Would like a recipe for a simple Castile-like soap that cures fast

[Sapolandia]

Thanks Dixiedragon and Toxicon

I want to make a soap that I can use in my face, and as shampoo and balm at the same time. Argan oil and shea butter are the only things I ever apply to my skin, but I've noticed that the soaps I've made from shea dissapairs quite fast, and leaves quite a lot of fat in the shower. Not really a problem, but always room for improvment I recon. I am considering 5% palmoil, and 5% castor oil - and 20 % coconut oil - for the qualities these oils have, and the fact that I don't have easy access to these oils (very expensive as well where I live..) But as I mentioned I have a lot of shea and argan - but I'm not sure what kind of qualities they have in a soap. I don't want to waste them either, since they are so great when applied straight on the skin.

 

[dixiedragon]

Thanks Dixiedragon and Toxicon

I want to make a soap that I can use in my face, and as shampoo and balm at the same time. Argan oil and shea butter are the only things I ever apply to my skin, but I've noticed that the soaps I've made from shea dissapairs quite fast, and leaves quite a lot of fat in the shower. Not really a problem, but always room for improvment I recon. I am considering 5% palmoil, and 5% castor oil - and 20 % coconut oil - for the qualities these oils have, and the fact that I don't have easy access to these oils (very expensive as well where I live..) But as I mentioned I have a lot of shea and argan - but I'm not sure what kind of qualities they have in a soap. I don't want to waste them either, since they are so great when applied straight on the skin.

I'm not sure how you mean to use a soap as a balm? If you have short hair, using soap as shampoo is probably okay, but soap as shampoo on long hair is not a good idea.

 

[Margo]

Pure Castile Soap

If you only do CP soap, then you have to wait for it to cure. Pure OO soap is Castile soap. If you use any other oils it is not Castile soap (I don't care what others say) If you want to make just soap then don't call it Castile soap if you're not using only OO. Pure Castile soap made with OO takes almost a year to cure if you're doing CP.
I make Castile soap using OO using the HP method and it is cured and ready to use from three days to one week.
Sorry, I don't share recipes

 

[kchaystack]

I make Castile soap using OO using the HP method and it is cured and ready to use from three days to one week.
Sorry, I don't share recipes

Ok first, if you claim that Castile is 100% olive oil, you have already told us your recipe.

Second, your soap is not cured in 3 - 7 days. HP is safe to use as soon as it is finished cooking, the chemical reaction with the lye and fat has finished - but HP needs to cure as much as any other soap. So for a NaOH lye about a year. HP soaps do NOT cure faster - you normally use more water in them, so they need a longer cure than a CP soap.

This is a well documented fact from most of us on this forum. Please stop spreading this urban legend that HP cures faster.

 

[WeaversPort]

Ok first, if you claim that Castile is 100% olive oil, you have already told us your recipe.

Shhh!! Don't tell anyone. My castle soap is 100% olive oil as well! It has lye, water, and olive oil.

I started to add other stuff: sodium chloride, sodium lactate, honey, oats, small bits of avocado, pulped carrots, leftover spinach that had gone through a borrowed Vita Mix... But then I realized it wouldn't be 100% olive oil anymore. It would be something like 97% olive oil, and disqualified from the castile Olympics for juicing.

I also rearranged the soap molecules by hand, using magnets to make it cure faster. But don't tell. That's part of the secret recipe.

 

[anshika154]

40 oz. olive oil
5 oz. palm oil
5 oz. coconut oil
16 oz. water
6.7 oz. lye
Between 1.5 and 2.2 oz of fragrance or essential oil, according to your preference

Make sure that you run your recipe through a lye calculator to make sure that all of your measures are correct!

In this recipe, I added a little more palm oil and coconut oil.

 

[earlene]

Thanks Dixiedragon and Toxicon

I want to make a soap that I can use in my face, and as shampoo and balm at the same time. Argan oil and shea butter are the only things I ever apply to my skin, but I've noticed that the soaps I've made from shea dissapairs quite fast, and leaves quite a lot of fat in the shower. Not really a problem, but always room for improvment I recon. I am considering 5% palmoil, and 5% castor oil - and 20 % coconut oil - for the qualities these oils have, and the fact that I don't have easy access to these oils (very expensive as well where I live..) But as I mentioned I have a lot of shea and argan - but I'm not sure what kind of qualities they have in a soap. I don't want to waste them either, since they are so great when applied straight on the skin.

Sapolandia, I am not sure using 20% CO soap on the face is wise. Maybe for young very oily skin, one might be able to get away with it, and I think you'd need a high SF. And if you use 5% palm in addition to that 20% CO, you have a very stripping soap. My guess is that soap would really dry out the facial skin.

But what do I know, I never use soap on my face anyway.

Argan oil is rather expensive here, so I've only used it when it was a free sample, and it was such a small sample, I didn't really notice what it brought to the soap. As far as shea in soap, I tend to use it in a very low percentage; around 5% to 8% when I do use it.

How much fat is left in the shower probably depends on your SF of your soap formula. I tend to SF low at about 2% or 3% most of the time. But could what you are seeing left in the shower be soap scum? Homemade soap without chelating additives tends to leave behind more soap scum than synthetic bar soaps, which is even worse in hard water (as opposed to soft water.)

 

[shunt2011]

I use 20% CO soap on my face but it's SF at 8% and High lard with avocado, castor and Shea. I also use salt bars with a 20% SF and 80% CO. I'm older and my skin is not dry at all. It will vary from person to person. My skin is the best it's been in years.

 

[HMZ]

To make a soapmaker's classic castile that lathers nicely, lasts a long time, and only requires a 4-6 week cure --> use 100% olive oil, whatever lye solution concentration you prefer, the usual 5% superfat (lye discount), and a blend of 95% NaOH and 5% KOH (potassium hydroxide).

Hi DeeAnna! Thank you so much for the info. My concern is that I have tried doing Castile soap with dual-lye twice and each time I've noticed that the soap takes 3 to 5 days to harden and be able to unmold, whereas with only NaOH solution I am able to unmold it within 48 hrs. Is this normal to happen with Dual-Lye Castile?

 

[cmzaha]

Hi DeeAnna! Thank you so much for the info. My concern is that I have tried doing Castile soap with dual-lye twice and each time I've noticed that the soap takes 3 to 5 days to harden and be able to unmold, whereas with only NaOH solution I am able to unmold it within 48 hrs. Is this normal to happen with Dual-Lye Castile?

Are you changing your lye concentration? I use dual lye in all my soaps and it makes absolutely no difference in my de-mold time, which for my soaps is usually 6-10 hrs.

 

[HMZ]

Are you changing your lye concentration? I use dual lye in all my soaps and it makes absolutely no difference in my de-mold time, which for my soaps is usually 6-10 hrs.

I used 40% Lye concentration in both times and soaped at room temperature. First time I experimented with 12oz Olive oil the second time I made a batch for a 5lbs mold. I made the larger batch 24 hrs ago and it still very soft in the mold

 

[earlene]

What percentage is your KOH? Is it 5% or is it more? How are you doing the calculations for the dual lye?

What soap calculator are you using? The one here at SMF will do the calculations for dual lye for you, making it easier and hopefully eliminate any calculation errors; although it's always possible, even with a lye calculator to still make a human error.

Another question: Did you use [40% Lye] when you made the single lye Castile, and soap at room temperature?

Castile isn't going to heat up with that high lye concentration without additional help, such as CPOP. Even the 5-lb mold probably won't heat up enough to gel on its own. So if it doesn't gel, it's going to take longer to firm up.

 

[HMZ]

I used 40% Lye concentration in both times and soaped at room temperature. First time I experimented with 12oz Olive oil the second time I made a batch for a 5lbs mold. I made the larger batch 24 hrs ago and it still very soft in the mold

What percentage is your KOH? Is it 5% or is it more? How are you doing the calculations for the dual lye?

What soap calculator are you using? The one here at SMF will do the calculations for dual lye for you, making it easier and hopefully eliminate any calculation errors; although it's always possible, even with a lye calculator to still make a human error.

Another question: Did you use [40% Lye] when you made the single lye Castile, and soap at room temperature?

Castile isn't going to heat up with that high lye concentration without additional help, such as CPOP. Even the 5-lb mold probably won't heat up enough to gel on its own. So if it doesn't gel, it's going to take longer to firm up.

Hi Earlene,
Yes I did 5% KOH and I used the Dual-Lye option in the Soapee calculator.
For the single Lye Castile I did 33% Lye and soaped at room temperature.

 

[earlene]

With [33% Lye] concentration, you had more water, which provides the raw soap more opportunity to heat up and gel, which if it did, would explain why you were able to unmold sooner. But the size of the batch matters, too. Were they comparable in size to the ones you just made using [40% Lye]?

 

[Zany_in_CO]

Hi HMZ and Welcome!

If interested in a simple Casile Soap that cures fast many members (not all) like this recipe. It is not a dual-lye recipe but cures fast. I prefer the 85% Olive Oil, 10% Coconut Oil, 5% Castor Oil variation, but you can certainly do 100% Olive Oil or whatever suits your skin:

Zany's No Slime Castile
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/zanys-no-slime-castile.72620/

When you have time, please go to the Introduction Forum and take a moment to introduce yourself to the group, including your level of experience in soap making. That will help us to help you.

 

[HMZ]

With [33% Lye] concentration, you had more water, which provides the raw soap more opportunity to heat up and gel, which if it did, would explain why you were able to unmold sooner. But the size of the batch matters, too. Were they comparable in size to the ones you just made using [40% Lye]?

I was working with smaller batches while using the 33% lye solution.

Hi HMZ and Welcome!

If interested in a simple Casile Soap that cures fast many members (not all) like this recipe. It is not a dual-lye recipe but cures fast. I prefer the 85% Olive Oil, 10% Coconut Oil, 5% Castor Oil variation, but you can certainly do 100% Olive Oil or whatever suits your skin:

Zany's No Slime Castile
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/zanys-no-slime-castile.72620/

When you have time, please go to the Introduction Forum and take a moment to introduce yourself to the group, including your level of experience in soap making. That will help us to help you.

Thank you so much Zany for the information! I am really excited to trying this recipe out. Does it have to be sea salt?

Hi HMZ and Welcome!

If interested in a simple Casile Soap that cures fast many members (not all) like this recipe. It is not a dual-lye recipe but cures fast. I prefer the 85% Olive Oil, 10% Coconut Oil, 5% Castor Oil variation, but you can certainly do 100% Olive Oil or whatever suits your skin:

Zany's No Slime Castile
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/zanys-no-slime-castile.72620/

When you have time, please go to the Introduction Forum and take a moment to introduce yourself to the group, including your level of experience in soap making. That will help us to help you.

Can you please help me find the introduction forum? I am not sure how to find it. Sorry

 

[Zany_in_CO]

Can you please help me find the introduction forum? I am not sure how to find it. Sorry

No need to apologize. I should have included the link. My apologies.
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/forums/the-introduction-forum.16/

Find the button top right , dirctly opposite the title on the left, that says "Post Thread". Click on that and start typing.

For future reference, it would be good for you to go to the top of the page. Click on "FORUMS" on the top left to see all that are available. Check out the Beginners Forum. That's a good place to start a thread on any subject you are interested in. Browse to your heart's content until you get the hang of it. Don't be shy about asking questions. There is no such thing as a "dumb question". More often than not, we all learn when the question is answered.

Thank you so much Zany for the information! I am really excited to trying this recipe out. Does it have to be sea salt?

You're welcome. Ya know, I don't think anyone who tried that recipe has asked that question! Good for you!
I use Morton's Sea Salt from the grocery store. Sea Salt has trace minerals that are beneficial to skin. It's not expensive so I would recommend you use that.

MAKE FAUX SEAWATER - Use for water portion of the lye solution.
1 quart warm water
1 Tablespoon sea salt
1 Tablespoon sodium bicarbonate (baking soda)

I make up a quart at a time and store it in the fridge until I need it.

Some people who are close to an ocean use real sea water and there's a separate thread for that. If you choose to use plain table salt, it would be helpful to start a thread with that in the title.

HAPPY SOAPING!

 

[Hope Ann]

Thank you so much Zany for the information! I am really excited to trying this recipe out. Does it have to be sea salt?

Zaneys Castille is fabulous!

Hope

 

[HMZ]

You're welcome. Ya know, I don't think anyone who tried that recipe has asked that question! Good for you!
I use Morton's Sea Salt from the grocery store. Sea Salt has trace minerals that are beneficial to skin. It's not expensive so I would recommend you use that.

MAKE FAUX SEAWATER - Use for water portion of the lye solution.
1 quart warm water
1 Tablespoon sea salt
1 Tablespoon sodium bicarbonate (baking soda)

I make up a quart at a time and store it in the fridge until I need it.

Some people who are close to an ocean use real sea water and there's a separate thread for that. If you choose to use plain table salt, it would be helpful to start a thread with that in the title.

HAPPY SOAPING!

Thank you so much Zany! I really appreciate you tking the time to answer my questions

You're welcome. Ya know, I don't think anyone who tried that recipe has asked that question! Good for you!
I use Morton's Sea Salt from the grocery store. Sea Salt has trace minerals that are beneficial to skin. It's not expensive so I would recommend you use that.

MAKE FAUX SEAWATER - Use for water portion of the lye solution.
1 quart warm water
1 Tablespoon sea salt
1 Tablespoon sodium bicarbonate (baking soda)

I make up a quart at a time and store it in the fridge until I need it.

Some people who are close to an ocean use real sea water and there's a separate thread for that. If you choose to use plain table salt, it would be helpful to start a thread with that in the title.

HAPPY SOAPING!

I found very coarse sea salt in my pantry and I did use it. I hope it being coarse wouldn't affect the ratios.

 

[Hope Ann]

I make up a quart at a time and store it in the fridge until I need it.

i do this as well. May i suggest labeling it well? Dunno how many times theman tried to feed it to me.

Hope