Teach Soap

So I tried a mica swirl with glycerin on my new batch of soap and when I went to cut it today it looked alright but when I actually cut it the top started to crumble and flake off. I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with this and if it was the glycerin that caused this because I haven't had this problem before.

Did your soap reached a true trace? At what temps did you combine the oils and lye? Did you use a stick blender? Did the soap gel?
I prefer to dissolve my mica in just a little bit of oils now.

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

Did you spray the layer before pouring the top? That may have been the problem. Just a guess, as I'm a newbie!

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“SOAP AND WATER AND COMMON SENSE ARE THE BEST DISINFECTANTS.”

I soaped when both were almost 100F. They were five degrees from each other. I did reach a true trace and I used a stick blender but I poured it at a thinner trace. I didn't spray it with anything before or after I did the mica swirl.

Soapbuddy, it did seem to gel but the tops didn't?? There's a clear difference between the base of the soap and the top layer.

Natalise, next time try laying the soap onto it's side, they may help!!

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“SOAP AND WATER AND COMMON SENSE ARE THE BEST DISINFECTANTS.”

it could be that you got a partial gel. The ungelled part could be the part that's crumbly. Did you cover the soap with anything or put it in a low oven to gel?

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

I didn't put it in the oven to gel but now I'm thinking I should? I did cover/wrap it in two towels to insulate it.

If you have a soap mold that's oven safe, here is what I would do. Heat the oven to 170 degrees (US). Turn the oven off and put the soap in. Keep an eye on it and as soon as it's in full gel, take it out. When the soap is in full gel, it will become liquid like and darken. Then wait til the soap cools off, take it out of the mold and cut it. Give it a good 4-6 weeks of cure time.

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

You want me to cut it right away? Don't cover it and leave it for a day?

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

Ok great! Thank you, I'll be trying that this weekend!