Why don't you like olive oil?

[Quilter99755]

High amounts of OO make my skin feel dry...some of mine have cured for over a year, so I know it's not because it is not cured. After reading different threads on this site I started using RBO as it was available locally and less expensive than Sweet Almond...and I could never remember what to look for in Safflower or Sunflower oils. I love the feel of RBO on my skin and have no issues with itchiness any longer. So OO went back into the cooking cabinet and RBO is my favorite liquid oil in my formulas now.

 

[Marsi]

Olive oil soap makes my skin dry so bad it gets red and flaky and i dont like the olive soap smell

 

[DeeAnna]

...Does sunflower oil have a shorter shelf life than OO, though?...

What KIND of sunflower oil are you wondering about?

If HO (high oleic) sunflower, it has a generous shelf life -- as good as olive if not better. HO sunflower has more oleic acid (looking at the soapcalc fatty acid profile) than olive.

If conventional (low oleic) sunflower, then it's probably not as long lived as olive due to the higher linoleic/linolenic acid content.

 

[TheGecko]

Oh shoot, it was a conversation with an FDA inspector. I'll amend my statement to what studies have shown.

What studies?

 

[Finnegan]

I would love to use more olive oil, but here in South Africa, olive oil is pretty expensive, while sunflower and canola is much more affordable. I do not sell soap, I just love to make it, so at the moment, I make it with the cheapest oils/fats I can get my hands on.

 

[GemstonePony]

What studies?

Upon further digging, it seems the study a few of these reference was pulled for being biased against imported oils, as the company that performed it both sold Olive oil and was based in California. ABC news referenced that study, but Forbes, New York Times, and Olive Oil Times among other outlets all claim the same without linking their sources (just citing "experts".) Italy passed legislation to try to curtail it in their country in 2007, but the FDA's laws aren't exactly strict in ours. Funny enough, as of November of last year the North American Olive Oil Association filed a Standard of Identity Petition so the FDA could even consider beginning to enforce some measure of standards aside from "food grade oil from olives." Of course, oil that isn't from olives is legally required to be listed on the container.

 

[Dawni]

I'm another one who swapped olive oil for RBO.. My main reason initially was cost. I read here that they are "similar" so if I pay less n get more or less the same qualities then that's awesome.

After trying a Castile, a Bastille.... Uhh and several other combos where olive oil was the main liquid oil, I tried a high RBO (70%) and I love it! More on that here.. Seems like others like their variations too. I've since taken my older recipes n switched out the OO and I find the new soaps less slimy, even when they've accidentally been left sitting in water.

The high oleic versions are hard to find here but the regular canola and sunflower oils contribute beautifully to lather feel in my opinion. I've made tiny batches for personal use with them, because DOS is real lol... And I think I've mentioned elsewhere that I love the lather of soap with canola.

 

[JillGat]

I have heard elsewhere that rice bran is cheaper than olive oil. I cannot find it locally anywhere in New Mexico. Where do other Americans buy it? Also, I looked around grocery stores and even specialty stores in Albuquerque and not find any kind of HO vegetable oils. Would love recommendations for stores/sources/brands. Thanks!

 

[shunt2011]

@JillGat I got mine at Lowes at one time. They had a huge container for fryers and it was really inexpensive. Otherwise, you can get it from a soap supplier.

 

[TheGecko]

So...would you like to amend your statement from 'most' to ‘some’ then?

The [sad] reality is...there are who folks like to cut corners. As an example I wear, and used to sell mineral makeup. Two of the most advertised mineral makeup companies use cosmetic fillers like bismuth oxychloride; it is not only cheaper than using 100% ingredients like iron oxides, titanium dioxide, kaolin clay and mica, but bismuth weighs more. This is why it is so important to read your labels, both front and back. For years, folks though SunnyD was a brand of orange 'juice', instead it's an orange 'drink' containing LESS than 2% of actual juice.

Back to Olive Oil...Iberia brand EVOO is a good example, it's a fairly cheap brand that sells at WalMart. Looking at the label, folks are going to think that they are purchasing 100% EVOO and getting one heck of a deal (51 fl oz - $4.78), but when you pay attention, you also see the words "Premium Blend". The word "blend" tells you that it's NOT 100% EVOO, and if you know anything about EVOO, you're going to know that you're not going to get much EVOO for $5.00...20%; the rest is Sunflower Oil.

So when purchasing anything, the consumer needs to be aware. Blends, fillers, even containers can fool people into thinking they are getting more than they actually are.

 

[GemstonePony]

So...would you like to amend your statement from 'most' to ‘some’ then?

I did that on Sunday, and in my reply I explained my reason for my initial wording and also mention that I edited my initial post, and in my reply after that I explained my reasons for not walking it back to "none."
May I ask why all of these actions have not been to your satisfaction?

 

[Olive Oil]

Well, since making my own cp soap, I'm in the olive oil fan club. I find OO and high oleic acid oils so gentle and kind to my skin. For me adding a bit of SAO to a high OO soap makes it even better.

Having said that before I made my own cp soap, I bought numerous brands of good quality traditional olive oil soap (100% soap, not mixed with syndets) and they frequently left my skin feeling dry. I suspect this is to do with the production process of traditional soaps like Marseille (low glycerin and no S/F). Although obviously, this wouldn't explain why many on this forum find OO soaps drying following the cp method.

I notice that a lot of people like sunflower oil. I can only find the regular variety (not HO) and I have always liked using it around 8-10% as it seems to enhance lather. Some months ago I made a soap using 25% sunflower and I was really excited to try it, but I was really underwhelmed. In fact I even found it a little drying.... I used the same brand as I've always used. No clue why it felt so different...... I've also used RBO and I liked it, but for me olive oil is more gentle, virgin/extra virgin OO is easy to find whereas I can only find refined RBO which is more expensive than top quality EVOO. So, for me it's a no brainer.....

 

[atiz]

I have heard elsewhere that rice bran is cheaper than olive oil. I cannot find it locally anywhere in New Mexico. Where do other Americans buy it? Also, I looked around grocery stores and even specialty stores in Albuquerque and not find any kind of HO vegetable oils. Would love recommendations for stores/sources/brands. Thanks!

I have not found RBO either (but haven't looked hard ).
HO oils you can often find though -- sometimes they do not explicitly say HO, but something like "good for frying", etc. I used to get my HO sunflower at Walmart.

 

[TheGecko]

I wasn't aware that you had amended your original post to say 'some', I was going by what you said above that you were amending to what studies were showing.

It's not about my satisfaction, just wanting to make sure that folks are getting the correct information.

 

[linne1gi]

I'm another one who swapped olive oil for RBO.. My main reason initially was cost. I read here that they are "similar" so if I pay less n get more or less the same qualities then that's awesome.

After trying a Castile, a Bastille.... Uhh and several other combos where olive oil was the main liquid oil, I tried a high RBO (70%) and I love it! More on that here.. Seems like others like their variations too. I've since taken my older recipes n switched out the OO and I find the new soaps less slimy, even when they've accidentally been left sitting in water.

The high oleic versions are hard to find here but the regular canola and sunflower oils contribute beautifully to lather feel in my opinion. I've made tiny batches for personal use with them, because DOS is real lol... And I think I've mentioned elsewhere that I love the lather of soap with canola.

The one time I tried Rice Bran Oil at a high percentage I got DOS. Tossed that bottle out!

 

[Quilter99755]

I have heard elsewhere that rice bran is cheaper than olive oil. I cannot find it locally anywhere in New Mexico. Where do other Americans buy it? Also, I looked around grocery stores and even specialty stores in Albuquerque and not find any kind of HO vegetable oils. Would love recommendations for stores/sources/brands. Thanks!

I found mine at a restaurant supply just down the block from me. It was not a clear oil (pale gold/orange), but that doesn't matter to me as most of the FO's that I like turn my soaps brown. I got my first from WSP and it was a clear oil, so if it goes on sale I might invest in that so I could do some nice colors.

 

[AliOop]

I found mine at a restaurant supply just down the block from me. It was not a clear oil (pale gold/orange), but that doesn't matter to me as most of the FO's that I like turn my soaps brown. I got my first from WSP and it was a clear oil, so if it goes on sale I might invest in that so I could do some nice colors.

Would you be willing to share which local restaurant supply place offered that? What is available online via Amazon is as expensive as OO and AO, and the places near my house don't carry RBO. I'm willing to drive out your way to try some. You are welcome to PM me the name and location. Thanks!

 

[Quilter99755]

Would you be willing to share which local restaurant supply place offered that? What is available online via Amazon is as expensive as OO and AO, and the places near my house don't carry RBO. I'm willing to drive out your way to try some. You are welcome to PM me the name and location. Thanks!

smart food service in nampa...https://www.smartfoodservice.com/locations/store/nampa-584/

But when I googled, there were lots of restaurant supply places in Boise. I just started looking at the ones near me that carried RBO. I saw it on Amazon in two places, both Beauty and Cooking so asked Dawni if it mattered and she said she used the one in the cooking aisle, so I figured this would be fine. The ones in the Beauty section were about twice the price as the Cooking section.

 

[AliOop]

@Quilter99755 thanks! When I checked with two restaurant supply places in Boise, neither stocked RBO (or even CO), and their minimum order was 50lbs. I'm not ready for that kind of commitment before I try a few batches. But I'll look again on Amazon - I bet the ones I saw were in the beauty section, since they wanted $25/gallon.

 

[Quilter99755]

@Quilter99755 thanks! When I checked with two restaurant supply places in Boise, neither stocked RBO (or even CO), and their minimum order was 50lbs. I'm not ready for that kind of commitment before I try a few batches. But I'll look again on Amazon - I bet the ones I saw were in the beauty section, since they wanted $25/gallon.

Probably...I want to say I spent about $11 a gallon, give or take a couple bucks. It was compatible with both Amazon and the restaurant supply place.