A Poppy Saga

[dibbles]

I really don't like soaps with 'stuff' in them or on them too much. But I do love the look of poppy seeds. I've been on a quest for a floral I like that will behave, and got a 2 ounce bottle of Nurture's Butterfly Flower. I liked it (it's soft and not too perfumy), so thought I'd give it a try. I also wanted to try something with poppy seeds, and after reading about grinding them so they wouldn't be too scratchy, that's what I did. This FO does accelerate, too much for what I wanted to do, but would be very workable for a hanger or spoon swirl, or probably an in the pot swirl if you have everything ready to move quickly. I persevered with my original plan and the batter was like stiff buttercream by the time I got to doing the top. No way was I going to be able to add green mica swirls and my flowers are pretty shapeless and lumpy-bumpy. But I think they are kind of cute - I do like abstract art. (long post -- sorry)

 

[shunt2011]

Those are really lovely. You did an awesome job. Like the colors too.

 

[dibbles]

Thank you. Not what I envisioned, but I'm pretty used to that. I will try the poppies again at some point, but not with a floral

 

[snappyllama]

I love the poppy flowers on top with the delicate hanger inside. I agree, I think the poppy seeds really add something to that design.

 

[DeeAnna]

I have had a few batches that I was certain would look like mud before I cut them. Isn't it neat when the Soap Goddess proves us wrong? It's cool how the flowers on top mirror the flowers that appeared inside -- very nice! I'm with you that I don't care for a lot of things on or in my soaps, but I could get to like the speckled look of the ground poppy seeds.

 

[Wildcraft_Garden]

Beautiful!

 

[Soapsavvy]

Great Job!!

 

[penelopejane]

Thank you. Not what I envisioned, but I'm pretty used to that. I will try the poppies again at some point, but not with a floral

Dibbles if you are looking for an even speckled look you might want to try scraped out vanilla bean pods (1 bean ppo) or vanilla bean paste (1 tsp ppo). I have photos but have to wait for a new computer to arrive before I can access my hard drive backup.

 

[FlybyStardancer]

Those still turned out very pretty, even with the accelerating!

 

[dibbles]

Dibbles if you are looking for an even speckled look you might want to try scraped out vanilla bean pods (1 bean ppo) or vanilla bean paste (1 tsp ppo). I have photos but have to wait for a new computer to arrive before I can access my hard drive backup.

I'll have to look for that - thanks!

 

[sue1965]

I think they are lovely, especially for all the road blocks you encountered. I sure know the feeling off accelerated trace and having to move fast. I love the coral color. Is that a pigment and where did you buy it?

 

[Marshall]

I think they look great! Perfect for the upcoming spring season

 

[dibbles]

I think they are lovely, especially for all the road blocks you encountered. I sure know the feeling off accelerated trace and having to move fast. I love the coral color. Is that a pigment and where did you buy it?

I've been travelling for a week, so I just saw your question. The color you were wondering about was primarily Mango Tango mica from Nurture Soap Supplies, mixed with a small amount of neon orange. It isn't truly coral, but I think a bit of pink mica would get it there quite easily.

 

[soaring1]

Looks beautiful. So dainty
Love it

 

[dibbles]

I just used this soap for the first time today, and thought I'd give an update. I love this Butterfly Flower fragrance. After cure it is a soft, green, fresh floral. It's a bit light, but for me that's ok since florals can quickly overwhelm me. I hope it sticks as time goes by. I'll use it again, even in this design, but just will leave it out of the colored portion.

As for the poppy seeds, I ground them fairly fine and don't find them to be too scratchy. I can feel them but they don't bother me. I don't have super sensitive skin, but I can say that coffee grounds did feel scratchy to me as a comparison. I sprinkled a few whole poppy seeds on the top, and as I thought, they completely annoyed me. At least there weren't many and I got them all off easily.

I mostly just wanted to let anyone wondering about the ground poppy seeds what I thought.

 

[KristaY]

I was out of town when you first posted so I missed it. That's absolutely lovely soap! I'm glad you popped in to give feedback on the ground poppy seeds or I would have missed your beautiful work. I'm going to have to give poppy seeds another round. Haven't used them in about a year so I guess it's time. Maybe I'll put them in the spice grinder since yours came out lovely and you like the way they feel. Great work dibbles!

 

[lenarenee]

Dibbles if you are looking for an even speckled look you might want to try scraped out vanilla bean pods (1 bean ppo) or vanilla bean paste (1 tsp ppo). I have photos but have to wait for a new computer to arrive before I can access my hard drive backup.

:mrgreen: You did that? And didn't get brown halos around the specks??? I am so jealous!Can't wait to see photos! (I had no such luck with mine...used vanilla seeds from Penzey's)

 

[penelopejane]

:mrgreen: You did that? And didn't get brown halos around the specks??? I am so jealous!Can't wait to see photos! (I had no such luck with mine...used vanilla seeds from Penzey's)

Yes I do it all the time. I have scraped out real vanilla pods but now use vanilla bean paste. I'll post a photo of the jar tomorrow. I will also try my utmost to take a good photo of one of my soaps so you can see the spots sorry I didn't follow up before. I forgot.

 

[lenarenee]

Yes I do it all the time. I have scraped out real vanilla pods but now use vanilla bean paste. I'll post a photo of the jar tomorrow. I will also try my utmost to take a good photo of one of my soaps so you can see the spots sorry I didn't follow up before. I forgot.

You use paste and it works? Prove it!

Since you've had luck with it, I'm going to try again. I love the look poppy seeds can add to a soap, but don't like any scrubbiness. I'm excited to know the vanilla can work. Do you suppose gel or ungelled makes a difference?

I still have a bar of the vanilla/sandalwood around here - hiding in the corner of shame. Think I'll cut it up and take a look at the vanilla specked part again...

 

[penelopejane]

It was raining today's and I need sun to take photos. So I uploaded this old photo.
I used 1 scraped out vanilla pods ppo. You get a few hunks of the pod - hence the bigger dots. It's one of my first soaps so it is pretty crappy to look at. I will photograph the pasted I use.

I gel soap in oven at 100 *F then turn it off. Why would that make a difference?