Help with my soap recipe!!

[AntoniasCreations]

Ok so I have found finally come up with a soap recipe that I really like. Me and DH have only used it for washing our hands and have really loved it. The soap is the perfect hardness (I have made a few Really Really hard bars that were horrible), my skins feels great after washing, it suds up great.

But the problem is I took it into the shower with me to washed my body (I am not a bar soap gal, I have only used liquid soap for the shower for the longest time) and everything was great I washed, then rinsed and then I noticed my skin felt very tight, like it was really dry. So I finish up in the shower and after I get out and dry off my skin feels great!! The tightness/dryness is gone and my skin feels very smooth!!

So what do you think is wrong with my soap? I cant see anyone happy about that dry feeling once you rinse off. I mean it was really tight/dry, like to the point it hurt. I dont get the same feeling when Im washing my hands.

Ok so here is my recipe of what I use per 1 lb SFIC base:

1 tbsp Goats Milk

1 tbsp Olive Oil

2 tsp Sweet Almond Oil

1 tsp Castor Oil

1-2 tsp FO

And sometimes I will add

About 1 tsp ground coffee

About 1 tsp Oatmeal

The bar I took in the shower had all of these things including the oatmeal and coffee, and the base was shea butter base.

So what do you think I should be using that I am not or instead of. I have lots of different oils on hand and shea-refined, mango, and cocoa butter-deodorized (I dont really like to use the cocoa butter in my soap because it makes a really hard bar for me).

Thanks so much for any help anyone can give me.

[Candybee]

I think the dryness you are referring to is actually the squeaky clean feeling your skin gets when you wash with a real bar of natural soap. It takes some time to get used to. I remember when I first started using M&P soaps. My skin felt so squeaky clean and I wasn't sure I liked it at first. Then I got used to it and can't go back to using commercial soaps. I used to think Dove was the best because it had 1/4 cleansing cream. But after getting used to real soap I can't stand the feeling of Dove or any other brand I used to buy at the store.

Commercial soaps leave a film on your skin so you are used to that feeling and not having your skin be really clean the way true soap makes it feel. But its healthier for your skin to wash with a real bar of soap that cleans your skin and moisturizes it.

You also say your skin feels nice and moisturized once you towel off. Thats exactly how your skin should feel once you are dry. Smoothe and moisturized.

Your recipe looks fine. Your skin should be beading up with moisture when you wash with this soap. Check it out next time your wash.

You can try adding some goats milk to make the bar more creamy. I would start out with 1 tbs of gm per lb. I love the feel of using a cream soap.

Edited March 6, 2010 by Candybee

[AntoniasCreations]

Hey thanks so much!!!

I will have to give it another try. It is funny that you like Dove, it is the one I really like and pretty much the only one I use.

I do all ready add 1 tbsp of goats milk to my recipe, are you saying to add another 1 tbsp of it?

Thanks again

[Candybee]

Oops! Sorry. Missed the gm in your recipe. 1 tbs is fine. You can experiment with adding more but I don't think you need too.

I used Dove for years. So when I switched to M&P I was not ready for the difference my skin felt when washing with it. It took me about a week or two to get used to the feeling of squeaky clean skin when I washed. But I did notice right away how my skin beaded up with lots of moisture beads as I washed in the shower. After about 3-4 weeks I started noticing the difference in my skin. It was softer, smoother, and more moisturized. I no longer needed to pile on the lotion after each bath/shower. I only use body lotion now during the dryest winter months.

I also noticed that my skins health had improved drastically. When I used Dove soap I used to have rough skin and get tiny pimples that felt like grains of sand in my skin. I would also have dry flaky skin about 10 minutes after I bathed and had to use lotion to make my skin moisturized and comfortable. After using M&P for a month all those irratating symptons were gone.

So tell your husband that the feeling is natural and you will both get used to it and love it in a short time. Then you can enjoy all the different types of soap you can make with M&P.

Edited March 6, 2010 by Candybee

[Candybee]

One more thing I might add... if you decide to start selling your M&P soap you can tell your customers about how truly clean and moisturized their skin will get using it. You will know from your own experience. You'd be surprised how many new customers I get that ask is it really soap? does it really clean my skin?:smiley2:

[AntoniasCreations]

Ok thanks so much for your help! I will give it a try for a few weeks and see how it goes.

I have my DH outside right now making me so soap log mold a 1 1/2 lb mold and a 2 1/2 lb mold (at least we think this is what it will be). I am so excited I cant wait for him to finish and then I can make some soap that is actually the right size bars. All this time I have been using the boxes that the velvetta cheese comes in. And while they work great I would really like to have a full bar and that way I can see how long it last in the shower.

Again thanks so much

[prairieannie]

Ditto on all that candybee said.. I would just like to say that you could add more goat's milk to that recipe and be just fine.. it would only affect the feeling of your lather if anything, by making it more creamy. The extra moisture of an ultra cream soap is always a good thing in my book, and goat's milk is just soooo good for your skin. I was thinking that the added milk might help that tight feeling a bit. You can experiment by trying double the GM to start if you're interested in increasing it. You would probably be shocked at how much of it I use in my soap!

Happy soaping!

[AntoniasCreations]

Thanks so much for your help also.

I did make a batch of soap last night (with the new soap boxes DH made me:bliss:), and change it up some. I did tilted layers of goats milk base and clear base and changed some of my oils, added 2 tbsp of goats milk (per lb), and also added shea butter. I tried a small piece of it this morning and I am not sure if I like it. The lather was nice a creamy but there wasnt very many suds. But my skin feel amazing!!! I have so much dry skin in the winter time especially on my hands, and I have none showing right now and I didnt even put lotion on!!! I am going to let it sit out for about a week before I try it again so that way it can harden up. It is pretty soft right now, but then again my soap are usually soft for a few days.

Well thanks guys for helping me out, it is greatly appreciated!!! You guys are the best!!!

[prairieannie]

A little trick you can try to improve the suds: add a bit of liquid soap. You can buy unscented, uncolored liquid soap from walmart, target, etc.. you may have to look around a bit. One name brand is Dr. Bronners, but there are many others you can use.

Most of the things you add to improve the creaminess and moisturizing qualities of your soap will do their part to compromise those bubbles. The addition of a little extra will do wonders for your final product.

[AntoniasCreations]

Ok well I couldnt wait a week to try this soap, but I just washed my hands with it so far, it smells way to good.

But I think i really like this recipe a lot better then my other one. My hands feel so silky like I just lathered up with lotion. And it had a lot more suds then I thought. I really cant wait to try this in the shower!!! Thanks guys for helping me out, it was greatly appreciated!!!

But I do have another question, how do you guys get the layers to stay together? I tried the spray with alcohol and scoring the top of the first layer (I did this with a fork). But most of mine are coming about, not bad to where they are breaking apart but around the edges they are lifting apart. I hope I explained this right?

Well anyway thanks so much.