tallow soap

[soapmaker]

Greetings all! Just did my first tallow soap. Scented with Lavendin, Lemongrass and Patchouli e.o.
35% tallow, 35% lard, 10% CO, 10% castor, 10% sunflower. I know some think 5% castor, I decided to try 10%.
Also added 1% sorbitol as per cmzaha. Suffering great regret that I forgot the ROE which I always add to Lavender blends to prevent rancidity. What do you think? I'm anxious for 6 weeks from now to see!

 

[IrishLass]

It looks good to me!

I know some think 5% castor, I decided to try 10%.

You'll be fine. I'm one of those soapers that actually likes using castor at a higher %. I use it at 10.5% in my own tallow/lard formula, and at 10% in my 50% olive oil formula . And then there's my 65% tallow formula where I use it at a whopping 23%. How much I use all depends on my formula. Some can take a higher amount and some can't. My 65% tallow formula with 23% castor feels like velvet to my skin, not sticky at all, but if I happened to use that much in my olive oil formula, it wouldn't feel as nice I'm sure.


IrishLass

 

[soapmaker]

My 65% tallow formula with 23% castor feels like velvet to my skin, not sticky at all, but if I happened to use that much in my olive oil formula, it wouldn't feel as nice I'm sure.


IrishLass [/QUOTE]

What's the other 12%?
Sorry, I messed up that quote.

It looks good to me!



You'll be fine. I'm one of those soapers that actually likes using castor at a higher %. I use it at 10.5% in my own tallow/lard formula, and at 10% in my 50% olive oil formula . And then there's my 65% tallow formula where I use it at a whopping 23%. How much I use all depends on my formula. Some can take a higher amount and some can't. My 65% tallow formula with 23% castor feels like velvet to my skin, not sticky at all, but if I happened to use that much in my olive oil formula, it wouldn't feel as nice I'm sure.


IrishLass

In case you didn't see the messed up post, what is the other 12%?

 

[cmzaha]

Greetings all! Just did my first tallow soap. Scented with Lavendin, Lemongrass and Patchouli e.o.
35% tallow, 35% lard, 10% CO, 10% castor, 10% sunflower. I know some think 5% castor, I decided to try 10%.
Also added 1% sorbitol as per cmzaha. Suffering great regret that I forgot the ROE which I always add to Lavender blends to prevent rancidity. What do you think? I'm anxious for 6 weeks from now to see!

Try a scrap if you have one after cutting, you will be amazed at the lather. I have certainly used up to 10% castor and like it, but castor is getting expensive and I sell....

 

[IrishLass]

In case you didn't see the messed up post, what is the other 12%?

Olive oil


IrishLass

 

[soapmaker]

Try a scrap if you have one after cutting, you will be amazed at the lather. I have certainly used up to 10% castor and like it, but castor is getting expensive and I sell....

I also sell but splurged because tallow and lard are not expensive.

 

[madison]

I have one of my formulas I use 10% castor oil with 60% tallow. I like it.

 

[cmzaha]

i have used higher amounts of castor, but I do not like the acceleration from the castor, since I do not use a high percentage of lard to slow trace. Hate the old smell lard gets

 

[soapmaker]

i have used higher amounts of castor, but I do not like the acceleration from the castor, since I do not use a high percentage of lard to slow trace. Hate the old smell lard gets

Do you think 35% lard is a high percentage? I was surprised at how slow my recipe traced. I know it was from the lard but I thought with the tallow and castor it would move much faster. I have used a touch of stearic acid in my recipe with a very high percentage of castor. Of course it doesn't slow the acceleration but it eliminates the stickiness.

 

[Yooper]

I love tallow soaps- I render my own fat from deer and beef and I think it makes the best soap.

One tip that I learned a long time ago is that using up to 20% KOH instead of all NaOH can make the high % tallow/lard or hard butters soap lather more easily. I am no chemist, so can't tell you way, but it's especially so if I use little or no coconut oil in those batches.

 

[soapmaker]

I love tallow soaps- I render my own fat from deer and beef and I think it makes the best soap.

One tip that I learned a long time ago is that using up to 20% KOH instead of all NaOH can make the high % tallow/lard or hard butters soap lather more easily. I am no chemist, so can't tell you way, but it's especially so if I use little or no coconut oil in those batches.

Thanks for this info. I have mostly skipped over the posts about KOH because I was satisfied with my NaOH recipes. But I will have to consider this. Thanks!

 

[DeeAnna]

We've been calling these "dual lye" recipes lately. There have been several helpful threads in the past year or so -- use "dual lye" as a search term to find them. I have an article on my "Soapy Stuff" page (click link below) about this technique.

 

[soapmaker]

We've been calling these "dual lye" recipes lately. There have been several helpful threads in the past year or so -- use "dual lye" as a search term to find them. I have an article on my "Soapy Stuff" page (click link below) about this technique.

Yes, I remember them being called dual lye recipes. I believe you forgot to post the link.

 

[amd]

Yes, I remember them being called dual lye recipes. I believe you forgot to post the link.

The link is in DeeAnna's signature line... but if you are using the app, signature lines don't show up
Here it is: http://classicbells.com/soap/soapyStuff.html

 

[cmzaha]

I love tallow soaps- I render my own fat from deer and beef and I think it makes the best soap.

One tip that I learned a long time ago is that using up to 20% KOH instead of all NaOH can make the high % tallow/lard or hard butters soap lather more easily. I am no chemist, so can't tell you way, but it's especially so if I use little or no coconut oil in those batches.

I would not go with 20% KOH for a dual lye soap. It is going to be to soft of a soap. I use 5% KOH and it helps the lather just fine without compromising the soap and longevity of the soap.

 

[soapmaker]

The link is in DeeAnna's signature line... but if you are using the app, signature lines don't show up
Here it is: http://classicbells.com/soap/soapyStuff.html

Thanks amd!

 

[DeeAnna]

...if you are using the app, signature lines don't show up...

Wups! I didn't know that. I will keep that in mind for the future. And here I thought I was being helpful by putting links in my sig.

Sorry about that, @soapmaker!

@Yooper -- I normally use 5% KOH like Carolyn. I think it works very well to boost lather without making an obvious change to the hardness or longevity of the soap. If 20% KOH works for you, good deal! Sistrum, a former member of SMF, used 5% to 10% in her lard soaps. But some people say 5% KOH doesn't make a useful improvement in lather, so maybe 10% or more would be an option for them to consider.

 

[soapmaker]

Wups! I didn't know that. I will keep that in mind for the future. And here I thought I was being helpful by putting links in my sig.

Sorry about that, @soapmaker!

@Yooper -- I normally use 5% KOH like Carolyn. I think it works very well to boost lather without making an obvious change to the hardness or longevity of the soap. If 20% KOH works for you, good deal! Sistrum, a former member of SMF, used 5% to 10% in her lard soaps. But some people say 5% KOH doesn't make a useful improvement in lather, so maybe 10% or more would be an option for them to consider.

Don't worry DeeAnna...nobody knows anything until they learn it!

 

[Primrose]

I use tallow and/or lard up to 50% and I didnt think there was anything wrong with the way it lathers?

 

[DeeAnna]

@Primrose -- If you like the lather of the soap you make, that's all you need to know.

As for me -- I prefer to not use a lot of coconut oil in my recipes to keep my soap mild and gentle. The downside IMO of that choice is that soap high in lard and low in coconut is somewhat slow to lather. Adding a bit of KOH is an alternative to using more coconut oil. It helps the soap lather quicker for less work and the lather is a little more fluffy. But obviously YMMV from mine, and that's okay.