something I (re)learned today

[carebear]

well, 2 things actually:

1 - lemongrass and coffee smell great together
2 - it's challenging to recognize light trace in soap that is super dark from having ground coffee in it, until it's at much heavier trace LOL.

but I think it'll be fine.

 

[Dixie]

hmmmmm, that's an intresting combo. What kind of coffee? I only have turkish coffee which is very chocolate smelling.

 

[carebear]

whatever coffee I have around. this is a fisherman's soap for removing fish stink from hands.

 

[SimplyE]

Jeez. I will be making me coffee soap tomorrow. Was thinking about orange (degrease) rather than lemon. It has been a year...Thanks for the warning!

 

[carebear]

E - when I use "used" coffee grounds, the color doesn't come out much. but when I grind fresh ones I get dark soap.

I'm next making an anise soap (also for fishermen), then a coffee-orange kitchen soap. Remember, tho, that true citrus isn't very stable in soap - so I'll be using some bergamot I think, maybe. Not sure.

 

[SimplyE]

E - when I use "used" coffee grounds, the color doesn't come out much. but when I grind fresh ones I get dark soap.

I'm next making an anise soap (also for fishermen), then a coffee-orange kitchen soap. Remember, tho, that true citrus isn't very stable in soap - so I'll be using some bergamot I think, maybe. Not sure.

I keep going between "used" grounds or corn meal. I was thinking of adding Litsea to anchor. Opinion? ( )

 

[carebear]

IMO cornmeal is too rough. Most of the time coffee is too, but I regrind store-ground coffee about 5X in my little coffee grinder and it seems to work.

I like ground apricot kernel and pumice the best for hands and feet.

For body - I like jojoba beads and a touch of the ground apricot.

 

[SimplyE]

I found that with corn meal, but I also kind of liked it...sickly :shock: Exfoliation on my hands. I have not tried the "used" coffee. Seems more economical in a coffee soap. Have not yet used Litsea, though. Wondering how that would work in anchoring the orange...not yet tried it yet.

 

[carebear]

Litsea works beautifully as an anchor, but it's more lemon than orange. That's why I was thinking about bergamot, but I"m not sure how well it anchors.

 

[SimplyE]

Do love bergamont. Keep me posted! I liked the idea of orange as a degreaser. Lemon anything is my fav, though...

 

[ChrissyB]

I made a batch of soap 2 weeks ago using Litsea Cubea as an anchor with some Lemongrass FO that I had used before but it faded within 3 days in a fully gelled batch.
I gelled this batch also, and the scent is as strong as the first day, even after full gell, which some say makes the scent disappear.

 

[carebear]

Chrissy, are you saying the lemongrass disappeared?

I make mine with 1 oz ppo and I have a bar from 2 years ago that's still strongly scented. Just lemongrass, no other fragrance material.

 

[heyjude]

Has anyone ever used cappachino powder in place of coffee grounds? I have some left over from a recipe and since it was pretty pricey ($6 for
a small jar) I'd like to find another use for it.

The brownies weren't that great.

Jude

 

[carebear]

Is that like instant coffee? because I use the coffee grounds to provide grit and I don't think that something that dissolves will work for that.

 

[ChrissyB]

Carebear, no the Lemongrass didn't disappear cos I anchored it with the Litsea, but a batch that I made a while back with just Lemongrass (FO) and no anchor has faded almost completely.
Do you think Lemongrass EO will last longer than an FO? (is that an obvious question?)

 

[LJA]

PIX!!!

 

[carebear]

No, it's not an obvious question, and it wouldn't matter if it was!

As far as which would last longer - well you got me there! Often an FO is made to make up for the shortcomings of and EO (like citrus FOs are better) but that's not always the case.

I've soaped lemongrass EO and it sticks like crazy. I've soaped lemongrass sage FO which also stuck. I've never tried a straight lemongrass FO (the EO is so cheap!).

Exactly what FO did you soap? From what supplier? Maybe there is a review of it out there somewhere.

Or who knows, maybe I've been lucky.

 

[ChrissyB]

I used Lemongrass FO from Big Tree Supplies, she sources her stuff from the US. Maybe I didn't use enough? I used 2.5% of my total batch weight. It's still very very faint, but nothing like it was, and definitely not as strong as out of the bottle. And it's one of my fave scents.
I am going to try an EO and see if that sticks more.
So, given the success you've had with Lemongrass EO, maybe that's the one citrus that will stick? As opposed to lemon, lime, orange, which all seem to fade out substantially.

 

[heyjude]

Carebear,

It's really just a powder like cocoa that you add to provide a coffee type flavor. It has a pretty powdery texture.

Jude

 

[Deda]

Carebear, Lemongrass & Coffee sounds divine.

I like the 'big' particles in cornmeal for kitchen soap, but I'm starting to develop a fondness for exfoliating powders like chamomile (very scratchy) and lemon (not so much).

HeyJude, I want to try cappuccino powder, wonder if the smell will come through at all? I know my ground coffee doesn't unless I use way too much.