Price of Patchouli Essential Oil

Wow! I had heard that the price had gone up on this essential oil, but hadn't had a need to buy any in quite some time. I was amazed to see that the price on supplier websites ranged from around $50-$200. The sizes varied, but this is outrageous to me. I cannot justify paying that much for an ingredient. I would have to pass along the cost to my customers, and that is something I am not comfortable doing.

Luckily I found a full bottle in my supply cupboard the other day so I won't have to purchase the oil for a while. I am hoping that the price goes down before I need to replenish my supply. If it does not go down I will be forced to suspend production of soaps that contain this ingredient. This change would affect the All Natural My Man Soap. I will post notification if and when the time comes that I do this.

To me, my customers come first and a price increase is not acceptable.

Craft Store Soap Bases vs. Soap Supplier Soap Bases

I've posted a blurb about this on my Squidoo lens, Why Handcrafted Soap?

Since Lisanne made a comment about this topic on my last post, I thought I would address it now.

Basically, if you're going to make soap for decoration or to see if you like making it then craft store bases are just fine. However, if you're going to give soap as gifts or you're going to start a business you will want to do your research about the ingredients and the suppliers. It is the opinion of most soapmakers that the craft store bases are full of chemicals and detergents that can irritate your skin and they are a high price for a low quality soap base.

So where can you buy quality soap bases from? Check out the following list of suppliers, in no particular order, that I have personally used in the last 9 years of soapmaking.

Wholesale Supplies Plus
Soapers Supplies
Bramble Berry
The Chemistry Store

I hope this list is useful, and if you know of other glycerin soap base suppliers that are trustworthy and have a high quality product, please feel free to leave a comment.