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Homemade shaving cream?

After studying the ingredients lists of some of the favored brands of shaving cream reviewed here, I am confident that a shaving cream of a quality comparable to that offered by the three T's can be made for a fraction of the cost.

Most list water and stearic acid (and/or some other source of fatty acids such as coconut oil) as principal ingredients. Some contain additional oils in smaller amounts. Many of them contain both potassium hydroxide (the lye used for making liquid soap) and sodium hydroxide (the lye used for making hard soaps).

It turns out that by replacing a little NaOH for some of the KOH in a liquid soap recipe, you get what is called a "cream soap." Cream soaps are thick, semi-opaque mixtures that produce copious amounts of rich lather. If you include more fatty acid than can be saponified by the lye, you get a "superfatted soap," which has extra moisturizing properties. Starting to sound familiar?

Other likely ingredients are glycerin (emollient), castor oil (makes a creamier foam), cosmetic clay (extra body and "slip"), methylparaben/propylparaben (preservative).

The biggest -- and most expensive -- variable seems to be fragrance. Naturally-derived essential oils and synthetic aromatic compounds can be found to make just about any desired scent. Cost is the primary limiting factor. However, even using the most expensive fragrances, the total cost of the product would be far, far less than a tub of Taylor's.

I've read more than a few articles on soap-making and comparison shopped for ingredients... Now I think I am ready to embark upon a Grand Experiment. Has anyone else tried making their own shaving cream before? If so, does anyone have a recipe? (Don't give me what Google turns up; I've done that already.)

If I get something that works well enough, would anybody be interested in beta-testing the formula? What fragrance should I try for batch No. 1? Thoughts, ideas, etc., welcome.

Keith
 
This is an area of shavegeek-ery into which I'm certain that I will never venture... it simply sounds like too much work for me. That said, I might agree to be a "tester"... I guess that makes me the fool who follows. Please feel free to PM me when/if you require a willing fool and we may be able to work something out.

As for scents, I love "minty" and citrus scents...
 
Hi Keith
My first question is have you ever made soap of any kind?
Did you like chemistry in school?
Can you cook a complicated recipe and it works?
If you truely want to embark on this task I would suggest at least two of the answers be yes.
Here are two websites that have soapmaking instructions that I have found helpful: http://www.millersoap.com/ & http://snowdriftfarms.com
Go to the formulary and you will find recipes and instructions. Snowdrift actually has a calculator that you plug your oils into and it will tell you how much lye. You will need to educate yourself on the properties each oil will bring to the soap you are trying to make.
If you are still interested in persuing this you next step is procuring supplies. eBay has thousands of items listed for soapmaking from the base oils to the lye to fragrances, often in small enough quantities for just a couple of batches of soap.
If you need help durring this process I suggest soapmaking101 or soapmakers, Both message boards available on Yahoo.
Soapmaking and working with lye can be dangerous. It is an art. Many soapmakers choose to buy a soap base (MP) that they melt and add fragrance, color, and botanicals to. They can only add so much to the base and can not change the base. CP and HP (cold process & hot process) soap makers start from scratch: oil, water, and lye. They can choose the oils that make their base and by doing so control what the base is like. They are limited by the extreemly alkaline Ph and its effect on colors and fragrances.
Few soap makes make liquid soaps, they are notoriously tricky and even fewer make cream soaps for the same reason.
Best of luck whatever you decide and let us know how it goes.
J
 
The SWMBO and I have discussed this many times. There is always some good reason why it would be easier to just buy a cream, although no true obsessive wetshaver would ever deny having the desire to tweak a cream.

My (unsolicited) advice is this: if you are just starting out with soap (and cream) making and are doing it for fun, try making glycerin based shaving soap before cream. Once you are comfortable with that, and then move into creams. Also, your choice of EO/scent should be entirely up to you, you are the one doing all the work! :smile: Do keep updating on your progress, and good luck!
 
ladyintheroom said:
Hi Keith
My first question is have you ever made soap of any kind?

Uh, no. But I'm willing to learn.

ladyintheroom said:
Did you like chemistry in school?

Yes. Loved it. Dad and mom were both chemists.

ladyintheroom said:
Can you cook a complicated recipe and it works?

Yes! I've even baked with some success.

ladyintheroom said:
If you truely want to embark on this task I would suggest at least two of the answers be yes.

Woohoo! I passed! Are you the Gatekeeper?

ladyintheroom said:
Here are two websites that have soapmaking instructions that I have found helpful: http://www.millersoap.com/ & http://snowdriftfarms.com.

I've been to Snowdrift Farms, but not Miller Soap. Thanks for the tips.

ladyintheroom said:
Few soap makes make liquid soaps, they are notoriously tricky and even fewer make cream soaps for the same reason.

I know! Therein lies the challenge. I'm not going to go off half-cocked and start shaving with some sort of crued lye and oil mixture; trust me. But I think with a bit of work and research over a couple months, I could come up with something decent.

What I really want to know is if anybody's actually found a recipe they like (i.e., one that works). There's probably no need to reinvent the wheel. On the other hand, Trumper isn't likely to hand over their recipes for the asking.
 
Kieth

I hope your experiment is a huge success. I know we have some hardcore soapers on this board and if you keep posting your results and failures you will get lots of support. The tone of this post has been less then enthusiastic-but from personal experience many quite competent soapers have failed to make a great cream soap(or usable). For your first shot you might want to try a plain soap to get the feel of working in the medium and then go on from that point.

I would be delighted to beta test your soaps

Good luck!
 
The glycerin shaving soap sounds like an interesting place to start. Will look for recipes ... This is something I've always wanted to try.
 
Keith said:
The glycerin shaving soap sounds like an interesting place to start. Will look for recipes ... This is something I've always wanted to try.

I would like to hear your results on that as well!
 
guenron said:
Just remember, "There is nothing so SMIPLE that it can not be screwed up."

I know!

And I'm about 50-50 when it comes to brilliant successes/embarassing failures. I have taught myself how to make sourdough bread and roast my own coffee. I've grown peppers to make my own hot sauce. I built my own computer, and I can at least change the oil in my motorcycle. But that backyard space program was a complete wash! And don't get me started on the cloning experiments. Shudder.

Seriously, I know that any project of this sort is apt to fail several times before it succeeds. And I didn't mean to suggest that making soap was in any way easy. Just that there's nothing magic about shaving cream if you know what the ingredients are and what they do. And that, theoretically, you could make it yourself with materials available to any hobbyist soap-maker. This realization is what activated my DIY impulse.

I'll talk to SWMBO the Craft Addict and see if she wants to venture forth into the world of soaping with me. I'm guessing yes. We'll probably hold off on creams until we've mastered some basic technique.

But when we have a serviceable shaving soap, I'll post back and see if anybody wants a chunk o' soap in exchange for their feedback, criticism, etc. Stay tuned, No. 6.

Keith
 
Hi again
So sorry if I came off as discouraging. I have made bar, liquid and cream soaps and know just how ambitious an undertaking this is with no experience.
I do agree that the prices charged for high end creams is grossly disproportionate to the cost of the ingredients.
I wish you luck and am available if you have questions durring your journey.
J
 
Hi Keith,
J gave excellant advice. It really would help to familiarize yourself with what each ingredient contributes to the final product. I personally have not found making a quality shave creme to be easy. My garbage disposal has seen more shave creme than left-overs. My drain always smells nice, LOL

Maybe it's me but it has taken months and months to get a creme to the point of beta test and packaging/labeling thoughts for it's introduction. Good luck on your project! I am sure you will have more offers to test, than you have soap or creme. :)
Sue
 
Hi from Iowa, Kieth! Hope it's not too much trouble to revive an old thread. But, I'm an Herbalist/ quasi-gardener (still trying to make my brown thumb green!). Anyway, I've been searching for what seems like years for any information and various formulas for making homemade shaving cream! I have some lavender growing; and, I'd like to infuse the leaves into an oil-base, as a gift this June for my brother [his birthday] and my dad [for fathers' day]. So, I would love to be kept up-to-date with regard to any of your research, if you don't mind...what worked/ what didn't. With a shaving cream, I should think that it ought to be moisturizing and "lubricating" (so the blade doesn't tear up the skin and irritate it). I, myself, only use an electric razor to shave--unlike my younger bro. (by 5 years) our dad didn't teach me how to shave. In fact, I wasn't allowed to shave for quite a while, even though I definately needed to (I was getting picked on at school for it), so a year later my dad just tossed me an electric razor. Ever since always felt a bit sad to have missed out on this RIte of Passage. Sorry for ranting a bit, but it's always beena sore spot with me. Anyhoo...I have tons of lavender that I wanmt to use in making the both of them a gift. Heck, if you have developed any base recipes, please let me know so I can try 'em out. Also, if you could tell me why each ingredient was added, that would be very helpful to me...it's how I learn, best. *G*

BTW, what sort of a container might such a handmade shaving cream be best contained it? Maybe a single lotion-bottle they can squeeze into their hands, or a soft-soap pump? Oy, I've been truying to learn how to make homemade shaving cream for YEARS, but haven't been able to find any information or formulas of any kind on-lline, or in any books on toiletries.

Take Care,
Wade
 
I know these are old posts but I thought that I would share this information anyways. After viewing the recipe, I think the only value you get out of making this homemade shaving cream is the satisfaction of completing the project. This method is certainly not economical.

-Andrew
 
Sue from SCS has it right. Even experienced soapers who make an excellent quality soap sometimes have a difficult time making a good cream. I know that Colleen at TGQ was the same way. Even after great success with soaps, the process of making a good cream turned out to be arduous, with many failures along the way.

It's clearly less expensive to just buy shaving creams.

That said, if you really want to do it and are not easily deterred (and don't really care about saving money per se), then you should go for it!
 
I'd be crazy enough to beta-test the formula if you get something relatively usable. PM with details when/if you get it going.
 
Sue from SCS has it right. Even experienced soapers who make an excellent quality soap sometimes have a difficult time making a good cream. I know that Colleen at TGQ was the same way. Even after great success with soaps, the process of making a good cream turned out to be arduous, with many failures along the way.

It's clearly less expensive to just buy shaving creams.

That said, if you really want to do it and are not easily deterred (and don't really care about saving money per se), then you should go for it!


A lot of failures !! I wore a dunce hat continually and even now occassionally. Even my dog was ashamed of me. :smile:

It gets expensive and pretty disappointing. SCS shave cream is made on the shop gas range-top. What is good about that is, you know the same day if the batch failed instead of waiting for the cure time to pass then find out it stinks.

If you really want to do something, you can. Sometimes it just takes longer than planned. Never give up.
Sue
 
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