22. ledna 2016

Circling Taiwan Swirl - Soap Challenge Club (January 2016 entry)



Hello everyone,

This is my second Soap Challenge Club (first one December entry with Impression Mat technique is here and its continuation for how I made my 3D model for silicone mat is here). As I’m at my beginnings, this month technique is new for me as well as many others))) So, for Circling Taiwan Swirl it is my first time:

  •       Doing this technique 
  •       Working with dividers

As for soapmaking in common I decided to try:
  • mica-dividers technique (as Teresa Mahoney is doing)
  •   Anne L. Watson’s way to tell that batter is ready to pour which is hers temperature method (I found it in her book Smart Soapmaking)
  • Elaine Wright’s method of cleaning up soap (may be found on her YouTube channel)
  • Ghost swirl first done by my “soapmaking God” Mrs. Clara Lindberg
  • Big superfatting (10%) – I made my soaps normally 6-7%
  • Using clay or salt to “lock” the scent inside the soap. Preparing to do my next one salt bar I found information that some folks “lock” the scent by putting EOs in salt for the salt bars or in clay or similar things. I decided to try it.


 Made 4 batches of soap only because my lye ended)))))) really))) as well as almost all my EOs. I liked this technique very much, it is easy to do and the result is fabulous.
First one soap and my entry this month is this one peppermint (I have called it Minty Lotus). I made it bastille type (olive, coconut and castor oils), SF 6% here, scented with lavender, peppermint and tea tree EOs. Also some clay for locking EOs.

After pouring:

Just cut:
 
 

I checked the temperature after putting together oils and lye and poured after the temperature raised by 1°C (really short blendmixing and mixing with spatula). I was working at some 45°C.
I used Elaine Wright’s soap cleaning up method. Here  are compared cleaned and uncleaned soaps

 

And here cleaned up:

 
 


The second soap was not made for the Challenge))) our family was just lack of salt soap so I made my favorite one and trained the technique. I didn’t want to show it at all, but a very interesting thing happened, so I decided to write about it.
I used coconut, shea and some castor oil, 20% SF, eucalyptus and chlorella for scenting and coloring as well “locked” in Himalayan salt. Also I wanted to try a mica on one of the dividers. I had prepared everything a began to wait my lye became cool. Mainly I work at nights because of my baby girl. But this time she decided that  I need an HOUR break with my soaping…so when finally she went asleep again, my oils and lye were 30°C… Late at night I could not blendmix, so I started whisking my mixture…as the temperature was after some 3-4 minutes 29°C, I decided that I would risk and pour it… because there were nothing I could do with it (as a beginner I don’t know what to do in low temperature situation…) So I poured it, swirled and now having normal soap…and that was surprise for me in the morning… Another one interesting thing is that my DYI dividers were really flowing up while I was pouring salt batter…
I like using cleaning up method for salt bars.
So too many words and result is Salty Chlorela Soap:

 
 


I was disappointed that mica line was not that good as I wanted it to be (as there were non in the middle of the soap))) 



and I used this out of guidelines of the Challenge technique again. Third soap “I love yellow” (coconut, olive, cocoa, shea, babassu and castor oils, SF 10%) with lemongrass “locked” in some kaolin. It was a soap where I tried doing narrow and wide swirls in one batch. I like wide ones, my almost husband - narrow ones. 

Just poured:


Cutting:






Cleaned up by Elain Wright method again.



The last one soap is a really experimental one ("Ghost unlimited") . I wanted to have those mica lines in my soap))) so I wanted to try with no colors at all.. but then I got the idea that I may use Clara Lindberg’s Ghost swirl and mica dividers.. So now I have one. Olive, coconut and palm oils, SF 10%. Water 2.5 and 1.5.

Just poured:


Cutting:






And cleaned:



And all soaps together:




 Good luck to you all and many thanks belongs to Amy Warden for the Challenge.

Nasta

UPD: Mica lines details:








18 komentářů:

  1. Beyond beautiful! Love your photography too!!

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    1. Jolene, thank you very much. I like to take photoes of soap a lot...almost as much as making soap itself.

      Vymazat
  2. I absolutely love each and every one of your batches of soap! I was very intrigued with your idea of using a mica line on the dividers as Teresa Mahoney had done with one of her soaps. I was thinking of trying the exact same technique but gave up on it. Yours may not have turned out exactly as you had hoped but it really turned out beautiful! Now I am going to have to try it after all. Great job!

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    1. Oh, Debi, I was totaly possessed by this idea for this technique))) and very upset that I have mica lines only on top or bottom but not in the middle... for the last one soap I covered dividers from both sides to double my chances))) and it worked.

      Vymazat
  3. Настюша! Столько попыток, и все они просто потрясающие! Искренне желаю тебе победы!

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    1. Спасибо большое, Таня! От такого мастера похвала - выше всяких побед))) Спасибо.

      Vymazat
  4. I Love your soaps and the stories that go with each one of them! I too had thought of mica lines but wasn't sure how well it would do; now I will have to try it! Fantastic job on all your soaps!

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    1. Danielle, thank you very much. You have to try, really nice))

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  5. Thank you so much for sharing all your wonderful ideas and experiments with this technique! You've done excellent work, and I LOVE your entry soap. The color combo is just stunning and the end pieces show perfect lotus design. Great job!!

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    1. Thank you Amy, I love expermenting))and Thank you for your job)) for a challenge)))

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  6. What a fantastic job you've done with all your batches! Congratulations and thank you for sharing :)

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    1. You are welcom, Anna, I like to share ideas, because I believe that that some my ideas would inspire someone else who likes to share and we all would have something new and fantastic)))

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  7. Absolutely wonderful! I love them all. The last one has incredible colours, but the salt bar looks so soft... I also love salt bars ;-) but they harden too fast on me to make such nice designs. I just love all your soaps!!!

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    1. Thank you, Madame Propre, I adore salt bars.. Try to ude method of Anne. L. Watson, blend mix very little - my advise. Use whisk to mix the salt)))If I can, you can too!

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    1. Thank you, Holly, I saw almost all videos with your entries)) I love your soap)))

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  9. Such beautiful designs Anastasia, I love the gentle colors. My favorite was the yellow one! I would love to try making salt bars, I just haven't made that jump yet. Yours look great! thanks for sharing - : )

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    1. Thank you, Eva, salt bars worth doing them)) it is the type of soap I want to have at home always.

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