What happened here? A red ring? 😬

[phstandard]

Hi!

Yes, I cut it like a drunk. Yes, there is poorly blended clay and coal. But my concern is the disease looking outer redish ring.
Is it a gelphase that started? Others with this recipe havent had this issue, but I didnt cover them quite as much as this one. (Plastic and a kitchen towel ontop.)

 

[dibbles]

That looks like the beginning of discoloration, most often caused by a discoloring fragrance and tan in color. No cause for concern, and the color will even out as the air comes in contact with the freshly cut surfaces.

Gel phase starts in the middle of the soap and spreads outward. Partial gel will look like a circle of darker colored soap in the center of your bar.

 

[artemis]

I agree with @dibbles that it resembles FO discoloration. But, without more information from you, we can only guess.

Also, based on texture, did you cut this a little too early? Is it as soft as it looks?

 

[phstandard]

I agree with @dibbles that it resembles FO discoloration. But, without more information from you, we can only guess.

Also, based on texture, did you cut this a little too early? Is it as soft as it looks?

Yes, it is. It was cut after 24 hours. I cut my previous soap experiment after 12, which was too early, so I thought 24 would be OK. But the other one had 40 % lye ratio, this one had 33 %, which obviously elongated the time before I should cut.

Im thinking 36 h next time? Or 48? Longer?

That looks like the beginning of discoloration, most often caused by a discoloring fragrance and tan in color. No cause for concern, and the color will even out as the air comes in contact with the freshly cut surfaces.

Gel phase starts in the middle of the soap and spreads outward. Partial gel will look like a circle of darker colored soap in the center of your bar.

Very interesting! Im learning so much from you all! I'm thinking its an EO reacting with cocoa powder! Because the black (coal) dont show this issue.

These are my EOs and this is how it looks now (see below)! It smells great by the way, just like I intended: woody tar, like an old ship.

Any EO you suspect? Are we thinking I might need to replace cocoa with iron oxide? Or will it, as you say even out? I guess time will tell.

I'd rather use cocoa. I've heard it (as opposed to many "natural" colorants) should be stable even when stored in light. It has darkened now, but that was expected.

Amyris
Patchouli
Vetiver
Cedarwood Atlas
Ravensara
Lavendel
Black pepper
White kamfer
Frankincense

 

[artemis]

Im thinking 36 h next time? Or 48? Longer?

I check before I unmold, regardless of the time. I gently press the soap with my finger and if it's hard enough (like a block of cheddar) I unmold. If the edges are too soft when I try to unmold, I stop what I'm doing and wait longer.

Even with the same recipe, some variations will behave differently, depending on additives, fragrances, the weather, the soap's own mood, the alignment of the starts in the sky...