Tennessee Candle Company Soap Scents Tests
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Afbrat, what was your recipe? Mine is a higher lard, then olive oil, then coconut, with small amount of castor and shea. Different recipes are definitely making a difference on how the FO's behave (100% coconut oil bars make everything look like it overheats!).
Ok, you had a lot more olive and coconut oil and more water (I'm at 30% lye concentration)...so that might be part of it.
About half the drops are absorbed so I put gloves on and unmolded it and am letting it cure... so far so good except Georgia Peaches which is mush. I think I'll end up freezing that mold and pulling the bars out to get air moving around them
About half the drops are absorbed so I put gloves on and unmolded it and am letting it cure... so far so good except Georgia Peaches which is mush. I think I'll end up freezing that mold and pulling the bars out to get air moving around them
Soapmaker145
Well-Known Member
I'm using 30% lye for all my testers. I don't think it's the lye concentration.
Afbrat-1oz in 3 pounds of oils?!?! Ok that's a huge difference from 1 oz per pound of oils.... 
The droplets on love spell reabsorbed, everything's been unmolded and put aside to cure. Did end up freezing the mold with GA peach in it, managed to unmold it in one chunk, it is solid so there's hope. Smells yummy! So far everything smells great!
Olive, the Nehi Grape actually does smell like the soda (minus the carbonation)! We'll see how it goes after full cure, but after solidifying it lost the weirdness it had in the bottle. The color would be an issue, orange brown tan (yea I know...) discolor at this point. Maybe if it was done in a grape bunch shaped mold?
Round two will commence shortly (after I wash everything)......
The droplets on love spell reabsorbed, everything's been unmolded and put aside to cure. Did end up freezing the mold with GA peach in it, managed to unmold it in one chunk, it is solid so there's hope. Smells yummy! So far everything smells great!
Olive, the Nehi Grape actually does smell like the soda (minus the carbonation)! We'll see how it goes after full cure, but after solidifying it lost the weirdness it had in the bottle. The color would be an issue, orange brown tan (yea I know...) discolor at this point. Maybe if it was done in a grape bunch shaped mold?
Round two will commence shortly (after I wash everything)......
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quiltertoo
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Soapmaker145 I love your phrase.......It accelerated politely.
Well, the soapy dishes WERE clean....not anymore!
Round two end up being the following (lost my original round idea list). Just poured today, same recipe /methods as round one.
Peach magnolia raspberry-I agree, polite accel. No immediate discolor. Of the three "heater" soaps, this was the least heating but it is attempting to gel in the mold.
Cherry Pipe Tobacco-yellow discolor on mix, no accel but once in the mold it set fast so might not be swirl friendly. Not sure I like this smell, something weird about it (maybe the bitter that was discussed earlier).
Honeysuckle Passion-orange yellow immediate discolor. Forget swirls, this puppy set FAST and is a fast heater. Was fascinating watching it gel before my eyes. Has some droplets appearing but they seem to be reabsorbing. I'd be afraid of a whole loaf, wouldn't be any question of gelling!
Peppermint-well behaved, no accel, no immediate discolor. Not a strong peppermint though.
Lilac-bad monkey. BAD monkey. Tried to seize, got it to blend (using the mini frother). Steric looking chunks all over the bar. Set up lightning fast. Didn't heat, but I don't think this one is usable in my recipe for CP. No immediate discolor.
Butt Naked-milk yellow immediate discolor. Very mild accel. It's the middle worst heater which surprised me, I didn't expect it to heat-looks like it'll at least 3/4 gel in the mold (bar, uncovered in 80 degree garage).
Pina Colada- mild yellow immediate discolor. No accel at all that I can tell, setting up the same as the control bar. Don't smell any coconut in this.
Under the Tree-yellow immediate discolor, very very very mild accel so workable. It seems to be changing a bit smell wise after being mixed (for the better).
Eucalyptus Mint BBW-yellow discolor after pour, no accel , very polite scent workability wise. Mint is light at pour.
Pomegranate-easy to work-no accel, no immediate discolor. Thought it was reversing trace for a bit but is setting up normally now.
Ok, that's round two. Will update as I go. My sniffer is overwhelmed so I'll have to do individual notes later. This combo of scents is not that appealing when all mixed at once LOL.
Round two end up being the following (lost my original round idea list). Just poured today, same recipe /methods as round one.
Peach magnolia raspberry-I agree, polite accel. No immediate discolor. Of the three "heater" soaps, this was the least heating but it is attempting to gel in the mold.
Cherry Pipe Tobacco-yellow discolor on mix, no accel but once in the mold it set fast so might not be swirl friendly. Not sure I like this smell, something weird about it (maybe the bitter that was discussed earlier).
Honeysuckle Passion-orange yellow immediate discolor. Forget swirls, this puppy set FAST and is a fast heater. Was fascinating watching it gel before my eyes. Has some droplets appearing but they seem to be reabsorbing. I'd be afraid of a whole loaf, wouldn't be any question of gelling!
Peppermint-well behaved, no accel, no immediate discolor. Not a strong peppermint though.
Lilac-bad monkey. BAD monkey. Tried to seize, got it to blend (using the mini frother). Steric looking chunks all over the bar. Set up lightning fast. Didn't heat, but I don't think this one is usable in my recipe for CP. No immediate discolor.
Butt Naked-milk yellow immediate discolor. Very mild accel. It's the middle worst heater which surprised me, I didn't expect it to heat-looks like it'll at least 3/4 gel in the mold (bar, uncovered in 80 degree garage).
Pina Colada- mild yellow immediate discolor. No accel at all that I can tell, setting up the same as the control bar. Don't smell any coconut in this
.Under the Tree-yellow immediate discolor, very very very mild accel so workable. It seems to be changing a bit smell wise after being mixed (for the better).
Eucalyptus Mint BBW-yellow discolor after pour, no accel , very polite scent workability wise. Mint is light at pour.
Pomegranate-easy to work-no accel, no immediate discolor. Thought it was reversing trace for a bit but is setting up normally now.
Ok, that's round two. Will update as I go
. My sniffer is overwhelmed so I'll have to do individual notes later. This combo of scents is not that appealing when all mixed at once LOL.Soapmaker145
Well-Known Member
Well, I made larger batches of Peach Magnolia, Lavender and Redwood cedar. My recipe changed lightly. I have 30% Tallow/15% coconut/5% shea butter/5% Mango/5% castor/5% canola and the rest divided almost equally between EVOO and rice bran (more EVOO). I don't have my recipe in front of me. It is almost the same recipe as my testers except I add 5% shea and the reduced amount of rice bran was split between EEVO and rice bran. I bought the organic EEVO from Soaper's Choice which is a deep dark green.
The results, all poured from the same batter:
-The Peach Magnolia which was pure white in the sample is now a soft beautiful yellow. There is discoloration.
-The Lavender stayed white.
The Redwood Cedar which was a very light milk chocolate/beige is now yellow. It's only been few days but it seems to be refusing to discolor to brown.
Not what I expected. Go figure. The scents stayed true to the samples.
I was sure I was going to hate the Eucalyptus Mint. It seemed to change every time I smelled it during the cure. At 8 weeks, I was surprised that I liked it a lot.
I agree about Under the Tree. It smells much better after soaping. My sample is only a week old. A bit early to tell if it's going to make it.
The results, all poured from the same batter:
-The Peach Magnolia which was pure white in the sample is now a soft beautiful yellow. There is discoloration.
-The Lavender stayed white.
The Redwood Cedar which was a very light milk chocolate/beige is now yellow. It's only been few days but it seems to be refusing to discolor to brown.
Not what I expected. Go figure. The scents stayed true to the samples.
I was sure I was going to hate the Eucalyptus Mint. It seemed to change every time I smelled it during the cure. At 8 weeks, I was surprised that I liked it a lot.
I agree about Under the Tree. It smells much better after soaping. My sample is only a week old. A bit early to tell if it's going to make it.
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Ok, here's round three notes after pour:
Butterscotch brulee-no accel, massive discolor. In three days it went dark dark brown. Doesn't smell like butterscotch to me, test sniffer said fudge...light scent at this point.
Grandma's Kitchen-must've been a hot day because this one is a heater! Mild accel in mixing, set lightning fast in the mold, heated up to the point of sweating. Orange yellow brown discolor. Smells good though! I get apples, spice, bread?
Red Velvet Cupcake-veryvery mild accel, yellow discolor turning to medium tan. No one apparently eats red velvet I know because three sniffers didn't "get it"...
Froot Loops type-yes, yes it does smell like the cereal. no accel, light tan discolor so far.
Paris Amour-mild accel, set up quick after I got it in the mold. No discolor so far. Soft generic scent...
Apple Cinnamon-no accel but heated up and set fast. No discolor yet. Had to wrest the bar away from tester before he took a bite, hope this one holds!
Gain Type-medium accel, another fast setter, no discolor yet. Heated up late (30 minutes after pour) so keep an eye on it. Floral detergent smell but not really Gain.
Irish Spring type-BAD monkey. Clumped, seperated, etc. Accel like crazy, no discolor, and it is definetly irish spring.
Spicy Apples Peaches-not only did it accel, it tried to sep (blended back together) and was a big heater. Orange brown discolor. However, the scent would be worth it to experiment in CP or just HP...fruitier than apple cinnamon but just as yummy
Sweet Musk-mild accel, no discolor. Generic light musk scent I guess, nothing that makes me excited to try.
Several took a while to unmold (the non heater ones). I suspect a few may have slowed down trace but I didn't not it so I'll have to look at the bars well after cure. My test cure area is now officially full!
Soapmaker, do you like the redwood OOB? I don't remember... I'm looking at that on the next round. I have one that is taking its sweet time changing to brown (patchouli passion) myself!
Butterscotch brulee-no accel, massive discolor. In three days it went dark dark brown. Doesn't smell like butterscotch to me, test sniffer said fudge...light scent at this point.
Grandma's Kitchen-must've been a hot day because this one is a heater! Mild accel in mixing, set lightning fast in the mold, heated up to the point of sweating. Orange yellow brown discolor. Smells good though! I get apples, spice, bread?
Red Velvet Cupcake-veryvery mild accel, yellow discolor turning to medium tan. No one apparently eats red velvet I know because three sniffers didn't "get it"...
Froot Loops type-yes, yes it does smell like the cereal. no accel, light tan discolor so far.
Paris Amour-mild accel, set up quick after I got it in the mold. No discolor so far. Soft generic scent...
Apple Cinnamon-no accel but heated up and set fast. No discolor yet. Had to wrest the bar away from tester before he took a bite, hope this one holds!
Gain Type-medium accel, another fast setter, no discolor yet. Heated up late (30 minutes after pour) so keep an eye on it. Floral detergent smell but not really Gain.
Irish Spring type-BAD monkey. Clumped, seperated, etc. Accel like crazy, no discolor, and it is definetly irish spring.
Spicy Apples Peaches-not only did it accel, it tried to sep (blended back together) and was a big heater. Orange brown discolor. However, the scent would be worth it to experiment in CP or just HP...fruitier than apple cinnamon but just as yummy
Sweet Musk-mild accel, no discolor. Generic light musk scent I guess, nothing that makes me excited to try.
Several took a while to unmold (the non heater ones). I suspect a few may have slowed down trace but I didn't not it so I'll have to look at the bars well after cure. My test cure area is now officially full!
Soapmaker, do you like the redwood OOB? I don't remember... I'm looking at that on the next round. I have one that is taking its sweet time changing to brown (patchouli passion) myself!
Soapmaker145
Well-Known Member
I like the redwood OOB. It's even better in soap. It is softer than cedarwood EO and a different woodsy scent, doesn't have any incense notes (at least to my nose), and smells appropriately soapy if that makes sense. I just made one more batch from the same 1lb bottle with no EVOO. It turned yellow as soon as it hit the batter. The first batch is still yellow. My sample was a light chocolate milk.
If you are looking for Cedarwood, try Cedarwood Vanilla from CS. It is a good replacement for the EO. It smells just a little softer than the EO.
The Spicy apples & peaches was a real surprise. I don't even eat spicy apples but I ended up liking the FO. It screams fall to me.
The red velvet cake has low usage rate. I didn't get it. I have to review the rest of my testers but most of the ones I really liked are already posted. Did you get the Winter Candy Apple? That was good too. I don't know if it made it through cure yet.
If you are looking for Cedarwood, try Cedarwood Vanilla from CS. It is a good replacement for the EO. It smells just a little softer than the EO.
The Spicy apples & peaches was a real surprise. I don't even eat spicy apples but I ended up liking the FO. It screams fall to me.
The red velvet cake has low usage rate. I didn't get it. I have to review the rest of my testers but most of the ones I really liked are already posted. Did you get the Winter Candy Apple? That was good too. I don't know if it made it through cure yet.
Ok, the redwood is on the "get next list" then.... I was looking for a wood smell but the cedar was a tad harsh. Thanks for the CS hint, when I get around to them I'll try out the cedarwood vanilla (or maybe they'll do a great holiday sale!)
Spicy Apples and Peaches, and the other apple one are smelling even better the next day! Not sure I'd use a soap that smelled like apples but someone might like it LOL...I want it just to keep around and sniff!
I didn't even check the usage rate on the velvet cake, drat, I thought everything I got was a high one. I'll have to look. Use it any lower and it won't smell like anything so I think that one's out.
I avoided all of the "themed" ones like winter and fall (well, except the apples, that's food) this round. What does a winter candy apple smell like different from regular candy apples?
Spicy Apples and Peaches, and the other apple one are smelling even better the next day! Not sure I'd use a soap that smelled like apples but someone might like it LOL...I want it just to keep around and sniff!
I didn't even check the usage rate on the velvet cake, drat, I thought everything I got was a high one. I'll have to look. Use it any lower and it won't smell like anything so I think that one's out.
I avoided all of the "themed" ones like winter and fall (well, except the apples, that's food) this round. What does a winter candy apple smell like different from regular candy apples?
I also love the Redwood Cedar both OOB and even more in soap, if softens in scent, but doesn't fade. I don't ever get brown from Patchouli Passion, more yellow. I had a friend that wanted an antique looking rainbow soap, and the Patchouli Passion did the trick, all of the colors stayed, but looked well aged. I will also have to try the CS Cedarwood Vanilla, they have some really great fragrances, but I don't order from them that often.
I recently had some friends blind test lavender for me, between Candle Science Lavender, Lavender Essential Oil, Lavender Sage from FB and the Tennessee Candle True Lavender, and I was surprised that the Candle Science was the most popular. It has camphor note to it and I thought that the True Lavender would be more popular.
I recently had some friends blind test lavender for me, between Candle Science Lavender, Lavender Essential Oil, Lavender Sage from FB and the Tennessee Candle True Lavender, and I was surprised that the Candle Science was the most popular. It has camphor note to it and I thought that the True Lavender would be more popular.
Soapmaker145
Well-Known Member
The winter candy apple made it through cure. It smells like apple citrus to me. It is definitely a nice fruity citrusy scent. It is bright but subtle. I'll see if any in my crowd likes it. I don't mind it for a fruity scent that isn't straight citrus in a soap.
I have 30 to 40 FO's from CS. After TCS, I thought I'd try more candle FO suppliers. Sadly not many FOs from CS made it through CP. Most smelled really nice OOB. ETA: I actually tabulated my results from CS. Their FOs performed as well as the ones from FB and TCS. I was too hasty and too bummed out by Carribean Teakwood and Driftwood which smelled really nice OOB but faded miserably on me. I posted my reviews of CS FOs in a new thread.
The 2 that I liked the most were worth the experiment for me: the Frankincense and Myrrh and the White Tea. The F&M is strong and holding. The White Tea is light and subtle but definitely present. The Mediterranean Fig is pure green fig scent like what you would smell if you brushed against the tree or broke a branch. The Fig Tree is a nice floral in a background of green fig. It isn't the version that A Garden Eastward had (that I'm looking for) but it is nice on its own right. If you have any you are interested in, let me know and I'll see if I tested them already. I will eventually get around to posting all my CS testers.
The 2 most relevant to earthy/woodsy from CS are the Carribean Teakwood and Driftwood. Both are out for me. Driftwood smells like nothing. Teakwood is very faint and nondescript at full cure. I even made a soap with a 1:1 mix of these 2 and the scent is gone. I checked my other samplers for relevant earthy FOs. I have NDA Bamboo&Teak and Woodland Themes and both did not make it through cure. Both were interesting OOB but not very strong.
I just checked on my BB Smoky Patchouli. This FO is ick OOB, Ok in soap but faded to nothing after 3 months (just checked). I'm really bummed. I thought I had a good blender for deep earthy scents. I liked it blended with Ancient Sedona and Honey. Proceed with caution if you decide to try it.
Interesting about the CS lavender. I already mixed the TCS lavender with FB Sage. If that doesn't work, I'll get the CS version.
Thank you both for sharing your results.
I have 30 to 40 FO's from CS. After TCS, I thought I'd try more candle FO suppliers. Sadly not many FOs from CS made it through CP. Most smelled really nice OOB. ETA: I actually tabulated my results from CS. Their FOs performed as well as the ones from FB and TCS. I was too hasty and too bummed out by Carribean Teakwood and Driftwood which smelled really nice OOB but faded miserably on me. I posted my reviews of CS FOs in a new thread.
The 2 that I liked the most were worth the experiment for me: the Frankincense and Myrrh and the White Tea. The F&M is strong and holding. The White Tea is light and subtle but definitely present. The Mediterranean Fig is pure green fig scent like what you would smell if you brushed against the tree or broke a branch. The Fig Tree is a nice floral in a background of green fig. It isn't the version that A Garden Eastward had (that I'm looking for) but it is nice on its own right. If you have any you are interested in, let me know and I'll see if I tested them already. I will eventually get around to posting all my CS testers.
The 2 most relevant to earthy/woodsy from CS are the Carribean Teakwood and Driftwood. Both are out for me. Driftwood smells like nothing. Teakwood is very faint and nondescript at full cure. I even made a soap with a 1:1 mix of these 2 and the scent is gone. I checked my other samplers for relevant earthy FOs. I have NDA Bamboo&Teak and Woodland Themes and both did not make it through cure. Both were interesting OOB but not very strong.
I just checked on my BB Smoky Patchouli. This FO is ick OOB, Ok in soap but faded to nothing after 3 months (just checked). I'm really bummed. I thought I had a good blender for deep earthy scents. I liked it blended with Ancient Sedona and Honey. Proceed with caution if you decide to try it.
Interesting about the CS lavender. I already mixed the TCS lavender with FB Sage. If that doesn't work, I'll get the CS version.
Thank you both for sharing your results.
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Updated round one's descriptions. Too soon for the other two.
Needed some Eucalyptus soap fast, so I mixed the 1 oz Euc Mint tester leftovers with Euc EO and did HP. Wow! I like it! Was about 1/3 euc mint to 2/3 EO, just a slight tinge of mint to offset the Euc. And straight Euc Mint bar is a good sinus clearer. This is on the "to buy" list for sure.
Winter Candy Apple is on my next tester list.
I mixed Spicy Apple Peaches with Apple Cinnamon to stretch it enough for a bigger HP batch.... the result is a Apple Cider with a touch of peach! I have a bar in my work bag just to sniff. Def. keeper! Ended up with a nice yellow color without adding any mica, weird...
Needed some Eucalyptus soap fast, so I mixed the 1 oz Euc Mint tester leftovers with Euc EO and did HP. Wow! I like it! Was about 1/3 euc mint to 2/3 EO, just a slight tinge of mint to offset the Euc. And straight Euc Mint bar is a good sinus clearer. This is on the "to buy" list for sure.
Winter Candy Apple is on my next tester list
.I mixed Spicy Apple Peaches with Apple Cinnamon to stretch it enough for a bigger HP batch.... the result is a Apple Cider with a touch of peach! I have a bar in my work bag just to sniff. Def. keeper! Ended up with a nice yellow color without adding any mica, weird...
Soapmaker145
Well-Known Member
nsmar, you might also want to check out FB's Crisp Morning Air for the eucalyptus mint blender. I couldn't pick a favorite. The TCS smells more like spring and the FB's smells more like winter to me. I think I have another eucalyptus mint tester. I'll post when I find it.
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