Comments on: wooing: watch n’ learn, kids

By: bz

bz — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 12:25:59 +0000

the blogwife asks that it be known: she guessed this a long time ago!

which sort of put our original, dangerous display of coffee-related chemistry in the proper context….

agreed, james. there’s a sort of refining quality to such banter. now, i am equipped to froth milk for guests, yakking even MORE uncontrollably about hopelessly obscure topics.

By: Hoffmann

Hoffmann — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 08:10:22 +0000

I was beginning to suspect that the above, and very eloquent, explanation posted by Nathanael would be the case and thus I should say that I was innaccurate and that your bath oils are a good thing. Oils in general bad, but soap capable oils good.

I like the interweb sometimes, I see it like the little things they put on kids’ bowling lanes to stop the gutterball – kind of knocking you back on course when you start to drift.

By: bz

bz — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 03:23:20 +0000

my brother: a mini hoffmann! (that musta taken at least five minutes of googling)

works for me. the original point remains: adding more of the bath oil should make for stronger bubbles, no?

all we need now is a phospholipid-producing cow.

By: Nathanael

Nathanael — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 01:47:03 +0000

In its natural state coconut oil and all other oils are hydrophobic, as Hoffman indicated, competing with the water on the surface and inhibiting the formation of foam. In the fabrication of ammonium lauryl sulfate , however, the oil lipids are bonded to a sulfate molecule. Sulfate is (drum role) hydrophilic, so it bonds to water. The resulting molecule has one end that is an oil and will then bond to other oils, while the other end is a sulfate and will bond to water. This means that the new molecule will easily mix with bath water to form a thick and greasy surface texture able to sustain foam. Most soaps are Phospholipids; same thing, only it’s a phosphate molecule that has bonded to the oil to give it a hdrophilic end.

By: Paperman

Paperman — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 23:55:19 +0000

Please excuse the spam! I need a barista or two here in Grand Cayman. Good Pay, Housing possible. Busy coffee house on Seven Mile Beach. have them contact me for info.
Thanks!

By: bz

bz — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 22:53:08 +0000

label posted. no ingredients.

but i still don’t get it. oil not good for foam?????

By: Hoffmann

Hoffmann — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 16:04:14 +0000

Much in the same way washing up liquid/detergent/whatever you call it over the pond has a certain lubricating quality?

Does it come with ingredients on the bottle?

By: bz

bz — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 14:57:28 +0000

i guess maybe we’re not talking about a pure oil, actually. but … it’s awfully oily.

By: bz

bz — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 14:55:58 +0000

dang. clearly, we should totally avoid dangerous second-hand scientific snippets in wooing situations.

but if oil is bad, then why does bubble bath almost always come in oil form?

By: Hoffmann

Hoffmann — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 14:42:48 +0000

Hoffmann would also probably get in trouble for mentioning that oil would do terrible things to the foam, because oil provides competition to the air for the attention and affection of said surfactants.
So I won’t say anything at all…..