Olive oil vs HO Sunflower oil

pmartin · Jun 13, 2017

Count me as one of the weirdos that like the slimy feel of soap made with a high percentage of olive oil. I don't like the cost though. Will an oil like a high oleic sunflower or safflower oil provide the same slimy, slick feel? Is it the oleic acid that creates this or is it something that only olive oil brings?

I need to start planning my yearly supply of soap and would like to cut some costs cuz I'm cheap...lol!

Thank you!

dixiedragon · Jun 13, 2017

I really like the combination of olive and sunflower. I made a soap with no olive and sunflower instead and really liked that. I didn't notice any sliminess.

pmartin · Jun 13, 2017

dixiedragon said:
I really like the combination of olive and sunflower. I made a soap with no olive and sunflower instead and really liked that. I didn't notice any sliminess.

Thank you for your reply!

Maybe I should rephrase. I made a 100% olive oil soap and like the slimy, slick feel. I'm wondering if a 100% High Oleic oil like sunflower/safflower will provide the same quality?

DeeAnna · Jun 13, 2017

High oleic soap is high oleic soap. My thinking is any soap with oleic acid of 65% or higher will make plenty of oleic gel (the stuff that makes olive oil soap stringy/snotty/slick). It makes no difference what fat provides the oleic acid. HO sunflower, HO safflower, HO canola, olive, and sweet almond are common soaping fats with a high oleic acid content. Rice bran and avocado have a moderate oleic acid content.

Be sure to check the label to make sure an oil is truly high oleic, because there are regular (high linoleic) versions of sunflower, safflower, and canola. The monounsaturated content should be above 50% for a moderate oleic content and around 75% for high oleic. More: https://classicbells.com/soap/highOleic.html

I like using the HO oils like HO sunflower because I'm more confident I'm actually getting the fat whose name is on the label. I'm never quite sure with olive oil that I've actually got 100% real olive oil. My HO sunflower oil soap makes the same stringy, slick oleic gel just like an olive oil soap.

Saranac · Jun 13, 2017

DeeAnna said:
I like using the HO oils like HO sunflower because I'm more confident I'm actually getting the fat whose name is on the label. I'm never quite sure with olive oil that I've actually got 100% real olive oil. My HO sunflower oil soap makes the same stringy, slick oleic gel just like an olive oil soap.

I use HO sunflower for the same reason.

Also keep in mind that olive tends to have more stearic/palmitic than the high oleic oils mentioned above. Because of that, I like to blend HO sunflower with shea (or you could use lard to keep cost down) to bring the FA profile more inline with olive. I like a bastile with 25% shea butter and 75% HO sunflower.

dixiedragon · Jun 13, 2017

A group did a single oil soap swap and here are the results:
http://www.zensoaps.com/singleoil.htm

Apparently the 100% sunflower didn't perform too well. But I don't think that was HO sunflower and that might make a difference.

Nao · Jun 13, 2017

I don't know how it lathers on it own but sunflower oil doesn't seem to reduce the lathering abilities of other oils like olive oil does.

I'm using a Bastille soap right now, among others, and I have to say that it's growing on me :mrgreen:

pmartin · Jun 24, 2017

Thank you for your helpful responses!

Sorry it took me so long to respond, posted my question right before I left on a vacation.

Found the appropriate HO Sunflower oil in my local grocery. Making my first batch later today. I'll post my results in a few weeks.

Here is the recipe I'm going to try;

HO Sunflower - 70%
Coconut Oil - 18%
Palm Oil - 7%
Castor Oil - 5%

Superfat 8%

Cosmo71 · Aug 9, 2020

pmartin said:
Thank you for your helpful responses!

Sorry it took me so long to respond, posted my question right before I left on a vacation.

Found the appropriate HO Sunflower oil in my local grocery. Making my first batch later today. I'll post my results in a few weeks.

Here is the recipe I'm going to try;

HO Sunflower - 70%
Coconut Oil - 18%
Palm Oil - 7%
Castor Oil - 5%

Superfat 8%

How did your soap turn out? I am starting to wonder if I should give HO sunflower oil a try.

Olive oil vs HO Sunflower oil

Help Support Soapmaking Forum:

pmartin

Member

dixiedragon

Well-Known Member

pmartin

Member

DeeAnna

Well-Known Member

Saranac

Well-Known Member

dixiedragon

Well-Known Member

Nao

Well-Known Member

pmartin

Member

Cosmo71

Well-Known Member

Similar threads

Latest posts

Olive oil vs HO Sunflower oil

Help Support Soapmaking Forum:

Member

Well-Known Member

Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Member

Well-Known Member

Similar threads

Join the conversation!

Join today and get all the highlights of this community direct to your inbox. It's FREE!