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Well Texas is a big place, so I'll "howdy", but not sure if I can say "howdy neighbor". I hope you enjoy soaping, and good luck.

Congrats. Now get ready for the longest month of your life... waiting for it to cure!

Whiskey

I recall some discussion of this a while back, and most of us agreed that the 0.3% max recommended rate is probably incorrect - but NDA "confirmed" the oddly low value after questioning. o_O As I've seen several others here opine, I much prefer the smell and price of the 40/42 from Camden Grey...

Reading and following the recommendations the SDS for any product you intend to use is always a good idea. I am not recommending otherwise. If you have a more reputable and relevant reference to share regarding benzene exposure from petroleum benzine use, by all means please do. The paper...

Again I will respectfully disagree. The main point being that there is no such petroleum benzine product that contains 10% or more benzene (that composition you quoted was in reference to a raw distillation cut before further refinement and hydrogenation, and furthermore was in reference to...

Respectfully disagree with your interpretation of the wiki text. Petroleum benzine has a low overall aromatic content <0.2%. The benzene content would be even lower than that, probably in the ppm range (SaltedFig's linked SDS in the post below shows an example having 150 ppm benzene). From...

I think Magic7M was referring to something more like Pet ether or mineral spirits when recommending "benzine". That's not a common term used in the US for this type of product. Search "Petroleum benzine" and find what was likely intended.

Deja vu. I read the same book and asked the same question here a while back. Good to see the responses here are consistent. https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/tips-for-white-soap-on-purpose.68565/#post-679277

The veg stearic acid was most likely derived from palm. Do you know the true source?

For those who use TiO2 in soaps to whiten - I've read, but never confirmed through relevant experiment, that "titatnium dioxide reduces lather and moisturizing significantly"* in CP soap. Can anyone share their experience - agree or disagree (esp considering lather)? *Anne L. Watson. Milk...

I add it to my water and make sure its completely dissolved before I add the NaOH.

I too recommend that you obtain a copy of Scientific Soapmaking. You can see some of the work that went into this book in the various lectures that Prof. Dunn has given over the years, here. A good "sneak preview" while you're waiting for the book to arrive.

Many of the comments here are spot on with my preferences too. I mainly got into soaping because the typical girly soaps available at my local farmers market were not cleansing enough. After a shower my armpits would still stink. I use 20 - 25% CO, at the higher end in the summer, lower...

CaraBou: I meant to say that despite Spanish lavender EO's higher camphor content (~9%) than French lavender EO (~5%), Spanish lavender EO smells more pleasant (less harsh) and more like buds to me. But admittedly this is a subjective opinion. Would love to see a comparison of Spanish and...

I've bought small bottles of just about all of NDA's lavenders and my favorite is the Spanish. It smells more like real lavender buds to my nose than any other. But you're right about subjectivity - sounds like several of y'all don't like the higher camphor lavenders. Regardless, for a mere...

Like kumudini, I like a "licorice mint" blend: equal parts star anise and a rectified peppermint EO. Sometimes I add a small amount of eucalyptus too. Depending on my EO inventory, I'll sometimes replace some or all of the anise with similarly smelling fennel.

I've bought it on Amazon before, but ever since I found it at The Chemistry Store I buy from there exclusively. The Chemistry Store also carries many other soaping ingredients.

Thanks. I'd hoped that this fragrance was more popular and someone would chime in by now with experience of the scent's strength in CP. Anyone??

In reference to Japanese Cherry Blossom FO, The Chemistry Store website says CP Safe Testing based on 2% Fragrance Oil (9 grams of Fragrance per pound of soap) added at trace. Wondering what is meany by "safe" here - is this simply implying no acceleration of CP soap at this level, or...