Shower Lotion Bar Tests and recipes

[not_ally]

Thank you for helping me feel better about the contents of my soapy cabinets, because often I am.... ??

Me too! Or three

@Mobjack Bay, it seem like the link you included recommends a polysorbate if you're going the preservative+emulsifier/solubilizer route.
("Should you choose the approach where a water-soluble preservative and emulsifier is added the most obvious choice for the emulsifier would be a polysorbate, although others exist.")

But after you flagged the increased wash-off effect from emulsifiers above, it makes me wonder if I'd just rather look into one of the anhydrous-friendly preservatives (or combos) that you mentioned above. The reason I liked this bar better than the emulsified bars was that it retained so much more of the butter combo on my skin.

Although I think the emulsified bars added more emulsifier than we would need just to make the preservative miscible. I'm assuming that since preservatives range from .5-1.5% MUR that it wouldn't take much PS80? Hopefully that wouldn't effect increase the butter rinse-off effect much.

ETA: was looking at the difference between PS 20 and 80 in this context, still not sure because I got sidetracked by references to them being potentially adverse to the anti-bacterial effects of parabens (not sure about on other preservatives). This is why ignorance is bliss sometimes! Until you get knarly stuff growing in your B&B stuff, at least.

@dmcgee5034, like MJB am really curious about the differences when you use the new bar.

 

[Mobjack Bay]

But after you flagged the increased wash-off effect from emulsifiers above, it makes me wonder if I'd just rather look into one of the anhydrous-friendly preservatives (or combos) that you mentioned above. The reason I liked this bar better than the emulsified bars was that it retained so much more of the butter combo on my skin.

That seems like the best option to me. Minimizing the food quality of the exfoliants will also help. I'm going to give rice husks and/or rice bran a try.

@dmcgee5034 - I look forward to hearing how/if the beeswax affects the bar.



.

 

[Kcryss]

Has anyone used Euxyl PE 9010? or Jeecide Cap-7? (both available from LotionCrafter).

I have been using Euxyl PE 910 for about 3 yrs now. It's extremely versatile, can withstand temps that most preservatives cannot handle as well as high ph levels. I love it and wouldn't use anything else at this point.

 

[not_ally]

I have been using Euxyl PE 910 for about 3 yrs now. It's extremely versatile, can withstand temps that most preservatives cannot handle as well as high ph levels. I love it and wouldn't use anything else at this point.

Thanks, @Mobjack Bay and @Kcryss . Now in my LC shopping cart.

 

[AliOop]

Thanks, @Mobjack Bay and @Kryss. Now in my LC shopping cart.

Ok y’all have convinced me. I’m going to order some when my O+ runs low. To remind myself, I’ll add a sticky note to the O+ bottle.

 

[dmcgee5034]

Reporting back on 2% beeswax. To do this, I lowered each butter by 1%. In appearance, it makes the bars matte instead of shiny. In using, I don’t notice much, if any, difference in how fast they melt away or in how they guide. Not sure if trying to up the beeswax to 4% is worth it to try to extend the bar without compromising the glide. Any thoughts? I do think I want to lower the amount of exfoliants next time.

 

[Mobjack Bay]

@dmcgee5034 did you ever try upping the beeswax?

I'm going to be making some bars today. I imagine the allure of cocoa butter-rich bars is considerably dampened right now, but as luck would have it, I have cocoa butter stored in the refrigerator that I bought before the prices started skyrocketing.

I don't remember if I ever reported back that I like rice bran and rice husks as gentle exfoliants. They offer more exfoliation than the rice or almond flours, but a lot less than the ground beans that were in the original Buffy Bar that I tried.

So, I'm curious if anyone else did any additional experimentation.

 

[dmcgee5034]

Hi @Mobjack Bay - I didn’t go higher than 2% beeswax yet….

 

[Sudds]

Just wanted to share the experience I had making emulsified lotion bars/shower lotion bars for anyone that is interested or for future searchers. I really wanted to include one in my Christmas baskets, and after doing a fairly comprehensive search for recipes that looked good I tried the following recipes in 100g tester sizes. I’m only going to discuss my reasoning for the top two, since those are the ones I will mostly use going forward. The others are in no particular order:

DIY Lush Buffy Bar from a youtube video by Emilie Lefler,

SMF poster Irish Lass emulsified lotion bar, post no. 19 on this thread: In Shower Lotion Bar

This emulsified lotion bar from Whole Elise: Lotion Bars | Whole Elise

This emulsified lotion bar from Elements B&B: Earl Grey In-Shower Lotion Bars Recipe - Elements Bath & Body Learning Center

The bubble scrub body bar from DIY B&B on Etsy (recipe is proprietary, you can find it on sale on etsy here: DIY in the Shower, Bubble Scrub Body Bars - Etsy

This emulsified body butter from an SMF poster just because it looked like it had nice ingredients: In Shower Lotion Bar

They were all successful in the sense that I would have felt ok giving any of them to people and I think they would have thought “cool, pretty, smells good, feels nice”. But two really stood out, the DIY Buffy Bar and IL’s emulsified bar.

I was actually surprised that the Buffy Bar, the only non-emulsified one, was my favorite. It is the only one with exfoliants, but I think the real reason is that because it is non-emulsified it really left a layer of butter on my skin in a super-moisturizing, well-absorbed and non-greasy way.

It is also extremely easy to make, only has six ingredients, shea and cocoa butters, DIY exfoliants (rice, adzuki beans and almonds, all powdered in a coffee grinder) and FO (although I added a preservative, Optiphen Plus, because I feel like this is a good idea in a shower setting.) The only part I found tricky was pouring the mix into molds. She recommends pouring when the mix is at a “thick, almost brownie batter” texture. Maybe I make my brownie batter too thick but it made the mix too gloppy when I poured, and the bars were not smooth. Not a big deal, you can put them in the microwave and melt a bit, but I didn’t get it right until round two. Anyway, I loved these bar, as did the people I gave them to. I have never tried the LUSH version, so don't know how it compares, but the maker worked at LUSH for several years, so I think they must be close enough.

The other bar I really, really liked was Irish Lasses. Of the emulsified bars, it had the best skin feel and the highest degree of retained moisturizing after rinsing. I felt like that was one of the drawbacks of these bars generally, the emulsification made it so that a lot of the oil washed away upon rinsing. The IL bar was the one that left the most behind/felt great on the skin while still feeling like it was emulsified and easily rinsing away.

Both of these feel amazing in the shower and I think I will use them (and have them around as great little gifts) from now on.

 

[Sudds]

Just wanted to share the experience I had making emulsified lotion bars/shower lotion bars for anyone that is interested or for future searchers. I really wanted to include one in my Christmas baskets, and after doing a fairly comprehensive search for recipes that looked good I tried the following recipes in 100g tester sizes. I’m only going to discuss my reasoning for the top two, since those are the ones I will mostly use going forward. The others are in no particular order:

DIY Lush Buffy Bar from a youtube video by Emilie Lefler,

SMF poster Irish Lass emulsified lotion bar, post no. 19 on this thread: In Shower Lotion Bar

This emulsified lotion bar from Whole Elise: Lotion Bars | Whole Elise

This emulsified lotion bar from Elements B&B: Earl Grey In-Shower Lotion Bars Recipe - Elements Bath & Body Learning Center

The bubble scrub body bar from DIY B&B on Etsy (recipe is proprietary, you can find it on sale on etsy here: DIY in the Shower, Bubble Scrub Body Bars - Etsy

This emulsified body butter from an SMF poster just because it looked like it had nice ingredients: In Shower Lotion Bar

They were all successful in the sense that I would have felt ok giving any of them to people and I think they would have thought “cool, pretty, smells good, feels nice”. But two really stood out, the DIY Buffy Bar and IL’s emulsified bar.

I was actually surprised that the Buffy Bar, the only non-emulsified one, was my favorite. It is the only one with exfoliants, but I think the real reason is that because it is non-emulsified it really left a layer of butter on my skin in a super-moisturizing, well-absorbed and non-greasy way.

It is also extremely easy to make, only has six ingredients, shea and cocoa butters, DIY exfoliants (rice, adzuki beans and almonds, all powdered in a coffee grinder) and FO (although I added a preservative, Optiphen Plus, because I feel like this is a good idea in a shower setting.) The only part I found tricky was pouring the mix into molds. She recommends pouring when the mix is at a “thick, almost brownie batter” texture. Maybe I make my brownie batter too thick but it made the mix too gloppy when I poured, and the bars were not smooth. Not a big deal, you can put them in the microwave and melt a bit, but I didn’t get it right until round two. Anyway, I loved these bar, as did the people I gave them to. I have never tried the LUSH version, so don't know how it compares, but the maker worked at LUSH for several years, so I think they must be close enough.

The other bar I really, really liked was Irish Lasses. Of the emulsified bars, it had the best skin feel and the highest degree of retained moisturizing after rinsing. I felt like that was one of the drawbacks of these bars generally, the emulsification made it so that a lot of the oil washed away upon rinsing. The IL bar was the one that left the most behind/felt great on the skin while still feeling like it was emulsified and easily rinsing away.

Both of these feel amazing in the shower and I think I will use them (and have them around as great little gifts) from now on.

Hi Not Ally,
I am 11 months behind in the lotion bar messages but I have been wanting to make some since Zing turned me onto them, and tomorrow I am trying out my first couple of test batches...finally! I noticed that you really liked Irish Lasses. That is one I also want to try but have not been able to fine Butter EZ anywhere. I used to have some from 15-20 years ago, all I can remember is it was from a company located in Oregon. What did you substitute for the ButterEZ or did you actually find something like it. I need something like this for my legs and arms, I have good old Irish skin, and every winter it starts flaking and not much helps, I don't care how expensive the lotion is and it drives me crazy! Thanks for any info you can send my way!

 

[not_ally]

Hi Sudds, I never did find a sub for ButterEZ, which was discontinued by the manufacturer some years ago, I think. Irish Lass had commented the following on her notes on her bar: "f not using any ButterEZ, you can substitute it with one of the butters. ButterEZ feels a lot like shea butter." So I just subbed more shea for the BEZ amount.

Just to note though, these bars are not like Zing's/lotion bars, they are meant to be used in the shower, I never used them as regular lotion bars and can't really remember if they would have been good that way (ie; hard enough to stay firm without the wax in warm weather, too scrubby if including exfoliants, not melty enough without hot water, etc.)

 

[AliOop]

Today, something reminded me how much I love the Buffy Bar dupe, so I made a batch. Because I'm hoarding my precious cocoa butter, I subbed in that odd "kokum butter" that I'd received some time ago from MakeYourOwn Buzz. This was the package that was labeled as kokum butter, but the ingredients were listed as shea butter and aleurites moluccanus (candlenut) butter. After using most of it up in the Buffy Bars, I used up the rest in a batch of soap, using the SAP for shea butter. I also added dry colloidal oats into the mix.

You can see from the picture that I poured a little late, so the tops aren't smooth. Since these are just for home use, I don't mind. The batter didn't harden up as much as it normally does with cocoa butter, but it's definitely firm enough to use in the shower. I plan to test a bar in the shower later this evening, and will report back as to how the substitute worked.

 

[VikingChick]

… the ingredients were listed as shea butter and aleurites moluccanus (candlenut) butter…

I’ve never even heard of candlenut butter!

 

[Tammyfarms]

Today, something reminded me how much I love the Buffy Bar dupe, so I made a batch. Because I'm hoarding my precious cocoa butter, I subbed in that odd "kokum butter" that I'd received some time ago from MakeYourOwn Buzz. This was the package that was labeled as kokum butter, but the ingredients were listed as shea butter and aleurites moluccanus (candlenut) butter. After using most of it up in the Buffy Bars, I used up the rest in a batch of soap, using the SAP for shea butter. I also added dry colloidal oats into the mix.

You can see from the picture that I poured a little late, so the tops aren't smooth. Since these are just for home use, I don't mind. The batter didn't harden up as much as it normally does with cocoa butter, but it's definitely firm enough to use in the shower. I plan to test a bar in the shower later this evening, and will report back as to how the substitute worked.

View attachment 80693

Please do report back. I just bought a couple pounds of cocoa butter because I love the Buffy bars so much and I’m concerned the price may go up again in the near future. BTW Shay and Company has a pretty good price on cocoa butter right now (as compared to others). https://shayandcompany.com/product/cocoa-butter-natural-not-organic/

 

[AliOop]

@Tammyfarms, oh my goodness, that's a good price? Wow. I haven't even looked lately because it makes me sad.

I’ve never even heard of candlenut butter!

I never had, either! The label of this product actually said "kokum butter." I didn't realize until after the return window had passed that the ingredient list said, in very small print, "Butyrospermum parkii butter and aleurites moluccanus." I knew the first one was shea butter, but had to look up the second one. It wasn't in the SMFriend c@lculator under that name.

According to this wikipedia article, apparently it is either related to, or actually is, kukui nut oil. It is beyond me how one could sell a blend of shea butter and kukui nut oil and label it as kokum butter. Since it was all very confusing, I'd put off using it for over a year. Whatever it was, it definitely wasn't as hard as cocoa butter, so I wasn't surprised that my end result was a bit softer. Thank goodness it is all used up, and I don't have to think about it anymore!

 

[Tammyfarms]

@Tammyfarms, oh my goodness, that's a good price? Wow. I haven't even looked lately because it makes me sad.


I never had, either! The label of this product actually said "kokum butter." I didn't realize until after the return window has passed that the ingredient list said, in very small print, "Butyrospermum parkii butter and aleurites moluccanus." I knew the first one was shea butter, but had to look up the second one. It wasn't in the SMFriend c@lculator under that name.

According to this wikipedia article, apparently it is either related to, or actually is, kukui nut oil. It is beyond me how one could sell a blend of shea butter and kukui nut oil and label it as kokum butter. Since it was all very confusing, I'd put off using it for over a year. Thank goodness it is all used up, and I don't have to think about it anymore!

I felt the same but really, really, really love my Buffy bars. Have you ordered from Shay and Co? I have really been impressed with them. They usually mail out orders the same day and since they are coming from Portland OR they arrive in Idaho in about 2 days.

So strange about the “kokum butter”. I hope the Buffy bars and soap you made turn out great.

 

[AliOop]

I felt the same but really, really, really love my Buffy bars. Have you ordered from Shay and Co? I have really been impressed with them. They usually mail out orders the same day and since they are coming from Portland OR they arrive in Idaho in about 2 days.

So strange about the “kokum butter”. I hope the Buffy bars and soap you made turn out great.

Thank you! I gave one a try tonight, and it was nice. I do like the cocoa butter version better, so when these are used up, I'll be back to the regular recipe.

Fortunately, I have about 7lbs of cocoa butter in my stash. It has really good shelf life when stored in a cool dark place. But I'll be sure to give Shay & Co a try when I do need to order. I appreciate the recommendation!

 

[ackosel]

Okay, this country bumpkin had never heard of shower lotion bars until this evening. Now I need to make some! My skin is itchy and dry coming out of the shower lately, partly from the cold, dry weather and partly from my expanding belly stretching over this growing baby.

I made some tallow balm and tallow lotion bars last summer, but I don't really like them - very heavy and greasy feeling, even though they do feel decent after a bit and keep the itching at bay. The tallow smell also masks the lovely EOs I used to scent them.

Anyway, I want to try the DIY Lush Buffy Bar because it looks easiest with the fewest ingredients, and I have most of them handy. I have cocoa and Shea butters and almond flour, but no rice or dried beans. I'll probably experiment by making a one-bar batch tomorrow with almond flour and maybe some orange peel powder.

 

[Relle]

Had to google buffy bars, I don't go in that place anymore, as I hate being ignored, if they only knew how many sales they could have if they have service.

Fortunately, I have about 7lbs of cocoa butter in my stash. It has really good shelf life when stored in a cool dark place.

WOW, now, just where are you storing it ? just in case I need to borrow a cup.