Teach Soap

Greetings,

I'm new here, so pardon me if I'm missing something big. I apologize in advance, but I couldn't find the answer to my question by searching the forum, and Google has been less than helpful. I've made soap many times before, but mostly MP and mostly unscented.

Well, for Christmas this year, I decided to make my family soap as gifts, but I want to add scents. Most of them are going to be pretty easy, but for years my dad has wanted Old Spice Soap on a Rope. I read somewhere that alcohol-based fragrances (like OS cologne) don't do well with soap-making. But I found a reference (might have been here, might have been somewhere else) that said equal parts of allspice and sandalwood EO would mimic the scent quite well.

Herein lies two questions: right now, when I've found sandalwood EO, it's $45 or more an ounce. That's quite a bit more than I'd like to spend, so I found that you could use Amyris or Cedarwood EO as a substitute. Which of the two alternatives do you think would be better?

And my second question is: where is a good online resource for essential oils? I've been on Bramble Berry (just placed an order yesterday there), but I can't find the allspice anywhere locally. While there are a million and one different places to get EOs, I was wondering if anyone had particularly good recommendations for one.

Thanks!
Jason

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There is only black and white. Grey is a misunderstanding.

Welcome!
Amyris is nothing like the real Sandalwood. You are correct. Alcohol based scents do not do well in soap. Here are the results from the fragrance oil finder for Old Spice fragrance. http://www.fragranceoilfinder.com/catal ... e&x=12&y=7

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

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There is only black and white. Grey is a misunderstanding.

Welcome, Jason!

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Linda

I learn so much when I can't leave well enough alone!

I have a Sandalwood Blend that is pretty close. It uses Australian Sandalwood (which is a different plant and not endangered like real Indian sandalwood) and other woody EOs.

Welcome to the forum Jason! If you are just looking for a spice scent, my favorite is Arabian spice from BB. Did you include this one with your order? If not maybe you could call them and have it added to your shipment. It does darken the soap bar but is well worth it!

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Susie
Sometimes A Mistake is so much fun, You just have to do it again!

Maybe the next time I make a batch. I'm mostly interested in faux Old Spice cologne/aftershave scent for my dad.

_________________
There is only black and white. Grey is a misunderstanding.

Welcome!
If I were you, I'd stick to a fragrance oil dupe. All spice, if I remember correctly, is only usable at 2% max in skin products and may cause irritation. So, especially with elder skin (or children), I would avoid it completely.
You must check each essential oil out for their use rates, as they differ. One size does not fit all for sure and it can be dangerous to the people who use your products to just add something until it smells right to you.

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Remember, it's not just that we weather the storm, but how we dance in the rain.

Tammy