Teach Soap

Thanks to all of you i think i havet the basic idea of the soap making process now im just waitng for payday lol. the colorants and oils are my next challanges. So my qustion is is useing Fo and Eo jus trial and error. I no they can not only affect the smell but also how the soap comes out. so are there any books or really good info on senting soaps 101? i have been looking though this forum and seing all the tips about sents but are there books also. are there some out right dos and donts.

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~~Sydney~~
The Crafty Lefty

The only time an fo/eo can affect the outcome of the soap is:
1. When you use too much it can be a very big irritant to the skin
2. If the fo has vanillin in it, the soap can turn brown
3. The fo or eo has different color constituents in it, can cause your soap to turn a different color (yellow, blue, brown, orange, green, etc)

If you're looking for info on how different fo's do in soaps, lotions, etc, I highly recommend The Soap Scent Review Board
http://soapscentreview.obisoap.ca/ (you need a paid email addy to sign up though & you have to email the admin of the board to sign up)

If you're looking to learn about the safety of EO's, then there are a lot of books that can help with that. (I haven't had my morning coffee yet, so I suddenly can't think of the titles LOL. I'll find them & post again in a bit)

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Genny

You vendor should have information on how much fragrance to use.
Essential oils vary, so you would need to research each one. I normally go by the IFRA (US) guidelines on these.
I don't know of a book that would have all this info, since the same fragrance can very from vendor to vendor, due to the formula and the manufacturing process.

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

The fragrance part of soapmaking is like a wild card - especially FOs. Will it fade? Will it morph into something totally different? Will it accelerate trace so I have no time for the swirls I had planned?

One word of advice: I would not buy any more than a one (1) oz. sample of any FO/EO. If you buy more - and it turns out to be useless (maybe it fades to nothing) you'll have useless FO on your hands...unless you want to branch out into other products where it may do better (lotions, etc). In some cases, an FO is so popular, so widely used and commented on (Black Raspberry Vanilla would be one example) its a safer bet.

Certain Fo's and EO's can also cause your batch to accelerate trace, can cause ricing or even seizing (also called soap on a stick, so you now know what it seizing looks like! Lol). Often times the notes on a fragrance will list any of these effects if they test their products or if they have customer testimonials/reviews. However, since not every site has these, and since each recipe may behave differently, the potential is there no matter what the reviews say. Because of this, we usually recommend the first batches be fragrance free and color free as well.

If I were new and had no ethical objection to using FO's, I would steer clear of EO's until I had the time to study them more. EO's are NOT just fragrances. They have properties that need to be considered when using. They also have strict usage rates that need to be followed and many vendors do not list these, but generalize instead. Sensitizations can occur with any EO and if you use them frequently (when making products) without taking proper precautions, you can affect yourself for life. Additionally, there are a lot of books with incorrect info regarding EO's. I would suggest you check into a Robert Tisserand book if you want to begin to understand EO's.

Welcome to the addiction of soaping and take the time to enjoy the journey~

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

Tammy

thanks for all of the tips. I would love to use Eo and Fo but i do underdtand it take time to use them right i will def look in to the book.

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~~Sydney~~
The Crafty Lefty