Mixing micas with oil or water?

[gsc]

I've been reading threads on how everyone incorporates Micas and from what I've seen it sounds like most of you use oil to hydrate the micas before adding them to your batch. Can water be used instead of oils? (if I discount the water in my recipe)

 

[GemstonePony]

I'm my albeit limited experience, the Micas that really benefit from being pre-dispersed tend to become lumpy in the presence of water, and the ones that don't really need to be pre-dispersed tend to be ok with water. Feel free to try it and report back, though!

 

[Zing]

The reason I love micas is that I can just dump them directly into my batter. I'm too lazy to mess with pre-mixing. I do pre-mix other colorants like oxides in a tablespoon of oil.

 

[AliOop]

For HP, I can dump micas right into the batter, because I will be stickblending to thick trace, which in turn, thoroughly mixes in the micas.

For CP, I disperse the micas in oil first. Since I am usually trying not to blend past emulsion in CP, if I dump the micas right into the batter, I don't have enough blending time to get them thoroughly mixed. That leaves specks in my soap, which is usually not the look I'm trying to achieve.

 

[Peachy Clean Soap]

I like to mix my micas in oils, It seams as if the colors are more evenly & easily disbursed w/ less mixing in CP.