Teach Soap

Question for those that make lotion bars/body butter type products...

What is the maximum amount of beeswax you have used in a body butter/lotion bar type product? I just made my first batch of body butter/bar, using the following recipe:

58% Shea Butter
28% Sweet Almond Oil
14% Beeswax

This makes a nice firm butter that can go either way - into a jar to be scooped out, or you can pour into a mold for a stand alone like a bar of soap - in my climate at least.

However, I could swear I've purchased disk-like, solid lotion bars that felt a bit firmer to me that the one I've just made. We are at peak summer temps for WA state (low 90's) so mine are holding their shape pretty good - soft but not squishy and melts pretty easy to the touch.

This got me to thinking as to the full range of beeswax one could use. I do have friends in warmer, SoapBuddy like climates (Southern Cali) and I'm wondering if this recipe would hold up as well in climates that get over 100 degrees.

So, does anyone go much higher than 14%? At what point is it too much beeswax, rendering the bar too hard to easily use?

Here is the best answer to the question I posed, if anyone is interested:

http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com/2 ... aking.html

Great blog post on analyzing what percentage of wax to use to arrive at the final melting point, taking into consideration the oils and butters in your recipe.

I live in a tropical climate, and there is no way that the recipe you posted would stay solid here (assuming I am using it for a lotion bar). I have to use a minimum of 33% beeswax for "winter" and even more in the summer.

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

Thanks so much for your responses. I'll bump up the beeswax % considerably for bars headed for hot climates. Geez, now I need to check on the ones my friend took back to San Diego. I did pour them into jars - at least they will be contained if they melt.