One loaf, two half , two different days.

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SunRiseArts

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Question .... if I make half the batch of the soap, let go through the saponification process, and make the other half and pour on top 24 to 36 hours later .... Will it come apart when you cut it?

I know it happens with MP, I also had it happen in the past with a pencil mica line .... so I was wondering.
 
Yes, it can separate. I did something like what you're describing and most of the second layer of soap didn't adhere to the first. It looked fine for a few days, then I think the water loss and shrinkage as the soap dried caused the layers to separate.

I think I've heard about people making the surface of the first soap more rough and that helps. I don't have any experience with that -- my soap had a smooth top and it obviously didn't do well.
 
I let my first pour set up just enough to hold the second layer, apply the pencil line and then do the second pour over a rubber spatula to keep it from sinking into the other soap.
 
I've found the pencil line of mica or coffee etc has to wet up as you put it on. So not so thick that it doesn't soak into the soap.

I have used a cylinder embed the day after it was made and it stuck in the soap with no problems. But that might be different when it has a clear line to separate.
 
I agree with the others -- if I was going to do the soap again, I wouldn't wait so long. I'd pour the first layer, let the soap set up just long enough so it's no longer jiggly (maybe a half hour?), then pour the second layer.

And I also agree that less is more when doing a pencil line. "Not quite enough" is really enough. Penelopejane is right -- the pencil line powder needs to look wet before going on. If it's too thick to become fully wetted, I use the tip of a toothpick to mix the powder into the thin surface layer of the soap to force the powder to wet. It's fiddly and time consuming, so it's best avoid the problem rather than have to fix it.
 
Well, I think if you use a mostly soft oil recipe without a lot of additives meant to make it harden faster and don't let it gel, you'd have better luck with it sticking together when cutting.

I have actually done this once or twice when I didn't have time to add the second layer within a shorter time-frame and it didn't come apart when I cut it. I cannot be sure it won't come apart later when used in the bath however. Anyway, I gelled the finished soap using CPOP and it all stayed together nicely during planing and beveling and they are currently curing. But it is not a pencil line soap. With a pencil line I wouldn't even make such an attempt.
 
I have done separate layers as you describe. I have not done a pencil line but generally I won't gel the first layer and then before I pour the next, I will get the top of the first layer wet before I start mixing the second so the top layer of soap gets soft. I don't always gel the whole thing and it will still stay together, even if the top of the first layer is completely smooth. Sometimes I will wait until the entire thing has saponified then I will put it in the oven at 170-190 for an hour so it softens. Makes it easier to cut then and it may help the soap stay together.

My recipe is about 55-60% hard oils so using a recipe high in soft oils is not absolutely necessary.
 

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