Why does my soap look like this ?

[Delphine Delali Grant]

Hi. This is my very first batch of soap. It was made up of 300g olive oil, 200g avocado oil, 200g sweet almond oil, 100 g of jojoba oil, 100g of coconut oil, 100g of Shea butter, 300g of water and 124 g of lye . I soaped at room temperature and didn’t beet the oils at oil though I made sure that the Shea butter had melted before adding the lye water. I was a bit over zealous and added carrot ,papaya purée and a little bit of honey. I used a plastic mould and cut out soap after 48 hours . The inner most portions were still wet when I cut the soap up. Soap has been cured for 4 weeks and this is what it looks like. What could possibly be wrong? Thanks for your help.

 

[Marilyn Norgart]

I dont have a clue what could have happened but I really like the color on the outer part of the bar

 

[Delphine Delali Grant]

I dont have a clue what could have happened but I really like the color on the outer part of the bar

Thanks

 

[Deborah Long]

@Delphine Delali Grant - I just ran your recipe through the Soapmaking Recipe Builder and I think at least part of the issue is the liquid amount. For that amount of oils with a 33.33% Lye Concentration, your water should be about 252 grams. Then you added carrot and papya puree, which should have been used as part of the liquid amount. So, too much water/puree (liquid). That accounts for your soap being really really soft, still! Then it depends on the climate of where you are curing your soap. With that much liquid, it may take months to truly cure and that's if it's in a relatively dry environment - no humidity. you might have soda ash on your soap. Can you sprinkle a little bit of water on the soap and rub off the white parts? You may want to turn on a de-humidifier or place a fan on the soap to help speed saponification. Is it still really soft or has it hardened up at all?
Here's what the soap profile looks like:

ETA - sorry, I don't know exactly what the white powdery looking substance is. Perhaps @DeeAnna or someone else can chime in with advice?

 

[lenarenee]

That looks like a huge stearic spot to me. You said you didn’t mix the oils? With 100 grams of Shea, which solidifies quickly at low temps, and no mixing that could be a clump of Shea butter soap inside your bar. Plus 100 grams jojoba oil, which is a wax that should be used in small amounts because it can make a soft bar, and reduce lather.

 

[Delphine Delali Grant]

@Deborah Long It has hardened up. It’s just that it is not a very hard bar. Truly the purée was a little extra and even after 48 hours the central portion of the soap was still moist after I unmoulded it .

@lanarenee I did mix the oils. It’s just that I didn’t heat the oil mixture at all. Instead I added the lye water to the oils and then I begun mixing and stick blending

 

[Deborah Long]

@Delphine Delali Grant - What do the rest of the bars look like? Are they all like that? Did you run your recipe through a soap calculator?

 

[Delphine Delali Grant]

I did. Some bars have a uniform color especially those from the periphery of the mould.

 

[Susie]

It looks like insufficient mixing to me. Especially with your recipe. Batter that is not mixed properly has the oily portion "float" to the top. I had one look like that, and the darker part never did get not oily or even feel dry. It was one of my few batches that got tossed.

Also, all soaps are going to be moist when cut. Within a week, they dry on the surface, however.

 

[Delphine Delali Grant]

So is this soap safe to use or should it be tossed?

 

[Susie]

I am trying to answer the "is it safe" question, but I have another question first. When you say you "beet" the soap, does that mean you used a stick blender, or does it mean you used a hand mixer or tried to mix by hand?

 

[Dawni]

I am trying to answer the "is it safe" question, but I have another question first. When you say you "beet" the soap, does that mean you used a stick blender, or does it mean you used a hand mixer or tried to mix by hand?

I think she actually meant "heat" as in she didn't heat the oils... She repeated that statement with the correct word a few posts down.

 

[MickeyRat]

So is this soap safe to use or should it be tossed?

My understanding is that if it doesn't zap (https://classicbells.com/soap/zapTest.asp), it's safe to use. It might not be the best possible soap but. it won't hurt you.

 

[cmzaha]

I have it happen when using ingredients such as honey and purees which are sugary. My best guess it heat causes it to happen. Honey with fruit puree can really heat up soap.

I have often wondered if it has to do with beginning to overheat enough, but not heating enough to melt the stearic acid, redistributing the stearic in the butters, then uneven cooling down affecting the stearic acid in the soap. Keep in mind, I am absolutely no chemist, so what I say are just my thoughts. If the soap does not zap it is fine to use.