Thread: Bugger it, I'm making my own soap (Australia)

Right, Those who know me, know me not to be the biggest soap lover, I attribute this to not finding the right soap for me. After seeing the soap making info (redneck soap making) in the wiki, I was inspired.

I am sick of paying the huge prices you pay for TOBS and such here in Melbourne Australia, and feel it is time for me to do the work myself. I also plan to have mostly organic ingredients (with the exception of dimethicone and polyquat-7)

I plan to make a relatively big batch (over 2kg)

Here are the proposed ingredients for melt/pour.
Kaolin French clay - (smoother than bentonite and an astringent)
Polyquat 7 (conditioner, to soften the hair)
Benzoin Tincture (anti-bacterial)
Aloe vera gel (needs no introduction)
Calendula Extract (soothing properties for irritated skin)
Dimethicone (for superior glide)
Glycerol/Glycerin (not sure on this one, don't think I'll need it)
Shea butter+coconut oil CP rebatch soap.

It should have a very light scent so that I can use cologne afterwards

I plan to make it this coming weekend and I'll let you know how it goes.

Oh I plan to make 1kg first, then if it doesn't work out, play with the formulation for the other kg. But I don't see any reason why it can't work.

Regardless - as you said, it will be fine as a body soap if everything goes sour..

I do not want to sound discouraging but there are many reasons why an untested formula would not work. I can appreciate your confidence but making good shaving soap is not as easy as it may look at fist glance. If I were doing this, I would follow the EXCELLENT! advice given to you by Old School. I would start with batches of only a few grams, that is right, only a few grams, about 50 at the most. I will add the ingredients to the base one at the time and record the results in writing. I would use this approach until I perfect my formula. If you add all the ingredients and the soap does not work, you will not know what caused the problem ;-). I would like you to understand that shaving soap formulation is a lot more than just mixing stuff arbitrarily. You are starting with a base that you have not used before from what I understand. You also have a variety of ingredients that may not go well with each other and whose concentrations have not been tested with your base. In addition, I would try to simplify the formula and eliminate unnecessary or duplicated (chemicals that have comparable properties) ingredients: clay (I do not like clay in my soaps because it is NOT needed, particularly, if it is an astringent; I would stay away from astringents altogether), benzoin, glycerin if the base is glycerin-based; I would also drop one of more of your conditioneers as you do not need all of them in your formula. Good luck! Please feel free to send me a PM if you need some assistance.

Al raz.

Originally Posted by keljian

Oh I plan to make 1kg first, then if it doesn't work out, play with the formulation for the other kg. But I don't see any reason why it can't work.

Regardless - as you said, it will be fine as a body soap if everything goes sour..

Thanks for the advice, I'll start with small batches and work up from there. Cheers for the tip on the glycerin

Originally Posted by Alraz

I do not want to sound discouraging but there are many reasons why an untested formula would not work. I can appreciate your confidence but making good shaving soap is not as easy as it may look at fist glance. If I were doing this, I would follow the EXCELLENT! advice given to you by Old School. I would start with batches of only a few grams, that is right, only a few grams, about 50 at the most. I will add the ingredients to the base one at the time and record the results in writing. I would use this approach until I perfect my formula. If you add all the ingredients and the soap does not work, you will not know what caused the problem ;-). I would like you to understand that shaving soap formulation is a lot more than just mixing stuff arbitrarily. You are starting with a base that you have not used before from what I understand. You also have a variety of ingredients that may not go well with each other and whose concentrations have not been tested with your base. In addition, I would try to simplify the formula and eliminate unnecessary or duplicated (chemicals that have comparable properties) ingredients: clay (I do not like clay in my soaps because it is NOT needed, particularly, if it is an astringent; I would stay away from astringents altogether), benzoin, glycerin if the base is glycerin-based; I would also drop one of more of your conditioneers as you do not need all of them in your formula. Good luck! Please feel free to send me a PM if you need some assistance.

Al raz.

I have a friend who has started to make soap out of Goat milk, and it has been amazing to use. And she mainly makes it as a hand soap, but I was interested in using it to shave with. But I was wondering what really makes the difference between a good shave soap and a standard soap?

Hand and shaving soaps have radically different functions. The main function of bath soap is cleansing not lathering, some however, do an excellent job at conditioning the skin. On the other hand, a good shaving soap should: 1) contribute to beard and skin preparation by softening whiskers and lubricating the skin; 2) provide a well hydrated lather that does not dry out; 3)allow sufficient cushion and glide during the shave; and 4) condition your skin after the shave. Because of these differences, hand and shaving soaps are obtained using different combinations of fatty acids. Short chain fatty acids, which are often used in making hand or bath soaps, are good cleansers but poor latherers and vice versa. Also, because hand soaps are not required to have good lathering properties, their formulation is more flexible. This can be used to the soapmaker advantage when formulating hand soaps as larger quantities of conditioners can be used, which often negatively affect the lathering properties of the soap.

Al raz.

Originally Posted by jmiller87

I have a friend who has started to make soap out of Goat milk, and it has been amazing to use. And she mainly makes it as a hand soap, but I was interested in using it to shave with. But I was wondering what really makes the difference between a good shave soap and a standard soap?

uh.... mods?

Well I did it.. and it's pretty amazing.. best soap I've ever used.. very happy with it.