Olive Oil in Soap Making

I remember reading this a while back. One of the things that sticks out in my mind is the statement “only Brambleberry’s olive oils stood the test of time”. This statement begs the question is it truth or is it advertising? I can’t verify that without doing similar tests but to me that sounds more like marketing tactics. I have bought olive oil from both the local grocery store chain and from online soaping sources and honestly, I can’t tell the difference in a soap. I’ve never had a soap develop DOS and I still have some on my drying racks that are two plus years old. Most of my soaps have some olive oil in them because I like the feel that olive oil gives soap. Am I saying that all olive oils are equal? No. Undiluted? No. But I don’t notice any difference in my soap recipes from my generic Kroger brand olive oil vs Essential Depot’s olive oil vs Brambleberry’s olive oil. None at all. Any none have had any problems with rancidity.

I’ve also been poking around a little on the subject of cosmetic grade vs food grade oils and from what I’ve read so far, food grade oils are the superior oils. Cosmetic grade can have up to 30% impurities and food grade is only allowed 1%. I have not verified that, however, so don’t quote me on it. So, buying oils from your grocery store, barring the argument of “are they diluting the more expensive type oils with cheaper oils”, may actually be better than buying from a soaping/cosmetic source. And who’s to say that the same practice doesn’t occur in cosmetic oils as well. Have their been any tests done on cosmetic oils to see if they are diluted?

Ahhhh! Too many questions!! But I may have to check into that and see if there’s any research out there….

It sounds like you and I may have a similar system going here. I use food grade or cosmetic grade oils that I can’t get in a grocery store for lotions. I usually don’t use olive oil in my lotions. The only thing I use olive oil for is soaping, and that is generic store brand olive oil. And yes, I’m aware it’s probably diluted, but I don’t sell my soaps so it doesn’t really matter to me. If I were selling, I would be more likely to buy from a soaping store. But they’re just for me and my family (and to give as gifts) so I use what I can get easily. When I made my one and only batch of Castile soap, I used an olive oil pomace from Essential Depot. The soap is two or three years old (I don’t like it) and it’s just fine. No DOS. But I have other soaps that are just as old or older that I made with store bought olive oil and they are also fine. I like to put around 20% OO in my soaps because I can feel the difference in them vs soaps I haven’t put any in, so that’s sort of a standard in my soap recipes.

I do buy a brand of olive oil with a reputation for being pure undiluted olive oil for cooking/eating. I can definitely taste the difference from the brand I was buying, so the one I was buying before must have been diluted.

China does like to do things like that, from what I’ve heard. My husband was told by a friend of his that works in shipping/logistics that China buys wheat from Canada, takes it into international waters, repackages it as organic wheat, then sells it for a nice, steep profit to California. I got a good laugh from that. Oh yeah! You EAT that ORGANIC wheat bread……that’s totally not organic! I am surrounded by people who are organic snobs. I just smile and nod my head at some of the stuff they preach to me about organic non-GMO food. Thank goodness that market is shrinking! I wonder if people would be so hip to eat organic if they knew those farm sites turned into EPA superfund sites when whoever owns them decides they no longer want to farm organic?

I remember you or somebody mentioning that about the Egyptian cotton sheets! I’ve wanted a set for so long and now I’m like meh! I guess we really need to look at everything we buy and read what’s actually in the ingredient list. Ive been doing that with cosmetic and personal care stuff, just because I want to learn about the ingredients used and try to make something similar, but I guess I need to look closer at other things too and see what it’s actually made of. Everybody’s trying to make a buck, and if consumers don’t know the difference, then manufacturers will keep on doing this. I know Whole Foods has been popped with some lawsuits in recent years due to false advertising. I’m sure there are lots more out there!

You’re right. We as consumers have gotten pretty complacent. People here complain about the FDA not being more strict. Well, it’s not their job to make sure the manufacturers put out a safe and effective product, it’s the manufacturers themselves. They are the ones who are supposed to do the research and make sure whatever they’re putting out there to sell is what it says it is and is safe for consumers. The FDA is there to take action if a product actually has negative effects, is misleading, etc…Kind of like the police. You can’t stop people from committing a crime, but the police are there to go after criminals when they do. A policeman’s job is not to stand over every person and make them do the right thing beforehand. That’s why you have morals and ethics. Well, you know some people don’t have either, and they take advantage of the system. Yes, these are Egyptian cotton sheets! One thread but who’s counting?!?! There’s always going to be those people that play fast and loose with the rules, or actually not care at all about the rules. Or being a decent, moral human being who does the right thing. This world really makes me sad sometimes😢

I seriously have to find a link for this instant rice you talk about! That does sound cool! And, it’s junk food so of course it’s bad for you! Those chips look awesome though! I LOVE potato chips. They are truly a weakness for me. I can say no to sweets, but if there are potato chips of any kind in my house, I can sit and eat the whole bag! Which is really not good for me on any level! Haha! But salt and vinegar chips YUM!! Haven’t seen cucumber chips but those actually sound kind of yum too. Lime, yum! And I’m suuuuuure they are very healthy for you! Hahahaha

Oh, I want a self heating eye mask now! That sounds soooo wonderful!! Instant Relaxation!

I can see that about the cucumber chips. I hate when food has a yucky after taste! You’re like, hmmm ok so fa…..NOOOOOOO *spits out food* WHY WHY would you do that to me?!?! *wipes tongue with napkin* Gross! I ate something recently, I can’t remember what it was, but I was literally wiping my tongue off, trying to get rid of the taste. I remember it was VILE!! Can’t remember what it was, though.

Blueberry potato chips?!? No thanks! Fish flavored, also no. Seriously, some flavors just don’t belong on a chip! We have a Lay’s chip that is flavored biscuits and gravy. That just sounds wrong to me!!

Lays biscuits and gravy flavor

I looked up All Dressed and they were in America! And I missed them!! There was a limited run of them in November and December. Nooooooo! I’ll have to be on the lookout for them or try to find some when I’m much further north.

Salt and vinegar chips are THE BOMB! Seriously, one of the best chip flavors ever! How could they not be in China?? Do they have a suggestion box?? Haha

Hey, if there’s no local Asian market here, there’s always Amazon! I think there may be though. We have a large melting pot of cultures here because we are Fed Ex Worldwide headquarters. I’ll have to check that out.