In addition to Olive Oil, which is an essential in my house, I also like and often use:
Almond Oil (some stores carry it; some don't, not sure why, but you can buy it online, too)
Grapeseed Oil (usually easy to find in grocery stores)
Rice Bran Oil (I bought this online from
Soapers Choice)
Coconut Oil (I buy this at Sam's Club for the cheapest price)
Shea Butter (I got a great price on it at a conference I went to, otherwise I probably would not use it often in soap)
Cocoa Butter (I used to just use the little 2 ounce sticks you can get at Walgreens, Dollar General, etc. Looks like this: )
But I also got a good price on Cocoa Butter at that same conference, so I can use it more often. I really like cocoa butter.
Occasionally I use some oils that are easy to find in grocery stores, but not as much as when I first started and wanted to try everything:
Corn
Safflower (both regular & High Oleic, which has to be purchased online)
Canola
Crisco (new with palm)
Soybean Oil (I don't much like soybean oil, so I am trying to use it up to get rid of it)
Walnut oil (I decided I like cooking with it better than I like soaping with it)
Sesame oil (I really like sesame oil, too, the scent as well as it's bubbly quality when it is soap, sometimes I will use it instead of castor oil)
Castor Oil (I used to buy it at WalMart in the pharmacy section, then later ordered online, but I don't always use castor)
Additionally, if you are going to order online:
NaOH (although if you have a TSC - Tractor Supply Company - nearby, you can purchase 100% lye granules in the plumping section as a drain opener, also some hardware stores carry it; saves on shipping)
KOH - potassium hydroxide (used for liquid soap, but also in some bar soap recipes if you ever want to try the 95% NaOH/5%KOH method - not as a beginner, but perhaps sometime down the line)
Sodium Lactate - a liquid used in small amounts to add to CP soap to make it a bit easier to unmold sooner from silicone molds (I think it is worth having a bottle on hand if you use silicone molds a lot, but I don't use it as often as in the beginning)