Why is this so drying?

[lenarenee]

I made this soap 5 weeks ago simply because I had stuff to use up and it was not like any other recipe I've tried. I tried it yesterday and loved how quickly it bubbled up with large and creamy bubbles. In fact, of all my recipes its my favorite in terms of bubbles and silky feel.

But it left my skin very tight. Here's the info: cleansing is 6, conditioning 56

Pko 8%
Stearic 2%
palm 25%
rbo 37%
lard 20%
castor 8%

Do you see anything that can explain why it's drying?

 

[Obsidian]

What is your SF%? It should be a really nice, mild soap. Maybe it just needs a few more weeks to cure.

 

[lenarenee]

Oops. Sorry I forgot to include sf. It's 5%.

 

[lsg]

It may be the palm kernel oil.

http://home.windstream.net/familyjeans/propertiesofoils.html

 

[hmlove1218]

I may be the oddball here, but of all the different recipes I've made, the only one I find drying is my recipe with lard. Have you used lard before?

 

[lenarenee]

Yes I've made 4 batches with lard, the first two were much higher on the soapcalc cleansing scale so I didn't attribute any drying effect to the lard.

Think I'll set this batch aside for another few weeks and try it again.

 

[ExplodingPie]

Really? Lard was the most moisturizing I've made. I can't say much because I only made 6 batches.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

How long did the skin feel tight for?

 

[lenarenee]

Sorry EG, I didn't see this until now. I didn't pay attention to how long my skin felt tight. The weird thing is, I pulled out Lindy's shampoo bar, almost 3 months old, and used that for washing hands...and I still felt tight. Makes me wonder if something else is going on.

I set the first soap aside and I'm eager to try it again soon as that recipe may end up being one of my go to bars.

 

[coffeetime]

Could you be sensitive to one of the oils? I find high olive oil soaps quite drying so I try to keep my OO under 30%. That level I can tolerate. Maybe do some experimental batches, removing one oil at a time?

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

I general feel tightness in the skin (on the skin?) as I rinse off, but after about 30 seconds, I don't even notice - so much so that I don't notice when it stops feeling tight.