How much mica?

[Carly B]

So as I mentioned a while ago, my son and future daughter-in-law have asked me do to bars of soap for their wedding. After many questions and answers, it factors out that I will be making about 10 pounds of soap in each of 3 colors.

The bride has picked out her colors and fragrances (I don't understand some of the pairings, but hey, it's not my wedding), and it's all from Nurture Soap.

But I generally get mica in the 5 gram bag or one ounce jar, since I generally do small batches. How much mica do I need for 10 pounds of soap?

 

[violets2217]

In general, I always use 1 teaspoon per every pound of oils. But also check the notes on each color on the Nurture website. Some of their micas the recommend more or less for true color to stick.

 

[Carly B]

Thank you, @violets2217. It didn't even occur to me that that info would be on the website. Duh....

 

[Marcia Thorne]

What's the best brand mica

 

[TheGecko]

What's the best brand mica

I don't think there is a 'best brand' as most "micas" are made the same way (speaking of mica made for soap making).

I have micas from BrambleBerry, Rustic Ecentuals, Elements Bath & Bod and Nurture Soap. I have found the quality to be excellent...it just comes down to price and the color that I'm looking for. As an example Elements has a Retro Green Mica that I can't find anywhere else and it matches perfectly with the Lavender Mica from BrambleBerry for my Lavender & Sage Soap (the FO is from Nurture Soap).

 

[Marcia Thorne]

Well I bought some mica a while back. There wasn't a brand since I bought Lil packages and I found that I had to put alot to get a little color. I have seen videos on youtube with bought nice colors. I don't get that when I use it it's more dull

 

[dibbles]

I see you are not in the US. You might check to see how much shipping from Mad Micas or Nurture Soap would be for you. You could also check Micasand More. If you order from soap supplier, the micas will be stable in soap. If not, the results can be disappointing as you have learned.

 

[KiwiMoose]

I was always a bit disappointed in vibrancy of colour until I switched to neons.

 

[TheGecko]

Well I bought some mica a while back. There wasn't a brand since I bought Lil packages and I found that I had to put alot to get a little color. I have seen videos on youtube with bought nice colors. I don't get that when I use it it's more dull

First of all...Sample Packs are just that...samples; you get about a teaspoon when is enough for about a pound of soap. Some colors are going to be darker than others. If I use REs Lemon Sherbet...no matter how much I add, I will always get a pale yellow. If I want a brighter yellow, then I go with BrambleBerry's Yellow Mica.

It's the nature of the Lye Beast that a lot of your colorants are going to be more muted and you need to compensate by using a brighter/deeper/richer color to achieve the look that you want. A couple of months ago I wanted a 'navy' soap...so I took some Klein Blue (Nurture Soap) and added a touch of Black Oxide (BrambleBerry). It looked really dark when I first mixed it with my oils, but lightened up once I added in my Lye Solution.

If you're wanting really super vibrant colors...then you need to looks at Pigments, some Ultramarines, Chromium Green, some Oxides and Neons. You can also "gel" your soaps too to deepen the color.

 

[Marcia Thorne]

First of all...Sample Packs are just that...samples; you get about a teaspoon when is enough for about a pound of soap. Some colors are going to be darker than others. If I use REs Lemon Sherbet...no matter how much I add, I will always get a pale yellow. If I want a brighter yellow, then I go with BrambleBerry's Yellow Mica.

It's the nature of the Lye Beast that a lot of your colorants are going to be more muted and you need to compensate by using a brighter/deeper/richer color to achieve the look that you want. A couple of months ago I wanted a 'navy' soap...so I took some Klein Blue (Nurture Soap) and added a touch of Black Oxide (BrambleBerry). It looked really dark when I first mixed it with my oils, but lightened up once I added in my Lye Solution.

If you're wanting really super vibrant colors...then you need to looks at Pigments, some Ultramarines, Chromium Green, some Oxides and Neons. You can also "gel" your soaps too to deepen the color.

First how do you gel your soap? Also the pigments is it better?

 

[Marcia Thorne]

I see you are not in the US. You might check to see how much shipping from Mad Micas or Nurture Soap would be for you. You could also check Micasand More. If you order from soap supplier, the micas will be stable in soap. If not, the results can be disappointing as you have learned.

Thank you would check them out

 

[Zing]

First how do you gel your soap? Also the pigments is it better?

When oils and lye are mixed initially, it will heat up. Gelling means you insulate it so that it doesn't cool down. I put several towels on top of my mold. After 24 hours it has cooled down and I'm able to cut it. I use towels, others use boxes. Some people use an oven set at a very low temperature. Gelling makes for more intense color and it seems I can unmold it quicker too.

Using colorants -- pigments, micas, etc. -- comes down to a personal preference. I normally use micas. But there is a red pigment I use. And a green that's a chromium green. And my favorite blue is an ultramarine blue.

For articles on colorants, colorants Archives - Soap Queen .
For info on gelling, You searched for about gel - Soap Queen

Good luck!

 

[earlene]

@Marcia Thorne , have you purchased from the soap suppliers in your country? I see there are a few listed when I do a Google search. A couple of them have Facebook accounts and I see pictures of some very colorful CP soap on them. Perhaps the Sheer Soap Supplies site might work for you for micas that are lye stable. But it looks to me like I would prefer Valley Blossoms because they have a brick & mortar store, carry ultramarines, which are lye stable, as well as neons, etc. Valley Blossom also shows samples of soap made with their micas, both in CP (lye soap) as well as in MP. Showing those color sample soaps is a real plus; and they show amounts to use to obtain different depths of color, another plus.

Make sure to use lye-stable micas, as not all micas are lye-stable. The kinds used in cosmetics (for eye shadow and face make-up) are not all lye-stable, which I learned via experimentation.

As the others said, it's not really the brand name that matters, it's whether or not it is stable in the product you intend to use it in, which I assume is soap made with lye since you posted in the Lye-Based Soap forum.

 

[Marcia Thorne]

@Marcia Thorne , have you purchased from the soap suppliers in your country? I see there are a few listed when I do a Google search. A couple of them have Facebook accounts and I see pictures of some very colorful CP soap on them. Perhaps the Sheer Soap Supplies site might work for you for micas that are lye stable. But it looks to me like I would prefer Valley Blossoms because they have a brick & mortar store, carry ultramarines, which are lye stable, as well as neons, etc. Valley Blossom also shows samples of soap made with their micas, both in CP (lye soap) as well as in MP. Showing those color sample soaps is a real plus; and they show amounts to use to obtain different depths of color, another plus.

Make sure to use lye-stable micas, as not all micas are lye-stable. The kinds used in cosmetics (for eye shadow and face make-up) are not all lye-stable, which I learned via experimentation.

As the others said, it's not really the brand name that matters, it's whether or not it is stable in the product you intend to use it in, which I assume is soap made with lye since you posted in the Lye-Based Soap forum.

Thank you. I would try them

 

[earlene]

Good luck to you. It's always nice to find a good supplier close by!