What's your favourite oil in soap making? Why?

[kazmi]

The rice bran gives the bar a smooth glossy finish that I don't get with other oils, and I love the way the soap feels on my skin. To me they are very different, the avocado adds the richness for a luxury bar, the rice bran is more of a staple oil. I am not sure about the actual properties, but to me the avocado & hemp are similar. I am sure others here will have more knowledge on the oil properties. I first tried rice bran because I got 35 lbs for $37 I couldn't pass up the price and I was curious.

Thanks :smile:

 

[lsg]

I don't have one single favorite; but my favorite combination is coconut, palm, rice bran and Castor.

 

[Bicycle808]

No single oil gives me what I'm looking for.

So I don't have one favourite, but I use coconut, palm, olive and castor in my basic recipe.

I gotta agree with Dagmar88; I don't think I'll get what I'm after with any one oil (although I feel like I've got to make true castille at least once, just for the experience.) I used to use OO with coconut as my basic recipe, but since moving to the OO/coconut/palm/castor combo (just like Dag), I find that my bars have the qualities I'm looking for, without breaking the bank.

I gotta confess, though, that i've been really itching to use beef tallow instead of palm; a lot of ppl are all about my soap b/c it's veg-only, which is really the only thing stopping me, but still. BT is so cheap, and it seems like it'd give me what I'm after for less, and have a more old-timey vibe to it.

Maybe one day...
-rob

 

[krunt]

macadamia oil is my favourite soapmaking oil. i compare it to olive in terms of skinfeel, but it doesn't have the unpleasant smell i have found olive does in unscented soap. i have found it to be a robust oil, not prone to rancidity, and just like olive can be used up to 100% of the recipe. the only downside is the price. but i buy it in bulk and use it for cooking as well, so while it is more expensive, it is not prohibitively so.

i also like avocado a lot but it is just too expensive to use on any kind of regular basis.

 

[hoegarden]

I agree with Dagmar88 too. So far, I have yet to like soaping with a single oil. Personally I like avocado and macadamia nut oil in my soap recipe currently but majority of the oil will still be Olive oil (upto 30%)

 

[Marieke]

I only made single oil coconut bars and olive bars but I prefer a mixture of oils. I usually combine olive, coconut, sesame, sunflower, castor and wheat germ.

 

[daisy8]

I don't know how relevant this is, but I use soapcalc and try to get some of each - lauric, myristic, palmitic, stearic, ricinoleic, oleic, linoleic and linolenic into the soap. I'm not even sure what each of them do for your skin, but thought that since they are part of the recipe sheet, they must have some importance. It means using different oils.

 

[Trinity]

So happy to see some post about soy bean oil...... I haven't used it because I wasn't sure why but I knew some people didn't like it. I saw it at BJs a few days ago for..... now I can't find it on their web site but it was I think 18 dollars for 35 pounds So do I just have to be careful about how much I use or are there other cons about soy that I should know about before I purchase such a large container? Sorry a little off topic but my favorite oil so far is Olive for infusing and I love coconut. I am sure that may change as I experience some of the new oils that just arrived finally from WSP which I can't wait to try

 

[judymoody]

That's a lot of soybean oil! I bought a large container when I first started soaping from our local Cash and Carry. I ended up discarding most of it because it started to oxidize.

I wouldn't use soybean at more than 10-15% of my recipe. And I'd use up my supply within a year. Do the math and see if you'd go through 35 lbs in a year.

To the other poster who asked about fatty acids, a good rule of thumb is to keep your total rinoleic/rinolenic % at 15 or less to decrease the risk of rancidity in your soap. They are very conditioning but also more prone to spoilage.

 

[Rachelmf]

I saw it at BJs a few days ago for..... now I can't find it on their web site but it was I think 18 dollars for 35 pounds

$18 isn't a huge investment, but soybean oil is cheap and easy to get at the grocery store. I'd try getting a regular-sized container from there first so you can see how you like it. Like Judymoody pointed out, soybean oil is usually used at a smallish percentage and it would take a lot of soap to use 35 pounds.

I suppose that my favorite soaping oil would probably be olive, but it's hard to say. Like several others, what I really like is a mixture.

 

[Kansas Farm Girl]

I did buy one of those 35 lb boxes of soybean early in my soaping addiction. I am lucky in that I have extra refrigerators so I saved every container that would hold oil and filled them, then filled the extra fridges. I keep my % low but I think I use some in every batch. So far keeping it in the fridge seems to keep it from going bad. But I do not plan to buy another of that size of an oil that I use so little of. I find it does seem to add a bit of conditioning and a good feel to the soap when mixed with other oils.

 

[soapguy]

My favorite has got to be Castor oil. I use it in all my soaps.

 

[MaitriBB]

So happy to see some post about soy bean oil...... I haven't used it because I wasn't sure why but I knew some people didn't like it. I saw it at BJs a few days ago for..... now I can't find it on their web site but it was I think 18 dollars for 35 pounds

I bought the 35-lb tub of soybean oil at Sam's, couldn't pass up the price and wanted to try it out. Recently I did a small batch with 8 oz coconut, 9 oz soybean, 1 oz grapeseed (used it to mix the micas), and 2 oz shea butter. Came out very nicely.

My standard recipes are either lard/coconut/grapeseed/castor/shea or vegetable shortening/coconut/soybean/grapeseed/shea.

 

[Brandica2013]

Hey, Brandica -- Don't confuse the soap made from the oil with the oil itself!! I get the feeling you might be doing that. Coconut oil SOAP is a strong cleanser, so, yes, it can be drying to the skin. Coconut OIL is a wonderful moisturizer for skin and hair care. Two different critters.

Edit: Here's a link to info about the goodness in coconut oil:
http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com/2013/05/a-quick-note-on-coconut-oil-and-warm.html

DeeAnna~maybe I am,I may not be so good @ this soap thing I l just started a month ago or so but I have been making the best Whipped body butter in town for a long time now and it has coconut oil in it & everyone loves it.So i guess I was a little confused about how can't this wonderful oil not be good in soap(not that its not just not a lot)?? I know its cleansing I have a chart but its just such a great all around product so i guess I just was confused of how cleaning it actually is(in soap) and how moisturizing it is on the body(in lotion or straight up ..thanks for clearing that up still learning :wink:

 

[meeplesoap]

For base oils I love avocado. Of course being in California our blood is at least 10% avocados at all times anyway. If only it weren't such a dark green, I'd use it much more often!

For additives, jojoba oil hands down. I use it on my hair, skin, and in my soap (at 5%). Too expensive to do for sale of course, but I do get it in bulk in Riverside so that brings the cost down.

 

[DeeAnna]

"... i guess I was a little confused about how can't this wonderful oil not be good in soap(not that its not just not a lot)?? I know its cleansing I have a chart but its just such a great all around product so i guess I just was confused of how cleaning it actually is(in soap) and how moisturizing it is on the body(in lotion or straight up..."

When you make soap out of a particular oil, the oil molecules get broken apart by the lye and turned into soap molecules. A soap made out of a particular fat can have quite different properties than the base fat from which the soap is made. That is very true with your coconut oil. The oil is a very good moisturizer for hair and skin, but the soap is so effective as a cleanser, it can be harsh on the skin.

 

[paillo]

In order of preference and the oils I use most frequently:
Olive
Coconut
Avocado
Palm (organic, sustainable)
Palm kernel
Castor
Shea
Babassu
Sweet almond
Rice bran (REO added)
High-oleic sunflower (REO added)
Flax seed (REO added)
Hempseed (REO added)
Cocoa butter
Jojoba
Argan
Broccoli seed
Emu

 

[Kay]

I've not been soaping for very long, so I'm not sure what my favorite is yet. I know I LOVE Shea Butter and Cocoa Butter, but in lotions they leave such a greasy feeling. I just found out the other day that these, used in small doses in soap, don't leave a greasy feeling. I now have, on order, some Shea Butter to try in my next batch. Can't wait!

Why do I like these? I guess because they make my skin feel so soft and moisturized very quickly after use.

 

[elizmar2006]

Lard! It is so thick and creamy. I've been testing a recent bar I made with it and it reminds me of a cream bath soap I use to get as far as feel goes. I feel like I'm bathing in lotion.

 

[vance71975]

Well, I know i personally normally use a blend of oils just to get what i am aiming for. I love pure Olive Oil soap dont get me wrong, but the bars just never last long enough for my tastes.

I love using tallow and Lard as well, BUT only if i am using a strong Scent with the soap, since i use only essential oils for scent, that can get expensive VERY fast. I do not like them for an unscented bar however as they seem to have, for lack of a better way to put it, an "Animal Smell" to the soap, which is fine if your covering it with a strong scent, but alone it does not smell great to me.

I do however LOVE making Single Oil Soap with Cocoa Butter. No off or offensive smell, Great for the skin, lathers pretty well and makes a VERY long lasting Hard Bar of soap.

My fav Blend of Oils would be Cocoa Butter, Olive Oil,Grape seed Oil, Coconut Oil 76 degree melt,and Castor Oil.

As far as soy Oil goes, i have only ever used it ONCE and that will be the LAST time i ever use it, Only batch of soap i have EVER had end up with DOS.