Brambleberry S.O.A.P. Panel
Earlier this year I applied to be on one of my favorite supplier’s Test Panels for their new fragrances and lo and behold I was selected! I know the field of competition was pretty vast so I was thrilled to be given the opportunity.
Aside from the obvious requirement of actually testing the fragrances in a bath and body product is to share the results via social media or a blog entry. Like I wouldn't have done that anyway! This was tons of fun to do and I would’ve shouted my results out from the roof tops anyhow.
*Please Note: I will be using all kinds of technical soaping terms to describe my process. Sorry about that but I gotta in order to share the information with the supplier. Feel free to ask questions in the comment sections if you'd like to know more.
Let's get started, shall we?
Aside from the obvious requirement of actually testing the fragrances in a bath and body product is to share the results via social media or a blog entry. Like I wouldn't have done that anyway! This was tons of fun to do and I would’ve shouted my results out from the roof tops anyhow.
*Please Note: I will be using all kinds of technical soaping terms to describe my process. Sorry about that but I gotta in order to share the information with the supplier. Feel free to ask questions in the comment sections if you'd like to know more.
Let's get started, shall we?
One of the funnests aspects of the trial is getting eight brand-new fragrances in mail. They were only labeled with the trial’s name and the number of the fragrance. No name and no fragrance description was attached. It truly was a blind test. No hints of what the fragrances were in order to keep some preconceived notions from developing. If something is labeled Orange Delight you would EXPECT it smell like orange, right? Sort of stating the obvious here but that’s how it generally works. So when the fragrances come unlabeled and without a description the scent is going to based upon my nose and my brain’s interpretation of it.
So here’s my soaping set up. I only ran four of the eight fragrances at a time because I know how ringy-dingy I can get once in a while. (by once in a while I actually mean all the time.) If I get too much going at one time and I’d probably get something fuddled up and that would defeat the whole purpose of the trial.
I used premixed oils and pre-mixed lye/water. I got everything correctly measured out and ready to go except the lye/water, I will pour that when I am ready to use it. As always, when dealing with lye it is important to use every safety precaution available. Lye/water sitting in an open container is an accident waiting to happen.
I used premixed oils and pre-mixed lye/water. I got everything correctly measured out and ready to go except the lye/water, I will pour that when I am ready to use it. As always, when dealing with lye it is important to use every safety precaution available. Lye/water sitting in an open container is an accident waiting to happen.
I will be making trail sized batches which I have scaled down to use only a single ounce of fragrance. I generally superfat at 6% (meaning I add 6% more oils than the minimum requirement) and use wooden soap molds lined with freezer paper. And since I prebatch my lye/water and my oils I’m able to soap at room temperature. I also oven process (CPOP) to ensure I get it to gel. Since I wasn't sure if the fragrance was going to discolor for me or not, I decided to only use a single color on half the batch and leave the other half uncolored.
Since we are beekeepers I add a little raw honey to every single batch I make. Honey is a humectrant which means it can help attract moisture. Since honey is water-soluble and dissolves in water I always ratio my honey amount to equal amounts of distilled water so that it will dissolve. *please note: When I pre-batch my lye/water I ALWAYS discount the water used for the honey-water mix.
It looks like everything is ready to go! Let the soap making commence.
It looks like everything is ready to go! Let the soap making commence.
Always, always, ALWAYS add lye/water to your soap oils. NEVER add your oil to your lye/water.
Stickblending is necessary to make sure the oils and lye/water blend correctly and sufficiently. I gave it a good blend to get it to the emulsion stage. This early in my process I’m not looking for trace, I’m looking for just a thorough blend. I gots me all kinds of goodies to add to this soaping party and that will help to ensure that the blend is complete and that trace will be met without overmixing.
I blend in the honey/water and then I will mix in the fragrance. If the fragrance is a known accelerator like a floral or a spice I will use a whisk to blend it in. Just to give me a little more working time. If it doesn’t accelerate, I’ll give it several good pulses with the stick blender and we are good to go.
Last but certainly not least: The Color! This where the really fun part begins. My mica colorant has been premixed and waiting for it’s share of the soap batter.
Mix, mix, mix!
Mix, mix, mix!
Usually I will use a rubber spatula to start the mixing and then hit it once or twice with the blender. A good pulse or two just to make sure it's blended well.
We are ready to pour our soap into the mold.
We are ready to pour our soap into the mold.
I didn’t get too fancy with the colored part in with the uncolored part.
I just did a simple modified zebra swirl with an occasional drop swirl. In a test batch I’m just looking for how the soapbatter behaves or discolors.
I just did a simple modified zebra swirl with an occasional drop swirl. In a test batch I’m just looking for how the soapbatter behaves or discolors.
These are the results in random order:
Fragrance #6:
The initial fragrance is strong eucalyptus. No acceleration, lots of time for a swirl. In fact, I couldn’t zebra swirl it very well because it was such a light trace. As you can see, there was no initial discoloration.
Fragrance #2
Initial fragrance was fruity. Citrus and something more. Maybe watermelon? Maybe raspberry? Whatever it was...I would like MORE please! Very good fragrance. No acceleration and no discoloration.
Fragrance #8
Initial sniff test was lemongrass or something. Not my favorite at all. Strong, bitter? I don't know. Just not a good match for my nose. It soaped well, with zero discoloration.
Fragrance #3
As you can see it discolored to a medium tan. A light powdery fragrance with a little hint of cherry in it? Unique and fun. And while mixing, the trace accelerated a bit. Not enough to require a slap-dash into the mold but enough to get me to hustle.
Fragrance #6:
The initial fragrance is strong eucalyptus. No acceleration, lots of time for a swirl. In fact, I couldn’t zebra swirl it very well because it was such a light trace. As you can see, there was no initial discoloration.
Fragrance #2
Initial fragrance was fruity. Citrus and something more. Maybe watermelon? Maybe raspberry? Whatever it was...I would like MORE please! Very good fragrance. No acceleration and no discoloration.
Fragrance #8
Initial sniff test was lemongrass or something. Not my favorite at all. Strong, bitter? I don't know. Just not a good match for my nose. It soaped well, with zero discoloration.
Fragrance #3
As you can see it discolored to a medium tan. A light powdery fragrance with a little hint of cherry in it? Unique and fun. And while mixing, the trace accelerated a bit. Not enough to require a slap-dash into the mold but enough to get me to hustle.
Fragrance #5
This fragrance discolored the batch when it the batter. Kind of a yellowy color but then it went to a medium tan while in the mold. It continued to get a little darker as it cured. Not much more but a little more. It's got a grapey-soda fragrance too it. Not one of my favorites in the bunch.
Fragrance #7
YUM! I loved this fragrance. It soaped well, no acceleration and no discoloration. In fact it slowed the trace down a little. Lots of time to play around. A tart citrus fragrance that stayed strong and true.
Fragrance #1
Well, this one was....different. A strong smokey fragrance. Would be great to blend with another fragrance. I doubt I would ever use it as a stand alone fragrance though. It soaped up well, didn't have any acceleration but did discolor a little to a light tan.
Fragrance #4
Wheee! This one moved fast for me. Mixed it up and got it in the mold quick. Again, a little discoloration to a medium tan. A fabulous fragrance though. I would definitely buy it again. It reminded me a little of Clinque's Happy Fragrance. But this was better. Girly without being too perfumey and cloy. In fact, when it's hit it's 6 week cure mark, this will be the first soap to land in the shower with me.
This fragrance discolored the batch when it the batter. Kind of a yellowy color but then it went to a medium tan while in the mold. It continued to get a little darker as it cured. Not much more but a little more. It's got a grapey-soda fragrance too it. Not one of my favorites in the bunch.
Fragrance #7
YUM! I loved this fragrance. It soaped well, no acceleration and no discoloration. In fact it slowed the trace down a little. Lots of time to play around. A tart citrus fragrance that stayed strong and true.
Fragrance #1
Well, this one was....different. A strong smokey fragrance. Would be great to blend with another fragrance. I doubt I would ever use it as a stand alone fragrance though. It soaped up well, didn't have any acceleration but did discolor a little to a light tan.
Fragrance #4
Wheee! This one moved fast for me. Mixed it up and got it in the mold quick. Again, a little discoloration to a medium tan. A fabulous fragrance though. I would definitely buy it again. It reminded me a little of Clinque's Happy Fragrance. But this was better. Girly without being too perfumey and cloy. In fact, when it's hit it's 6 week cure mark, this will be the first soap to land in the shower with me.
In summary: this was an absolute blast to do. I typically test all my new fragrances like this but I usually (somewhat) know going into it how the fragrance will behave. How do I know? Most suppliers will have notations included with the fragrance descriptions. But since this was a totally blind test, I had to expect the unexpected. And be prepared for anything.
Keep your eyes peeled to see these test soaps go up for sale on the website in a couple of weeks when they've finished curing. I'll be offering them at a group price. Get yours and try them out yourself and share your thoughts on the fragrance here. What does it smell like to you? Do you like it? Do you not like it? Why or why not? Let's compare notes.
Thanks for sticking with me through this uber long post. I hope you enjoyed your inside glimpse into the world of handcrafted soapmaking!
In the meantime, stay sudsy my friends. Stay sudsy!
Keep your eyes peeled to see these test soaps go up for sale on the website in a couple of weeks when they've finished curing. I'll be offering them at a group price. Get yours and try them out yourself and share your thoughts on the fragrance here. What does it smell like to you? Do you like it? Do you not like it? Why or why not? Let's compare notes.
Thanks for sticking with me through this uber long post. I hope you enjoyed your inside glimpse into the world of handcrafted soapmaking!
In the meantime, stay sudsy my friends. Stay sudsy!
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