Question about glycerin...

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gigisiguenza

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I've seen glycerin mentioned several times recently in posts and was wondering:
1) why people use it for mixing colors vs using a portion of the oils from the batch
2) would glycerin work for mixing natural colorants or is it strictly a mica/oxide thing
3) and if the recipe needs to be adjusted to accommodate the glycerin addition

TIA for sharing your expertise :)
 
I rarely use glycerin for bar soaps. Colorants are either mixed with oils or water. Micas are often mixed straight to the lightly emulsified soap batter and stick blended to death.

So far i see no point in adding more glycerin if the colorants can be mixed with other substances.
 
Glycerin is pretty cool stuff. You can get both water soluble colorants and oil soluble colorants to mix/disperse well with it. I mainly use micas and ultramarines and I mix them with glycerin because I can get them to disperse much easier in glycerin than I can do so in oils, since those kind of colorants are water soluble/dispersible. When I mix those particular colorants in oils, they tend to clump on me or not want to mix/disperse very well. Oxides mix well with oils, but I actually don't use many of them.

I don't adjust my recipe when using glycerin to mix my colorants, because the amount of glycerin I use is negligible as far as it having any noticeable effect in my soap.


IrishLass :)
 
I have never tried using glycerin for natural colorants. I normally infuse my paprika into olive or sweet almond oils to use as a colorant, then use that as a substitute for the OO or SAO that the recipe needs. Makes measuring and adjusting super easy. My other colorants get mixed into the oils.

Bar soap does not need extra glycerin, the soap makes enough of it's own, and I don't like extra steps. If I sold soap, I would try every thing possible to draw the eye of the shopper, though. So mica in glycerin would definitely be on the list.
 
Carolyn disperses all of her micas and oxides in glycerin, and I have started to as well. The logic is that you don't know how much or little color you are going to want, and if you use the oils from your soap you may not use all the color and throw the balance of the soap off. Or you may want more color after all the oils been used up and then what? Easier to just have all your colors pre-dissolved in a little glycerin. Also glycerin colors do that pretty melt-in if you splatter them on the top of soap.

I have used glycerin to disperse natural colorants so I could add them drop by drop until I got the color I liked in M&P It worked a treat with madder root, indigo and spirulina! Unfortunately all of those tests were done with M&P soap that I made... Id like to try it with CP as well one day. My only warning would be to realize that the powders expand a LOT when they absorb the glycerin, if its a 1:1 ratio the container completely fills up with now damp powder and will not drip.
 
My only warning would be to realize that the powders expand a LOT when they absorb the glycerin, if its a 1:1 ratio the container completely fills up with now damp powder and will not drip.

So that's the problem. I thought the glycerin was just molasses-in-winter thick when I tried blending with my mini-blender. I even put new batteries in it, with no luck. I never thought of expansion. That makes much more sense now why my blender barely moved. I just blended by hand with it most of the time. I gave it a couple of bursts now and then, but there was no real power to it. But when I lifted the blender out, it had full juice. I was beginning to rethink the whole glycerin thing before I ever used it. I need to make a batch tomorrow.
 
I initially blend my glycerin mica, oxides, pigments with a Popsicle stick to get it started then use my mini blender. Other than titanium dioxide which I mix in larger batches, I use deli cups for my colors. One other powder I mix with glycerin is Lanthanol Powder which mixes nicely with glycerin when adding to my salt scrub
 
Carolyn disperses all of her micas and oxides in glycerin, and I have started to as well. The logic is that you don't know how much or little color you are going to want, and if you use the oils from your soap you may not use all the color and throw the balance of the soap off. Or you may want more color after all the oils been used up and then what? Easier to just have all your colors pre-dissolved in a little glycerin. Also glycerin colors do that pretty melt-in if you splatter them on the top of soap.

That's another reason why I like to use glycerin instead of my oils.


IrishLass :)
 
Hmmmm you're making me very curious about this glycerin....where would I get glycerin? Can I get it at Walgreen?
 
Although I buy it online in bulk now, I'm also able to buy it at my local, family-owned health-food store (they sell it in 8oz and 1lb bottles there), and I've also found it at Sprouts and Wholefoods (in 8oz bottles).


IrishLass :)
 
Although I buy it online in bulk now, I'm also able to buy it at my local, family-owned health-food store (they sell it in 8oz and 1lb bottles there), and I've also found it at Sprouts and Wholefoods (in 8oz bottles).


IrishLass :)

Awesome Ty :)
 
Speaking of glycerin, this is a little change of subject, has anyone ever had to drink that stuff. Not only does it pull moisture from the air, it also pulls moisture from the brain. I still remember having to drink it every time I use it :razz:
 
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