Q: I had some really pretty blackberry seeds that I sprinkled on top of some CP Blackberry Sage soap …after the soap heated up and gelled, most of the seeds had sunk into the top of the soap and are now dark and icky.

A: I’m sorry that your soap did not turn out as planned. The good news is that it’s still useable soap – just not as pretty as you wanted.

We do herbs on top of soap pretty regularly. What we’ve found is that the following tips help to ensure that the herbs stay on the top of the soap, out of the caustic formula, and sometimes, they even stay the right color!

1. Pour your soap at a thick trace. By thick, I mean pudding-like.
2. Once the soap is poured, tap the mold onto the counter several times to release any hidden air pockets.
3. Sprinkle your seeds/petals on top of the soap.
4. With gloves on, gently smoosh the seeds/petals into the soap.
5. Cover gently (if you normally cover your soap) and allow it to gel phase/not gel phase/whatever you normally do.

If the trace is super thick, it should hold and suspend whatever seed or herb you toss onto the surface of the soap. So long as the herb stays out of the soap, it has a much better chance of staying a lovely color.