Best additive to mimic sand?

[Cellador]

Congratulations!

I have used ground walnut shells, and while the color reminds me of sand, it is pretty scratchy. Oatmeal or cornmeal does sound like a good option though.

 

[dibbles]

Just wondering if you could ‘stain’ oatmeal with coffee or tea to get the color you want. Let it dry and grind.

 

[toxikon]

I've definitely been googling these types of soaps, they are so gorgeous! I'm aiming for something similar. A combo of a couple different additives is a good idea - since sand is often a combination of dark and light tones.

 

[Soapmaker123]

Pumice is a bluish-greenish volcanic sand.

Imitate sand, gently, by using polenta (corn meal).

 

[earlene]

What about salt for the sparkle? I have no idea how a layer of salty batter would work with the non-salt layers, but if you color the batter the sandy shade and make it as if it were going to be a salt bar, would that give you the effect you want? Or would it mess with the cure time?

 

[SunRiseArts]

Yay Toxicon, Congratulations and a wish for many years of joy!

I like to make my own orange peel. I posted the link in another thread. You can mix it with your batter, and will really look like sand. Since is a little more coarse than a spice, you get the effect.

 

[BattleGnome]

Soaping 101 has used actual sand in her soaps before (she was making a batch with vacation memories). You might be able to find a small bag of fine filter sand and use that in small amounts. I’d probably look more towards the drinking water filtration rather than the fish tank filtration.

Edit: spelling

 

[soapmaker]

I was gifted an ocean soap with a sandy beach and the beach layer was not yellow or brown but similer to my uncolored soap, a light tan. I liked that better than colored. It's all used up now so I can't examine it but I thought the maker had real very fine sand in it. It wasn't too scratchy though. Colloidal oatmeal won't be found at all, walnut is too dark and scratchy, apricot shells are dark and scratchy, cinnamon is too dark. An ocean soap has been in my mind to make ever since but never got there. Maybe this summer.

 

[mx5inpenn]

Congrats!

I like finely ground oatmeal. It gives a nice texture and isn't overly scratchy.

This isn't a beach soap but it has oatmeal in it. Hard to see in the pic, but there are visible flecks.

 

[IrishLass]

The baby oatmeal that I add to my soap leaves behind some nice-looking flecks that mimic the appearance of sand, and without being scratchy in the least. The only pic I have of my oatmeal soap is the one below, which unfortunately doesn't show off the flecks to their best advantage because I also added honey to the soap (which darkened the backdrop a tad too much), but you can still see enough of the oatmeal flecks to get an idea of how nicely sand-like they would appear in a soap that was just a shade or two lighter.



IrishLass

 

[scard]

This is the first thing that came to mind when you said Mexico,

so if you can't get sand maybe a blanket?...

 

[toxikon]

This is the first thing that came to mind when you said Mexico,

so if you can't get sand maybe a blanket?...

Oh boy, what a great idea! Definitely adding that to my list. Perhaps a bit too complex for the 50+ wedding favor soaps but I'd really like to try it sometime!

Real sand is an interesting idea - but I wonder if it'd be bad for pipes. Even small amounts could possibly accumulate in the pipes, I dunno if I'd want to take the risk.

I do have some colloidal oatmeal at home that I've used for OMH soaps. Those soaps didn't have any texturey look to them though, so perhaps it was too fine (or the soap too tan).

Perhaps I'll try cornmeal with just a small dash of cinnamon, for a subtle darker speckle. I have an eco-glitter from Nurture that actually shows up in CP soap marvelously, so I could throw a bit of that in too for a little sparkle.

 

[artemis]

Real sand is an interesting idea - but I wonder if it'd be bad for pipes. Even small amounts could possibly accumulate in the pipes, I dunno if I'd want to take the risk.

This was discussed here on the forum before. May be some valuable information in that thread: https://www.soapmakingforum.com/index.php?threads/32849/

 

[toxikon]

This was discussed here on the forum before. May be some valuable information in that thread: https://www.soapmakingforum.com/index.php?threads/32849/

I did have a look at that one! Seems like general consensus is make sure to sterilize it and achieve a heavier trace to keep it suspended, but no mention of how it might affect pipes.

 

[soapmaker]

I did have a look at that one! Seems like general consensus is make sure to sterilize it and achieve a heavier trace to keep it suspended, but no mention of how it might affect pipes.

I can't imagine that happening. You use a small amount of sand in a small amount of soap and when you use it in the shower only a small amount would come out each time. I get more sand than that off the dogs when we walk the beach by the lake!

 

[amd]

Fun! Congratulations!

I have used apricot seed powder (a little goes a long way) for some beach themed cupcakes. Not too scratchy and it gives a nice speckled look. I'll see if I can find a picture...

 

[soapmaker]

I just saw this on the WSP website. This is a M&P soap but they use walnut shells. Looks nice!
http://www.wholesalesuppliesplus.co...-23199277&mc_cid=edbc795716&mc_eid=77ef898a7a

 

[soapmaker]

I just thought of something...I wonder what loofah fibers would look like? Or how about half of a thin loofah circle
embedded in the top? My mind is running away with me.

 

[Zany_in_CO]

I took a peek at the scrub additives on WSP, and finely ground walnut shell powder seems like a nice option: http://www.wholesalesuppliesplus.com/products/walnut-shell-powder.aspx
Anyone tried that before?

Congratulations! Wishing you both all the best on your special day!
I haven't soaped it but I use walnut shell powder to make St. Ives type apricot scrub for my niece. It is a gentle exfoliant... not scratchy, as I recall. Good for "mature" skin.

I went to that link and clicked on "recipes" where it shows "Sea Glass Soap" with walnut shell powder for the sand. The recipe gives you an idea how much of the powder needed to get the look of sand. I'm thinking, for CP, you'll want a fairly thick trace to keep the speckles suspended.

​

ETA: I like the look of Alaiyna B's soap better, maybe with the walnut powder tho? And a tiny shell instead of that white blob she used. LOL

 

[ritaharris33]

Did you try safflower petals it gives a nice sandy look I think check it out on bramble Berry