Plain soap turning purple

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chachalaca

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Hello, I just made two bars of plain soap, no fragrance, no color. I let them sit in the mold for 24 hrs, then took them out and one was light purple, the other one was white. With time the light purple bar became darker and the white bar became light purple. The color is only on the outside, the inside is still white so far. Can someone explain what happened? Can it be an excess of lye? Attached are some pictures. Thank you

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That happens to me also, but only when I use a certain fragrance, I just thought it was the fragrance, but I see you didn't use any. Curious to what causes it. I use an acrylic mold.
 
Are the molds you used in the background of the picture? It looks like you used a metal mold that reacts with lye.
 
That's likely the problem. The pans you are using are reacting with the lye. You should only use materials like wood, boxes or plastic lined with freezer paper or silicone molds. Nice catch.
 
Agreed with soapmaker145 ^^

After you have uploaded the images of your mold we notice it looks like you have used galvanized metal as a mold. Metal-molds or metal utensils are a huge no-no when making lye-based soap, unless it is 100% stainles steel. Lye is highly corrosive and will instantly react with the metal and break it down and seep into your soap. If this is the case here - and it really looks like it - your soap is not safe to use. At least I wouldn`t risk it using it on skin. I am sorry.

But the silver lining of making mistakes, is that we learn from it and can do better next time:)

ETA someone beat me to it while I wrote this. Answers come fast here, lol
 
The purple is around the entire soap so they must have used a column mold of some sort, I think.

That sounds about right, that pan in the background is way to shallow to have made loaves like that. Perhaps they used molds in metal that is used for making loaves of bread or something...
 
I have mentioned this before. There are times when a high lard will do this with some fragrances. My lard always goes pink with my Salty Air Fragrance, and it is not a discoloring fo, only with high lard. Some lard can change to pinkish on its own. Soap just loves to do what it wants to do
 
I have mentioned this before. There are times when a high lard will do this with some fragrances. My lard always goes pink with my Salty Air Fragrance, and it is not a discoloring fo, only with high lard. Some lard can change to pinkish on its own. Soap just loves to do what it wants to do

well this explains the purple looking color I was seeing in the middle of my bars. Thanks!
 
Thank you for so many thoughts on this issue. The molds I use have always been used to make soap. They are supposed to be of stainless steel, I don't know which grade though. They are open, not precisely a column, they have four walls and a bottom but the top is open. The purple color is on all sides of the soap, including the one that is not in contact with the metal. I will try using another type of mold and or use parchment paper to check if there is a difference. Could there be another reason for this other than the mold? Thanks
 
I myself am suspicious of the recipe you used. I have also seen certain oils trace to colours that are not no way added or part of the plan.
Like Carol said I too have had lard recipes pink up on me with no EO or FO involved. I do not add scents until trace.
 
Recipe

Hello.

Can you post your full recipe and procedure - especially the moulds used and if they were new or, if old, what they have been used for for?

Cheers

The moulds are old but have always been used to make soap. They are supposed to be 100% stainless steel but they do have a rubber between the bottom and the walls to prevent leaking.

The procedure: I melt coconut oil + beeswax + shea butter + cocoa butter. We pour all melted oils in the mixer and add soybean oil and palm oil. We start mixing and then add the water+lye solution. Continue mixing until trace and then pour into the moulds. We leave the soap for 24-48 hrs in the moulds then take it out, cut it and let them rest for some days. This was the first time I made a plain bar of soap, before I had always added colour (liquid) and fragrance always after trace. I've always had color issues though, so I am wondering if this turning purple thing is what is messing up with the color.

I also think it has a lot to do with the recipe and/or oils I am using or with the fact that to make the first plain bar (the one that is of a darker purple) I only took out color and fragrance and didn't replace that ammount of liquid with anything. The second bar was an attempt to compensate and turned out a lot better.
 
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What was the last soap you made in those molds? Did they have residual fragrance before you used them?

ETA: Wait, just read its on all sides, even the exposed one... Hmm.
 
Can you post your exact recipe? That may help folks out. Also what fragrance if any used. Also, I hope you let them cure/rest for more than a few days. They should be cured 4-6 weeks. It's certainly a hmmmmm moment for why they turned purple.
 
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