Your experiences trying FO's that smell awful OOB?

[peachymoon]

Hi all! So, I just received an order with a handful of fragrance oils and I'm a bit disappointed with how some of them smell. I'm reluctant to try them. I've read reviews (for other FO's) that have noted a pleasant change the maker's opinion of the FO once the soap is in the curing process, so I realize the smell might change significantly once the FO is IN a soap. What have been your experiences with this--do you go and ahead and try it anyway? Do you try it in a teensy batch? Any tips for testing FO's? I was also wondering if there are ever any swaps for these kinds of things on the forum. Thank you!!

& for those who are curious, the two in question are WSP's Farmer's Market Baby Bibb and WSP's Lavender Vanilla! The former smells like Raid to me and the latter smells like strong cleaning chemicals. :x

 

[Megan]

I would say pretty much all FOs change in soap. I've never used one that smells exactly the same as in the bottle. I still have some I'm scared to try though, so I would say small batches are best for those wild card ones.

Keep in mind, using at a different percentage might help as well. With really strong fragrances, I tend to go down a percent or two than in my normal batches....
Keep in mind also: fragrances can change after cure. Or even during final use (some disappear and come back!)

 

[shunt2011]

I don't judge a fragrance OOB. It's different once placed in a product. I made small batches to test and have been pleasantly surprised many times with something I wasn't thrilled with OOB but loved it in product.

 

[peachymoon]

I would say pretty much all FOs change in soap. I've never used one that smells exactly the same as in the bottle. I still have some I'm scared to try though, so I would say small batches are best for those wild card ones.

Keep in mind, using at a different percentage might help as well. With really strong fragrances, I tend to go down a percent or two than in my normal batches....
Keep in mind also: fragrances can change after cure. Or even during final use (some disappear and come back!)

I think I will try these at smaller percentages, thanks for the tip! And that's funny that some of them have a disappearing act. xD

I've don't judge a fragrance OOB. It's different once placed in a product. I made small batches to test and have been pleasantly surprised many times with something I wasn't thrilled with OOB but loved it in product.

Ok, this is reassuring to hear. Thank you!

 

[Misschief]

I have one that I can't stand oob (Champagne Kisses); it actually makes me gag. However, I used it in a white wine soap (how perfect, right?) and I love it in the soap. It's light, fruity without being sickly sweet, and really nice. I'm learning not to judge a FO by what I smell in the bottle.

 

[peachymoon]

I have one that I can't stand oob (Champagne Kisses); it actually makes me gag. However, I used it in a white wine soap (how perfect, right?) and I love it in the soap. It's light, fruity without being sickly sweet, and really nice. I'm learning not to judge a FO by what I smell in the bottle.

Yeah, I got a headache after smelling these. One of them only has one review, but I was curious about the scent, and the other has so many good reviews so I'm hopeful it'll change, but, oh boy, I just could not picture myself pouring this into a batch once I smelled it, haha.

 

[shunt2011]

What scents are you using and where from? Have you checked the Fragrance Review Forum. You may find some feedback there as well.

 

[peachymoon]

What scents are you using and where from? Have you checked the Fragrance Review Forum. You may find some feedback there as well.

Oh, I just came straight here to ask, I will look for it now! The scents are both from WSP: Farmer's Market Baby Bibb and Lavender Vanilla. The reviews for FMBB are generally positive, but no one mentioned the OOB smell, which I would've expected to come across. Seasoned soapers are probably used to the discrepancy between the OOB smell and the smell of the FO in soap. xD

 

[DeeAnna]

A better way to evaluate FOs and EOs is to put a wee drop on an unscented paper towel or a strip of coffee filter. Wave the strip of paper around your nose to scent the air. Test like this every 10 minutes for the next hour or so. Then test again some hours later.

Sniff some ground coffee or coffee beans between scents to refresh your nose. Don't test more than 2 or 3 scents at a time to avoid scent overload -- even using the coffee, my nose and brain just can't deal with more than that at one time.

 

[peachymoon]

A better way to evaluate FOs and EOs is to put a wee drop on an unscented paper towel or a strip of coffee filter. Wave the strip of paper around your nose to scent the air. Test like this every 10 minutes for the next hour or so. Then test again some hours later.

Sniff some ground coffee or coffee beans between scents to refresh your nose. Don't test more than 2 or 3 scents at a time to avoid scent overload -- even using the coffee, my nose and brain just can't deal with more than that at one time.

Thank you so much! I'm going to try this out.

 

[IrishLass]

Ditto what the others have said....never judge a fragrance by how it smells OOB. More often than not, they smell much better once soaped, although I must say I have several that smell exactly the same in soap as they do OOB.


IrishLass

 

[sarahmarah]

I have WSP’s Baby Bibb and I find that it’s fantastic in soap and it lasts. It’s a slightly sweet green smell that also makes a fantastic blender. Try it on a small batch.

 

[peachymoon]

I have WSP’s Baby Bibb and I find that it’s fantastic in soap and it lasts. It’s a slightly sweet green smell that also makes a fantastic blender. Try it on a small batch.

Oh good!! I told my boyfriend about this comment and he is very intrigued to see how it will come out in soap now. Out of curiosity, is there anything specific you recommend blending it with?

 

[sarahmarah]

Oh good!! I told my boyfriend about this comment and he is very intrigued to see how it will come out in soap now. Out of curiosity, is there anything specific you recommend blending it with?

I blended with Yuzu Original EO/FO from WSP. Mostly used Baby Bibb because the Yuzu will knock your socks off and be very overpowering. I would think it would do nicely with most any fruit or floral scent. It gives off a fresh smell and it’s not too heavy or too green imo.

 

[Obsidian]

Last time I used FO that smelled bad oob, I ended up throwing the whole batch away it stunk so bad.
Next time I got a stinky FO, I didn't even bother trying it, just tossed it.
I have some that I don't love oob, still use those but if they flat out make me gag, I don't use them.

 

[peachymoon]

I blended with Yuzu Original EO/FO from WSP. Mostly used Baby Bibb because the Yuzu will knock your socks off and be very overpowering. I would think it would do nicely with most any fruit or floral scent. It gives off a fresh smell and it’s not too heavy or too green imo.

Thank you for the suggestion. I'm definitely gonna try it in a very small batch, so I may split it and add something citrusy to part of the batch.

Last time I used FO that smelled bad oob, I ended up throwing the whole batch away it stunk so bad.
Next time I got a stinky FO, I didn't even bother trying it, just tossed it.
I have some that I don't love oob, still use those but if they flat out make me gag, I don't use them.

Hopefully once they're in soaps they won't be so bad, it would be a shame for them to go to waste, but I definitely felt really alarmed when I sniffed these and can see how you'd just wanna toss them after a bad experience testing them. :s

 

[Obsidian]

Hopefully once they're in soaps they won't be so bad, it would be a shame for them to go to waste, but I definitely felt really alarmed when I sniffed these and can see how you'd just wanna toss them after a bad experience testing them. :s

I always do the sniff test like DeeAnna mentioned. Sometimes they smell bad just because they are so strong.

 

[peachymoon]

I always do the sniff test like DeeAnna mentioned. Sometimes they smell bad just because they are so strong.

Is it prudent, then, to try the fragrance at a less potent percentage, or just stick to the recommended one in WSP's fragrance calculator?

 

[Obsidian]

Is it prudent, then, to try the fragrance at a less potent percentage, or just stick to the recommended one in WSP's fragrance calculator?

I really don't know. I've never even looked at a scent calculator. I tend to use 6% unless its not safe to.
If a scent is really strong, I will try 3% instead.

 

[glendam]

You said you just received them.... usually they smell different just after arriving because of all the movement, and you can do a more fair assessment if you let them sit 24 hrs or so. In my own personal experience, and perhaps because I have an acute sense of smell; if I dislike it out of the bottle, I will dislike it in the soap. The only exception has been spearmint EO. I also hated cedarwood (because I got the Texas version) But over time it has grown on me.
As far as fragrances, I usually sell them straight away if I don’t like them, and if I decide to try them in soap I still dislike them.