Teach Soap

First things first, can tea leaves be used in cold process soap?

If I use tea leaves for decorating soap, how is it done? Can the tea leaves be sprinkled on top of soap? Can they be added to the soap itself? At what point in the process should the tea leaves be added to the soap?

I have some pricey tea that I get from SpecialTeas.com (great site by the way) and I'm wondering if I can recycle it. I though maybe I could re-dry the tea after I use it to infuse a cup of hot tea. It is whole tea leaves as opposed to the broken-leaf, powdery tea that is usually found in cheaper tea brands. It seems a shame to throw it out. I usually add it to my compost bin but it occurred to me that it might have other uses in soapmaking.

Any ideas?

The tea would have to be dried and crumbled. You can add it either to your soap batter before you pour or you can add it on top. Over time it will oxidize and create brown specks or pieces.

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

soapbuddy, what about dried parsley leaves?
I cleaned my kitchen cupboards and found an old bottle of dried parsley leaves I had forgotten all about.
I don't remember when I bought it so I won't use it to cook.
Can it be used in soap? does parsley turn soap brown?

Natural herbal materials contain chlorophyll, which gives it a green color. Over time they all oxidize and turn brown. Parsley might take a little longer, but it will oxidize as well. For natural green color in soap, you could use green clay.

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

Going along with Midnightstorm's question, can I use tea - as in the water that was used to steep tea leaves instead of plain water to dissolve lye?

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

Thanks soapbuddy! you're a wealth of information.

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