My soap turns brown in color

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laulow

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I made some soap yesterday using the RTCP method and Paul's new TOG mold. Got to say I love the mold! I am new at soaping so I guess I can't complain too much but would like to make white bar of soap. I put Aloe Vera Juice in the Lye like Paul suggested (used a receipe he sent me) and let it cool to room temp and then melted my oils, let them cool to room temp. Added my Goats Milk as the rest of my water then, but the Aloe and Lye stayed dark in color never turned transparent. Should it be transparent.

Here is a picture of the uncut soap.

Laurie

 
It's not uncommon for GM to turn tan/brown. Or do you mean a darker brown than what is in the pic? Did you use a discoloring fragrance like vanilla?

Soap will discolor for many reasons. Often the color of the oil effects how white it will be. Coconut and Lard are the whitest oils I have used. However - you can get titanium dioxide (colorant) to whiten many of your bars. It won't stay white if you use a fragrance that discolors though.
 
I have read on here and seen pictures of GM soap that are white. I have bought them as well. It was the lye and Aloe Vera Gel that was dark....I thought it would be kind of clear. My oils were pretty much clear until I added the lye/Aloe Vera Gel mixture which was already dark. I guess it just takes trial and error. But I do I hope I can get a whiter soap....my mother is really pushing for that, but likes the GM.

Thanks,

Laurie
 
Hi Laurie! :)

Not all aloe juices are alike. Some are clear, and some are dark colored. I've used aloe juice many times (George's brand from the health food store) in my soap and have never had my lye water turn dark because of it. It's always been crystal clear as fresh water is clear, but that's because the juice itself is clear right from the bottle. You may want to change aloe brands. HTH!

IrishLass
 
Do you have a source for titatium dioxide? I have been searching & haven't found any yet.
Jean
 
I made a batch of CPOP the other day with green tea as the water portion of my lye solution and that discolored pretty dark... is that the common effect of tea-lye? I've never used tea before, so I'm not sure...
 
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