Making Deodorant

[doriettefarm]

A friend recently purchased the Schmidt's deodorant in jar form. I was curious about their ingredients because I've tried some of the Lush paste deodorants and the baking soda resulted in 'pits of fire' after prolonged use. I would like to formulate something with arrowroot powder but ditch the baking soda to see what happens. Hmmm, maybe my brother can help me get some hops extract . . .

 

[DeeAnna]

I know baking soda works well for some people, but I'm not one of them. That's was a strike against the Schmidt's formulations for me too.

I also wonder what happens over time with the buildup of shea butter, cocoa butter, wax, etc. on a person's clothes? I know coconut oil is supposed to wash out of fabric fairly easily, but I'm not so sure about the others. I think that's what is appealing to me about sodium stearate as a base -- it is a soap and should wash out of fabric easier than fats and waxes.

I guess I'm just going to have to try it, huh?

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

I am getting a build up from mine, so will be going at them with a bar of CO soap to get the worst out. One also needs to keep an eye on the armpits themselves to make sure that it is fully washed away each day or one can get build up there.

 

[DeeAnna]

Very good point, Gent. I imagine buildup on the skin is even more of a problem for the people who don't shave their armpits vs. those who do -- sort of related to the wax and silicone film that can accumulate on the scalp and hair from shampoos and hair conditioners.

 

[cmzaha]

I know baking soda works well for some people, but I'm not one of them. That's was a strike against the Schmidt's formulations for me too.

I also wonder what happens over time with the buildup of shea butter, cocoa butter, wax, etc. on a person's clothes? I know coconut oil is supposed to wash out of fabric fairly easily, but I'm not so sure about the others. I think that's what is appealing to me about sodium stearate as a base -- it is a soap and should wash out of fabric easier than fats and waxes.

I guess I'm just going to have to try it, huh?

I received my 1lb sample of Sodium Stearate just to try a deodorant stick with it, as I have mentioned before, after several months my deodorant with 1% Baking Soda starting causing severe irritation, which is why I am going to try a different direction. Coconut oil in deodorant can cause yellowing on fabric under the arms, pko is less apt to cause the yellowing.

 

[lsg]

You might try a mild clay instead of baking soda.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

I'm wondering what form the sodium stearate is in - powder, pellets, liquid? I could make it, using my stearic acid, but I fear the result would be tricky to use further

 

[DeeAnna]

Carolyn -- would you mind sharing the name of your supplier, if they sell to the general public? That's the one ingredient I, like The Gent, was thinking I'd have to make myself, because I'm not having much luck finding a supplier.

I did find a US-based source for pure CO2 extracted hops that's not out-of-this-world outrageously priced for a minuscule amount. Yakima Valley Hops: http://www.yakimavalleyhops.com/CO2HOPExtractCan_p/extractco2cans.htm 100 grams for about $22 plus shipping. (Not yet sure what shipping is because I need to complete the order to find out, and I have yet to fully commit to a deodorant making project.) So brewing suppliers may be a resource for this product.

They also sell cleaning and sanitizing products for brewery and food use -- using a food-industry sanitizer is a great idea if you are making lotions and want to sanitize your containers.

 

[IrishLass]

Carolyn -- would you mind sharing the name of your supplier, if they sell to the general public? That's the one ingredient I, like The Gent, was thinking I'd have to make myself, because I'm not having much luck finding a supplier.

Not Carolyn, but I did find a vendor in Georgia called Soap Goods that sells Sodium Stearate. I've never heard of them before, but here is a link:

https://www.soapgoods.com/product_info.php?products_id=689

I'd love to order some from them, but am wondering if anybody knows of them? They sell a ton of different soap ingredients and chemicals that other vendors don't offer.


IrishLass

 

[doriettefarm]

Thanks for the Soap Goods link IrishLass! I'm only a state away so hopefully shipping would be quick and inexpensive. I would probably only buy 1lb of the sodium stearate for personal experimenting but if anyone else is interested in a group purchase shipping the 4lb quantity is only $2 more than the 1lb quantity.

TEG - I would be willing to snag some for you & ship it across the pond if you can't find a UK supplier.

DeeAnna - My brother works part-time at a brewery so I'm going to ask about the CO2 extracted hops and check my local brewing supply store. If I can't find it locally, I may ask my bro to add some to their big brewery order and save on shipping.

 

[IrishLass]

I was just doing some Googling on Soap Goods to find out more about them, and I actually ran into an older post from right here on the forum talking about them (cool beans!). It turns out that some of our members whose opinions I greatly respect have used them and were quite satisfied with them, so I do believe I'm going to order a pound of sodium stearate from them! Here's the post: http://www.soapmakingforum.com/showthread.php?t=29466


IrishLass

 

[cmzaha]

Not Carolyn, but I did find a vendor in Georgia called Soap Goods that sells Sodium Stearate. I've never heard of them before, but here is a link:

https://www.soapgoods.com/product_info.php?products_id=689

I'd love to order some from them, but am wondering if anybody knows of them? They sell a ton of different soap ingredients and chemicals that other vendors don't offer.


IrishLass

Sent you a pm. I have purchased from Soapgoods

 

[IrishLass]

I'm bumping this because I'm curious to know how is everyone coming along with formulating a deodorant out of sodium stearate?

I received my sodium stearate from SoapGoods weeks ago, but in the meantime I've done absolutely nothing with it except to drive myself batty researching all the ingredients for sodium stearate-based deodorant formulas on Swiftcraftymonkey's blog, as well as gaining wisdom from Chemistry Corner, other forums, and all the sites that list deodorant patents, etc....

After all my reading, I've learned a few interesting things that I really want to try (besides making sticks with my waiting sodium stearate, of course)

1) According to Chemistry Corner, as well as several patents that have been filed or granted, and also cosmetic formulation books I found on Google, one can make deodorant sticks with stearic acid and NaOH mixed 'in situ', instead of using sodium stearate. From what I read, it's actually easier to do than using sodium stearate. So...I will be trying this as well.

2) One can also make non-oil/butter deodorant sticks without using any stearic or sodium stearate at all......by using a combo of sodium behenoyl lactylate and cetyl alcohol (in place of the stearic/stearate). Yep- I'm going to try this too.

Right now, I'm working on my shopping list. So far, I have Brambleberry's deodorant additive on the way, but I need to order several other things to conduct all the experiments I have up my sleeve:

Propanediol (Ingredients To Die For sells it under the name NatureSilk)
Dipropylene Alcohol
Propylene Alcohol
Zinc Ricinolate
Sodium behenoyl lactylate
AquaEm from the Herbarie
Lichen extract
hydrolyzed oat flour
Liquid Germall Plus

I'll let y'all know how things go once I actually get going on this!


IrishLass

 

[doriettefarm]

I've been following this thread but you're way ahead of me in the supplies dept IL! The only thing I have on your list is the Liquid Germall Plus. I think I stumbled across similar info to your bullet #1 over the weekend about making sodium stearate from NaOH + stearic acid. I kinda got the impression nobody wanted to try it for fear of instant soap-on-a-stick. What kind of method do you have in mind to be feeling so brave? I've only recently started to study the swiftcraftymonkey blog because I ordered some ewax for making lotions, emulsified scrubs, etc. That site is truly a wealth of information and I could get lost for hours just researching a single product. Please keep us posted on your experiments!

 

[Arimara]

Irish, I never though about making deodorant with sodium stearate. I applaud all who have but I am honestly happy using coconut oil at the least, even with some EO.

 

[DeeAnna]

Anyone who has made shave soap with added stearic acid won't flinch from making sodium stearate. That is what I'm planning.

I'm starting to get deeper into my "crazy season" with my little business, however, so this project will have to wait until after the holidays. AND I am also entered into the November challenge, and I'm not giving myself any excuses to weasel out of it!!!!

The advantage of using something like sodium stearate is that it's a soap and more water soluble. The trouble with a fat-based preparation is that it is harder to wash out of clothing, and people complain about underarm stains.

 

[IrishLass]

Anyone who has made shave soap with added stearic acid won't flinch from making sodium stearate.

Hear, hear!

The advantage of using something like sodium stearate is that it's a soap and more water soluble. The trouble with a fat-based preparation is that it is harder to wash out of clothing, and people complain about underarm stains.

That's exactly what made me set out on this quest.....unsightly, oily underarm stains from an oil-based deodorant I bought at Wholefoods.....even after only one use. I finally got the oil stains out of my clothing, but not until they had gone through about 3 different spot-scrubbings with an oil-stain remover and 3 trips through the wash machine. Never again, no thanks!

The following formula is the first recipe I think I shall try. It's a tweak of this one here: http://www.duponttateandlyle.com/pdf/08/09/deodorant_stick.pdf :

Propanadiol 60%
Water 26.5%
Sodium Stearate 6.5%
Caprol Micro Express 3% (from LotionCrafter's)
Saccharomyces Ferment 2.5% (from Brambleberry)
Fragrance 1%
Liquid Germall Plus .5%

I am going to follow the procedural protocols for working with Propanediol listed out here: http://www.duponttateandlyle.com/si...rant_GelStick_TechnicalBulletin_Zemea_CPC.pdf

But first, I need to order my ingredients!


IrishLass

 

[DeeAnna]

Theoretically, coconut oil is supposed to wash out of fabric fairly well, but I've not tried it personally. I do know my massage therapist friend who uses a CO based massage cream uses HOT water to wash her massage table sheets, and she does fine. But her sheets are a sturdy cotton or cotton blend in a medium to dark color, not a blouse made of delicate fabric.

So I can see a CO-based deodorant working well for some folks, but I can't wrap my mind around using a butter (shea, cocoa, etc.) in a deodorant formulation. The stearic, palmitic, and oleic fats are just not going to wash out as easily.

 

[IrishLass]

The deodorant from Wholefoods that stained my blouses so bad lists coconut oil as the first ingredient, followed by beeswax, corn starch, cocoa butter, shea butter, saccharomyces ferment, fragrance. If coconut oil is as easy to wash out as you say, then it must have been the butters that were the biggest culprits in contributing to the stubbornness of the stains.


IrishLass

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

I used CO with some cornflour and once it was baking powder, next time it was zinc oxide - both left my clothes a little crunchy in the arm pits, mainly if I used too much or reapplied later in the day, sometimes even just with normal use!