Creamy cold process?

[Cashie]

Hi all, this may be a silly question, but I've been looking at pics of a lot of soaps set up in their molds with very creamy looking soap. The soapers generally pattern the tops in waves and they look beautiful, smooth and creamy. My soaps, however, never look as creamy when they're thick enough to shape the top. My tops look nice enough, but they're never smooth/creamy. Is it because I generally use recipes that are heavy in hard oils?

My recipes generally contain 60% hard oils (palm or lard and coconut) and the rest liquids. I superfat with Shea. I never use more than 25% coconut. Help?

 

[cmzaha]

They are usually poured when the oils just emulisify and not allowed to gel. Un-gelled soaps look very creamy. Adding in more soft oils such as olive and rice bran will slow trace. You can still get the creamy look with thick trace, just put your mold in the freezer to stop gel​

 

[judymoody]

I agree, it's probably a gelled/not gelled difference. Gelled soap tends to look more translucent.

 

[AKjulz]

Maybe we could see a picture to get a better idea?

 

[Cashie]

I'll try to post some tomorrow when I'm on a computer. I'm on my mobile device now

 

[cmzaha]

Here are a couple of pics. The first two is a pic of 2 ungelled soaps and the second pick (pink soaps) is a partial gel soap. You can see the color difference from the center to the outside

 

[Cashie]

Here is an example: First pic is a really nice and creamy textured soap top of someone in my FB soap group. The 2nd is my tiramisu soap. There's cocoa powder sprinkled on top, but you can kind of see my soap doesn't have a smooth creamy texture.

 

[pamielynn]

I'd say the difference is how heavy the trace is when it's poured in the mold. Yours may be at a heavier trace?

 

[AKjulz]

I can't really tell from the pic, but is it possible your fragrance is causing a little ricing? I have a couple that do that and it's not enough to seize, it just gets very thick and a bit lumpy/grainy so it doesn't have that smooth creamy look. Also in regards to. your friends pic, it is also very shiny like maybe she just sprayed it with alcohol. I think that also contributes to her glossy creamy look.

 

[AKjulz]

Here is a photo of one of mine ( the green on the right) that rices and so was poured while at thick trace and a bit lumpy. To me this is not smooth and creamy. Is that what yours are like?

 

[lsg]

It may have to do wih the oils used also. Anne Marie Faiola says in her book that jojoba oil adds a smothness to soap and meadowfoam is a good oil for adding a silky smooth feel.

 

[Cashie]

Thank you all. I'll try to pour at lighter trace and see if that makes a difference. I'm also using a recipe with a bigger percentage of olive oil to slow trace. I don't think it's the fo since it seems to happen in all my soaps but my recipe does trace fast so I'm tweaking it. Also the soap I posted a pic of was poured at heavy trace because I was layering it. so I'm going to experiment with some small batches and see if I can get a creamier, less grainy looking soap top. Thanks for the suggestions!