiment to see what you (and the people you are giving soap to) perfer. It's still great soap even if it doesn't have a strong scent.

 

[IrishLass]

I mainly use 5% ppo, sometimes less, sometimes more.....it depends on the FO. My wallet prefers me to use as little FO as my soap can get by with and still smell wonderfully fragrant for at least up to a year. With some FO's I can get by with as little as 2%, and with others as much as 6%. I never go over 6%, though....that's my highest limit. If an FO can't pull it's weight at 6% ppo, it's just not the FO for me. For what it's worth, the majority of my FOs do splendidly well for my likes at 5%.


IrishLass

 

[lucycat]

I use 5-6%. I might use less if it was just for me but if someone purchases my soap and then keeps it in their cabinet 6 months they will still want a scent in the soap. If the scent fades before they use the soap then I will probably not get repeat sales from them.

 

[Candle Guy]

I mainly use 5% ppo, sometimes less, sometimes more.....it depends on the FO. My wallet prefers me to use as little FO as my soap can get by with and still smell wonderfully fragrant for at least up to a year. With some FO's I can get by with as little as 2%, and with others as much as 6%. I never go over 6%, though....that's my highest limit. If an FO can't pull it's weight at 6% ppo, it's just not the FO for me. For what it's worth, the majority of my FOs do splendidly well for my likes at 5%.


IrishLass

I have been using 6% for all of my fragrances that allow it. I have only used a couple of my soaps because well I just started soap making lol. My soap smells great in the shower but after I get out I can barely smell it on my skin. Is this normal? Have you found that customers want a scent that sticks to them after the shower or the scent to be strong before they purchase it?