godschild Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 Hi. I am new to this forum but I already find it awesome. I am on a VERY fixed income and I have to really stretch my pennies when buying anything. May I ask if any of you know the cheapest website online that I should go to buy some sodium lactate, benzoin powder, stearic acid, and sodium hydroxide? I have everything to make soap except those things. I live in a very small town and no stores carry it. I've called every town around here looking for it also. A one stop shop would be nice if possible. I know of some of the better advertised websites that sell these things but unfortunately, I can't afford their products right now. Do you know of a diamond in the rough that is affordable for someone like me? Please help if you can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 (Cross post from welcome thread)Hi and welcome. The only thing from your list that you need to make soap is the sodium hydroxide. The others are not required to make a very nice soap.Benzoin can be a skin sensitizer and is not often used in soap these days.Sodium lactate can be a hardener, but a few extra days in the mold, depending on your soap recipe and technique, will eliminate the need for that. Stearic acid is sometimes used to harden a soap that calls for very soft oils. More oils with naturally occuring stearic, like palm, tallow, lard, etc. will eliminate the need for an extra ingredient. For local sodium hydroxide try hardware stores like Ace for instance, asking for Rooto brand or Roebic. Both are 100% lye/sodium hydroxide and make a very nice soap. Online sources ike AaaChemical, EssentialDepot, TheLyeGuy among others have lye for internet purchase.Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godschild Posted February 15, 2014 Author Share Posted February 15, 2014 Thanks very much. Today I will be trying at least one recipe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProudMarineMom Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 Don't know if you have a Walmart close to you, but their Walmart Great Value Shortening makes a very nice soap. It has tallow and palm oil in it. Crisco has palm and soybean. And, of course they carry lard. All of these are listed on Soapcal, so can be an economical way to make to make soap. Their Great Value vegetable oil is soybean and they usually have sunflower, safflower and olive oil. You can probably find similar items at Kroger, Target or whatever chain store you have local to you.TallTayl has great suggestions. Adjusting your recipe can often help with the soft soap issues.Where are you located, maybe we can suggest a supplier that is close.Welcome to the addiction. J Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godschild Posted February 16, 2014 Author Share Posted February 16, 2014 How would I put the shortening etc in the calculator if it has more than 1 oil in it? This would be perfect for me Thank you so much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProudMarineMom Posted February 16, 2014 Share Posted February 16, 2014 Both Crisco (new with palm) and Walmart's shortening (Walmart GV Shortening) are in the list. Soapcalc has already figured the profiles and SAP values, all you have to do is select it. Very handy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faerywren Posted February 17, 2014 Share Posted February 17, 2014 soybean and peanut oils make soft soaps and you have to worry about folks with peanut allergies. a recipe with olive and coconut oil makes a nice soap with properties most skin loves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktaggard Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 I buy my Sodium hydroxide from essential depot via Amazon. They usually have a discount if you buy through Amazon. The real discount comes if you buy at least 10 pounds which is about $35. I also bought other various oils off of Amazon when I was first starting out. But Walmart and Costco have the best prices - if you can get to them. BTW-I love the tallow shortening from Walmart -makes a very creamy soap!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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