Teach Soap

Hi! I am a newbie in soap-making. I have been researching on how I can dilute rose essential oil in such a way that it is safe to mix with the herbal soap I am making. Do I mix it with a carrier oil or vinegar (and what kind of carrier oil or vinegar)? What is the safe quantity on facial skin (especially sensitive skin) e.g., 30 drops of essential oil to 1 tablespoon of vinegar or carrier oil? I am really grateful that there is a venue for my questions. Sorry if I raise naive questions. Hope you can enlighten me so I can be better in the future.

Thank you very much!

That's going to be some expensive soap! Don't use vinegar! It will neutralize some of your lye. You can dilute the rose oil in one of your soapmaking oils. As far as how much rose, I don't know. I use rose oil in leave on products such as lotions or creams. That way your skin can actually benefit from it. If you add too little, it will not add any scent to your soap.

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

You can mix rose EO, either the absolute or Otto, with any carrier oil you choose. The amount will depend upon the total amount of oils that you use. The thing is the cost and your intent. In order to get a saturation rate strong enough to benefit your skin, you'd have to spend a fortune on it (it's around $30 an 1/8 of an oz). If you are looking for the fragrance only, then you could use less and maybe even mix it with another EO like bergamot, lavender or sage (some of my favorite blends). If cost is not an object, you should check the recommended usage rate with the company that supplied your EO. I tend to go with the "not over 1%" rule of thumb if there are no company recommendations. Much luck with whatever you choose to do, I so love the scent of pure rose!
Oh, I did a raspberry rose last year that was surprisingly great!

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

Tammy