What soapy thing have you done today?

[KeepItSimpleSoap]

A package of FOs arrived a day early. I'll be able to try out a new scent in the morning. How much should I use per 25 oz of LARD batch? I wish that I had a new syringe to measure it. I might have a little cup from cough syrup that I could use to measure. It may have just milliliters scaled on it. I think that I am getting a little dizzy from smelling 3 of them and the box has a mixed FO smell.

 

[The_Emerald_Chicken]

what a great idea with the legos!!

I got the idea from @Mobjack Bay in this post. I've always had trouble with my silicon tall & skinny mold bowing out, and I'm extremely pleased to report that this lego setup seems to have fixed the problem!

 

[Zany_in_CO]

How much should I use per 25 oz of LARD batch?

Many suppliers have FO calculators. If yours doesn't, I like MMS Fragrance Calc. Just look for a scent that is similar to what you have.
Bramble Berry and WSP also have them.

 

[mx5inpenn]

View attachment 66415
I'm quite excited to be making soap for the first time since my March challenge soap! (Do you like my beautiful armored mold? )

This is fantastic!! I digging my son's old mega blocks out and copying you

I ordered some micas and just a few more FOs. I'm getting a jump start on holiday scents. I swear that's why I
Keep
Buying
More!

 

[KeepItSimpleSoap]

@Zany_in_CO I put in one FO and it was close to what i had guessed. I'll check out more later after I eat Chinese carry out and watch a show. Thanks for your help.

 

[AliOop]

I might have a little cup from cough syrup that I could use to measure. It may have just milliliters scaled on it.

You always want to measure by weight, not volume. The little plastic cups also get eaten by many FOs. Ask me how I know.

 

[Zany_in_CO]

You always want to measure by weight, not volume.

Um, while that's preferable in most cases, that's not "always" true. MMS Fragrance Calc gives volume measures for EOs or FOs. I like to use my handy-dandy 3ml pipettes and 50 ml measuring glass. Others might use teaspoons or tablespoons. BTW, it's a very reliable calc.

 

[KeepItSimpleSoap]

@Zany_in_CO I've been putting in different FO and EO names and I'm coming up with .5 to 1 oz per batch depending on which scent it is. Thanks for the info.
I had my wife pick out a FO/EO, the next batch will be for her.
By the way, my fortune cookie which is more like a statement than a fortune says,
"Your life is like a kaleidoscope"

 

[AliOop]

Um, while that's preferable in most cases, that's not "always" true. MMS Fragrance Calc gives volume measures for EOs or FOs. I like to use my handy-dandy 3ml pipettes and 50 ml measuring glass. Others might use teaspoons or tablespoons. BTW, it's a very reliable calc.

I have to respectfully disagree that this is an appropriate way to measure FO or EO. They aren't like water, where weight and volume are the same number. If one wants to be sure that one is using skin-safe percentages, then weight is the only correct way to measure. That's especially important if the person plans to sell the soap.

Of course, if someone is making only for personal use, and is comfortable knowing that the fragrance load might be exceeding the recommended skin-safe amounts, then that person is free to use teaspoons, dashes, splashes, and the like. But as a person with so many skin sensitivities, I can't take that risk.

 

[bookworm]

I’ve not done anything soapy recently, however ive been browsing and wish listing on Nurture Soap site.
I’m planning a trip to the US and Canada later in the year and hoping to buy some soaping goodies.
I plan to have them shipped to the last hotel on my itinerary. I’ve checked with them and they are agreeable to accepting my parcels.

So I’m going to pick your loveable brains and ask your’ll what are your must have fragrances ( long lasting; no acceleration; no discolouration).

I will most likely order from Nurture Soap and Brambleberry. Maybe Nature’s Garden.

Thank you so much

 

[Zany_in_CO]

I have to respectfully disagree that this is an appropriate way to measure FO or EO.

I hope you keep an open-mind about it. It comes in handy. Many soapers do as I do. You may change your mind after you've had more experience with a variety of B & B products.

For example, I use 4 oz. net wt for my 60 oz. oils CP batch but 2.5 mls to scent an 8 oz. bottle of Liquid Hair & Body Shampoo.

 

[Dan9250]

You may wish to check out the great work by @Vicki C . Fragrance testing

 

[SoapLover1]

I hope you keep an open-mind about it. It comes in handy. Many soapers do as I do. You may change your mind after you've had more experience with a variety of B & B products.

For example, I use 4 oz. net wt for my 60 oz. oils CP batch but 2.5 mls to scent an 8 oz. bottle of Liquid Hair & Body Shampoo.

Hi! I, too, must respectfully Disagree when using E. O. because it’s not just F. O. They all have different Properties so you can Not just measure them all out the same in teaspoons without consideration. You must know the Usage Rate and then Calculate the Amount according to your Product, for instance, Cold Process Soap or Shampoo, etc… using an
E. O. Calculator. Essential oils are very potent and powerful and should be used with caution and knowledge of their potency and efficacy. Here is a good source to invest in. Hope this helps. Blessings!

 

[SoapLover1]

Hi! I, too, must respectfully Disagree when using E. O. because it’s not just F. O. They all have different Properties so you can Not just measure them all out the same in teaspoons without consideration. You must know the Usage Rate and then Calculate the Amount according to your Product, for instance, Cold Process Soap or Shampoo, etc… using an
E. O. Calculator. Essential oils are very potent and powerful and should be used with caution and knowledge of their potency and efficacy. Here is a good source to invest in. Hope this helps. Blessings!

These are the Percentages of the Following
E. O. As you can see, they are all different.

Patchouli (Indonesian)

Light (1% Usage):

0.152 Ounces

2% Usage Rate:

0.304 Ounces

3% Usage Rate:

0.456 Ounces

4% Usage Rate:

0.608 Ounces

Strong (5% Usage):

0.76 Ounces

Geranium

Light (1% Usage):

0.0836 Ounces

2% Usage Rate:

0.1672 Ounces

3% Usage Rate:

0.2508 Ounces

4% Usage Rate:

0.3344 Ounces

Strong (5% Usage):

0.418 Ounces

Lavender 40/42

Light (1% Usage):

0.1444 Ounces

2% Usage Rate:

0.2888 Ounces

3% Usage Rate:

0.4332 Ounces

4% Usage Rate:

0.5776 Ounces

Strong (5% Usage):

0.722 Ounces

 

[AliOop]

You may change your mind after you've had more experience with a variety of B & B products.

I am not sure why you believe I am inexperienced. I've been making soap and a very wide variety of bodycare products for over a decade.

EDIT: I will also stand on my statement that it is not appropriate to measure by volume when selling. That potentially exposes the user to unsafe levels of FO or EO. Again, that is fine to accept that risk for personal use, but not appropriate for selling, or even gifting.

 

[Zany_in_CO]

@SoapLover1 Thanks for emphasizing the importance of safety when using essential oils and for posting that reference.

I spent my first year (2003) learning to make soap and the second year (2004) studying essential oils. I have posted links on this forum to AFRA requirements and other sources that address safety issues.

As it happens, the default setting of 0.5 oz. PPO on SoapCalc works for the most common EOs we use to fragrance soap and sometimes it takes more than that due to the fleeting aspect of EOs. That's when EOCalc comes in handy. You have the ability to research the safety of each EO in a blend and blends are calculated to using safe amounts.

This is just me, but I think it's smart to use what tools are available to us when we can. MMS Fragrance Calc is quite reliable in that sense. As shown in the print out in post #25,288, you can choose to use "oz. wt." or volume. So, why not use the volume measure?

TIP I ran every one of MMS FOs on their calc to determine the amount of their FOs to use. The result was the same for all. So 0.85 oz PPO is my starting point for a trial batch. I adjust up or down from there.

 

[Zany_in_CO]

I am not sure why you believe I am inexperienced. I've been making soap and a very wide variety of bodycare products for over a decade.

Haha. I had no idea! I don't know how I missed that. But then I don't read all your posts... only the ones when the subject catches my eye -- and hardly ever check in on this thread unless I'm bored.

Please don't be offended.

 

[KeepItSimpleSoap]

~2 p.m. central I was able to get my 7th batch of this recent effort mixed and poured. After about the next 4 or 5 batches I'm going to refigure my calcs' and make each batch ~38 oz. My blender that I have been using, pitcher style instead of a handheld device, for me, works well and it keeps the bugs out of the mix. Anyway, it has room for over 50% more mix. Also, when it comes to pouring in the molds, the handle and spout really help with all of it.
Today I used a new FO. My wife picked this out of several samples that a fellow user graciously gave to me. It smells like cake baking to me. At first my wife said it smelled like bubblegum to her. I used 1/2 of this one ounce bottle.

I was surprised when I poured it in the near ready batch. It changed the color of the LARD/LYE mix. After pulsing, I immediately started to set up. You can see from bar one to number twelve it was setting up as I poured.

The yellow color is different but not in a bad way. At a glance I will know which batch it is.
Added: My candy thermometer broke during the process. Down at the glass bottom of it where the silver bulb is attached to the glass, it broke. Fortunately the actual inner thermometer did not. But it still needs replaced before the next batch. I used it for ~15 batches.

 

[Zing]

I made $40 selling several bars of my Spring Clean scented with rosemary & lemongrass. It's my all-time favorite. A friend of a friend frequently visits from out of state and would not stop talking about my soap. She wants a bundle to give as gifts. I didn't think I'd be soaping this weekend but guess I am now.

I placed an order with Bulk Apothecary. Just 1 item -- look at that self-control, people! They are out of jojoba. Even with shipping, it is WAY cheaper than my local store. #SupplyChainWoes #Inflation

 

[AliOop]

Haha. I had no idea! I don't know how I missed that. But then I don't read all your posts... only the ones when the subject catches my eye -- and hardly ever check in on this thread unless I'm bored.

Please don't be offended.

No worries, friend. I felt a little defensive for a minute, and then realized how silly that was. You were and are trying to be helpful, and I appreciate that.

It's funny... for a long time I said I had been making soap "for four or five years." One day I woke up and realized that more years had passed, yet I was still saying that. So when I went back and looked it up, the earliest record I have of making soap is 2011. Time flies when you are having fun!