Hi angela,
Some molds are much harder to get to release soaps than others. I have two that are particularly difficult (but great molds). One is the white heavy duty molds which are so beautiful and detailed but the gradient of the sides is so minimal they can be a beast to get to release soap. All I do for those is let the soap stiffen for at least 2 hours (best over night) then cover with plastic wrap and turn them decorative side up in the freezer for no more than 5 minutes so the cold air is blowing on the detailed surface of the soap. If you leave them in there too long they are going to sweat like a pig when you bring them to room temp. So you just want to "shock" the outside edges of the soap without cooling the whole bar down.
I have another mold in a very thin clear plastic that I've discovered the only way to get the soap out without ruining the mold or denting the soap is by planning ahead and letting the soaps air dry for two days IN the mold. After two days enough moisture will evaporate from the soap shrinking it just enough to pull it in from the edges and the release is EASY!
As for micas? High quality micas can get costly so I figure why use them as a colorant unless I'm trying to get that mica sparkle? So I only use micas to color clear soaps (that let light through) and use oxides and ultramarines to color opaque soaps. Another tip is no matter what you are using for your colorant, never try to get a dark color from an opaque base. Example: if you start with a white soap base, it doesn't matter how much black oxide you add, it will never get darker than a medium ash gray. If you want black soap, dark red soap, dark blue etc. use a clear base. This way you maximize the potential of your colorants and won't end up with black bubbles.
PJ,
http://www.pjsoaps.com/1New.html
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i've followed some of your tips and have put the mold in the freezer but still looked like they got stoned in the mold. 
