My latest misadventure

[tobyw]

Hi all. Sorry in advance for long post.

Had my first go with coconut oil yesterday, was very excited about it. Had this idea of making a tea tree and eucalyptus soap and really wanted to colour it green. I have ordered some green colour from a UK based site after being horrified at the shipping costs from the US but, me being me, I was far too excited at my first go with coconut oil to wait for it to arrive.

I tried a few things. I tried infusing sage into the water which according to one website would give me green but actually gave me a mucky brown. I tried peppermint tea, which was a bit more green but still overall was another mucky brown. So I did some more research and I find that using coloured waxes intended for candle making can work. So I bought some of that and had a go.

After some deliberation my girlfriend and I decided the best way of actually using this coloured wax is to melt it directly into the soap after the soap has traced. I decided to be yet more ambitious and to have a go at doing a swirl, in for a penny in for a pound. So I poured half into the mold and then we dripped the melted wax into the remaining soap. I should have realised what was going to happen, it instantly cooled and turned into little waxy droplets. So what I did then was I put the remaining soap onto a low heat to try and melt the wax through and what actually happened was the soap sort of curdled and separated. I poured it into the mold which failed to swirl, I guess because it was now water and congealed lumps, gave it a mix and put it away. Came down to it this morning and it kinda looks like soap except it is submerged in the water that separated out when I heated it up.

So what do you guys think, will this turn out ok? Will the water evaporate and leave me with usable soap or is it all ruined?

Sorry again for long post.

 

[Guest]

Sounds bad. You need "that stuff on top." It's probably lye/water.
I'd put it in the oven at 200 degrees until it's melted, stir a bit to be sure everything is evenly mixed, and quickly dump in into a mold. See what shakes then.

 

[dagmar88]

Nor good indeed; you could try to rebatch; but I would not advise to color soap with anything that's not skin safe...

 

[Milla]

Like CastorFan said, it's sounds like you have lye/water on top. Not good. Oven time!

I've used waxed myself because I read about it on the internet, but ended up throwing that soap away. It ended up looking like a chunk of wax after it cured. I wasn't comfortable putting that all over my body. How much wax did you use per pound of oils? I did make a soap with just a few shavings for a pound of soap and I do use that one. It's not waxy and I've had no issues with it.

Good luck!

 

[tobyw]

I used very little wax but I'm not sure exactly how much. Ah well, I don't imagine I'll be using it again. I'm a little disapointed to at the idea the wax may not be skin safe. The only reason it even occured to me to use it as it was suggested in one of my books. Pretty colours are nice and all but the stuff still needs to function.

I'll give the melt and reform a go if I can, otherwise, it's back to the drawing board.

Thanks for the help.

 

[krissy]

if you can get it, try chlorella powder. i get it in health food stores here and have used small amounts for getting a beautiful green.

 

[Guest]

Spinach powder will give you a nice green too.

 

[Milla]

Parsley powder will give you a light grassy green. 1 tsp ppo at trace. I use my dried parsley and ground it with my fingertips. Takes awhile! Not as fine of a powder if you bought it though.

 

[oldragbagger]

I used very little wax but I'm not sure exactly how much. Ah well, I don't imagine I'll be using it again. I'm a little disapointed to at the idea the wax may not be skin safe. The only reason it even occured to me to use it as it was suggested in one of my books. Pretty colours are nice and all but the stuff still needs to function.

I'll give the melt and reform a go if I can, otherwise, it's back to the drawing board.

Thanks for the help.

Take heart, Toby. By the time you get done with all this, your colors will have arrived. (And we all have dumped a batch or two in the can. It's not the end of the world.)