Teach Soap

Have tried to make a brown color in CP soap (either goats milk or coconut milk). I first tried using arbian spice f\o. Just today notice some brown starting on the edges that I soaped 10 days ago. (This actually was the highlight of my day ) The next batch added 1\4 tsp coco powder to 200 ml of my traced soap. That started out brown but soon went to cream colored. Was that not enough coco or does anyone have some other suggestions? I am molding some bear soaps as a family request.

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Susie
Sometimes A Mistake is so much fun, You just have to do it again!

Vanilla fragrance oil will turn your soap brown. You can also use a brown oxide. http://www.brambleberry.com/Brown-Oxide ... P4045.aspx

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

I posted the same topic before and someone suggested Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa powder. You should be able to get it in supermarket, that's where I got mine. You don't need that much to color the soap to dark brown. What I found out is you have to pre mix the cocoa powder with some oil first then add to trace. I either use FO to mix the powder or superfat oil to mix the powder. One time I used too much cocoa powder the cocoa smell kind of dominate whatever FO I put in plus easier for the powder to crumb up.

This one I only used 1 tsp per pound of oil:

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Shieh Design Studio
https://www.facebook.com/ShiehDesignStudio
http://soapandrestless.blogspot.com

Thanks SB and Cat.... I think I will try the dark coco.... never hurts to have some on hand! Did you get the color right away or have to wait for it to develop? Once again soap making is teaching me to be patient.... I will continue to observe my arabian spice bears to see if and when the brown develops further. I love the scent! Each batch is such a learning experience.

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Susie
Sometimes A Mistake is so much fun, You just have to do it again!

_________________
Shieh Design Studio
https://www.facebook.com/ShiehDesignStudio
http://soapandrestless.blogspot.com

I used an essential oil blend of vanilla & ylang ylang & it turned my soap a dark brown. I wasn't expecting it to turn my soap a different color, but it sure is brown!

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

Lola, that must be Murphy's law... when I want brown I get cream. I'm sure someday I will want cream and get brown. I remember reading a post that one soaper kept getting orange... I was wishing that was me...its my favorite color. I seem to always get cream! I am keeping exact notes so I can always look back and try to recreate a soap.

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Susie
Sometimes A Mistake is so much fun, You just have to do it again!

Susie,

At this point in my soaping, I am happy if a batch turns out usable...I'm still a newbie

The best way to get a brown soap is to try to make a pure white soap.

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- Mickey!

So maybe I should order some titanium dioxide? I'm not even picky about the shade of brown... they are only bears. In fact today I had some left over green with grass FO and made one green bear... I'll call him 'Forest Bear of the Great North'. I have decided that family can't complain too much ! Making these should be quite some experiments.

Lola (you have one of my favorite names); I'm a newbee as well... took a one night class last fall at a tech collage and now I am hooked! Believe me I have had a few batches that could not even be given away but I have had some that were great and welcomed by all my friends and family.

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Susie
Sometimes A Mistake is so much fun, You just have to do it again!

Titanium dioxide helps up to a point. Use the lightest in color oils and butters and that will help. A fragrance that has a vanilla helps only slightly.

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

Just wanted to add an end note to this. One day after about 3 weeks I went down into the basement to turn my soaps (I do this just so I can touch and smell them ) and found a miracle! My soaps went brown...just over night - the arabian spice did what I expected it to. The brown is medium dark and the bears look like bears! I don't think the stones look like stones so need to work on that. The smell is fantastic.

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Susie
Sometimes A Mistake is so much fun, You just have to do it again!