# Clarification on soap-making procedure **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 7, 2019, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-soap-making-procedure/830696 "2019-03-07T15:16:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2019, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-soap-making-procedure/830696/1 "2019-03-07T15:16:38Z")
> **[How to Make Cocoa Butter and Shea Butter Soap](https://www.thesprucecrafts.com/double-butter-soap-recipe-516610)** > > Use a combination of cocoa and shea butters for a luxurious, highly moisturizing soap. Follow this easy tutorial to learn how to make this soap. The ounces here are weights, right? Except that it asks for 2 ounces of lavender oil, which is a liquid, and is 60ml, which sounds like waaaaay too much. Is there an implied change in the use of the term “ounce” here? ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2019, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-soap-making-procedure/830696/2 "2019-03-07T16:04:08Z")
> [@Cardinal](#): > > [How to Make Cocoa Butter and Shea Butter Soap](https://www.thesprucecrafts.com/double-butter-soap-recipe-516610) > > The ounces here are weights, right? Nope, all liquid measurements. For the thicker ingredients, 1 cup is 8 ounces, the same measurements used for things like butter and shortening. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2019, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-soap-making-procedure/830696/3 "2019-03-07T18:15:40Z")
2 ounces of lavender oil by weight is about 2.13 fluid ounces so it’s not like it makes a lot of difference. [Lavender oil density](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavender_oil) is about 0.939 ounces (weight) per fluid ounce. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2019, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-soap-making-procedure/830696/4 "2019-03-07T18:49:52Z")
I agree that all of those measurements in the recipe are fluid ounces. If they were weights, they would total a little over 4 pounds, but the recipe says it makes 3 lb of soap. ---
**Author:** ![Bumbazine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bumbazine/32/362_2.png) [@Bumbazine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bumbazine)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2019, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-soap-making-procedure/830696/5 "2019-03-07T18:52:43Z")
From the context I think the author is referring to ounces by weight. I’ve been making cold process soap for 14 years and I weigh all of my ingredients with a scale that weighs to one tenth of an ounce. Works fine.