How many ...

[Scented]

washes do your soap bars last? Anyone counted? I was thinking that a bar that's an inch thick shouldn't be down to oh say 1/4" after say 12 uses.

[lbtddr]

my first soaps did not last long at all i started adding palm to mine to get the hardnes up a bit. at first i used 10 % butters. after i started useing palm it helped alot and also i added lard.

[Sara]

That's a hard one. So many dependancies beyond recipe (cure time, water hardness, lathering time, etc.) Although I can tell a bit of a difference between bars, especially with cure time and if they were castille, or were not aired out inbetween uses.

Have you counted, Scented? Like... how many licks does it take to get to the center of the Tootsie Pop?

[Purple Lilac]

Some of mine are appx 1 inch and they seem to last forever.

[Scented]

That's a hard one. So many dependancies beyond recipe (cure time, water hardness, lathering time, etc.) Although I can tell a bit of a difference between bars, especially with cure time and if they were castille, or were not aired out inbetween uses.

Have you counted, Scented? Like... how many licks does it take to get to the center of the Tootsie Pop?

Well Rockin' was counting. I gave him an 1" thick Sandalwood Rose (since he loves the scent). He showed me this somewhat thin ol' thing and I nearly died, especially when he said he used it seven times. (We need a fainting smiley Sara, I'm serious lol!) I forgot to add that he corrected his count to like 12 or 14, but it's still ummm thin and I didn' think it should be just yet.

OK here's the recipe and maybe you guys can help me get the bar harder (because I don't know what to do without using the piggy ingredient and I was trying to stay away from it a few times)

5% babassu

10% Coconut (calculated using hazelnut properties though)

11% PKO

22% Palm

10% Castor Oil

14% Olive oil

20% Soybean

8% Canola

In addition, I took a water discount just to see if I could manage it, so it was at 33% instead of 38%. I also dissolved 3 T of sugar to distilled water (1T ppo) before adding lye.

My numbers were:

Hardness: 37

CLeansing: 17

Bubbly Lather: 26

Creamy lather: 28

Iodine: 71

INS: 131

Sooooooo any clues? Now I want to try the recipe again using some sodium lactate. That's supposed to help with hardness, no? I also want to get the bubbly lather higher than the creamy lather and have a suggestion to try for that, but I'm all eyes

[Bunny]

Totally depends on whether or not the kids find the soap.. Can't tell you how many squishy bars I've found at the bottom of the tub once I've drained it when they are finished.. lol

[RobinInOR]

My bars last about 30 showers, if I don't use it in my hair. Then it only lasts a few weeks.

Guys seem to go through soap faster, maybe it's all that body hair

I'd guess it was the canola/soy that was softening it up. Up the palm to 25% and drop the canola down to 5%

[sudsnwicks]

1 inch thick and how many inches across? It all depends on how big the whole bar is and who is using it. What shape it is could make a difference too. And of course the recipe. But the biggest difference in my household is *who* is using it. If it's just me using, it lasts a long long time.

[Scented]

Thanks Robin! Will give that a try.

Suds it's 3 1/2" across and about 2 1/2" top to bottom. It's shaped like a retangle. Came out of a log mold.

[guppygirl]

Have you counted, Scented? Like... how many licks does it take to get to the center of the Tootsie Pop?

LOL - that's exactly what I was thinking!

Hubby definitely has a heavier hand with my soap and goes through it quicker than I do. He leaves it in the shower but still seems to get about a month of daily use out of it. Dernit, now I'm going to have to get a fresh bar and count!

[CareBear]

Guys seem to go through soap faster, maybe it's all that body hair

In my house the reason guys go through it faster is cause they don't bother to pick it up when it falls on the shower floor so it melts. Then when getting out they finally see it, say ooops, and put it back on the shelf.