Yellow African Shea Butter Soap

[Misschief]

Thank you! I was aiming for a super soft billowy looking top like you did on a recent soap. I’m getting closer.

I think you nailed it!

 

[Mobjack Bay]

It sure does make it difficult for labelling if the company doesn't list the colorant. I only buy white for this reason. 3Cay lists there's being colored with color from borututu but many companies say it's natural. A while back I watched a you tube video on it. The woman explained the coloring of shea and added just a bit of red palm to show how shea is colored. I'm in Canada and we can use a symbol ( "+/-" or "±" or the phrase "may contain) followed by the colorant ingredient. So maybe something like "± borututu, red palm or turmeric" at the end of your label would work. If theses companies won't share the information on what they've added or having the shea tested for additives it could be a way of protecting yourself. I've not yet ordered from 3Cay but I really like that they share what's added to their shea.

I will have to look for that video. I don’t know anything about red palm oil as a colorant.

 

[robinddy]

I had heard about the Yellow African Shea Butter Soap many times but never had it. It has Shea Butter as the main ingredient. Shea butter is an off-white or ivory-colored fat that has been extracted from the nuts of the Shea Tree in Africa. Shea Butter is mostly used in the formation of cosmetics in the cosmetics industry for skin and hair. Shea Butter incredibly nourishes and moisturizes skin with the help of the concentration of vitamins that it has in abundance.

 

[shunt2011]

I had heard about the Yellow African Shea Butter Soap many times but never had it. It has Shea Butter as the main ingredient. Shea butter is an off-white or ivory-colored fat that has been extracted from the nuts of the Shea Tree in Africa. Shea Butter is mostly used in the formation of cosmetics in the cosmetics industry for skin and hair. Shea Butter incredibly nourishes and moisturizes skin with the help of the concentration of vitamins that it has in abundance.

True African Shea is yellow unless it's been refined.

 

[cmzaha]

Shea Butter also varies in color from yellow to beige, but as I mention in the beginning pages of this thread sometimes they up the color with botanicals such as chilis. Since I buy in 25 lb blocks which are imported in from villages you find goodies in the shea. Most likely what you get in those containers has been melted strained and repackaged so any foreign matter is strained out.

 

[robinddy]

True African Shea is yellow unless it's been refined.

Well, friend Thanks for responding but I know true African Shea is yellow. But the Shea butter that in an off-white or ivory-colored fat is used in skincare products to make skin soft and fight acne.

 

[blucrsr]

I asked Soaper's Choice about this since I bought the yellow shea butter from them. They replied "The yellow color is achieved by way of a native root by the name of cochlospermum tinctorium." and included the following image.

 

[cmzaha]

I asked Soaper's Choice about this since I bought the yellow shea butter from them. They replied "The yellow color is achieved by way of a native root by the name of cochlospermum tinctorium." and included the following image.

You can be sure that is not all that is used to add to the yellow color, no matter what Soaper's Choice tells you.

 

[Iluminameluna]

@Obsidian Have you tried paprika? I think it’s just ground up dried red peppers. I made any infusion but then never tried it...

I have. I have used smoked and regular ol' paprika to infuse "light" olive oil many times, always using 1 tbsp per 500g of oil, just because I like intense colors, and what I found was that without gel, all I got was at most a very dark tan.
The infusion was in a warm oil to begin, in a glass jar with a tight fitting lid once the oil has cooled. Then I would store it in a dark place for at least 6 weeks, turn it over every week, then decant it allowing some of the sediment to come thru, maybe less than a tsp. My usual testing recipe is a lard heavy one, like this:

50% lard
30% light olive
18% CO 76F
2% castor oil

1.7:1 water to lye ratio, 5% SF, cold process, 6 week cure minimum. My usual additive: 1 tbsp raw honey, because I like it.

This particular recipe with the paprika infused oil, I made a 1500g recipe just because I needed to use up some lye I had in a container.
It wasn't spectacular, but it was a learning one. Next time I added annatto and it was much better!

 

[Cosmo71]

Thanks for sharing your soap experience. I purchased the same Shea butter with every intention of using it for soap. I found a great deal on it and couldn't pass it by. I assumed it would turn my soap a dark color but you give me hope that I will have a lovely soap with it.

 

[SavonP]

I’ve bought Shea butter in the market while in Ghana and the lady I used to buy it from had a creamy colour Shea. I do t remember seeing yellow. But it could be different in different parts of the country. Also refined Shea has a different colour.

 

[meena.shah]

Thank you for the compliment I appreciate it.

But I doubt you will get an answer to your shea and it is very possibly Kpangnan they most likely do not know since they purchase from suppliers. Who are you going to email? Just curious. They even add more color to Kpangnan. Much of the shea, when it gets here is melted down and strained, not refined since it is being sold as raw, and I doubt you find surprises in the container shea. I honestly have never purchased butter in those containers since I only buy bulk from importers. My butters come in the original boxes from Ghana, so when I call that I want to pick some up I get whatever they have been sent. It is all nice.

Can you please send me the dealer address or contact number.

 

[Hope Ann]

This particular product is sold for use on skin, so I assume it has “passed the test” for consumer use, especially given the volume of sales through Walmart.

You've twice mentioned trusting Walmart because it's a big retailer. They sell a lot of crap and even potentially unsafe products. For example, the essential oils they sell are adultery junk. Whole Foods has A LOT of scary products in HBA. Do your own research. Don't trust the stores to protect you.

Your BTW is gorgeous. Definitely soap porn!

Hope

 

[Mobjack Bay]

I do not rely on sellers as a matter of course, which is why I also mentioned the volume of sales. Consumers are voting when they buy the product. The OKAY brand products (the brand I used) tend to have very high ratings on Amazon. I make enough soap now to be ordering my shea in bulk, but would not hesitate to use this product in soap if I ran out.

 

[cmzaha]

Can you please send me the dealer address or contact number.

Sorry, I do not have any dealer information. I retired from soapmaking when covid hit so no longer buy in bulk and sadly, my supplier went out of business around the same time.

 

[Cosmo71]

Lovely. I bought this same Shea butter from Amazon last year and just now made soap with it. I used 20% and found that my package of 7.5 oz had lost some moisture and I had to dip into another container to get my 7.2 oz for my recipe so good thing I just didn't eyeball it or dump in the whole container which I was considering but could not get good even measurements for other ingrediants with exactly 7.5 oz of the shea butter. I did a very simple soap with no color and no fragrance. It is a beautiful lemon yellow as I pour in the mold but I am anticipating some browning. Always a challenge to wait for the cut and cure. I know it will be luxurious soap and with no fragance or color I was able to make it at a much lower cost than my average block.

 

[FrayGrants]

I always use raw unrefined shea, and it is usually yellow in color. Thanks for the information about the coloring and additives. To clean mine up a bit, I melt it in a pot of distilled water and all the oil floats to the top, I allow it to cool in the refrigerator and remove the hardened oil in one piece. The majority of the impurities that aren't removed by the water are on the bottom of the hardened disk of oil, so I simply scrape them off and I end up with a much cleaner and better smelling product.