Liquid shaving soap

[engblom]

I want to make a liquid shaving soap as I think it is more hygienic than the normal bar soap. I am not shaving daily, and the foam left from the bar soap turns pink after some days (almost like some mould would be appearing there). I guess the foam is too diluted for staying good.

Now, I want a soap not washing away fats and gentle to the skin. Pure castile soap would be great, but it is not having a good lather, from what I have read. I have decided to add some castor oil, to get a good lather.

I have been thinking to make a soap like this:

700g olive oil
300g castor oil
188g KOH
560g water
A bit of clay for better glide.

I am quite new to soap making. Are the amounts OK? What do I need to take into account in a recipe like this? What would the shelf life be for a such liquid soap?

I want the recipe to have as few ingredients as possible. The ready recipes I have found have had coconut oil added. I do not want coconut oil in a shaving soap, as it is just for good glide, not for cleaning the face of fat.

 

[fatfacedcharlie]

I've only made cream soap once, and while I can get a fairly good shave from it, I prefer a bar soap so I've not done it since. Looking at your recipe I'm not sure how it would perform as a shaving cream. Olive oil won't give you the creamy/ stable lather you need, oils high in stearic acid (or pure stearic acid) will give you that, and you will need some coconut oil to give it some volume and make it easier to lather. There's a cream soap group on yahoo that will be able to give you more advice.

I'm a bit puzzled about the pink foam thing, I only shave every other day or so but my soaps either home made or shop bought have always kept for ages. Do you rinse the excess lather from the soap and let it dry when you're finished shaving?