What are your favorite liquid oils for soaping and why?

thinkativeone · Oct 15, 2013

What is/are your favorite(s) liquid oil(s)? So far the only liquid oil I have used in my soap is extra virgin OO. I'm so curious to hear what your other favorite liquid oils are and why you like them in your soap. I prefer to keep the more expensive oils for leave-on body butters I make but I am sure you guys love certain other liquid oils in soaps for the properties they bring. Wise soapers, do tell me of your preferences! :mrgreen:

dagmar88 · Oct 15, 2013

Olive oil. I don't use extra virgin though, but the lightest kind available.
It doesn't make any difference, but it makes the soap whiter.
I like apricot kernel for baby care and castor sure adds a lot to my recipes.

shunt2011 · Oct 15, 2013

Olive oil not EVOO either. I buy mine from Costco in twin packs of 3 liters each. Second would be Avocado.

Obsidian · Oct 15, 2013

Olive oil, castor and avocado. I really don't see any reason to use expensive oils in soaps.

lsg · Oct 15, 2013

My favorites are coconut, palm, Castor and rice bran.

Saswede · Oct 15, 2013

OO is my main soaping oil, and like Dagmar and others, I don't usually use EVOO .... And I commonly use RBO, castor and sunflower (low percentage).

I also like sweet almond in some soaps (small percentage, but it's good for soaps for sensitive skins), and I do love argan oil in luxury soaps. It's expensive, but is wonderful in shampoo bars and moisturizing/facial bars. I also use it every so often as a hair treatment too - something I learned from a Moroccan friend, who uses it for everything from salads to skin care!

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renata · Oct 16, 2013

My main soaping oils are olive oil, palm oil and coconut oil. But I think my favorite is castor. I can't believe that 5% of castor makes such a difference in lather.

And it looks like i really have to try out avocado oil! It's quite expensive here in my country, but I've read so many good things that I have to try it

thinkativeone · Oct 16, 2013

Neat. The reason I get extra virgin olive oil instead of regular olive oil is that it is the only type my Costco sells that is certified organic. And the weird thing is that at their price, it's cheaper than even pomace grade olive oils and regular ones elsewhere. So I can get quite a bit for way less. Love it in soap!

HorseCreek · Oct 16, 2013

OO, Avocado, and Castor. Sometimes RBO for fun. I love love avocado oil, wouldn't be without it.

And on the OO, whatever I can find the cheapest. ..I don't care what grade.

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Spicey477 · Oct 16, 2013

Do you all get RBO and avocado oil locally or do you have to buy from one of the soaping companies? I don't know if I have ever noticed RBO in the grocery before. Also, is coconut oil a considerable savings from one of the companies over Costco, for example? In my regular grocery store it is $9 for 16oz, same product at a better priced store is $5.

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Saswede · Oct 17, 2013

I can't buy RBO in the supermarket here either, but I have found a few Asian supermarkets in the region who all have it. So depending on where you live, you may want to try looking for interesting oils in some more unusual places!

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thinkativeone · Oct 17, 2013

What does RBO stand for? I can't remember if I knew at one time.

JaimeM · Oct 17, 2013

Rice bran oil.

Ruthie · Oct 17, 2013

Another vote for olive oil and a bit of castor- up to 5%. And though I know some would disagree, I also like a bit of sunflower oil. High oleic is best.

That being said, I am really a fan of the solid oils. Give a firm bar without drying. But I realize that was not your question.

sososo · Oct 17, 2013

Castor oil. I put castor (5-15%) in every batch.

sososo · Oct 17, 2013

Ruthie said:
And though I know some would disagree, I also like a bit of sunflower oil.

Five month ago I made a soap using 25% sunflower oil (also 20% Coconut, 30% Palm, 20% Olive, 5% Castor). After five months no rancidity at all.

cmzaha · Oct 17, 2013

shunt2011 said:
Olive oil not EVOO either. I buy mine from Costco in twin packs of 3 liters each. Second would be Avocado.

I am in agreement with the Costco Pure Olive. Do not waste money on EVOO. Avocado, Sunflower, Canola & Castor. Next would be Rice Bran, Sesame, and Pumpkin Seed Oil. Canola brings an extra fatty acid to the party that I like to include. Avocado and Sunflower are lovely emollient oils that contribute to a mild bar of soap. Castor helps support the bubbles but best to keep at a low percentage, such as 5%

thinkativeone · Oct 17, 2013

cmzaha said:
I am in agreement with the Costco Pure Olive. Do not waste money on EVOO. Avocado, Sunflower, Canola & Castor. Next would be Rice Bran, Sesame, and Pumpkin Seed Oil. Canola brings an extra fatty acid to the party that I like to include. Avocado and Sunflower are lovely emollient oils that contribute to a mild bar of soap. Castor helps support the bubbles but best to keep at a low percentage, such as 5%

I will keep using my EVOO because it is cheaper for me than the lowest grade of olive oil elsewhere. Why buy EVOO? Because regular OO sold at Costco is not certified organic and I am only soaping with certified organic oils.

That's the reason.

I will not soap with canola for the certified organic reasons which would be too long to talk about, and the tendency towards rancidity.

Another poster mentioned solid oils. I made 100% organic CO soap for cleaning purposes and it is AMAZING. I just simply did not want to provoke a controversial post because solid oils usually end up discussing palm oil and I choose not to use palm oil or animal fats in soap myself. I do love coconut though but will probably not be experimenting with cocoa or shea till later on due to the expense.

Mainly this thread was just to find out more about liquid oils you guys like. I've been thinking about hemp oil a lot lately. It is in Dr. Bronner's soap (as is palm...). Has anyone tried hemp oil in soap? :?: Thanks for sharing your preferences! I love sunflower oil in skincare and will have to try some in soap, and try avocado and castor.

dagmar88 · Oct 18, 2013

Hemp is prone to DOS.

shunt2011 · Oct 18, 2013

I've used Hemp Oil in a Cannabis Flower soap at 10% and it is a year old and no DOS. I wouldn't use it any higher though. I also added some Vitamin E to the bottle when I purchased it to help stabilize the shelf life hopefully.

What are your favorite liquid oils for soaping and why?

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