Best natural colorant for a gingerbread color

[soapsydaisy]

I'd like to make a gingerbread soap. Any suggestions for a natural colorant? Coffee and cocoa are too dark.

 

[Relle]

Cocoa would work if you just put in about 1/4 teaspoon in about 1 kg of oils. It would give you that light colour you need for a gingerbread colour.

I make gingerbread scented and coloured candles and just use a tiny amount of brown to get the colour I need, so I can't see why the cocoa wouldn't work the same way in the soap.

 

[judymoody]

Chamomille-infused oil will give you a nice light gingery color.

Will you be using a fragrance oil? If so, foody scents tend to contain vanilla and that will darken the soap towards brown.

 

[soap_rat]

I use cocoa and turmeric but I don't have my notes to tell you how much. With both of them they show a little darker while soaping than once the soap is finished, but only a little.

 

[ca_soap]

I did a chai tea soap tonight and wanted some color in it so I used cinnamon and nutmeg, the combination of the two gave me a very nice warm brown

 

[lsg]

I would say that any soap will probably discolor to a nice brown if you use fragrance oil containing vanilla.

 

[dixiedragon]

I would do some cinnamon and clove, both for the color and the scent. You could also try using coffee or cocoa in small amounts. I like to use instant coffee granuals. I dissolve them in a little hot water and add a bit at a time to the soap batter. I tend to think of gingerbread as being a bit more of a reddish brown than a flat brown, so maybe a little rose clay.

 

[soapsydaisy]

THank you everyone. I usually use EOs so I didn't factor in the vanilla discoloration. I will try a little cocoa and spices.

 

[loopyloop]

Honey, surely!

 

[Delynnr]

I know this is a little late... But the soap I made today is gingerbread in color. Should un-mold it tomorrow. I infused black walnut hull powder in OO and added a bit of kaolin clay.

It turned out really pretty!

 

[Ancel]

Turmeric and a little coffee for your liquid.

Judymoody - my chamomille infused oil makes any recipe I do into instant soap on a stick, cream coloured soap on a stick. What's your trick?

 

[grayceworks]

My pumpkin or carrot soaps both turned out a gingerbread color -- I used a bit of turmeric in them also, and a bit of nutmeg. Between the spices and the canned pumpkin or carrots, they're more of a gingerbread brown than a pumpkin/carrot orange.

 

[dagmar88]

I second the honey.

Be very, very careful with using spices in soap.
Clove, cinnamon and nutmeg can cause skin irritation and rashes.
I do use some sprinkled ground cinnamon to decorate the top of my pumpkin soap.
But to really be used as a colorant, pigments and mica's are a much safer choice.
Pigments are nature identical, so they might be an option.

http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/tips-and-tricks/talk-it-out-tuesday-colorants/

 

[grayceworks]

Oh, sorry, I didn't mean that the nutmeg was used to color.. the pumpkin and turmeric did that, but the tiny bit of fresh ground nutmeg i mixed in for scent gave it a bit of a speckled look, which I found interesting, instead of being just creamy looking, it made it look like pumpkin bread or gingerbread, and was less than .25tsp in a 3lb batch though. Probably closer to an eighth of a tsp, and even that amount was more than enough for you to smell it in HP soap. Nutmeg, even the powder and not the oil, is DEFINITELY strong!

And I need to reread my posts before posting, especially before coffee. LOL thanks for catching that.

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My tablet has a wonky on-screen keyboard with a mind of its own -- ignore the typos :-/

 

[dagmar88]

:wink: It wasn't directed to anyone in particular Grayceworks; the use of spices was mentioned before.

 

[soapsydaisy]

It came out a very lovely color. I used 1/3 gm as my liquid with a little honey and a 1/2 teaspoon of baking cocoa.


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[grayceworks]

Beautiful! I love gingerbread.

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My tablet has a wonky on-screen keyboard with a mind of its own -- ignore the typos :-/

 

[dagmar88]

:-D Cute!

 

[soapsydaisy]

Now I am trying to work up the courage to try piping...


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[grayceworks]

I'm no help there! LOL I can't pipe icing, always either too thick or too runny. I tried paying around with it tonight a bit with some soap batter, and guess what? Too runny! *sigh* BUT I'm determined... to watch all y'all do it. LOL