Soy wax in CP soap

[Dana89]

I have a recipe that I think is almost perfect for me. My skin loves it. However it is not as hard as I would like it. I think it is great when I add a large amount of Stearic acid but it is not very cost effective. I read on a womans blog about her experiments with soy wax, which I think she said was really high in stearic acid.
She said she gets a really smooth, silky texture which is what I get when I add a lot of SA, it would be cheaper (10 lbs for less than $20).
Just curious if anyone uses it in their recipe or has any thoughts on the matter?

 

[boyago]

I think Soy Wax (fully hydogenated soy oil) actually has more stearic acid in it then typical "stearic acid" but I haven't seen it anywhere priced less than SA (I think there are products labeled as soy wax than have other things in them as well). Also both of them have a melting temperature that is pretty high and will instantly saponify which would make them pretty lame to work with in a CP soap.

 

[Dana89]

Yep, SA does get thick very fast. The last batch I blended for 15 seconds max, threw in my FO and poured.
I usually like to do at least one color, I just love the way it feels.
I saw a woman on youtube doing it HP. The one pound I have now cost around 5 bucks. I believe Amazon has 100 % soywax for, 10 plds for 20 dollars. I don't know much about wax.

 

[boyago]

Soapers Choice sells 8 lbs at $1.75/lb and 25lbs @ $1.25/lb.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

Aye, anything with a lot of stearic acid would work better hp!

That said, could you harden it with something like sodium lactate or salt?

 

[Dana89]

I think I will give salt a try. Better to start with the cheaper ingredient first. I didn,t even think of that, Thanks EF.
@ Boyago-Soaper choice has great prices, I haven't ordered from them yet because I hate shipping cost, so when I order supplies I want to gt EOs, FOs, and micas. I really do wish SC sold that stuff as well. Since I don,t sell I never recoup any of my money and paying shipping fees from 2 seperate places is too hard right now.
Thanks for the help you two!

 

[MorpheusPA]

I like my soy wax, at up to about 20% max. It adds a lot of hardness to the bar, although it doesn't really bring anything else to the table.

Above that, the look gets waxy (for obvious reasons, I guess!), the bar gets too hard (as in you could pound nails with it), and the lather dies out too much.

Unlike SA, it doesn't accelerate nearly as much and you still have time for swirls 'n' twirls if you want to do that, although I wouldn't plan on a very complicated design. Something simpler, though, sure.

Make sure that you're using pure soy wax with no other additives (some include other candle hardeners or a mix of soy and palm). EcoSoya is pure soy wax, as is Candlewic's soy 120 base.

 

[Dana89]

Morpheus- Can you work with it at around 100 degrees? I think I may try at 10% it if you can do a simple in the pot swirl. If it doesnt work for me I can just make a few candles I guess. I curious if the silky feeling is just from the bar being hard or if wax/SA contributes that?

 

[MorpheusPA]

Morpheus- Can you work with it at around 100 degrees? I think I may try at 10% it if you can do a simple in the pot swirl. If it doesnt work for me I can just make a few candles I guess. I curious if the silky feeling is just from the bar being hard or if wax/SA contributes that?

100 would be a little cold, the melt point of hydrogenated soybean is around 120. I tend to work with the recipe around 135 to give me some margin. Give or take. I'm not very particular about temperature, I melt the oils/waxes and leave it on medium heat for a little longer to make sure they aren't going to freeze while I'm soaping.

Strangely, I haven't had any acceleration problems at that temperature. Recipes act just about the way you'd expect they would, although I wouldn't recommend a low flashpoint fragrance.

I think about half the feel is the hardness and half something imparted by the wax. Bar durability is also very high, but I'd expect that with soy wax (hardness 99, cleansing 0).

 

[Dana89]

Thanks, I will try it at higher temps then.

 

[dosco]

Dana89:
Are you stateside? If so is there a Hobby Lobby store near you? Goto their website for the store locator.

They sell both SA and Soy Wax ... I buy SA at the one near where I live for something like $5.99/lb. I haven't bought soy wax but my understanding is that it is fully hydrogenated soy oil and thus is similarly high in stearic as the "pressed SA flakes" we purchase for soapmaking.

Cheers-
Dave

 

[Dana89]

Thanks Dave! I think I can get it at Amazon for a little less with no shipping fee. I personally have an Ethical problem with Hobby Lobby and would not buy from them if they had rose EO for 5 dollars a gallon. Thank you for replying though, I hope I do not sound rude. I don,t have a problem with anyone who chooses to buy from them. Just the owner.

 

[dosco]

Thanks Dave! I think I can get it at Amazon for a little less with no shipping fee. I personally have an Ethical problem with Hobby Lobby and would not buy from them if they had rose EO for 5 dollars a gallon. Thank you for replying though, I hope I do not sound rude. I don,t have a problem with anyone who chooses to buy from them. Just the owner.

Dana:
No worries. I understand.

-Dave

 

[MorpheusPA]

Thanks Dave! I think I can get it at Amazon for a little less with no shipping fee. I personally have an Ethical problem with Hobby Lobby and would not buy from them if they had rose EO for 5 dollars a gallon. Thank you for replying though, I hope I do not sound rude. I don,t have a problem with anyone who chooses to buy from them. Just the owner.

You an' me both. I haven't set foot in there lately, and won't.

Candlewic also features soy wax in their Soy 120 mix, and it's 100% pure. Prices are frequently quite a bit cheaper than I can find elsewhere, but sometimes not.