Design input needed...

[The_Phoenix]

I made these embeds yesterday and welcome input on a design to use them. I made two embeds: ovals and balls.

My thought is to use the balls in the body of the soap. Either on the bottom or randomly dispersed throughout, top to bottom. And the ovals on the top of the soap. This mold produces 30 bars, by the way.

There are enough ovals to cover the entire surface of the soap. So there’s that or just along the top of each third of the mold so that each individual bar has just oval embed. Thinking of using my vegetable peeler to round out the edges of the ovals.

I’m also undecided on coloring the soap batter. I’m thinking just keeping it white so the embeds really pop but the oval embeds have a botanical look to them. So maybe make the soap batter green?

Another idea I had is to use just one oval embed/bar and pipe vines and leaves to carry on the botanical look.

All ideas are welcome!

 

[KimW]

Too cute! I'm finding myself spatially challenged today. What size are these? smaller than a quarter?

 

[The_Phoenix]

Too cute! I'm finding myself spatially challenged today. What size are these? smaller than a quarter?

Good question!

2” long, 1 1/2” wide.

Shoot.

Should have used a slightly smaller oval. But then the design wouldn’t be as prominent. My usual bar width is 1”. That means if I use one oval/bar I’ll have fewer bars which isn’t a big deal.

Hmmm.....

 

[KimW]

Ah. Well, I really like your idea of embedding the ovals into the top of a bar! I also wonder how the ovals might look embedded into the middle of another oval soap of a coordinating solid color. The look would be of rimmed soap.
For the little balls, a random bubble design comes to mind. Something like this, from "lovinsoap"

...hmmmmmmm.... @Tara_H must still be working. She seems to have good ideas when it comes to embeds, so maybe she'll pop in later.

 

[Tara_H]

@Tara_H must still be working.

Did the bat signal go up?
Working late today but wrapping up!

They totally remind me of leaves. This idea is probably kind of out there, but if I had these what I'd love to try is slicing them paper thin and layering them in an overlapping pattern in a slab mould then filling it up with a super thin batter that would fill in the gaps, maybe helping along with a vibrating table complementary committee obviously, maybe a darker shade of the pale green.
Do the balls have a leaf pattern when cut also? Or are they more random and planet looking? My brain is going to moons, leaves, balloons... Cut them in segments, flatten a bit and make into flowers in individual circle moulds?
If you want to combine them all together, is there a feasible way of doing leaves on a tree & fallen leaves on the ground?

 

[ResolvableOwl]

I guess that the balls are just as colourful in the inside as the ovals? I wouldn't stretch the “colour patience” of an observer's eye even further, and keep the matrix monochrome (i. e. restrict to TD/AC/black oxide as pigments).
You might arrange them in a regular pattern throughout the mould, so that the cuts through the loaf become more or less geometrically regular too (honeycomb patterns or pool billiard or heaps of oranges/tennis balls), I somehow have @Peachy Clean Soap's black&white bar in mind.

 

[Zing]

Black as background would also make the colors pop. Aren't you ambitious!!

 

[ResolvableOwl]

Originally, I intended to fire up an image editor to sketch @The_Phoenix this design idea:

The ovals cut in half, and half of them placed along one edge of a loaf mould, covered with neutral/white (or black?) soap batter, and the other half of the half-ovals placed on top of this.

But the cinema in my head didn't give rest…

Did the bat signal go up?

 

[KimW]

But the cinema in my head didn't give rest…

Fantastic!!!

 

[The_Phoenix]

Originally, I intended to fire up an image editor to sketch @The_Phoenix this design idea:
View attachment 57730
The ovals cut in half, and half of them placed along one edge of a loaf mould, covered with neutral/white (or black?) soap batter, and the other half of the half-ovals placed on top of this.

That’s very interesting. So the cut side down on the bottom of one corner of a loaf mold, fill with neutral colored batter, and the other half, cut side up, with the cut ending at the surface of the soap?

That’s interesting. Very interesting. I could tilt the mold at an angle, put oval halfs cut side down,
and use white, then level it upright, pour gray or black, and put the other embeds in on the other half at the top.

I don’t have fancy digital graphic thingamabob drawing tools. But I think I get what you’re saying.

I’ll work on making flowers out of the balls. I have varying sizes of these oval cutters. A smaller one would make decent petals.

I’ve always wanted to make roses using soap dough. This will be fun!!!

Black as background would also make the colors pop. Aren't you ambitious!!

Soaping is coping!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! -Zing

Ah. Well, I really like your idea of embedding the ovals into the top of a bar! I also wonder how the ovals might look embedded into the middle of another oval soap of a coordinating solid color. The look would be of rimmed soap.
For the little balls, a random bubble design comes to mind. Something like this, from "lovinsoap"
View attachment 57726
...hmmmmmmm.... @Tara_H must still be working. She seems to have good ideas when it comes to embeds, so maybe she'll pop in later.

Oh, that gives me an idea for a different soap.

 

[dibbles]

I love your ovals and actually wouldn’t use both types of embeds in the same soap. If you have enough for your whole mold, I’d pour as a slab and place your embeds randomly so they are the face of th e soap bars. You can do something cute with the balls in a different batch. I just think th e ovals are so unique.

 

[The_Phoenix]

I love your ovals and actually wouldn’t use both types of embeds in the same soap. If you have enough for your whole mold, I’d pour as a slab and place your embeds randomly so they are the face of th e soap bars. You can do something cute with the balls in a different batch. I just think th e ovals are so unique.

I think you’re right. The balls would look messy and random compared to the ovals.

@KimW Yeah. I need a soaping intervention. I’m waiting for news on a job I’ve been interviewing for and I’m going mad with impatience. It’s either make soap or follow my husband around the house and ask him for a much-needed pep talk.

 

[earlene]

I think a galactic themed soap would lend itself well to the round ones and an Easter themed soap would be great for the oval ones.

The round ones also make me think of marbles. I did a soap I called Castile Marbles once that had a similar look (although they were wafers and not balls).

Also, you can easily smooth the surface of the balls by getting them wet & rolling them between your hands.

 

[KimW]

@KimW Yeah. I need a soaping intervention. I’m waiting for news on a job I’ve been interviewing for and I’m going mad with impatience. It’s either make soap or follow my husband around the house and ask him for a much-needed pep talk.

Awe - That's the worst! I vote for making soap, of course. Will have you in my thoughts!

 

[The_Phoenix]

Awe - That's the worst! I vote for making soap, of course. Will have you in my thoughts!

Please do!
Ok, cut into a few of the balls (hee hee) and they are pretty col inside but I’m going to reserve them for something else.

 

[Mobjack Bay]

I want to align the oval ones like leaves alternating on a stem along the length of the mold. Angled at about 45 deg to either side. Not necessarily in a perfectly straight line. A sinusoidal stem?

 

[violets2217]

I've been making soap balls with all the soaps I've made in the last year. With all the shavings and planning scraps. I'm going to mix them up and make a Galaxy Soap with them. I was just going to use an activated charcoal base, but after this month's challenge soap and seeing... @Tara_H challenge soap... I think. I might add a couple colors and try the OPW pour is stages and plop in the "planets" randomly. Also, I have so many of the said soap balls, I have a small vase in the kids bathroom on the sink filled with them to wash their hands with....

 

[MrsZ]

I can't wait to see what you do with this!

On a side note, your ball embeds gave me an idea for when I'm advanced enough to try it. It would be cool to make smaller black spheres to layer in the bottom of the mold, and a cream colored main batch. It would look like boba tea.

Sorry, back to topic!

 

[The_Phoenix]

@Mobjack Bay Learned a new word today: sinusoidal.

Interesting. I think I know what you mean...but not exactly.

I've been making soap balls with all the soaps I've made in the last year. With all the shavings and planning scraps. I'm going to mix them up and make a Galaxy Soap with them. I was just going to use an activated charcoal base, but after this month's challenge soap and seeing... @Tara_H challenge soap... I think. I might add a couple colors and try the OPW pour is stages and plop in the "planets" randomly. Also, I have so many of the said soap balls, I have a small vase in the kids bathroom on the sink filled with them to wash their hands with....

That’s a great idea! I have a silly amount of soap balls. A veritable ball pit of them.

I can't wait to see what you do with this!

On a side note, your ball embeds gave me an idea for when I'm advanced enough to try it. It would be cool to make smaller black spheres to layer in the bottom of the mold, and a cream colored main batch. It would look like boba tea.

Sorry, back to topic!

Me, too! We are fanatical about boba in this house. I even bought frozen boba to make our own during the pandemic and boba straws. Just haven’t gotten around to the black ball embeds. Yet.

 

[Mobjack Bay]

@The_Phoenix The right stem is sinusoidal. The ovals might be a bit big for this design, but it plays off the leaf look. I would probably put the extra ovals flat on the bottom arranged in a pattern that would look nice on the cut. Or, if you can stand them up on the long edge you can create a scallop effect.