Adding Color to Your Soap
Author: Mary Published Under: Home
Making your own soap is very easy and the modern soapier can save a great deal of money, while also making sure their soap is only made with healthy natural ingredients. The basic soap making procedure is very simple, but most people also add essential oils to their soap to make it smell better and to improve how it affects the skin. Many people also like to add colors to their soap, which can be done naturally, or with food colorings or wax crayons.
There are many advantages to using herbs, roots, and spices to create coloring, as opposed to using chemical dyes. The main advantage is a much more unique color, but these can often have a smell of their own, so it is important to consider this when making scented soap.
Basic Soap Coloring
The basic procedure to make colored soap is fairly simple. Just mix your die or color with some vegetable oil and heat it up. This can be done over high heat on the stove or in the microwave. After heating for a few minutes, allow it to cool, and filter it through a coffee filter.
Once filtered, the coloring can be poured into a glass jar or bottle for later use.
Below Are a Few Simple Examples:
Orange Coloring: 2tsp paprika, 1tsp turmeric, 4tbsp, vegetable oil
Yellow Coloring: 2tsp mace powder, 4tbsp
vegetable oil
Green Coloring: 2tsp spirulina powder, 4 tbsp vegetable oil
Blue Coloring: 1/2tsp blue/German chamomile oil, 1/2tsp blue cypress oil, 4tsp vegetable oil
This provides the basic ROYGB colorings, which can be used to make virtually any coloring. However, make sure to ensure none of the ingredients cause allergic reactions to the user. The last coloring, blue, can cause problems in people with sensitive skin. Remember that crayons or traditional food coloring can also be used.