# Yellow soap and calendula petals



## Debs (Mar 28, 2017)

Hi - I am trying to get a lemon colour for what i call my 'zesty cp soap' of orange 10x, lime and lemongrass eo and have heat infused calendula petals then used the tea to make the soap.
The first batch i steeped 2 grams of petals in 2 pints of water then used 6oz of that water for my lye...the total amount needed for my recipe actually as it was just a pound batch.  The colour after a few weeks went more of a dark mustard....so i tried again and steeped 1 g of petals in 2 pints of water and again used 6 oz of that 'tea' to make the lye and it has come out very very pale..it's about 2 weeks old now but i don't think it is yellow enough to call yellow?!  so, i was wondering, if i  add more petals to steep will the mustard colour go lighter lemon???? or a darker mustard?!!!  happy to experiment but if someone knows the answer it might save me making pounds and pounds of lemony/mustard soap!!!  
I could try annatto seeds as I have read on this forum that they can produce a lemon but there seems to be a debate as to whether it is more orange and I have orange in my colour repertoire from paprika!   Plus - I can't seem to find them on line in small amounts to  try out...anyhow, any advice, suggestions warmly received and welcome.
Debs


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## toxikon (Mar 28, 2017)

A bit of yellow mica would definitely help. I believe some around here also infuse tumeric (.5tsp ppo) if you're looking for something natural.


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## kchaystack (Mar 28, 2017)

This is the problem with natural colorants - they are going to vary from batch to batch.  Each bunch of petals you get are going to vary in color - each infusion is going to contain different amounts of chemicals extracted from the plants.  Also most organics are going to turn a little brown in the high pH environment of soap.  Even calendula which is fairly resistant to high pH has some that will do it.


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## Zany_in_CO (Mar 28, 2017)

Excellent post, Debs!   :clap:  If only everyone would supply this kind of info with their question, it would save a lot of "thread space"! LOL

Tea vs. Infused Oil: I've yet to find a tea that doesn't turn brown when soaped.  You'll get a much better yellow if you infuse your calendula petals in oil.  If you're in a hurry, you can do the infusion range top. Add the petals to warm oil and keep the pan just below simmer for 2-3 hours -- until you get the depth of color you want. The botanical absorbs about 1/3 of the oil, so, when straining, line the strainer with cheesecloth or coffee filter and use that to squeeze all the oil out to the very last drop.

Calendula in soap is WON-DER-FUL! I always strain the petals out of the oil before soaping, but I've read that the petals retain their color in soap. Not sure. 

If you're going for just color, Beta Carotene gel capsules provide amazing pale yellow to bright golden shades, depending on how many drops you use. PLUS, you're adding 25,000 IU of Vitamin A which is very good for the skin.

   :bunny:


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## Seawolfe (Mar 28, 2017)

I think you would have better results infusing into oils and not water - that is my experience anyway for infusions. And I was going to suggest annatto. Here are some pics of a yellow I got with annatto infusion in olive oil:









So you can get yellow instead of orange with annatto


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## Debs (Mar 28, 2017)

Zany_in_CO said:


> Excellent post, Debs!   :clap:  If only everyone would supply this kind of info with their question, it would save a lot of "thread space"! LOL
> 
> Tea vs. Infused Oil: I've yet to find a tea that doesn't turn brown when soaped.  You'll get a much better yellow if you infuse your calendula petals in oil.  If you're in a hurry, you can do the infusion range top. Add the petals to warm oil and keep the pan just below simmer for 2-3 hours -- until you get the depth of color you want. The botanical absorbs about 1/3 of the oil, so, when straining, line the strainer with cheesecloth or coffee filter and use that to squeeze all the oil out to the very last drop.
> 
> ...



I never thought of heat infusing them even though I heat infused my paprika and turmeric!! what a wally!!  Might give that a go...also like the idea of beta carotene..need to search for these capsules.  Do I need to put that into the soap calc or just add it like a herb? 

thank you!



Seawolfe said:


> I think you would have better results infusing into oils and not water - that is my experience anyway for infusions. And I was going to suggest annatto. Here are some pics of a yellow I got with annatto infusion in olive oil:
> 
> These pics are beautiful!!  the yellow is just what i am looking for! What ratio of seeds to oil did you use....and...how did you get the lovely effect - did you have to make 3 batches one green, one yellow and one plain??
> So many questions!!
> ...


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## dixiedragon (Mar 28, 2017)

Beta carotene fades. Which is too bad. 

The difficulty with infusing natural colors is that it's hard to make adjustments in the soap making stage. What you might want to do is make 2 batches of soap at once. Use the infused oil in one batch. Mix each batch separately and blend just until emulsion. Then add the yellow batch to the uncolored batch until you get the color you want. Have some spare molds ready and pour your left-over yellow into them. (You could use it as is or shred it for confetti soap.)


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## Seawolfe (Mar 28, 2017)

Its been a while, but I know I got them at SMR and the suggestion there is "1-2 tsp ppo" so Im pretty sure I put 1 tsp in an 8 oz mason jar of olive oil, perhaps 2. I probably warm infused them in a crockpot and then kept in a cold dark place a few days until ready to use.

For the different colors I did my usual thing I do with natural colors: 
Sub out the required OO with colored OO. So on this recipe I needed 16.8 Oz OO total. I made up the soap batter with 4 ounces less (so 12.8 Oz OO only). Then I divided the batter into 4 and each quarter got its extra Oz of OO added with whatever additionals it was supposed to have. The Annatto one got 0.3 Oz infused annatto and 0.7 Oz regular OO - which means I added the infused annatto OO drop by drop to the batter till I had the color I wanted, then made the rest up with plain OO. Hope that makes sense.



Debs said:


> These pics are beautiful!!  the yellow is just what i am looking for! What ratio of seeds to oil did you use....and...how did you get the lovely effect - did you have to make 3 batches one green, one yellow and one plain??
> So many questions!!
> thanks in advance!
> Debs


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## Debs (Mar 29, 2017)

For the different colors I did my usual thing .......Then I divided the batter into 4 and each quarter got its extra Oz of OO added with whatever additionals it was supposed to have.......Hope that makes sense.[/QUOTE]

This makes perfect sense....my kind of clear lol.  I divided my batter up to try different scents but love the idea of splitting it up to try colour....just thought all oils had to be added at the same time to avoid trace issues.....  Assume adding the extra 1oz un heated doesn't affect the trace?? 

 I'm also intrigued .....you said you divided the batter into 4 but I can only see yellow, green and plain....just curious! !

Off to a market town today on an annatto seed hunt lol.  Thank you again
Debs


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## earlene (Mar 29, 2017)

If your market has an atomic foods section, I have found annotto in the Mexican foods area.  I have some that came in small boxes as well as some that came in small cello packets. Once I found some in a regular spice bottle in the spice aisle, but not commonly.


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## navigator9 (Mar 29, 2017)

Calendula petals are one of the two I know of, cornflowers being the other, that do retain their color in soap. 
P.S. Earlene, I can't wait to look for the "atomic" food section of my supermarket! :think::shock::-D


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## Zany_in_CO (Mar 29, 2017)

Zany_in_CO said:


> If you're going for just color, Beta Carotene gel capsules provide amazing pale yellow to bright golden shades, depending on how many drops you use. PLUS, you're adding 25,000 IU of Vitamin A which is very good for the skin.





> ...also like the idea of beta carotene..need to search for these  capsules.  Do I need to put that into the soap calc or just add it like a  herb?


You can find Beta Carotene (Vitamin A) in the vitamin section at your grocery store or drug store. It's not  expensive. Be sure to get the "softgels" or "capsules". I prick the end of the pill with a stick pin and squeeze. The color reminds me of blood. Cleans up easily if you get messy with it. Add to your oils before adding lye (CP) or at the end of cook (HP)


dixiedragon said:


> Beta carotene fades. Which is too bad.


Thank you for your input, Dixie, but that has not been my experience. I have a bar of castile made in 2004. I just checked it. It's still a pretty shade of pale lemon yellow, altho faded a bit from when it was first made. 


Debs said:


> I never thought of heat infusing them even though I  heat infused my paprika and turmeric!!


Did you strain out the paprika & tumeric? I recently used those spices in a facial bar. I didn't strain out the spices and it's scratchy! Pretty salmon color tho.


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## Seawolfe (Mar 29, 2017)

No, adding the needed Oz or two or four of necessary oils doesn't hurt trace, just make sure the original batter that is short of oils doesn't go past emulsion. The time taken to split and add oils or whatever can bring trace on and you can get gloppy.

The 4 things added were: Annatto, infused nettle (top part that looks light green), chromium green oxide (the bright green), and French green clay (bottom part that looks light green). It obviously wasn't a complete success - my tiger stripes are also blobs 




Debs said:


> This makes perfect sense....my kind of clear lol.  I divided my batter up to try different scents but love the idea of splitting it up to try colour....just thought all oils had to be added at the same time to avoid trace issues.....  Assume adding the extra 1oz un heated doesn't affect the trace??
> 
> I'm also intrigued .....you said you divided the batter into 4 but I can only see yellow, green and plain....just curious! !
> 
> ...


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## dixiedragon (Mar 29, 2017)

Zany_in_CO said:


> You can find Beta Carotene (Vitamin A) in the vitamin section at your grocery store or drug store. It's not expensive. Be sure to get the "softgels" or "capsules". I prick the end of the pill with a stick pin and squeeze. The color reminds me of blood. Cleans up easily if you get messy with it. Add to your oils before adding lye (CP) or at the end of cook (HP)
> 
> Thank you for your input, Dixie, but that has not been my experience. I have a bar of castile made in 2004. I just checked it. It's still a pretty shade of pale lemon yellow, altho faded a bit from when it was first made.
> 
> .


 
What brand did you use? I could have sworn in the past (5+ years ago) that Beta Carotene stuck around pretty well...but I made a batch and within 6 months the color was gone. Mine was colored a vivid orange, but by 6 months it was white. 

My capsules are pretty old, though. Maybe that's it?


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## Debs (Mar 29, 2017)

YAY i have got some annatto seeds ...found them in an asian supermarket.  He laughed at my excitement... I must have seemed like a 'crazy white woman' lol.  
I will put these into soak tomorrow as I am far too excited to think about measurements tonight ....sad but true!!  On a similar note my lovely hubbie, who has just ferried me into town at rush hour to get these seeds and who is now  cooking whilst I continue my excitement on here, has just told me that the smoked fish we are having tonight has annatto in the ingredients....and the fish is a lovely yellow LOL


Originally Posted by Zany_in_CO  View Post
You can find Beta Carotene (Vitamin A) in the vitamin section at your grocery store or drug store. 

Thanks for the above advice - i will go and find some of this in the next few days and then have a major soap making fest over the weekend trying annatto, beta carotene and calendula infused oil!!

Zany - Did you strain out the paprika & tumeric? I recently used those spices in a facial bar. I didn't strain out the spices and it's scratchy! Pretty salmon color tho.
Today 11:53 AM
I followed instruction from another post by putting the oil and paprika or turmeric in a jam jar in a pan of boiling water and simmered for 30 mins then left it to cool overnight.  By that time all the powder had sunk to the bottom so I simply poured it through a tea strainer into a clean jar to use as needed.  The soap isn't scratchy at all.  I have also made one by adding it at trace but that isn't ready to use yet but I can see flecks in it so I am assuming that will have an exfoliating feel?!


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## Zany_in_CO (Mar 29, 2017)

dixiedragon said:


> What brand did you use? I could have sworn in the past (5+ years ago) that Beta Carotene stuck around pretty well...but I made a batch and within 6 months the color was gone. Mine was colored a vivid orange, but by 6 months it was white. My capsules are pretty old, though. Maybe that's it?


Hmmm. The brand doesn't matter -- over the years I've tried different ones.  I don't know what to say. (scratching head)   :-?


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## DeeAnna (Mar 29, 2017)

Beta carotene is a precursor to vitamin A -- it's converted into retinol (vitamin A) in the digestive system. If you want b-carotene, then check the product label before you buy to make sure that's what you're getting, rather than retinol. This might be the reason why some are getting good lasting color and others are not.


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## earlene (Mar 29, 2017)

earlene said:


> If your market has an atomic foods section, I have found annotto in the Mexican foods area.  I have some that came in small boxes as well as some that came in small cello packets. Once I found some in a regular spice bottle in the spice aisle, but not commonly.





navigator9 said:


> Calendula petals are one of the two I know of, cornflowers being the other, that do retain their color in soap.
> P.S. Earlene, I can't wait to look for the "atomic" food section of my supermarket! :think::shock::-D



Spell check attacks again!  Ethnic.  Not sure how ethnic became atomic. :think:


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## dibbles (Mar 29, 2017)

earlene said:


> Spell check attacks again!  Ethnic.  Not sure how ethnic became atomic. :think:



It's magic earlene - spell check is magic!


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## Zany_in_CO (Mar 30, 2017)

Microworldrepairs said:


> Calendula flower powder can be used in cosmetics, soap, and other bath and body products. Calendula is believed to reduce inflammation, reduce acne, and promote healthy skin and hair. Common products that can include calendula are teas, soaps, lip balms, ointments, lotions, face toners, after shave formulas, scrubs, massage oils and some bath bombs.  This herb is great for skin problems such as burned, rashes, bruised or inflamed skin. It is also a great help to people who suffer from varicose veins. After using calendula for a few weeks, the veins have been known to shrink. It can also help with acne problems, and in an ointment can help prevent dermatitis.


Thanks for posting that, Micro. I make calendula 100% olive oil castile soap (unscented) for babies and cancer patients going through chemo/radiation.


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## navigator9 (Mar 30, 2017)

earlene said:


> Spell check attacks again!  Ethnic.  Not sure how ethnic became atomic. :think:



It's nice to know that sometimes technology can have a sense of humor!  I got a kick out of that one.


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## IrishLass (Mar 30, 2017)

Zany_in_CO said:


> Thanks for posting that, Micro. I make calendula 100% olive oil castile soap (unscented) for babies and cancer patients going through chemo/radiation.


 
Just wanted to let y'all know that Micro (Microworldrepairs) ended up being a spammer. Besides having 3 spammy links in his siggie, he copied/pasted the info on calendula into his post word for word straight from the Nature'sGardenCandles website. He has since been shown the exit door.


IrishLass


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## Debs (Mar 31, 2017)

Zany_in_CO said:


> Tea vs. Infused Oil: I've yet to find a tea that doesn't turn brown when soaped.  You'll get a much better yellow if you infuse your calendula petals in oil.  If you're in a hurry, you can do the infusion range top. Add the petals to warm oil and keep the pan just below simmer for 2-3 hours -- until you get the depth of color you want.
> 
> Hi zany - or anyone who can help!!! getting myself in a bit of a muddle and just wondered what ratio you'd suggest for the calendula heat infusion?  I wasn't sure whether my 2g calendula in 2pt water should simply be substituted  - ie water for OO, which is my main oil in my recipe, or whether it should be more like my turmeric heat infusion ration.... but then I put 41 g  into 283 g OO which seems like a lot of calendula petals!!! LOL Suggestions for a starting block would be really appreciated.
> 
> ...


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## Zany_in_CO (Mar 31, 2017)

Hiya Debs,

I'm sure someone will come along with exact measures. Since those petals are so light, it's hard for me to gauge how much you need by weight. So, I would take enough petals to cover the bottom of a stainless steel frying pan and cover the petals with enough oil to reach at least an inch above. It would be helpful if you could weigh the petals before adding the (weighed) oil and then you will know how much to use the next time. Remember that once you strain the petals out, you're left with approx 1/3 less oil due to absorption by the very dry petals, so be sure to add enough to get the amount you need.

HTH   :bunny:​


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## earlene (Apr 1, 2017)

When I do heat infusion, I use a Mason Jar, fill & cover as mentioned by Zany, but in the Jar, not a pan.  Then I put the jar into a small sauce pan, fill the pan about half full with water and bring it to a simmer.  If you've ever canned, you probably know what I mean.  This uses less oil and clean-up is easier IMO.


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