Official Challenge Entry Thread-July

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This is the thread just for entries. Please make certain you upload all your pics in one post and include your pattern letters and names. Pics should include your pour, each step of swirling, your tools(s) and your final soap in the mold. Cut bar pics are welcome but optional. Info on your scent and colors is always interesting.

Please, no comments on this thread until all entries are in. This will keep looking at the entries nice and tight and efficient. If you'd like to encourage or comment, please use the other thread.

Entries need to be in by midnight on the 25th.

Post away!!!
 
Ok... I'm going (nervously) to go first.

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I used technique "D" in one large eyelet loop over the mold, followed by 2 rows of "B" the diagonal loop. The soap is scented with half Pink Grapefruit fo (WSP) and the other half is a mix of tangerine, grapefruit, orange and lime EO's. I really ejoyed this challenge because I've never swirled in a slab mold and now have a great appreciation for it. Also, I have made 2 new videos from it and am learning how to improve on the video making each time. This was really fun! I look forward to the next one :)

The making of video:

http://youtu.be/VID2Sp77Fbo
 
Pic 1 - My supplies. I thought I might use the pink straw but decided it was too large for this project so stuck with the skewer and chopstick.
Pic 2 - Diagonal pour using squirt bottles.
Pic 3 - Pull down. I used both the chopstick and the skewer, alternating.
Pic 4 - Eyelet. I did 2 rows down, mirroring each side. (Ya, my drawing is pretty bad, lol). Used skewer only.
Pic 5 - Loop. I did 3 rows across using only the skewer.
Pic 6 - Ready to unmold.
Pic 7 - Cut bars.

Challenge 01-Supplies.jpg


Challenge 02-Pour.jpg


Challenge 03-Pull Down.jpg


Challenge 04-Eyelet.jpg


Challenge 05-Loop.jpg


Challenge 06-Cured.jpg


Challenge 07-Cut.jpg
 
I will toss mine in as well.

I call this pattern Queen of Hearts in my head. Play cards a lot.

I used a straw for my tool and TD, AC, Flirt (mad oils), and Sea Green (Nurture) for colors.

Pattern is A zigzag, the three rows of E loops, then did three rows of smaller E loops inside the bigger loops, then did C a pull down through each set of loops.

I made a lot of swirls for this challenge. Everything looked nice but I found myself drawn to symmetry, but that's because I'm looking for it specifically after seeing some of the ebru/paper patterns. It was difficult to find a combo that gave me symmetry AND something that felt new, but that was my personal goal in this challenge. I have a lot more appreciation for paper marblers, let me tell you.

I have no idea why my pictures are turned sideways. I hope you can sort it out.

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I did not have time to redo mine and improve, so Ill submit my one try. Ill be the one who makes everyone else look good!

This was a 100% pure Olive oil pomace soap. I stayed simple with three colors - plain, infused alkanet for purple, and infused spirulina and nettle for green. Scent is rosemary and lavender EO.

I used pattern C with a comb - once down and once up - which makes a chevron I think? But I went on from there to pattern A - a zig zag.

My tools were a soap comb and plastic stick.

Process:
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Unmolded and cut slab before clean up:
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Two cleaned up bars:
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I've never done a slab soap before, they always looked so complicated to pour. Well, I was correct, they are complicated...but I had so much fun!! It took way longer to come up with the "Plan", than to do the actual pour. So many possible combinations of color and pattern :shock: ...

I will definitely be trying more slab swirls in the future.

OK, so first "The Plan": A Christmas-y soap scented with Fresh Snow from BB. I went with the classic Christmas colors, red, green and white. I started with pattern "A", in a medium width zigzag. Then pattern "F", 3 lines of loops, alternating direction. The final pattern is pattern "C", 3 lines of pull-down, alternating direction.


The Plan,
including the tool used for all swirls, a 1/4" wooden dowel.
ThePlan.JPG


The Pour,
wow, do I have a lot of practice to do if I'm ever going to learn to make straight, clean lines!! :oops:
ThePour.JPG


Pattern "A", the ZigZag.
First pattern, it's OK, but could have been better. I should have either done a closer spacing, or rotated the mold and repeated the zigzag in the reverse direction too.
TheZigZag.JPG


Pattern "F", Loops.
Added the second pattern, 3 rows of loops. Not much movement in the colors, probably could have used a thicker tool to move a bit more batter, or done more rows closer together.
TheLoop.JPG


Pattern "C", The Pull-Down.
The final layer of pattern is added, though it didn't really move the colors much, either. I definitely needed to do more lines, or, as above, use a much thicker tool to move more batter.
ThePullDown.JPG


The Cut.
The colors settled into a soft pastel, since it did not gel. I am quite pleased with my first attempt!!
TheCut.JPG
 
OK here I go again. First I did zig zag then a large leap frog and then finally a pull down. When I started this challenge I did not even know what a leap frog was and now I love it!!
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ov5lUXgVq_U[/ame]
Enjoy and be kind it is only my second swirl in a slab to ever do. I only used logs before
 
Well crud! Apparently I just deleted my message instead of editing it. Photos are: Finished swirl (before saponification); my tools; the pour (parabola shape); swirl #1, E - leapfrog (using the comb part of that grill cleaner); swirl #2, B - diagonal loops using the two pronged meat fork; and the third one (because two weren't enough): C - pull down using the two pronged fork. Finally there is the cut slab and the prettiest bar in the bunch. Now, let's see if I can put them in that order again!

My Entry.jpg


My Tools.jpg


Pour.jpg


Leapfrog.jpg


Diagonal Swirl.jpg


Pull Down.jpg


Cut Slab.jpg


Pretty  Soap.jpg
 
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Here is my last attempt at this challange. My biggest challange was to keep the soap batter fluid enough to pour and I failed miserably. All three times I stopped SBing at the lightest trace and mixed the colors in by hand but the batter kep thickening up. Part of the reason could be that I refused to leave out butters from my recipe. My first two attempts were 40% lye concentration and the last 33% lye water. For me, the last one moved fastest. Anyhow, I also got more ambitious to the end, did 6 colors this time and had to spoon them in. Not much movement during swirling.
My patterns, 1. C. Pull down, once 2. F, loops, set of three 3. Diagonal loop, 2 times with a 90 degree turn.
Please don't laugh at my super fancy Amazon cardboard box mold or my expert lining, well you may :).

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I've only managed one attempt this month so I'm afraid you've already seen my entry in the other thread! Here goes:

Poured using squeeze bottles in horizontal lines
Leap frog pattern across in the horizontal direction
Diagonal loop in the vertical direction

My humble swirl tool is a glass stirring rod!

Scented with grapefruit and mandarin essential oils. Colours made using micas and black oxide.

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Here is my entry. I hope the photographs have uploaded in the correct order! The first picture is the plan which I used, the second is the mould fill. The following pictures should be each stage in order and then there is one close up of a swirl and the skewer which I used to swirl with. (I am having an awful time trying to upload my pics, I want to scream. I keep getting error messages!)

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Ok. First is my pattern.
Second is mid pour, third is final pour right before I used the skewer.
It's a plain bamboo skewer, and I used the bottom flat end.

Fourth is me pulling down.
Fifth final after pull down.
Sixth final after pull down after 180 degree turn (aka pull up lol).
Seventh diagonal loop in first column.
Eighth pic I'd diagonal loop column 2. I did a third and
Ninth is my final pic.

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Last Edit Hopefully-
Uploaded video to you tube. Hope this works:
Plan is A - zig zag top to bottom
C - pull down
D - eyelet

https://youtu.be/mzP5un-R4mQ

Pics show the plan and tool, pour and final results. Scented with black raspberry vanilla and lemon verbena. I was only going to do two eyelets but I hated the middle so I threw in a few little ones.

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