When to scent LS

[JenBen]

Hello,

After a few disasters, I made an olive oil liquid soap that I like. I experimented with EO’s during the dilution process and only peppermint seemed noticeable.
Can everyone please chime in with when in the process to scent LS? I don’t have a strong feeling about FO vs. EO but please tell me if you do.

 

[DeeAnna]

I always scent after dilution. I suppose if a person made lots of the exact same recipe, then maybe they could back track how much scent to add to the paste to end up with the right amount after dilution. I can't see how it would work for me to scent the paste, because I'm usually fiddling around and testing different things when I make LS.

I scent LS at a much lower dose than bar soap -- typically 0.5% to 1% by weight of diluted soap. So start light and see what you think -- it's easy to add more but hard to take it away if you use too much!

I always test scents in liquid soap before I commit to scenting the whole amount. I found peppermint thickened three versions of liquid soap to varying degrees. Not to say it will thicken yours necessarily, but it's worth testing just in case. Here's the thread I started where I share this info -- Tests of LS made with Glycerin-Water vs Water-only lye solutions

 

[Zany_in_CO]

Hiya JenBen!

I'm a bit of a lazy daisy so I use MMS fragrance calc to scent LS. I dilute a gallon at a time then pour into an 8 oz. Natural Plastic Boston Round squeezable container that actually holds 9 ounces.

It's not necessary but I find it's best to warm the LS a bit for better incorporation. I weigh 9 oz of product into a Pyrex cup; nuke @ HIGH for 45 seconds; add 2.5 mls (more or less) of fragrance, either EO or FO. I allow it to cool for an hour or so to see if it separates out. If it does, I add 10 mls of Polysorbate 80 or 20 and stir gently until well mixed in. For color, I add a drop of food coloring to 10 ml of water and add a bit at a time to get a color I like. For larger batches, like filling 8-16 bottles all at once, I don't dilute the coloring.

 

[JenBen]

I always scent after dilution. I suppose if a person made lots of the exact same recipe, then maybe they could back track how much scent to add to the paste to end up with the right amount after dilution. I can't see how it would work for me to scent the paste, because I'm usually fiddling around and testing different things when I make LS.

I scent LS at a much lower dose than bar soap -- typically 0.5% to 1% by weight of diluted soap. So start light and see what you think -- it's easy to add more but hard to take it away if you use too much!

I always test scents in liquid soap before I commit to scenting the whole amount. I found peppermint thickened three versions of liquid soap to varying degrees. Not to say it will thicken yours necessarily, but it's worth testing just in case. Here's the thread I started where I share this info -- Tests of LS made with Glycerin-Water vs Water-only lye solutions

Thanks Deeanna,

I loved reading your experiment with different amounts of glycerin and adding EOs. I’m fascinated to read more of your experiments and trials.

 

[DeeAnna]

Here's another thread you might find interesting and useful -- Does water really matter?