What did I do wrong? Lines in my soap!

[Sharryn]

Here's the recipe:

Olive Oil 1500 gm
Coconut Oil, 76 deg. 1167 gm.
Castor Oil 500 gm
Flax Oil 167 gm
Distilled Water 1267 gm
Lye 479 gm

Patchouli EO 62 gm
Orange 5x EO 42 gm

It came to a thick trace (but I think because I over-blended). When I cut the logs the next day, the soap has lines of what appears to be oil between the colors and also within the colors. The lines are firm, but it looks like oil that separated. Why did this happen?

 

[IrishLass]

That one is easy- your soap has a classic case of glycerin rivers. If you type "glycerin rivers" into the search box, you'll find several discussions about this completely harmless but aesthetically displeasing phenomenon. There are lots of theories that abound as to it's cause, but usually it involves the batter getting too hot during saponification. Many times the use of TD is also involved, but some folks (like myself) have come down with them even when no TD was used in their batch at all. I rarely get them, but when it does happen, I can pretty much always trace it back to a certain accelerating FO causing my batter to get too hot during saponification.


Edited to add- welcome to the forum, Sharryn! :wave:



IrishLass

 

[lenarenee]

And you may hate that lovely soap, but I think it's gorgeous!!! Many people like the look of glycerin rivers.

 

[toxikon]

Welcome welcome!

Here is a great read on glycerine rivers: http://auntieclaras.com/2014/05/glycerine-rivers-secret-revealed/

 

[Sharryn]

Thank you all so very much! I kind of wondered if that was it, but I never had this problem before. I thought maybe it was because I did a larger batch than I was normally accustomed.

I guess I won't feel so bad gifting some of it then. I made another batch yesterday (ten pounds), and got the same thing. I think you may be right about the TD because they were the only two batches that contained it.

Thanks again for all your speedy replies!

 

[dixiedragon]

I really like your soap! I think it looks like some kind of marble with turquoise veins.

Did you use titanium dioxide (TD)? That can cause the "glycerin rivers" as we call them (though that's not scientifically accurate). We also call it TD crackle. If you mixed your colorants with water, that can cause it because more water = high gel temperature.

 

[cherrycoke216]

Me three! I like the free flowing lines the titanium dioxide crackle/glycerin river creates in your soaps.

 

[dibbles]

I don't ever try to get glycerin rivers purposely, but when it happens I just embrace it. I actually like the look, and I think your soap is lovely.

 

[shunt2011]

I think they look cool. I get those when I use TD and full water. My soaps tend to gel hotter than when I use a water discount. Even some FOs will cause more heating during gel sometimes. I embrace it when it happens.

 

[Sharryn]

Yes I did use TD, and a lot of it. I mixed it with some of my oils after all the oils were weighed and combined. I also used micas, so they may have contributed to it. I used the TD in the whole batch and then divided the batch into smaller batches to make the colors, so the colors also had the TD in it (if that makes sense).

I need to try the water discount next time for sure, just to see if that's what did it in my recipe.

Thanks again everyone for all your help!

 

[Spice]

Yes I did use TD, and a lot of it. I mixed it with some of my oils after all the oils were weighed and combined. I also used micas, so they may have contributed to it. I used the TD in the whole batch and then divided the batch into smaller batches to make the colors, so the colors also had the TD in it (if that makes sense).

I need to try the water discount next time for sure, just to see if that's what did it in my recipe.

Thanks again everyone for all your help!

Your soaps are pretty, how much TD did you use?

 

[Sharryn]

Your soaps are pretty, how much TD did you use?

My batter was pretty yellow so I just put in what I thought would do it