# natural coloring with spices...



## Brandica2013 (May 8, 2013)

I'm curious about coloring with spices like paprika,cinnamon,ginger & others.Oh and clay's 2...it would be great to know about tea, coffee & cocoa 2.

If you color with these natural colorants how did it turn out and do you like the results of the soap & color? I love pictures 2 if you want.I'm just trying to learn the good and bad parts of soaping.


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## newlycrunchy (May 8, 2013)

following along- I'm interested as well.


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## Brandica2013 (May 8, 2013)

newlycrunchy said:


> following along- I'm interested as well.



great im so glad I'm not alone in this =D


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## squeakycleanuk (May 8, 2013)

I'm a newbie so haven't really done any colourants yet except for with the cocoa,  which you can kind of see in my avatar. I was trying to do swirls but it thickened too quickly (due to cornstarch) anyway I was very pleased with the colour, a nice dark brown. I have some paprika infusing at the moment so will use that soon as its ready.


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## three_little_fishes (May 8, 2013)

I've only done paprika and it turned out a pretty orange color. If you look at my thread in the photo gallery with the salt bars, you can see how it turned out. 

This link talks about infusing for color. 

http://www.lovinsoap.com/2011/07/color-soap-naturally-infusing-oil-with-herbs-and-spices/


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## Lotus (May 8, 2013)

I know cinnamon is an irritant to skin. Wouldn't paprika do that as well? If not, I want to try it. 

Turmeric is a good one. I don't have any pictures, because I did it a long time ago.


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## newlycrunchy (May 8, 2013)

what a great resource- i never thought of infusing in the oil.  very neat stuff.


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## three_little_fishes (May 8, 2013)

Lotus said:


> I know cinnamon is an irritant to skin. Wouldn't paprika do that as well? If not, I want to try it.
> 
> Turmeric is a good one. I don't have any pictures, because I did it a long time ago.



I'm really not sure. I don't know if any of the actual spice lives through the lye process or not or if it's just the color. I don't have sensitive skin though and love our shave soap with cinnamon EO added at trace. Getting ready to try one of my own like that.


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## Lotus (May 8, 2013)

I've always wanted to use a decent quantity of both cinnamon and nutmeg in soap. I used to have the EO, but as hard as I looked, the other day, I couldn't find it. Anyway, I didn't like the smell of the EO, because it didn't have that natural smell that ground cinnamon has. It had that "Christmas Cinnamon" scent that you find in candles and candies. I LOVE cinnamon, but hate that (what to me, feels like) artificial flavor/scent.

Anyway, I wanted to use the ground versions of cinnamon and nutmeg in a soap. I don't have sensitive skin, either. But, I wouldn't want to try giving away something that is still up in the air (as far as I can tell), as to whether or not it would be safe for them to use. Sigh.


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## soap_bubbles (May 8, 2013)

I have used pink clay as a colorant as well as paprika and cocoa with good success. The paprika I just used dry mixed into the soap batter, and it did speckle which I thought was a nice effect. PICTURES! 


















The top soap--bengal chai-- the base is colored with paprika, the mid level with swirls of paprika and chocolate, with a solid white top. This is scented with my own blend of EO's.
Middle soap-- Mocha Latte-- colored with melted chocolate, not powdered cocoa and of course coffee, with a solid white top. Unscented. I am now making this with an orange EO and coffee FO
mid 2 soap-- bunny love-- bottom layer is carrot that has the orange pumped up with paprika. The swirls in the top layer are done with puree carrot, which didn't work like I thought--future batches have paprika swirls. 
Bottom soap Green tea & honey-- Soap made with green tea and honey with ground tea stirred in, with a plain white soap swirl. 

I thought I had a picture of my pink clay swirl, but not on this computer i guess.
HTH!


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## Ruthie (May 8, 2013)

It is not a spice but I made a castille last weekend that amazed me.  I had calendula infused olive oil.  It was EVOO so even after infusing it looked green.  But it made the prettiest yellow soap!  Trying to figure now how to get that nice color in non castille soap.  Btw I used half a cup of petals in a quart jar then filled it with oil.  Planned on leaving it 2 weeks but it ended up being 6.


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## welsh black (May 8, 2013)

new to soap making but used green tea infused water to make lye.  the soap was a dirty brown/green .. not very attractive! however the soap made lovely bubbles.  Have used this mix of oils before but i put the soap in a very warm place to push the gel stage, so do you think soap which has gelled has a better lather than one that has not gelled?


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## mel z (May 8, 2013)

For powdered spices and flower heads I just put some in oil and let it sit, shake it every now and again. Don't shake it right before use so you don't get speckles, unless you want them. Then add them to the soap batter, and what you see is what you get.

For dry herbs and leaves, I put them in a muslin tea bag in oil and let it sit, I shake sometimes but there really isn't much need with these. The day of use I put them in pot with water and put on low. Let that sit for an hour or two then cool. Squeeze the tea bag, then add to the soap batter. Again, what you see is what you get. 

I haven't had any morphing or changing of color after cure with this method, so I can see through the jar to see what color it will be and add enough to the batter to achieve desired tone. You can get some really nice colors, but do try to avoid things like cayenne that may burn.


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## Hazel (May 8, 2013)

I really like paprika as a colorant. If you try parsley powder, I suggest adding it in at trace or even HP the batch to make sure it's not exposed to too much lye. Otherwise, it can turn brown. I've only used parsley in HP and I've been very happy with the soft green sage-like color. 



welsh black said:


> new to soap making but used green tea infused water to make lye.  the soap was a dirty brown/green .. not very attractive! however the soap made lovely bubbles.  Have used this mix of oils before but i put the soap in a very warm place to push the gel stage, so do you think soap which has gelled has a better lather than one that has not gelled?



I've been told it's the tannin in the tea which causes the browning. You'll experience the same effect if you use wine.

Interesting question. I've never thought to make the same recipe and test the lather for a difference between gelled and not gelled. I usually gel batches in which I've use water, beer or wine and I don't gel batches in which I've used milk products. I've always been happy with the lather of batches which I haven't gelled. The soap seems almost as bubbly but creamier than gelled batches. 

To gel or not to gel comes down to a personal preference. Here are some links to discussions which you might find interesting.

http://www.soapmakingforum.com/f11/gel-not-gel-22762/
http://www.soapmakingforum.com/f11/gelling-not-gelling-28073/
http://www.soapmakingforum.com/f11/gel-phase-30992/

I know there was another one I thought was interesting but I can't find it now. If I find it later, I'll post the link for you.

eta: green soap wrote some posts about using botanical colorants. You might find the info helpful.

http://www.soapmakingforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=27147
http://www.soapmakingforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=28553


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## kazmi (May 8, 2013)

I love all of them ^^ but especially like the carrot soap.  Sorry off topic, but do you hand bevel your soaps?


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## Relle (May 8, 2013)

A link re natural colouring - http://www.soapmakingforum.com/f11/natural-coloring-question-3863/


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## soap_bubbles (May 8, 2013)

Yep! I do hand bevel my soaps and I put the scraps into confetti soap


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## Lotus (May 8, 2013)

soap_bubbles said:


> Yep! I do hand bevel my soaps and I put the scraps into confetti soap



Please, tell me. What is confetti soap? How do you use it?


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## Brandica2013 (May 8, 2013)

squeakycleanuk said:


> I'm a newbie so haven't really done any colourants yet except for with the cocoa,  which you can kind of see in my avatar. I was trying to do swirls but it thickened too quickly (due to cornstarch) anyway I was very pleased with the colour, a nice dark brown. I have some paprika infusing at the moment so will use that soon as its ready.



Thank you  The ones in your avatar look beautiful...can't wait to see what you do with the paprika!


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## Brandica2013 (May 8, 2013)

three_little_fishes said:


> I've only done paprika and it turned out a pretty orange color. If you look at my thread in the photo gallery with the salt bars, you can see how it turned out.
> 
> This link talks about infusing for color.
> 
> http://www.lovinsoap.com/2011/07/color-soap-naturally-infusing-oil-with-herbs-and-spices/



Thanks ill go check out now


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## soap_bubbles (May 8, 2013)

Confetti soap is where I mix (or anyone ) soap scraps into fresh soap batter--I have kept them separated by color or scent or just dumped them all together in a batch--more pictures !



















Those are ideas for scraps. I usually do an unscented base and just toss in the scraps and dump them in the mold and away you go. I have given bars away, but usually they are what we use here. OH and you can also use them in bath teas! Especially oatmeal soap scraps.


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## Brandica2013 (May 8, 2013)

Lotus said:


> I know cinnamon is an irritant to skin. Wouldn't paprika do that as well? If not, I want to try it.
> 
> Turmeric is a good one. I don't have any pictures, because I did it a long time ago.



Thanks for the info and i thought the same thats one of the reasons im asking.


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## Brandica2013 (May 8, 2013)

Soap_Bubbles ~OMG! Those are beautiful,in fact when i was looking up this topic on google images im pretty sure that top picture showed up and I just loved it! What talent!! I just got Klout perks and they sent me some FairTradeMom items and I got a bunch of great goodies...i got 70% coco/chocolate block i wanna use,green tea with jasmine i want to infuse in oil and some great coffee beans..and these are all full size samples...love them so do you have any tips for my 1st time using tea/coffee & chocolate?Thanks for all your help


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## Brandica2013 (May 9, 2013)

Brandica2013 said:


> Soap_Bubbles ~OMG! Those are beautiful,in fact when i was looking up this topic on google images im pretty sure that top picture showed up and I just loved it! What talent!! I just got Klout perks and they sent me some FairTradeMom items and I got a bunch of great goodies...i got 70% coco/chocolate block i wanna use,green tea with jasmine i want to infuse in oil and some great coffee beans..and these are all full size samples...love them so do you have any tips for my 1st time using tea/coffee & chocolate?Thanks for all your help



***the ones im talking about is your 1st post you made with pictures i seen you had a few post and wanted to make sure you knew ****


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## soap_bubbles (May 9, 2013)

Brew your coffee and tea stronger than you think you will need it! I also used melted chocolate--unsweetened bakers chocolate for my swirls instead of powdered cocoa.Seemed to cut down on the brown suds. I melted a block and mixed it in the soap. I also used contents of tea bags and espresso ground coffee in the bottom layers. OH and I messed with the tops of my soaps and on the bengal chai I put Chinese 5 spice powder and on the coffee instant espresso! OH and be prepared for the coffee and tea to STINK when mixed with lye!


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## Brandica2013 (May 9, 2013)

Ruthie said:


> It is not a spice but I made a castille last weekend that amazed me.  I had calendula infused olive oil.  It was EVOO so even after infusing it looked green.  But it made the prettiest yellow soap!  Trying to figure now how to get that nice color in non castille soap.  Btw I used half a cup of petals in a quart jar then filled it with oil.  Planned on leaving it 2 weeks but it ended up being 6.



 thank you, im just honestly wanting to learn anything i can so this info is great 2!! I want to use whatever natural thing i can...i do love FO & Other colorants but want a verity for everyone =D


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## soap_bubbles (May 9, 2013)

Brandica2013 said:


> ***the ones im talking about is your 1st post you made with pictures i seen you had a few post and wanted to make sure you knew ****



THANKS for letting me know!


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## AngelMomma (May 9, 2013)

Brandica2013 said:


> Soap_Bubbles ~OMG! Those are beautiful,in fact when i was looking up this topic on google images im pretty sure that top picture showed up and I just loved it! What talent!! I just got Klout perks and they sent me some FairTradeMom items and I got a bunch of great goodies...i got 70% coco/chocolate block i wanna use,green tea with jasmine i want to infuse in oil and some great coffee beans..and these are all full size samples...love them so do you have any tips for my 1st time using tea/coffee & chocolate?Thanks for all your help


 
I have used teas.  I just set my lye pot in another larger bowl that had ice water in it so the lye/tea mix didn't over heat.

The coffee I freeze in ice cube trays and have the bowl of ice water ready in case it starts getting too hot.  I have read that it gets REALLY bad smelling if it over heats and gets scorched while adding the lye.  I haven't had that happen though with freezing it.  And add the lye slowly.

The times I have used chocolate I used unsweetened chocolate.  I melted it with some cream that I was going to add to the recipe.  I mixed them up really good together once it was melted and added into the soap batter.


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## Irja (May 9, 2013)

We've done some soaps with paprika infused olive oil and with chamomile and calendula infused olive oil. Paprika one is made of 40% infused olive oil, 40% palm oil and 20% coconut oil and it turned really orange. In the top part we added pink mica. 
Chamomile and calendula one was made with 60% infused olive oil, 30% palm oil and 10% coconut oil and it turned nicely yellow. 
We made infusions following these instructions:
http://www.lovinsoap.com/2011/07/color-soap-naturally-infusing-oil-with-herbs-and-spices/


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## Brandica2013 (May 9, 2013)

soap_bubbles said:


> Yep! I do hand bevel my soaps and I put the scraps into confetti soap



?whats hand bevel you soaps mean?


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## Brandica2013 (May 9, 2013)

soap_bubbles said:


> Brew your coffee and tea stronger than you think you will need it! I also used melted chocolate--unsweetened bakers chocolate for my swirls instead of powdered cocoa.Seemed to cut down on the brown suds. I melted a block and mixed it in the soap. I also used contents of tea bags and espresso ground coffee in the bottom layers. OH and I messed with the tops of my soaps and on the bengal chai I put Chinese 5 spice powder and on the coffee instant espresso! OH and be prepared for the coffee and tea to STINK when mixed with lye!



These are all really great tips :smile: thank you so much....i love learning new things..this is probably this 1st hobby and hopefully talent that ever really interested me to learn and really enjoy doing @ the same time,i think i finally found what i love doing.I make whipped body butters & whipped scrubs & lip balms,bath bombs and lotion bars 2..i love it all!!


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## DeeAnna (May 9, 2013)

Brandica -- Beveling is trimming the corners of the bars and such. The little angled face that is created when you trim off a corner is called a "bevel".


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## DeeAnna (May 9, 2013)

Paprika is red peppers that have been dried and ground into powder. 

Sweet paprika is made from sweet (bell) peppers. I doubt sweet paprika would be irritating to the skin for the vast majority of people.

Half sharp paprika is made from a slightly hotter pepper. If you have any concerns about skin safety, might want to avoid that.


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## Lotus (May 9, 2013)

All I have round is smoked paprika. Lovely color, but I'm sure the "smoked" part comes from chipotles, since it has that flavor. I will try finding a "sweet" kind. There is a really cool spice shop around here from the author of "Salted" I've been meaning to visit. Maybe I finally will.


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## DeeAnna (May 9, 2013)

I have smoked Spanish paprika. There is some sharpness to it, but it's not chipotle because I have that as well. Although the two share the same color, they are not remotely the same in flavor or in heat.


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## Lotus (May 9, 2013)

DeeAnna said:


> I have smoked Spanish paprika. There is some sharpness to it, but it's not chipotle because I have that as well. Although the two share the same color, they are not remotely the same in flavor or in heat.



Thanks. I should look at the label on the bottle. Think I should give a small batch a try? Or bad idea, straight off? I do want to play with some fun zappy colors. But, I also want the color to mach the scent, somehow. Hmm.


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## DeeAnna (May 9, 2013)

"...Think I should give a small batch a try?..."

Well, Lotus, the only downside I can see to a test batch with the smoked paprika is you might smell some of the smokiness. I doubt there would be more than a titch of odor, however, because you won't need to use much paprika since you're using it as a colorant. Go for it....

I've used sweet paprika, rosehip, and cocoa so far. 

The cocoa (Dutch process, for the record) gives a nice smooth, even chocolate color. No scent survives, in case anyone is wondering. The color was lighter than I wanted in the soap batter, but I decided to stick to my original plan so I didn't add more. The color was just as light immediately after the bars were cut, and I remember feeling disappointed because I wanted a nice dark cocoa color. Imagine my surprise when the color darkened to exactly the right shade of milk chocolate just a few hours after exposure to air. 

The rosehip and paprika both gave my soap a speckled color. Both colors stay true in CPOP soap. 

I am learning to use the paprika with a light hand, because it can look exactly like paprika sprinkled on food as a garnish, and I don't really want folks to associate my soap with their eggs Benedict breakfast.  I recently used paprika to make irregular pencil lines in otherwise uncolored soap batter -- the result was a bit like a rock with interesting veins of rust running throughout. I was pretty happy with how that turned out -- and thankfully no association with food sprang to mind.

In another recent SMF thread, one person got a less speckle-y color by "blooming" the rosehip powder in a bit of warm water for awhile before putting into the soap batter. This might work for paprika too, but I haven't tried it yet. It definitely can't hurt and I do plan to try it.


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## kazmi (May 9, 2013)

DeeAnna that was me who did the rosehip powder in warm water and that is exactly what I was thinking while reading this thread.  So I put some spanish paparika that I have in warm water just to see if will dilute.  Looks like it will so I may give it a try this weekend on a small batch.


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## DeeAnna (May 9, 2013)

Ah, Kazmi -- thank you for speaking up! I am sorry I didn't remember your name to give you credit for this idea! I'm looking forward to trying this myself -- and am very interested to see if paprika "blooms" well for you.


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## Brandica2013 (May 11, 2013)

AngelMomma said:


> I have used teas.  I just set my lye pot in another larger bowl that had ice water in it so the lye/tea mix didn't over heat.
> 
> The coffee I freeze in ice cube trays and have the bowl of ice water ready in case it starts getting too hot.  I have read that it gets REALLY bad smelling if it over heats and gets scorched while adding the lye.  I haven't had that happen though with freezing it.  And add the lye slowly.
> 
> The times I have used chocolate I used unsweetened chocolate.  I melted it with some cream that I was going to add to the recipe.  I mixed them up really good together once it was melted and added into the soap batter.



Thanks so much for these great tips,it sounds like a safe bet to just add them with the ice/water bowl or sink filled & freezing the coffee or tea...i have goats milk in 1 cup containers in the freezer now,not sure when ill be brave to use :/...

You mentioned cream?? What kind of cream are you referring 2,if you don't mind me asking? Sorry for so many questions I'm just trying to learn all I can.Thanks so much!! This post and thread has been so helpful


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## Brandica2013 (May 11, 2013)

*beautiful*



Irja said:


> We've done some soaps with paprika infused olive oil and with chamomile and calendula infused olive oil. Paprika one is made of 40% infused olive oil, 40% palm oil and 20% coconut oil and it turned really orange. In the top part we added pink mica.
> Chamomile and calendula one was made with 60% infused olive oil, 30% palm oil and 10% coconut oil and it turned nicely yellow.
> We made infusions following these instructions:
> http://www.lovinsoap.com/2011/07/color-soap-naturally-infusing-oil-with-herbs-and-spices/



Wow these are so beautiful,thank you for sharing!!! WOW!!!


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## Brandica2013 (May 11, 2013)

DeeAnna said:


> Brandica -- Beveling is trimming the corners of the bars and such. The little angled face that is created when you trim off a corner is called a "bevel".[/
> 
> 
> 
> Thanks


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## Brandica2013 (May 11, 2013)

Sorry It took so long to reply back to some of you I have been In some pretty bad pain lately from my chronic pain & fibromyalgia but 
I just want to thank everyone for the help & pictures of their soaps. It means a lot that you all are so willing to help this newbie out and I hope one day I can give that back to a newbie & have wonderful pictures to share 

Happy Mothers Day to all the wonderful moms in the group


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## Irja (May 11, 2013)

I like to help as much as I can considering I'm new to soap making. I really learned a lot from this forum and want to give something in return


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## Ancel (May 11, 2013)

Beautiful! I love the tall mold and the layering, and the carrot looks very interesting, how much carrot did you use ppo?


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## Ancel (May 11, 2013)

If you have a Mexican grocery near you, or a Mexican section in a market look for Achiote, or annatto in English, and use that in an oil infusion. Makes a lovely deep golden/ peach color. Achiote is also traditionally used as a insect repellent and sunscreen, so it's good for the skin too


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## three_little_fishes (May 11, 2013)

Ancel said:


> If you have a Mexican grocery near you, or a Mexican section in a market look for Achiote, or annatto in English, and use that in an oil infusion. Makes a lovely deep golden/ peach color. Achiote is also traditionally used as a insect repellent and sunscreen, so it's good for the skin too



Yep! I found some at Walmart the other day!


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## kazmi (May 11, 2013)

kazmi said:


> DeeAnna that was me who did the rosehip powder in warm water and that is exactly what I was thinking while reading this thread.  So I put some spanish paparika that I have in warm water just to see if will dilute.  Looks like it will so I may give it a try this weekend on a small batch.


 

Unfortunately the paparka in warm water didn't work like the rosehip did. Still came out speckled with only a little bit of color.  I added it at trace so maybe if it was added before the lye it may have worked.  I'll try it this way another time.


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## three_little_fishes (May 11, 2013)

kazmi said:


> Unfortunately the paparka in warm water didn't work like the rosehip did. Still came out speckled with only a little bit of color.  I added it at trace so maybe if it was added before the lye it may have worked.  I'll try it this way another time.



Paprika will speckle if if added as a powder at trace. A warm infusion (very easy) will create a beautiful orange color.


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## kazmi (May 11, 2013)

^^I mixed paprika with warm water and added it at trace and it didn't work.  Maybe I didn't use enough or the water wasn't warm enough.  Since I used spanish paprika it came out a soft speckled oatmeal color.


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## Rachelmf (May 11, 2013)

kazmi said:


> ^^I mixed paprika with warm water and added it at trace and it didn't work.  Maybe I didn't use enough or the water wasn't warm enough.  Since I used spanish paprika it came out a soft speckled oatmeal color.



  I think that three little fishes was referring to an oil infusion.


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## three_little_fishes (May 11, 2013)

Rachelmf said:


> I think that three little fishes was referring to an oil infusion.



Yes, I was.


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## amanda_hughes (Jun 16, 2013)

For paprika I do 1Tbsp to 1c water and boil it down so its concentratedand I used it at light trace and the color came out exactly as I wanted it, a light peachy color. I strained it thru a paper towel. Just givin my 2¢..


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## kazmi (Jun 16, 2013)

Since I last posted I infused paprika in OO for a couple of days, strained it, and used it as part of my soft oils and it came out a beautiful orange/peach color with no speckles.  No fade yet either.


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## amanda_hughes (Jun 16, 2013)

Did you gel or no gel? I meant to add that it May be best to not gel-mine did and the color morphed- but I still like how its turned out with my scents. But before gelling it was a brighter more gorgeous color.


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## kazmi (Jun 17, 2013)

Amanda, I didn't gell mine so thanks for the heads up.


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## dcornett (Jun 17, 2013)

Here's a couple of threads with some really good information about using herbs such as: annatto, alkanet, comfrey, cinnamon, rosemary, turmeric, madder root, paprika, beta carotene and more...complete with pictures. I listed the best one first, but I still couldn't find the thread I was looking for...:? but maybe these will help.

http://www.soapmakingforum.com/f11/herbal-infusions-both-colors-scents-recent-results-25603/
http://www.soapmakingforum.com/f11/how-use-natural-colorants-30140/


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