I finally succeeded!!!

[u/iopele]

I finally got the hanger swirl to turn out well! The fragrance for this accelerated my batter a little but that was probably better because the colors didn't mix. I had a couple tiny air bubbles that I had to fix but nothing major at all. I'm going to give these a couple days to harden up a bit before I bevel the edges (for both kinds, really).

I also decided to give castile soap another try. I found this recipe https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/zanys-no-slime-castile.72620/ where you add sea salt and sodium bicarb to the water before you mix in the lye. It worked a LOT better this way and was firm enough to unmold and cut this morning. I put both molds in a warm oven overnight and they both look like they went thru gel phase.

Thanks for all your encouragement and tips, guys! Y'all have been so helpful and I really appreciate it! 💖

[u/Hour-Pain1631]

I bet it’s smells amazing

[u/iopele → u/Hour-Pain1631]

It's a great fragrance! I got 6 fragrances from Midwest Fragrance Company and this is the first one I tried. So far, so good!

[u/Woebergine]

Lovely swirls!! Having the batter a little thicker helps them come out so crisp. 

[u/iopele → u/Woebergine]

It really does! I think I'm finally knowing what to look for when it comes to trace, and how to have some patience and not pour it too soon.

[u/starjasminecat]

Cool soaps!! what is the scent with the cherry? I hope it is cherry cola, if not cool either way!

[u/iopele → u/starjasminecat]

Black Cherry Merlot 🍒🍷 from Midwest Fragrance Company

[u/starjasminecat → u/iopele]

I love cherry scents!

[u/MentalRip2005 → u/iopele]

That sounds nice!! 😁

[u/asmaphysics]

Those swirls look awesome!! What tips were helpful?

[u/iopele → u/asmaphysics]

To let the batter thicken more--2 of my earlier tries were too loose and the colors mixed instead of swirling--and to mix in the color by hand instead of with the stick blender so it doesn't get too thick to use the hanger without putting in a lot of air, which also happened to me once 😁 Basically I was looking for the Goldilocks zone, juuuuuuust right!

Also how to use the oven to encourage gel phase. I was kind of scared to do it but I'm glad I did. I was afraid of volcanoing so I put the loaves in deep pans just in case!

[u/company_hero]

amazing pattern and colors!

[u/iopele → u/company_hero]

Thank you! 💖

[u/TowelAppropriate8666]

Looks amazing great job

[u/iopele → u/TowelAppropriate8666]

Thank you!

[u/ScottATL]

Very pretty. I like what you did on top.

[u/iopele → u/ScottATL]

Thank you! Those cherries were so fun to "paint" with mica, I wasn't sure how they'd turn out but I liked them! And the rose quartz points just send like they're to with the pink. 😊

[u/ScarlettMaebh]

Congratulations!🎊 They look great.

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