Teach Soap

Everything I read says to add fragrance oil at trace. I like a thin trace especially if I am using a mold with detail or I want to swirl. I am tired of adding a fragrance to thin trace and then...............POW. I have some thick, globby stuff that I am doing good to get in a mold without bubbles in it. Today I am going to make a batch and this is what I am going to do. Maybe someone can tell me, before I do it, if I am making a mistake.

I am going to use my standard recipe with coconut, palm, castor, olive, soybean, lard and cocoa butter. I am going to let the oils and lye cool to 100 degrees which is a little cooler than I usually do. I am going to add my fragrance oil BEFORE I add the lye. I will add the lye slowly and hopefully be able to keep it at thin enough trace to swirl. I am going to be using a new fragrance from Brambleberry, either Coconut Lemongrass or Energy.

I hope I get a response in the next couple of hours before I ruin all this oil.

I always add my fragrance to the cooled off oils first. I wouldn't go below 110 degrees. You don't want your butter to start solidifying.

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

What would we do without your help, soapbuddy????? I knew I could count on you to reply.

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

My recipe traces fast without fragrance. With some fragrances, one in particular, the trace is so fast it's hard to get it mixed properly. I also add the fragrance to the cooled off oils. Actually, I add the fragrance to my liquid oils and only heat up the solids. It helps cool the whole thing down quicker to soaping temp when I add the liquid oils to the melted solids. (The liquid oils are around 70 F and I add them to the melt when it comes down to 120-125F.)

I let the whole thing cool to 100-110F, I have Shea butter in the mix but not a lot and haven't had any problems with solids. There's no beeswax in this combo, when I add that I have to stay above 110 or the wax will solidify. Also, I learned to stop fighting the fragrances that trace fast and just do a single solid color that I can mix in before I add the Lye. Save the swirls for the slower traces.

Soaping at the lower temps, however, I have to be careful about ash. I like to use my log molds for these and leave the soap in the mold 2 days. That limits any ash to the very top and even that I can usually manage by keeping it covered and/or using alcohol.

Even with all that, some of my favorite fragrances are a complete pain in the tukus to work with. Last week, I accidentally made a pretty soap in an unplanned color combo because it traced faster than I could color. I'm half afraid to sell it since it will be a bear to replicate if people like it.