Facial gls soap!

[hlecter]

Hi again!
As I mentioned in the other topic about pH reduction in gls soap i am thinking of making some gls soap for face. its a bit more practical for me than bar soaps on facial use...

Here is a recipe i am thinking and i would like to know your comments...


-60% Olive Oil
-10% shea butter
-10% almond oil
-10% jojoba oil
-10% Castor Oil
-Superfatt 3%
-3:1 parts glycerin/water : Lye(KOH)

I want it to be mild so i want to avoid coconut oil...

After dilution process i am thinking of adding 5%* aloe vera gel from aloe corporation and 0.5%* chamomile extract.

*: final dilluted liquid soap

I want to know your thoughts! Thank you!!

 

[topofmurrayhill]

Looks like you're throwing the kitchen sink at the problem. The jojoba oil is mostly a wax that's going to separate from the soap. But if you aren't looking for clear soap, why not try IrishLass' shea/cocoa GLS? Potentially less frustrating to try a tested recipe with detailed instructions. That one looks like it could be even gentler for facial use.

The instructions for the glycerin method are a little misguided. Folks shouldn't be trying to dissolve KOH in glycerin and it's not necessary. Use the same amounts of glycerin and KOH but dissolve the KOH in its own weight of water, then add the solution to your 3 parts room temp glycerin. No boiling or making thermal/caustic napalm.

 

[Susie]

Hi again!
As I mentioned in the other topic about pH reduction in gls soap i am thinking of making some gls soap for face. its a bit more practical for me than bar soaps on facial use...

Here is a recipe i am thinking and i would like to know your comments...


-60% Olive Oil
-10% shea butter
-10% almond oil
-10% jojoba oil
-10% Castor Oil
-Superfatt 3%
-3:1 parts glycerin/water : Lye(KOH)

I want it to be mild so i want to avoid coconut oil...

After dilution process i am thinking of adding 5%* aloe vera gel from aloe corporation and 0.5%* chamomile extract.

*: final dilluted liquid soap

I want to know your thoughts! Thank you!!

A few thoughts, in no particular order:

Jojoba is going to make cloudy soap.

You never want to dilute with anything except plain distilled water. Aloe gel and extracts may lead to the growth of ickies (AKA pathogens). All non water liquids must be added to the paste stage rather than the dilution phase.

You are going to want to mix your KOH with at least an equal amount of water, then add your glycerin to the oils. Makes it much easier and saves a step or two.

You are going to want to add the KOH to the water in small increments, stirring vigorously until dissolved completely. Otherwise you get a plate of KOH at the bottom that is very difficult to break up and get dissolved. Ask me how I know...

You need a stickblender with a stainless steel shaft and bell. The heat created will melt the plastic ones. I know this for fact.

Too many oils, you are never going to know what oil does what. This is a typical recipe of a soaper who has read enough to want to try everything. I would strongly suggest that you use IrishLass' recipe. It is thick and mild, and then you can tweak from there. There is a difference in the coconut oil (CO) in liquid soap as opposed to bar soap. If you feel you must not have CO at all, then try simply OO and castor oil. But you will not know until you try the other recipe.

 

[hlecter]

Thank you both for your answers.

I made about 5 batches so far using IL method's and recipe for gls soap (25% co, 10% castor, 65% olive, glycerin). Of course i dissolve lye first on equal amount water and then after fully dissolved, i add 2 parts glycerin (so water weight=KOH weight , glycerin weight=2x KOH weight).

This time i want to make it more mild as it looks like that coconut oil is a little bit harsh for my facial skin , but thats only my feeling...

I dont care much about "cloudiness" but ok i will avoid jojoba and the other oils too.

So its gonna be only olive at 90% and castor oil at 10%... At paste stage i am going to add the additives i said.
However i am thinking of what Susie said about ickies on this step... And may avoid the additives too...

 

[Susie]

Yeah, no aloe or anything extract after you mix the KOH/water with the oils. Period.

 

[topofmurrayhill]

Of course i dissolve lye first on equal amount water and then after fully dissolved, i add 2 parts glycerin (so water weight=KOH weight , glycerin weight=2x KOH weight).

You can actually replicate a "GLS" recipe exactly by using 3x KOH weight of glycerin as called for in the original instructions. It's true that taking the water into account this will create a 20% solution of KOH instead of 25%but, that works fine with the glycerin.

This time i want to make it more mild as it looks like that coconut oil is a little bit harsh for my facial skin , but thats only my feeling...

I just want to clarify that I suggested the shea/cocoa butter recipe because it is probably milder than the basic recipe, which might also help you. One thing for instance is that it has a stearic acid superfat and this is likely to help a lot.