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Pb The Green Gin

Pbgoose

Pbgoose

Active Member
This one's going to need a little work.
The goal was to make a mentholated shave soap based on Gin and some greenery. I put a test scent together using Wormwood tea and the Mother of Herbs distillate I had made for a previous soap, Gin and essential oils and was pretty happy with the result.
My previous mentholated soaps have been very mild, menthol wise so I doubled the menthol input which is where I'm guessing the problems started.
The soap is a different texture to normal due to the large menthol/alcohol input additional to a decent hit of Gin. This resulted in a soap that is inclined to lather foamy rather than creamy.
I was expecting face freeze if the menthol input was too high but instead got watery eyes from the amount of menthol fumes, which didn't make for an enjoyable shave when shaving. Next iteration will cut back on menthol which I assume will assist with the texture and foaming tendency issues.
The test shave was not stellar. The lather did it's job though I was carrying a number of weepers post shave and was squinting a little from the menthol fumes. The menthol also impacted a little on the scent.
I'm not excited about The Green Gin yet but I think it's got potential so I'll do another iteration to sort the issues.

Ingredients: Stearic Acid, Tallow (Beef), Avocado Oil, Castor Oil, Coconut Oil, Lanolin, Shea Butter, Rosehip Oil, Jojoba Oil, KOH, NaOH, Tussah Silk, Glycerine, Wormwood Tea, Mother of Herbs distillate, Kaolin Clay, Menthol, Vit E, Gin, essential oils.
Essential Oils: Juniper, Rosemary, Lemon, Aniseed Myrtle, Geranium, Lime, Cedarwood, Black Pepper, Artemisia, Fir Needle, Spearmint, Gurjun Balsam.

OnulIXFl.jpg
 
The soap doesn’t look green and hairy as Grinch

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Pbgoose said:
The goal was to make a mentholated shave soap based on Gin and some greenery. I put a test scent together using Wormwood tea and the Mother of Herbs distillate I had made for a previous soap, Gin and essential oils and was pretty happy with the result.
Click to expand...
Sounds like a fun exercise. Did you ever do a second round with reduced menthol?
 
AussieTanker said:
Sounds like a fun exercise. Did you ever do a second round with reduced menthol?
Click to expand...
No not yet. Some of the issues sorted themselves just with ageing of the soap but I'm not into heavy menthol anyway so the next iteration will definitely be lower menthol, but it won't be til next summer. I'll probably play with it again at some stage as the scent is fresh, green with a hit of Gin so very refreshing for those summer mornings.
 
I was looking at making my own soaps and the youtube tutorials all look pretty simple (ish).

I just need to figure out how to crack the code on JPG Le Male and I'm set..

Any hints and tips for a first timer?
 
Phunk said:
Agree, had no idea how caustic soap making could be.
Click to expand...


This one gives you an idea of the principles but better if you find video on hot process. Plus he wasn't wearing PPE. He's nuts. If you get a splash of the lye solution in your eye then kiss your sight goodbye. They recommend having a spray bottle of vinegar on hand to neutralise the lye if you get it on yourself which is a good idea. I've got tiny amounts on my arms just accidently brushed on by the equipment I've been using and it burns enough on your skin let alone getting it in your eyes.
 
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