natural red coloring?

[punkflash54]

i am making some soap with pureed strawberries...will they color the soap red? or is there any spice besides paprika that will give my soap a red color?

 

[lsg]

Check out these websites for info. on natural colorants.

http://www.snowdriftfarm.com/naturalcolors.html

http://www.mullerslanefarm.com/soapcolors.html

 

[punkflash54]

thank you those are sweet websites

 

[judymoody]

The strawberry puree will probably turn brown after the lye hits it.

 

[TessC]

Yup, strawberry puree goes brown. Some fruit and veggie purees and juices retain their colors in soap but the majority of them go one shade of brown or another.

There are some cool pics and a lot of good info on natural colorants in this thread of surf girl's: Palette of natural soap colorants

 

[LadyM]

I've found natural reds by using ground madder root and australian reed reef clay, which is slightly more dull because it's clay but is still beautiful.

The only problem with both of these is that they leave color in your wash cloth and have to be rinsed so they don't stain.

 

[see]

i could be wrong, new, but i dont think that mullers page is to accurate. can someone confirm those reds/purples? i tried hibiscus couple times and got pretty bars but they are not red or purple. some of the others..?

 

[soapbuddy]

I have not found a natural red that would not bleed or fade over time. The closest I was be able to get is either orange/red from red clay or pink from cochineal.

 

[LadyM]

Ooooh you've tried cochineal??!

 

[soapbuddy]

Ooooh you've tried cochineal??!

Yes, it makes a pretty pink. It's still used in a lot of lipsticks. It's listed there as carmine.

 

[HenleyNatural]

Red beet juice powder works great for bath bombs, but I have not tried it in soaps yet. A common problem with beet juice powder is it fade over time.