Pinkish soap?

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SPowers said:
I started out using soapcalc but didn't like that I couldn't really save the recipe - at least the way I wanted to. SMF is the BEST calculator in my humble opinion on more than 1 level.... I love it!
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I’m curious as to why Soapmaking Friend doesn’t have a place to input a water discount as a percentage? Say I want to tweak a recipe, I can do the math myself, but it’s nice to just type in “10%” into a water discount value. I’m sure there’s a reason this wasn’t included, but it’ll take some getting used to for me.
 
Most of us don't use the term "water discount" because there is no established meaning to it, since there is no established water value for soap. Folks who use "water discounts" are often using the "water as percentage of oils" setting, which was designed for HP soap and can produce widely varying results as you scale your recipe up or down. In certain situations, it can also produce lye-heavy soap.

For those reasons, most of us use lye percentage, or water:lye ratio. Those are two different ways of saying basically the same thing. Whichever one you chose will give you results that can be duplicated no matter what the batch size.
 
AliOop said:
Most of us don't use the term "water discount" because there is no established meaning to it, since there is no established water value for soap. Folks who use "water discounts" are often using the "water as percentage of oils" setting, which was designed for HP soap and can produce widely varying results as you scale your recipe up or down. In certain situations, it can also produce lye-heavy soap.

For those reasons, most of us use lye percentage, or water:lye ratio. Those are two different ways of saying basically the same thing. Whichever one you chose will give you results that can be duplicated no matter what the batch size.
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I see, thank you. I’m still confused about one thing, when I change the liquid:lye ratio the lye percentage doesn’t change and vice versa. How can I have a 2:1 and a 40% lye concentration at the same time? I’m sorry if there’s something obvious I’m missing. Are there any good starting numbers for a noob developing recipes? Should I just use the default 2:1, 33%, 38%? Thanks 🙏
 
Sorry, you are asking the wrong person about math. 😂 Someone more reliable than I will have to help you with that.

But I can say that the 33% is a good place to start, and that the choices of lye settings work sometimes work independently from one another in the SMF soap calculator, and sometimes do not. It's a little quirky and probably a bug that needs to be fixed. I do know that if I actually select lye concentation, and then change the numbers in the water:lye box (without actually selecting it), the lye concentration will adjust. But it doesn't work the other way. Definitely weird.
 
It has been a long time since I made soap using Crisco, but it was with Crisco as an ingredient where it was the only time I ended up with unintentional pink soap. At the time, I assumed it was because the container was made with a metal (the rim or the whole can, I don't recall specifically.) However, that was the last container of shortening I recall using that had metal; they've always been in a plastic containers since then. So I don't know if the metal container had anything to do with it or not.

There was another person who had suggested it could have been the BHT or other ingredient added as a preservative, and that they had also had unintentional pink soap with shortening and for some reason thought it was the BHT.

However, it only happened the one time, and I was never able to duplicate the event without added color.
 
earlene said:
It has been a long time since I made soap using Crisco, but it was with Crisco as an ingredient where it was the only time I ended up with unintentional pink soap. At the time, I assumed it was because the container was made with a metal (the rim or the whole can, I don't recall specifically.) However, that was the last container of shortening I recall using that had metal; they've always been in a plastic containers since then. So I don't know if the metal container had anything to do with it or not.

There was another person who had suggested it could have been the BHT or other ingredient added as a preservative, and that they had also had unintentional pink soap with shortening and for some reason thought it was the BHT.

However, it only happened the one time, and I was never able to duplicate the event without added color.
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Interesting 🤔 I believe the crisco may be lined with a metallic foil, probably aluminum. That makes me wonder, if aluminum is interacting with the crisco enough to react with the lye, then I probably shouldn’t be eating crisco 😆 Then again I wipe aluminum under my armpits every day via deodorant, so I can’t really say much 🤣
 
dibbles said:
It takes one 🐰to know one 🐰 😂
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I have no idea why I desire to understand things that can’t be understood, but I’ll be damned if I don’t try! 😆 It’s a compulsive mystery to me. The only thing I can say is that my deep desire to understand is what makes me good at what I’m good at, and annoying in all the ways that I annoy my loved ones. I hope to someday be good at making soap 🐰 Good soap isn’t annoying, is it?? 😉
 
My first batch of (pink) soap has been curing for almost 4 weeks. In that time I’ve learned SO MUCH from you all on this forum and have a completely different perspective on developing recipes as I did when I created this binary crisco/CO recipe. The non-cured soap has performed excellent in the shower aside from longevity. What I believed to be glycerin rivers did in fact turn out to be true. As the soap has cured its taken a rustic look. The glycerin lost moisturizer at a faster rate and has taken on a texture, which is fine by me. However, today I noticed two of the bars had a couple oily spots on them. Almost like someone took a dropper and deposited a mixture of iron oxide and oil on the bars. Umm, it only took me half a second to realize I may be developing DOS 🤦🏻‍♂️😆 I’m not too surprised, I’m a newb, it’s my first batch, I used 72% crisco. I would have taken a picture, but my first thought was to cut off the offending spots as quickly as possible (I eat too much cheese). Ultimately, I won’t be upset if my first batch doesn’t turn out the way I’d like. I’ll chalk it up to learning and adjust. In the meantime, I’m curious what you all think is the main culprit...

1. I didn’t create a very balanced recipe.
2. I’m curing on parchment paper in the corner of a large, central room.
3. We keep our house at 65 degrees F in cold weather.
4. I haven’t rotated the bars for 2 weeks.
5. The potential spots developed on top of the bars and only on two bars that were cut from the bottom of the mold.
6. I used 2 year old lavender and sandalwood EOs.

Any thoughts? Thanks!!
 
Here’s where they’re curing. Despite the depth perspective, they are spaced about 1in apart, 3/4in minimum..
 

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I like the pink! Go ahead and cut off the DOS spots if you can. I have only gotten it a few times many years ago, and I cut off the spots, and... I'm still here! So I don't think it will harm you. ;)

Regarding the cause of the DOS, you have several candidates:

1. Yup, old EOs, esp lavender which can do DOSsy fast even when it's not old.

2. Yup, the metal-lined Crisco can, but maybe also some of the short-shelf-life oils in the particular blend of Crisco that you used (can't remember which one, and sorry, not going back through the thread to find out).

3. The curing spot: does it get a lot of daylight, even if it is indirect? That can do it, as well. Dark is best, as long as there is air flow.

4. The lack of rotation, room temp, and parchment paper are not likely to be related to the DOS.

5. Did the bars touch any non-stainless mold, cutting implement, surface (like a cookie sheet) even for a short time?

6. How about your lye liquid: was it made from tap water rather than distilled?
 
AliOop said:
I like the pink! Go ahead and cut off the DOS spots if you can. I have only gotten it a few times many years ago, and I cut off the spots, and... I'm still here! So I don't think it will harm you. ;)

Regarding the cause of the DOS, you have several candidates:

1. Yup, old EOs, esp lavender which can do DOSsy fast even when it's not old.

2. Yup, the metal-lined Crisco can, but maybe also some of the short-shelf-life oils in the particular blend of Crisco that you used (can't remember which one, and sorry, not going back through the thread to find out).

3. The curing spot: does it get a lot of daylight, even if it is indirect? That can do it, as well. Dark is best, as long as there is air flow.

4. The lack of rotation, room temp, and parchment paper are not likely to be related to the DOS.

5. Did the bars touch any non-stainless mold, cutting implement, surface (like a cookie sheet) even for a short time?

6. How about your lye liquid: was it made from tap water rather than distilled?
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Thanks @AliOop If it does develop DOS it’ll become my personal soap for the next good while 😆

1. My EO blend was about 1% lavender PPO and 2% sandalwood. For what it’s worth, this blend accelerated my trace VERY quickly.

2. I used crisco all vegetable shortening at nearly 75%. It’s makeup is soybean oil and palm oil respectively, plus additives. The only other oil I used was CO. Both were bought less than a week earlier, within date and opened minutes before soaping. The interior of the crisco container does appear to to be lined with a foil, probably aluminum.

3. The curing spot receives only refracted light from a window, blinds closed about 15 ft away on the same wall. So no direct light for sure.

4. Good to know!!

5. The only materials the soap has come into direct contact with to my knowledge, besides air, was a well cleaned almond milk carton mold, a plastic cutting board, a stainless steel kitchen knife, my hands and parchment paper.

6. I used distilled water.

Thank you for taking the time to help me learn!!! 🤗
 
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