I've been using TD on and off for a year and found that I never got the true white's that I was expecting and never understood the amounts people used and the color they got from it (they used so little & got good results). I thought that they may have had some special TD or I had some bad stuff.
Every time I used TD, I put it through a very fine tea strainer and sifted it so it fluffed up a lot. I measured amount first and then sifted. The TD flufed up to like 4-5x the volume after sifting. I thought this would ensure the mixture into the oil
I added the TD to either my EO/FO + maybe 5% of the oil and mixed well with a stick blender (very well) - then added to the main batch. Still didn't get color I desired.
I was recently trying to mix some green and it was clumping so I used a spatula to smear/press it against the bottom of the bowl (along with the TD in the bowl). Well I saw streaks of green & white, LOTS of streaks of white. The more I looked the more I saw that maybe 80%+ of the TD was VERY small clumps that wouldn't break up unless smeared with a spatula. After like 30 mins of this (yeah, had too much oil so had to chase them around) I had the whitest mix I had ever used and very little TD in comparison.
So I looked at past recipes and saw VERY small white specs which was the TD that hadn't broken up.
So, if you use TD, maybe take note of this and see if this is happening to you. I don't think mixing the way I did is the solution but it will work for the time being. What I would do is get a small bowl with a rounded bottom -> edge -> sides and ass maybe 1% of your oil with the TD and then use the spatula. Look for a consistency just a little more liquid than a thin paste. Just smear it across the bottom and sides.
The solution, I guess, is to find TD that doesn't clump like this. IDK what to look for to garuntee this but I know there has to be different mesh sizes. Also keep it as dry as possible when in storage as it is going to be mixed with an oil so a damp ()even a few %) will make a difference. IDK if it would mix better in the lye solution or possibley in some water. It is used as a ceramic's dye so maybe I'll look at how that is done b/c I don't see the specs in most glazes.
Every time I used TD, I put it through a very fine tea strainer and sifted it so it fluffed up a lot. I measured amount first and then sifted. The TD flufed up to like 4-5x the volume after sifting. I thought this would ensure the mixture into the oil
I added the TD to either my EO/FO + maybe 5% of the oil and mixed well with a stick blender (very well) - then added to the main batch. Still didn't get color I desired.
I was recently trying to mix some green and it was clumping so I used a spatula to smear/press it against the bottom of the bowl (along with the TD in the bowl). Well I saw streaks of green & white, LOTS of streaks of white. The more I looked the more I saw that maybe 80%+ of the TD was VERY small clumps that wouldn't break up unless smeared with a spatula. After like 30 mins of this (yeah, had too much oil so had to chase them around) I had the whitest mix I had ever used and very little TD in comparison.
So I looked at past recipes and saw VERY small white specs which was the TD that hadn't broken up.
So, if you use TD, maybe take note of this and see if this is happening to you. I don't think mixing the way I did is the solution but it will work for the time being. What I would do is get a small bowl with a rounded bottom -> edge -> sides and ass maybe 1% of your oil with the TD and then use the spatula. Look for a consistency just a little more liquid than a thin paste. Just smear it across the bottom and sides.
The solution, I guess, is to find TD that doesn't clump like this. IDK what to look for to garuntee this but I know there has to be different mesh sizes. Also keep it as dry as possible when in storage as it is going to be mixed with an oil so a damp ()even a few %) will make a difference. IDK if it would mix better in the lye solution or possibley in some water. It is used as a ceramic's dye so maybe I'll look at how that is done b/c I don't see the specs in most glazes.