Newbie question about Fragrance Oils

[Curious]

Hello,

I'm trying to step my soap making skills up by experimenting with micas and fragrance oils. My goal is to produce a nicely swirled soap. I've had different results ranging from an OK swirl to OMG, my batter is too thick. I believe the issue is the fragrance oil is accelerating the soap batter, making it difficult to get a complete swirl effect. I tried an in the pot swirl & my batter had traced so heavily that by the time I poured my colored soap in, the soap was setting up in the bowl.

My question is, does anyone have any suggestions of fragrance oils that I could try that would leave me enough time to complete a swirl technique. In other words, that would allow the batter to remain fluid enough to work with before setting up?

Once I add the lye to the oils, I'm only bending enough for the two to emulsify - thinking this will allow me time to work , but once I add the fragrance oil, things move pretty quick with the batter & I'm not experienced enough to keep up with it. I end up with soap but not quite what I was going for. Any suggestions or feedback is greatly appreciated, thanks so much!

 

[amd]

What supplier are you buying from?
Members on the forum have an FO review sheet that might be worth reading based on which supplier you are purchasing from.
https://tinyurl.com/y8yqhtlt

Also read all reviews on the supplier site for any FO that you are considering purchasing. I'm sure others will chime in with recommendations, I'm just not comfortable recommending anything not knowing what your FO taste is, where you're wanting to buy from or any other 9001 variables that my brain is pinging at me.

 

[Marilyn Norgart]

how hot are you soaping at? I find if I go closer to 100 I have better luck swirling. and I agree with amd--make sure to read the info and reviews on the scents you are buying. and sometimes soap is just gonna do what it is gonna do---I find most of the time it is still pretty soap, even if it isn't what you expected. we always like to see pictures

 

[DeeAnna]

Fragrances can cause trouble, but there are many other things that can create the problems you are describing. It might be good to step back and take a fresh look at your methods and recipe without making any preconceived decisions about what the problem is. There are many times a person has already decided what the problem is when they ask for help, but it turns out the real problem is something else entirely.

Like the others, please tell us what FOs you are using and the amounts. It would also be helpful if you post a complete recipe with all ingredients in weights OR percentages, but not a mix of the two types of units.

And I want to add to the others' questions -- I know you say you blended the batter only to emulsification, but how many seconds of stick blending did you do to get to that point?

 

[Susie]

And don't forget that too high a percentage of water can cause faster trace. LOTS of things can cause acceleration.

 

[Curious]

Hello All, thanks for the responses - I appreciate them. I'll try to answer the questions -

Recipe - 4.5 oz olive oil
4.5 oz coconut oil
7.1 oz palm oil
2.25 oz lye
6 oz distilled water
1 oz fragrance oil

Fragrance - Champaka from Nature's Garden

I don't remember the exact temp was but it was close to 105 degrees. I didn't note the time spent stick blending & hand mixing but it was just until I could see that the oils & lye mixture were incorporated into each other - no oil sitting on top or on the sides of the bowl. I'm learning to read the reviews on FO's & pay attention to the valuable info posted there. Here are a few pics of my attempt at In the Pot Swirl. As stated, I did get soap but I wasn't able to really swirl because the batter set up so quickly. If I didn't answer any question, please let me know & as always, I'm open to any feedback, thanks!

 

[Marilyn Norgart]

I think its a very pretty soap!! I like the color combo. I read the reviews on this and one said it accelerated. from the soap I have made it seems that floral scents accelerate. but I have used scents that the manufacturers say it accelerates and it didn't. I see you went over a small bit on the amount--I wonder if you would drop it down a little if that might help-- I have always been told not to go over 6% of the oil weight, maybe try it at 3-4% to see if that helps. maybe go down to 90 degrees. it varies from scent to scent. I have only been making soap for around a year so maybe somebody with more experience can help.

 

[Curious]

I think its a very pretty soap!! I like the color combo. I read the reviews on this and one said it accelerated. from the soap I have made it seems that floral scents accelerate. but I have used scents that the manufacturers say it accelerates and it didn't. I see you went over a small bit on the amount--I wonder if you would drop it down a little if that might help-- I have always been told not to go over 6% of the oil weight, maybe try it at 3-4% to see if that helps. maybe go down to 90 degrees. it varies from scent to scent. I have only been making soap for around a year so maybe somebody with more experience can help.

Thanks for your response Marilyn! Because I'm so new at this, I really have no idea about the percentages. I took a soap making class & this is the recipe that we used. I'm definitely open to tweaking it but I just have to figure out how to do so. I'll try soaping at 90 degrees as well. I also craft body butters, lotion bars & candles and I'm a Fragrance Addict. I purchased a bunch of 1 oz oils from NG figuring that I'd use them in one or the other of my concoctions - but that was before I started paying attention to the reviews. I'm learning as I go which is why I'm so appreciative for this forum & for members like you that take the time to respond. And thanks for complimenting my soap

 

[cmzaha]

I do not always agree with the opinion that higher or lower lye concentration leads to faster trace, it will or can cause higher heat that can accelerate trace, but is controllable with lower soaping temp. I have a high 42-45% palm recipe for my vegan soaps and it is a very fast tracer with all the palm so I cannot soap with higher than a 31% lye concentration. Recipes can make a big difference as can an ornery fo

 

[Curious]

I do not always agree with the opinion that higher or lower lye concentration leads to faster trace, it will or can cause higher heat that can accelerate trace, but is controllable with lower soaping temp. I have a high 42-45% palm recipe for my vegan soaps and it is a very fast tracer with all the palm so I cannot soap with higher than a 31% lye concentration. Recipes can make a big difference as can an ornery fo

thanks for your response - I'm soaking up all this wisdom!

 

[KiwiMoose]

Hi there,
I have two little 'tricks' I use to try to counter accelerating FOs.
One is to stir it into my warmed oils before adding the lye solution. I have found that adding the FO after the batter is at emulsion is harder to manage. I know others prefer to add the FO after emulsion, but perhaps try this method and see which you prefer.
The best trick is to combine fast moving fragrances with slow moving ones. If you do a search on here you will find that fast movers tend to include florals and warm spices. Slow movers are usually the citrus scents. So maybe keep some lemon or sweet orange on hand ( I use EOs) and do a combo with your FO. The citrus EOs don't tend to retain their scent in CP soap anyway, so it's unlikely that they will take over.
Definitely read the soaping guidelines from the suppliers websites, and then read all the comments from people who have used it too - sometimes there's a divided opinion. But if you have only person who says it accelerated, and 10 who say it behaved well, you know that the 'one' person probably did something different with their recipe that may have caused it.

 

[Curious]

Hi KiwiMoose!

Thanks so much for your tips/tricks & the useful information - I really appreciate it. I'm definitely going to try adding the FO to the warmed oils to see how it goes. I'm loving all the useful tips on this forum, thanks, again