Teach Soap

Hey all,

I'm hoping that someone can steer me in the right direction here. I'm having a problem with BB's ultramarine violet pigment - it disappears in my soaps! I've tried to use it in two different batches, and it's being overwhelmed by the other colors somehow. It looks fine and vivid when I mix it with an oil (avocado oil, in the latest batch, and sweet almond oil in the previous batch), the soap colors well when I mix the soap in, and yet...I've done two ITP swirls with it, and you can't see it in either swirl! It's super frustrating. Has anyone else had this problem? If so, how did you fix it?

How much are you using in how big of a batch?

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

You're not alone. I can't get ultramarine violet or ultramarine pink to show up in a swirl. I use micas when I'm swirling those colors.

In this latest batch, I used about 3/4 teaspoon in about two tablespoons of oil for all three of my colors, and it was a 2 lb batch total. So maybe about 1/2 lb soap for my purple?

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

Ditto. Also, ultrmarines are happier mixed with water, oxides with oil. Good luck!

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Linda

I learn so much when I can't leave well enough alone!

Good to know. My latest use was pretty much the same scenario but instead of disappearing, I ended up with lots of tiny purple dots throughout. It looked like the ultramarine violet had mixed well in the almond oil, but it must not have. I will try water next time. Thanks to everyone for helping me by helping the original poster.

Oxides = O = oil
Ultramarines = marine = water

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

Thank you everyone for the help! I'm glad that there's something I can do to fix the problem! What would you guys recommend as a good ultramarine/water ratio? I want to make a really intense purple soap for my friend. She really prefers natural products though, so she asked that I not use LabColors or anything like that. Thanks again!

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Genny

Genny, I'm confused now. I've been watching some of the Soap Queen tutorials on YouTube, and I could have sworn she said that, while micas are sometimes synthetically colored, that oxides and ultramarines are not synthetic, though they are processed. Did I miss something? I love the blue I've been getting from my ultramarien blue - I'll be sad if I have to give it up for my more natural soaps.

From my own research ultramarine blue is lab made.

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

Thanks for the info Soapbuddy! I appreciate you looking into it and sharing.

Yep, like Soapbuddy said, they're lab made. I also remember reading somewhere that petroleum is used in the process of making ultramarines, for those who are trying to avoid petroleum products. Although, of course now that I'm looking, I can't remember where I saw that.

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Genny