Colouring (newby)
- Thread starter gymstud
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You really need to get some soap dyes from a soap supplier. Although food colorings are fd&c they can morph into all kinds of colors in soap. I use blue food coloring for a pretty purple, but that is the only one I have had success with. I only use it because I know how the purple turns out, and I have only found one brand that works for the purple. Soap dyes formulated for cp soap are the most stable, M&P soap dyes are not always stable. I have played around testing different food colors and generally they are not reliable. Stick to soap colorants especially when you're a new soaper, and save the experiments after gaining a more soaping knowledge. Also keep in mind that most lemon fo's fade. Using Lemongrass and Litsea EO's will last much longer. You can also mix a lemon fo with litsea to kick it up and add staying power
AngelMomma
Well-Known Member
You could use annatto seed and infuse your oil beforehand(you can just strain or scoop out the annatto seeds before making your soap recipe) to get a yellow color........if you are not wanting to buy soap colorants. Also Turmeric can give a yellow color but if you use too much it might be scratchy in the finished soap. I have not tried a lemon FO. But I do know that the Litsea EO stays nice and strong. Very lemony.
Oops, sorry I forgot to mention the tumeric and annato. Annato will give more of an orange yellow. Tumeric EO gives a wonderful yellow, but sometimes it is hard to find.
AngelMomma
Well-Known Member
I just add powdered Turmeric to the soap at trace. Or infuse the oil with the turmeric and just use the colored oil in soap.
If you just at a small amount of the annatto oil it will be yellow. More and it will get darker, more towards orange. Its all about the amount you add as well as the strength of the infused oil.
I would not use food coloring though.
If you just at a small amount of the annatto oil it will be yellow. More and it will get darker, more towards orange. Its all about the amount you add as well as the strength of the infused oil.
I would not use food coloring though.
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You can also use red palm oil as part of your oils and that will give you a nice yellow.
QueenBeeSoap
Well-Known Member
I've used fresh lemon zest in my soap and love it. It won't turn the whole soap yellow, but the bits of peel will survive the lye bath and retain their colour, and you'll get a bit of gentle scrubbiness. You won't get much (if any) scent from the peel alone. Try lemon essential oil (you can probably find this at your local health food store) or fragrance oil if you want your soap to have a lemon scent. I've had great success with Freshly Zested Lemon FO from Wholesale Supplies Plus - it smells just like the real thing, and the scent hasn't faded months later.
Lin
Well-Known Member
Lemon juice won't give you scent and will neutralize some of the lye depending on how much you use. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFOdi989-aU
Yellow 5 food coloring works. http://www.soapmakingforum.com/showthread.php?t=40651&highlight=food+coloring
Yellow 5 food coloring works. http://www.soapmakingforum.com/showthread.php?t=40651&highlight=food+coloring
Nope... won't work
Yes this!
One of the most common mistakes new soapers make is deciding just to "wing it" thinking that formulating soap works the same way as cooking. It really doesn't, mostly because most people don't cook with lye (well some do).
Yes you can add lemon zest and juice to your recipe. But most organic matter will eventually turn brown after contacting the lye. And very few organic materials will impart any noticeable scent. Of course there are exceptions like essential oils and several spices that can be used as colorants. But don't expect to color and scent your strawberry soap using real strawberries. I once tried scenting a coffee soap with a triple strength batch of espresso. Result: a very pretty brown soap that had no coffee scent whatsoever. When I looked into this more I found out that more experienced soapers already knew this.
The point is, you can do whatever you want and you should experiment. But you should also do the homework to see what works and what doesn't. Invest in some colorants and fragrances that are formulated for bath and body products, especially when just starting out.
Then have fun.
Yes this!
One of the most common mistakes new soapers make is deciding just to "wing it" thinking that formulating soap works the same way as cooking. It really doesn't, mostly because most people don't cook with lye (well some do).
Yes you can add lemon zest and juice to your recipe. But most organic matter will eventually turn brown after contacting the lye. And very few organic materials will impart any noticeable scent. Of course there are exceptions like essential oils and several spices that can be used as colorants. But don't expect to color and scent your strawberry soap using real strawberries. I once tried scenting a coffee soap with a triple strength batch of espresso. Result: a very pretty brown soap that had no coffee scent whatsoever. When I looked into this more I found out that more experienced soapers already knew this.
The point is, you can do whatever you want and you should experiment. But you should also do the homework to see what works and what doesn't. Invest in some colorants and fragrances that are formulated for bath and body products, especially when just starting out.
Then have fun.
