Teach Soap

I've been using powdered pigments from BB for my coloring. For each batch I am putting a small amount of castor oil in a small container and then spooning in the powder and stirring/mixing together. (Waiting for my mini-mixer from BB, but in the meantime my arm is getting a workout!).
Anyway, is this the best way to work with powdered pigments? Do you just use the powder each time you soap, or have you mixed it up ahead of time and have it stored, already suspended in a liquid base? If so, what liquid do you use and how do you know how much powder to add? Also, how long would that last (before it would go bad)?
Trying to make soaping as straightfoward/simple as possible for myself. Any advice/tips regarding the powdered pigments would be appreciated!
thanks

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Carrie
Wife to my Best Friend and Homeschool mom to 7 beautiful gifts

I wouldn't use castor, as it can make your soap soft. I use either sweet almond oil or glycerin. I keep my TD pre-mixed in glycerin, and will do the same with my other pigments once I get a mini-fridge to keep them in. 1/2 -1 tsp pigment to 1/3 cup base is what Soapqueen does. My TD is much more concentrated but I only use a tiny amount.

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~~Heather~~
Mad [soaping] Scientist

I use castor in my recipe (4%), so I measure that and mix the pigments into that amount.
Thanks for the link re: pigments.....will check it out this afternoon. I love SoapQueen! SO knowledgeable and gracious in her willingness to share her vast experience/expertise with the public......especially helpful to people like me who need details!!

Once you mix your pigments into a base, do they need to stay refrigerated? My fridge is usually pretty full with 7 kiddos (well, the kids aren't IN the fridge, but you get the idea....)

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Carrie
Wife to my Best Friend and Homeschool mom to 7 beautiful gifts

I would try glycerin instead of castor oil.

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

So if I used glycerin, how would that effect my end product?
Also, would I mix the pigments up in larger batches and keep them on hand to use? What containers would be good for storage, and where do you store it? Does it need to be kept cold?

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Carrie
Wife to my Best Friend and Homeschool mom to 7 beautiful gifts

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

Great.....I happen to have glycerin on hand
Just so I know....what would be the benefit of using the glycerin instead of castor oil?

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Carrie
Wife to my Best Friend and Homeschool mom to 7 beautiful gifts

I prefer glycerin as ultramarine colors are normally water soluble and oxides are oils soluble and glycerin seems to work for both types.

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

Ah.....didn't know that!

Speaking of Ultramarines......I'm having a lot of problems with Ultramarine Violet. Definitely is not turning out purple-ish in my soaps . In fact, the other day I had planned for a blue (ultramarine blue) and purple (ultramarine violet) swirl, but I ended up having to just mix it all together and forego the swirl. My end color? A weird sea green. NOT what I expected!!

But even in other soaps where I keep the ultramarine violet separate, it never really looks purple------usually more toward grey or blue. Is this normal?

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Carrie
Wife to my Best Friend and Homeschool mom to 7 beautiful gifts

That's the reason why I stopped using ultramarine violet. I didn't care for the gray. I now use FD&C Blue and that one morphs to a gorgeous purple.

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

Will file that info away for future reference. Definitely good to know......thank you so much!

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Carrie
Wife to my Best Friend and Homeschool mom to 7 beautiful gifts

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

Rats.....I just placed an order with them a few days ago and it's on it's way here now.....Will have to place that on my "wish list" for next BB order!

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Carrie
Wife to my Best Friend and Homeschool mom to 7 beautiful gifts

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

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Carrie
Wife to my Best Friend and Homeschool mom to 7 beautiful gifts