Fast and sudden trace

[CarolynLydia]

Today as I was stick blending I added lavender oil and immediately the batch clumped and went to thick trace. I quickly added the ground oats and honey stirred and had to pour into the mold as it was too thick. I had intended to color half with some mica powder in almond oil but had to ditch that idea as it was too thick.
What could have caused it to suddenly clump and thick trace?
All ideas are welcome
Carolyn

 

[Obsidian]

That is called seize and it generally is caused by the scent. Some FOs are prone to seize, floral and water scents especially. It also happens when using scents made for mo in cp soap.
Most of the time, pure EO won't seize but some spicy ones like clove or cinnamon do.

In this case, it was most certainly caused by your fragrance. What brand was it or where did you get it?

If you get seized batter, you can wrap your bowl in a towel and wait until it goes into gel, which usually happens within 5-10 minutes.
Once in gel, you can give it a good stir and get it plopped in your mold. It will behave and act like HP at this point.

 

[CarolynLydia]

This is definitely EO (don't know what mo means) and I had used it a while ago. Do EOs go bad after time?
I gave it a quick stir, added the ground oat and honey, stirred and dumped it in the mold. It's in the frig now and we'll see tomorrow when I unmold what it looks like
Thanks for the reply

 

[Obsidian]

This is definitely EO (don't know what mo means) and I had used it a while ago. Do EOs go bad after time?
I gave it a quick stir, added the ground oat and honey, stirred and dumped it in the mold. It's in the frig now and we'll see tomorrow when I unmold what it looks like
Thanks for the reply

Sorry, mo should have been mp, as in melt and pour. The scents you get at hobby stores aren't generally made for cp soap and can cause issues.

EO really shouldn't go bad. I don't use them myself but from what I've seen, they usually don't seize but it does happen sometimes.

 

[AliOop]

Depending on what brand of EO you used, it could be the culprit. Many of them are adulterated with other ingredients that will affect your soap.