Finally . . . swirling success!

[doriettefarm]

At least I think it was a success. It looks good from the top but I'm dying to get it out of the mold and cut!

Half of the batter was colored with titanium dioxide. I was going for white but my base oils had a yellow tint so that aspect was a fail but overall I'm pleased.

I divided the remaining half and colored one part with red clay and other part with black clay. Poured most of the base color then alternated red/black/base/red/black/base until I ran out of batter.

Then used a wooden skewer to swirl in the mold . . . first pass used the skewer at an angle like a sideways tornado from one end of the mold to the other. Second pass used the skewer vertically about 1 inch deep to swirl the top . . . just went side to side the length of the mold.

What do you guys think? And is there a name for this swirling technique?

 

[neeners]

stick swirl? I have no clue what it's called. I've tried swirls, but alas, I can't get them to look the way I want them to look in my mind.

it looks great! can't wait for cut pics! (waiting is the hardest part.....)

 

[AnnaMarie]

Great job! I'll look forward to seeing pictures of your soap.
Cheers!
Anna Marie

 

[newbie]

The texture looks luscious. Can't wait to see it cut, either! And interestingly, I see green in your pictures. Is it reflection from something or does your black look a bit green right now?

 

[doriettefarm]

The suspense is killing me but I think it will be another day or two before I can unmold and slice this puppy. I used 75% soft oils/25% hard oils trying to make sure I had enough time to swirl so guess I will have to be patient.

newbie - you're right about the green color especially around the edges. It looks like the black blended with the yellow base and the result is army green . . . might end up with a quad-color swirl!

Also forgot to mention it's scented with lavender, clary sage, tea tree and cedarwood EOs.

 

[Derpina Bubbles]

I love wait and see ones like this. The tops look great. Looking forward to the cut pics!

 

[lsg]

Nice tops, can't wait to see a picture of the cut soap.:smile:

 

[doriettefarm]

Finally was able to extract soap from the mold. Here's a preview of the end pieces. I was hoping the red & black would penetrate the base color more but that gives me something to work on next time.

 

[Seawolfe]

Nice reds and blacks with the clay! Those look mighty tasty.

 

[AnnaMarie]

Nice contrasting colors! You did a great job- they look awesome!
Cheers!
Anna Marie

 

[doriettefarm]

Thanks everyone, I really appreciate the positive feedback! I've attempted multi-color soap before and been disappointed with the results until now. Guess I'm my own worst critic because I wish the red & black had penetrated the base color more. Oh well, just more incentive to experiment with a new batch!

 

[AnnaMarie]

And here I was thinking "how clever of you" that you were able to control the penetration- I thought it was purposeful lol!
Cheers!
Anna Marie

 

[doriettefarm]

Anna Marie - I wish I was that 'clever'! I really was hoping for more 'swirlage' thru the base color but I've been so chicken about pouring at thin trace that I shouldn't be surprised.

This batch has definitely been the best so far but my 'vision' just didn't match up with the end result. That's also what I love about making soap . . . it's always a challenge to reproduce a prior batch or improve on something you think is your best ever.

 

[DeeAnna]

I enjoy the chemistry of soaping and making soap that's nice to use. But the decorative stuff makes me absolutely freeze up -- I'm all thumbs and trip over my shoe laces when it comes to the pretty swirls and such. Bravo to you -- I admire you for trying hard to make your vision for your soap come true!

 

[doriettefarm]

DeeAnna - I can totally relate! Thus far, I feel like I've got a handle on the chemistry side but have failed on the artistic side.

I see so many pics of awesome swirls, textured tops and jazzy colors that my soap seems so plain-jane in comparison. This is the first batch I feel is worthy of sharing with the forum but hopefully there will be more to come. So much inspiration and knowledge on this board . . . just makes me want to experiment more!