Teach Soap

Greetings everyone!

I made my first two batches of cold-process soaps last month. Being a beginner soapmaker, I started my batches being about 16oz each with one scented using sweet orange essential oil and unscented. I've never used natural soaps before and don't know how it is suppose to feel. I started out with a basic recipe of olive oil, shea butter, palm oil and coconut oil in both batches. My two batches have been curing for four weeks now. I started using my sweet orange soap and really like the result of it expect that it leaves a slimy film after I rinsed. What does that indicate? It doesn't leave my skin dry or anything. I'm eager to try another batch but I need to figure about this issue so it doesn't have happen again. Oh, it was superfat at 5%. I know with my next batch I am going to superfat at 7%, thanks to my fellow soap friends who recommend that.

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http://blissfulsoaps.wordpress.com/

Can you post the exact recipe that you used?

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http://blissfulsoaps.wordpress.com/

For that size of a batch, I hope you have an accurate scale. If it feels slimey, could it be lye heavy? For your next batch, I would recalculate the ounces and put them into grams. Round up on your oils and round down on your lye. I don't go below 7% superfat as my skin feels dry with anything below that.

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

I agree with soapbuddy. Did you zap test it or do a ph test? Also, I love shea butter in soap but I generally don't use it over 10% or my soaps can have a sticky kinda gross feeling to me.

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http://blissfulsoaps.wordpress.com/

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http://blissfulsoaps.wordpress.com/

It could be the high amount of shea butter. When you re-adjust your recipe try dropping down your shea butter to around 5%. Add the difference to your olive oil or a mix of your palm and olive. Let us know how it turns out!

I usually round my lye down to the second decimal point. So 2.23 oz. Unless I am doing a 1lb batch I usually weigh in ounces.

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http://blissfulsoaps.wordpress.com/

One thing I see in the recipe is too much shea. Keep all butters under ten percent total of your recipe. Drop the shea 15 -20% and add it to your other oils.

I would drop your coconut to 20% or lower, as it can be very drying. I agree that your shea percentage is quite high, I'd drop it to 10%. Make up the dropped percentages with olive if you like... or add some lard maybe? Lard makes for a nice fluffy lather and a hard bar. Make sure you run your recipe through a lye calculator whenever you change something (and ALWAYS check new recipes with a lye calculator too!).

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~~Heather~~
Mad [soaping] Scientist

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http://blissfulsoaps.wordpress.com/

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http://blissfulsoaps.wordpress.com/

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!