Rivers?

[SanVan]

I made some batches of soap that have these rivers or marbling in them. This hasn't happened to me before. Does anyone know what this is? I started blending the oils and lye at a lower temp (under 100 degrees). Could this be causing it to do this?



In this soap, I was attempting an ombre look but there are distinct lines between each layer instead of blending into one another. Not sure why?

 

[Kittish]

That first one is definitely glycerin rivers, the other two might be. Glycerin rivers are purely cosmetic. Here's a blog that explains what they are and some contributing factors that cause them: https://auntieclaras.com/2014/05/glycerine-rivers-secret-revealed/

Will you share your recipe(s) for these soaps? Might give some insight to what else it might be for the experienced people here.

I do like the way the ombre one looks with the lines. Looks like you meant to do that.

 

[Saranac]

The second looks like the result of having multiple batter densities. I get this a lot with in-the-pot swirling--especially when I only scent my base and not the colored portions. The scented base is one density, the unscented (with colorant) is another, and any place where they mix...

Edited to ask: Are they cut with a wire cutter?

 

[SoapEh]

I am too inexperienced to be of much help, but I did want to share two thoughts:

1. Those are flat out gorgeous soaps. The second one in particular is stunning.

2. If you posted your recipe and a bit more info about the process used, you would be more likely to find an answer.

 

[SanVan]

Thank you Kittish! This article is very helpful. I've never water discounted before and that may be the answer. Also, I never used to gel and now I am and I believe that could be a factor.

Recipe:
Coconut Oil - 25%
Palm Oil - 20 %
Olive Oil - 30 %
Castor Oil - 15 %
Shea butter - 10 % in the 2nd and 3rd images, 10 % cocoa butter in the 1st image
Water as percent of oil weight - 38%
Superfat - 5%
Water: Lye Ratio - 2.72:1

Saranac: I've always used a wire cutter.

SoapEh: Thank you! I do like the ombre one too, but that river layer in between each layer is not what I was expecting.

 

[DeeAnna]

If you do not want your soap to mottle, then start out by using less water in your recipe -- that is a lot of water for a CP soap. I recommend ditching the use of the "water as % of oils" setting and using either lye concentration or water:lye ratio. The "water as % of oils" is getting you into trouble -- this bases the amount of water on the weight of fat, and it's more important to base the water on the weight of alkali (NaOH). (More: https://classicbells.com/soap/waterInSoap.html )

A 33% lye concentration (2.03 water:lye ratio) will most likely eliminate your problems with mottling.

You may also need to manage the heating of the soap as it saponifies. Going into gel (translucent jelly like state) AND also slow cooling are key issues for triggering mottling. There's nothing really wrong with gelling or slow cooling, by the way -- just that they can cause mottling. Again, 33% lye concentration will probably solve the problem of gelling, so I'd try that first. If the problem persists, and if you are insulating your molded soap or using a CPOP method where you warm the soap in the oven after you put it into the mold, you might want to try not insulating or CPOP'ing.

The use of pigmented colorants will emphasize mottling -- titanium dioxide is a major culprit, but any pigment can make mottling more obvious. Uncolored soap can mottle too -- you just can't see it as easily.

Also understand any time a portion of the soap has more liquid than another, the soap may show "ghosting" where the lower water and higher water portions of the soap meet. The solutions for preventing mottling will also help to minimize ghosting.

 

[SanVan]

Wow, thanks DeeAnna for the article. That is super helpful.

I use clays as natural colourants or infused oils, no TD.

I will do a small batch with a water adjustment and see what happens! I will post my result, with hopefully not so large images.

 

[DeeAnna]

Clays are basically pigments so, yes, they can behave like TD.

Dyes -- which is what infused oils essentially are -- are not likely to make the mottling visible.