MarieJeanette

I confess that I'm not very scientific/clinical when it comes to blending my FOs. I pretty much just mix any FOs together that I think might make a great blend, whether they're single-note FOs or more complex. First, I start out with a drop of each FO on a Q-tip, and if I like how the FOs are behaving together, I then graduate to the small bottle method where I drip a certain amount of drops or milliliters of each FO into a small bottle (making sure to keep a record of the amounts of each so I can come up with a ratio), and then I let them stew for a day or two before deciding if any further adjustments are needed. If I like it, I then fill up a 1 oz. or 2 oz. bottle of the blend and test it out.

Thanks! That's good to know!

Mine are all in alphabetical order. I started with a 3-shelved cabinet, which served me just fine for about 2 years before I outgrew it. I can only fit "A" through "L" in there now. The rest are stored in 6 boxes that continue on with the alphabetical theme, although I store my sample sizes separately in 2 small boxes (alphabetically with them as well). I also keep a running inventory list of each FO on paper in a folder. The list also is alphabetical, but it has a column for the supplier of each FO, and it also has a constantly changing 'Amounts' column where I have written down the amounts of my FOs in pencil so that I can easily change them after each soaping session. That way, I always know exactly how much I have on hand with just a simple glance at the list instead of having to jostle around in the cabinet or one of the boxes every time I'm curious.

LOL . I clicked onto this thread thinking was going to be a thread talking about FOs for use in soap (as opposed to candles), instead of an actual company. I've never even heard of soapmakingfragranceoils before, but for what it's worth, Soapalooza (formerly Southern Soapers) sells an awesome Tassie Lavender (it's my go-to lavender). I noticed that they also sell a fragrance called Persian Limewood, as well as Sweet Peas & Rhubarb. I don't know if they are the exact same as what soapmakingfragranceoils sells, but I just thought I'd mention that.

Got it, thank you!

I loooove SweetCakes Mango Tea. It is very strong and lasts forever and a day in my CP. Like TallTayl, I don't smell any tea in it either. I call my soap made with it 'Honeyed Mango', because instead of tea, I smell something deliciously sweet along with the mango. I also love Mango Sorbet from WSP. Those are my 2 favorite mangoes.

The Orange Blossom holds up very well in product (I make CP soap and perfumes with it). I have orange trees in my backyard and the FO smells just like the flowers that bloom on them each spring. I love Woodlands, too. It soaps great, by the way.

I voted for 'other'........rose! I have a scent from Brambleberry called Crisp Apple Rose and it has become my most favorite apple scent of all time.

I love these from SweetCakes (I use them all in my CP, with the exception of Warm Vanilla Sugar which I use mainly in sprays): Mango Tea Cucumber Melon Masculine Musk Northwoods Orange Blossom Pomegranate Santa's Pipe True Rose Warm Vanilla Sugar Woodlands

It really depends on my mood at the time. Right now it's Brambleberry's Yuzu.

The smell of my child when he was a newborn.

I really love these from Oregon Trails: Jasmine Yin Hao Confederate Jasmine Mediterranean Sea Salt Peche de Vigne Caribbean Pineapple German Chamomile Tea Green Irish Tweed Melia Nani Oatmeal Milk & Honey Old Spice Pineapple Blossom Rosemary Mint Spiced Plum

I've only used the following 2 on your list (and only in CP soap): Apple Blossom- I love this scent. I don't know if it smells like a real apple blossom (never smelled one), but it's quite lovely. When I smell my soap, I can detect both apple and floral notes at the same time, as well as a slight, delightful, soapy undertone. It's good and strong, too. Blackberry Sage- I love this scent, too. It smells just like how one would imagine it to smell based on its name. So far, its holding up wonderfully in my soap- good and strong. I have their Cranberry Citrus, but I haven't used it yet. It smells awesome oob, though.

For me and many others, finding a good, strong, true coconut FO has been like trying to find a needle in a haystack. lol I've tried many over the years and I'm still looking for my holy grail. Having said that, though, there is one coconut FO that I really like above all the others that I've tried so far- Daystar's 'Under The Palm Tree'. To my nose it's the truest coconut FO I've ever come across. It gives off a really nice, slightly sweet, true coconut scent in my CP, but unfortunately, it is on the light side and definitely not what I would consider to be strong enough to be the dominant force in a blend. I'll be interested to see the responses you get!

Well, I doubt very much that I'm the soap queen you speak of, lol, but I find that among other things, much depends on the fats being used (in regards to their melting points), and also the FOs (if they are frisky or not). Like yourself, I soap with silk at a 2:1 ratio, and I also sometimes use goat milk, and I've found that with my formulas that contain a fair amount of hydrogenated PKO or other high-stearic fats such as cocoa butter, mango butter, etc.., that if I soap them at too low of a temperature (around 80F or 90F), I'll get what seems to be instant soap the moment I give a blast of my SB right after adding the lye and before I've even added my FO. But if I soap the same formula anywhere between 110F -120F, all goes smoothly and I have plenty of time to play (just as long as my FO is one that behaves nicely, that is). Anyway, what I learned is that the seemingly "instant soap" phenomenon I was experiencing was really not actual soap as much as it was the PKO and other hard fats precipitating out of the solution because of the temps falling too much below their melting points before the chemical heat reaction of the lye could kick in and keep them in liquid/melted suspension to be able to saponify them properly. In the end, I still got soap, but my bars from these batches were peppered with 'stearic spots'. My advice would be take a look at your fats and their melting points, adjust your temps accordingly, then go from there.

I haven't, but would love to know where I can find a reasonably priced source so I can get my hands on some and make Aleppo soap. I see lots of suppliers that sell the Bay essential oil here in the US (where I live), but not the oil from the berry, which has different properties.

I"m totally new to using vanilla stabilizer of any kind from any supplier, so I can't compare, but I just wanted to mention that I recently bought the one from BCN and used it with a favorite scent of mine that normally goes brown in my soap, and so far, so good. My soap that I used it in is a little over 2 months old now and there's not a brown spec in sight. Like Noodle, I made the mistake of taking a sniff of it right out of the bottle, and let's just say it was an experience I'll never forget and never want to repeat! The smell was like ammonia on a mega-dose of steroids and I was afraid that it would completely ruin the scent of my soap, but happily that was not the case. It cured out just fine and all is well. Whew! lol

It looks like the same stuff I use, which happens to be French-fry bags (which is made from glassine paper, I believe). I buy them in bulk at my local Smart & Final (can't go wrong with a box of 2,000 for $14.00). I used to use the bags 'as-is'- i.e., I'd just plop a bar in each bag, fold over the top, punch 2 holes though the fold and thread some ribbon through the holes to complete the seal, but nowadays I just like to slice the bags open and cut them into rectangles and wrap my soap up present-style. ETA- it could also be white tissue paper- the kind used in gift-wrapping. I myself use white tissue paper to wrap my round saving soaps. Nothing works as well for me as tissue paper when it comes to wrapping round soaps. I bought a huge package of it at Costco last Christmas down the wrapping-paper aisle and I'm no where near running out of it yet.

Here is a trustworthy site with info on how to use phenolphthalein: https://summerbeemeadow.com/content/phenolphthalein-ph-and-soap From what I understand, phenolphthalein works best in liquid solution. My notes that I've collected over the years say that dropping it onto a dry bar of soap is useless because the results will test out clear. And if the soap is wet and you drop some pheno on it, although it will turn a pinkish/reddish color (since, after all, soap is alkaline), you won't really be able to determine the level of alkalinity because it's difficult to gauge the depth of the color as it sits on a bar of soap. It's much easier to gauge the depth of shade if it's in a liquid suspension. HTH!

It all depends if you want you soap to go through the gel stage or not. The gel stage is not necessary for ones batter to turn into soap (it'll saponify just fine on its own without applying an outside source of heat to it), but applying a little bit of extra heat will get you there quicker. While an oven is probably the most convenient way to go to achieve gel, it's not the only way. Some people use heating pads under their molds and/or cover over their molds with towels or blankets, etc.. And I've heard of some that put their molds in a pre-warmed cooler and shut the lid to keep the heat in.

Unfortunately, I haven't soaped that particular FO, but for what it's worth, my most favorite piney scent for soap is WSP's Sugared Spruce. The best way I can describe is pine on a sugar high, or a pine tree encrusted in sugar. lol It's truly a unique and wonderful pine scent. Everyone around here loves it. It soaps great, too, and sticks forever at only .75 oz ppo.

Welcome, Faithsoapandlove! I just posted an answer to your question in the other thread started by jaybyrd, but I'll post one here, too. I've used both the Palm Kernel Oil and the Palm Kernel Oil Flakes, and can assure you that they are same, only the latter form just happens to be grated up/flaked for your convenience. Use them interchangeably, weight for weight.

Faith- you would use the same amount of the flakes in weight as you would of the oil. They are interchangeable. I think the term 'oil' may be throwing you off, though. I've used palm kernel oil and also the flaked form (my favorite form to use), and they are both white solids at room temp. The one form just happens to be grated up/flaked for ease of use.

Welcome to the world of soap-making! :smiley2: Just a heads-up on strip-type testers- generally speaking, they are not very accurate when it comes to testing the pH of bar-type soap. They are oftentimes known to give false readings that can be off as much as 2 to 3 units. That's because soap is a surfactant, and surfactants don't interact well with the indicator chemicals on the strips. Having said that, though, there is one brand of strips I know of that is heads and tails above the rest, and if you are going to purchase any, I'd look no further than these: http://www.lotioncrafter.com/ph-fix-indicator-strips.html Here is an excellent article regarding the testing of soap pH that also makes mention of the above-linked strips and how to use them: http://www.millersoap.com/phtome.html As for myself, to tell if my soaps are safe to use, I just apply the tongue-test instead of using test strips. It's quick, simple, accurate, and best of all, it doesn't cost me anything. lol If I were to ever use strips, though, the ones in the above link would be the ones I'd buy.

Noses sure are funny (and very individual). lol For me, the biggest ewwww (dislike) is patchouli. These 2 vie for close second: Beau Brummel from Brambleberry- at first it smelled like a cheap seedy bar to me, then as my soap made with it cured, it strangely took on a cinnamon red-hot candy smell which has remained to this day. Oh, did I mention that I hate cinnamon red-hots- they are my least favorite candy in the whole world. lol and Watermelon Herb Granita from TheScentWorks (I don't know why, but smells like pickled watermelon rinds to my nose, heavy on the pickle).