I've been making sugar scrubs following a recipe by another soaper. I've been following the IFRA guidelines on FO's. The recipe has a total of 10.71oz counting the preservative. My question is should the sugar itself also be counted when calculating the amount of fragrance to use? If so, my recipe has 20oz of sugar so would the total calculation be based on 30.71oz?? Thanks for your help.
Sugar Scrubs and Fragrance Amounts
- Thread starter cappykat
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For a 1000g batch, I typically use 20g of FO. That 20g is part of the 1000, so it works out to 2% of the formula.
Here are some fake easy numbers to demonstrate what I mean:
490 g base ingredients (surfactants, oils, preservative, etc.)
490 g sugar
20 g FO
Here are some fake easy numbers to demonstrate what I mean:
490 g base ingredients (surfactants, oils, preservative, etc.)
490 g sugar
20 g FO
Then I used way too much. I guess my question is do I add the sugar as part of my total? I don't work in grams but I had 10.71oz of these ingredients; olive oil, coconut oil, e-wax, stearic acid, beeswax, polysorbate 20, and preservative. Then an additional 20oz of sugar. So, would I add that sugar in when calculating the fragrance oil?
Yes. And you would use a product calculator to figure the FO as 2% out of the 100% ingredient total.
Well, I wouldn't use a random 2%. I would use the IFRA amount of the particular fragrance I'm using. That should always be the guideline to use when calculating fragrance oils. So, if I have a total volume of 30.70 and my FO has a IFRA of 4% then I'd use 1.20oz of FO. What I haven't been adding in my total is the sugar.
I wasn't suggesting use of a random 2% - as I said, I was just giving you an example with numbers that made for easy math. I was also trying to make it clear that the 2% is included in the 100% total of ingredients, including the sugar. That is how my example was written.
FWIW, I would consider 4% to be a very heavy scent load in a sugar scrub.
FWIW, I would consider 4% to be a very heavy scent load in a sugar scrub.
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I mostly make soap so I'm not getting the math for the scrubs. Aren't scrubs category 9 same as soap? A wash off product. In soap you'd calculate on the total oils only and based on the IFRA % I normally use 1oz per lb of oils or .0625%. So you usually use 2% of the total volume as long as it's not higher than the IFRA? The problem I'm having is some fragrances at 2% have little scent.
Yes, scrubs and soaps are the same category, but products like scrubs tend to both hold and release scent more freely than hard bar soaps do. I can typically use less than half the amount of FO in a scrub that I would use in a bar soap. But if the IFRA is 4%, and the scent is light, you can certainly use that much if you'd like.
Also, if you didn't include the weight of the sugar into figuring the correct percentage of FO, you actually used much less FO than you think - not too much. That may be why your scent was so light. Try using 2% of your total batch weight first, before going higher. You can always add more FO, but the only way to reduce scent is to make another batch without any scent, and mix them together, leaving you with far too much product. Ask me how I know
Also, if you didn't include the weight of the sugar into figuring the correct percentage of FO, you actually used much less FO than you think - not too much. That may be why your scent was so light. Try using 2% of your total batch weight first, before going higher. You can always add more FO, but the only way to reduce scent is to make another batch without any scent, and mix them together, leaving you with far too much product. Ask me how I know
Hi - the fragrance calculator from the site you purchased from could help? I know for BB, you’d use the “salts” category and enter the total batch weight (I’ve asked them to be sure), not just the oils. I agree with @AliOop, you need much less than you think. I’m including a screen shot from one of the BB FOs I love 
love in sugar scrub. 
love in sugar scrub. 
Thank you both so much. AliOop now I get it. I'm a little slow...
. Good info and I'll screenshot this so I remember next time. I was trying to figure out what to do to decrease the scent. I actually split the batch into 2 scents. I didn't even think about making another batch...duh. My recipe makes about three, 10oz jars.
Thank you dmcgee for your tips also. Really appreciate the help.
. Good info and I'll screenshot this so I remember next time. I was trying to figure out what to do to decrease the scent. I actually split the batch into 2 scents. I didn't even think about making another batch...duh. My recipe makes about three, 10oz jars.Thank you dmcgee for your tips also. Really appreciate the help.
In soap, the IFRA is calculated on the total finished weight, same as every other product.
A soaper shortcut for fragrance load has been to only go by the oils weight, (ppo in the US), but fragrance load is a different thing from IFRA levels.
Oh gosh...please explain cause I'm not getting what you're saying? I've always been taught fragrance is based on total oils only in soap. Finished weight?? Then you're including the lye and water? What do you mean fragrance load in reference to IFRA??
IFRA levels are all based on finished total product weight.
The 'fragrance as a % of oils' or per pound of oils are rules of thumb that soapers use but are different calculations from the IFRA calculations. One is scent level, the other is safety margin.
A fragrance might be weak or strong at the IFRA maximum, IFRA is only about safety. The only way they can be sure of the results is to go by the weight of all the ingredients.
Then in soap, scrubs or whatever calculations should be based on total weight of all ingredients? Water evaporates in soap so if you use full water in the calculations the fragrance could be concentrated after the cure. In scrubs or lotions you wouldn't have that. Is this correct?
In soaps it is PPO. In everything else, it is total weight. 
Not all of the water evaporates. Rougly 10-12% of the batch weight is lost, is all.
And yes it's weird that a soap made with a lot of water might end up more strongly scented .. but some of the scent goes, too.
You'll notice that the entire IFRA thing is a work in progress, we just learn to roll with it ;-)
And yes it's weird that a soap made with a lot of water might end up more strongly scented .. but some of the scent goes, too.
You'll notice that the entire IFRA thing is a work in progress, we just learn to roll with it ;-)
So, if, when making soap, I have a total oil, water, lye weight of 90 oz., and I assume 12% evaporation of water after curing 6 weeks, then the total weight, without fragrance oil, would be 79.2 oz. Then I calculate 6% of 79.2 oz (4.75 oz.) and add 4.75 oz fragrance oil to the oils, water and lye weight. The total batch (oils, water, lye, fragrance oil) weight is now 83.95 oz. 4.75 oz is 5.65% of the total batch weight, and as long as the IFRA for the fragrance is at least 5% for category 9, then I feel satisfied I'm not exceeding the guidelines, even though 4.75 oz would be almost 8% of the oil weight.
Yep.
Try to stop thinking about oil weight *in regards to IFRA*, it doesn't pertain. (A blue size 10 sweater is the same size as a pale blue size 10~). They aren't interested in how strongly scented things are; just skin safety.
Try to stop thinking about oil weight *in regards to IFRA*, it doesn't pertain. (A blue size 10 sweater is the same size as a pale blue size 10~). They aren't interested in how strongly scented things are; just skin safety.
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