It seems everyone is obsessed with LaCroix right now, and we’re no exception. If you scan the office, you’re bound to see a few cans. The bubbly beverage inspired this Grapefruit LaCroix Soap. It’s made with flat LaCroix instead of distilled water and scented with Grapefruit Bellini Fragrance Oil.
We’ve never made soap with sparkling water before, so this was a fun experiment. Because it doesn’t contain alcohol we didn’t boil it. Instead, we opened a few cans of LaCroix and let them sit for a couple days to get rid of the carbonation. Once we were ready to soap, we added the lye directly to the room temperature LaCroix. Because it doesn’t contain sugar, you don’t need to worry about scalding or overheating.
Overall, the LaCroix behaved fairly well in soap. We did find that the soap thickened more quickly, and at one point it did become grainy. Stick blending smoothed out the texture. Interestingly, when we soaped with lime flavored LaCroix, it behaved better. So, the performance of LaCroix in cold process soap may vary flavor to flavor.
What You Need:Grapefruit LaCroix Soap Tutorial
Tall Narrow Wood Loaf Mold
40 oz. Swirl Quick Mix
13.2 oz. Flat Grapefruit LaCroix
5.5 oz. Sodium Hydroxide Lye
2.9 oz. Grapefruit Bellini Fragrance Oil
Titanium Dioxide
Magenta Mica
Sunset Orange Mica
Aqua Pearl Mica
Mermaid Blue Mica
Find the supplies you need for this project below
If you’ve never made cold process soap before, stop here! Check out our FREE four part SoapQueen.tv series on cold process soapmaking, especially the episode on lye safety. Bramble Berry also carries a wide range of books on the topic, including Pure Soapmaking.
LACROIX PREP (1-2 days before): Open two cans of Grapefruit LaCroix and allow the liquid to sit out for 1-2 days to get rid of carbonation. The best way to test if the LaCroix is flat is to taste it. Once it no longer contains carbonation, pour 13.2 ounces of the LaCroix into a lye safe container.
COLOR PREP: Disperse 1 teaspoon of the titanium dioxide into 1 tablespoon of sunflower or sweet almond oil (or any other liquid oil). In separate containers, mix 1/2 teaspoon of Aqua Pearl Mica, Mermaid Mica, Sunset Orange Mica, and Magenta Mica into 1/2 tablespoon of lightweight liquid oil. Use a mini mixer to help get rid of any clumps.
OPTIONAL: To ensure that the titanium dioxide blends smoothly into the soap batter, we recommend micronizing it before dispersing it in oil. To micronize the colorant, simply use a coffee grinder to blend it. That breaks up any clumps of color and prevents streaks of white from showing in the final soap. We like to use a coffee grinder that has a removable stainless steel mixing area for easy cleaning.
FRAGRANCE PREP: Measure 2.9 ounces of Grapefruit Bellini Fragrance Oil into a glass fragrance oil safe container. Set aside.
MOLD & TOOL PREP: Line the Tall Narrow Wood Loaf Mold with freezer paper, shiny side up. For tips on how to line the mold, click here.
SAFETY FIRST: Suit up for safe handling practices. That means goggles, gloves, and long sleeves. Make sure kids, pets, other distractions, and tripping hazards are out of the house or don’t have access to your soaping space. Always soap in a well-ventilated area.
ONE: Slowly and carefully add the lye to the LaCroix and gently stir until the lye has fully dissolved and the liquid is clear. Set aside to cool. If you’d like a harder bar of soap that releases faster from the mold, you can add sodium lactate to the cooled lye water. Use 1 teaspoon of sodium lactate per pound of oils in the recipe. For this recipe, you’d add 2.5 teaspoons of sodium lactate.
TWO: Fully melt the entire bag of Swirl Quick Mix until it’s completely clear with no cloudiness. Shake the bag to mix up all the oils. Measure 40 ounces into your soaping bowl. Once the lye solution and the oils have cooled to 130 degrees F or below (and are ideally within 10 degrees of each other), add the lye solution to the oils and stick blend until thin trace.
THREE: Once you reach a thin trace, add all the Grapefruit Bellini Fragrance Oil and use a whisk to mix in thoroughly. Split the soap batter into four containers. Two containers should contain 600 mL and the other two containers should contain 150 mL.
FOUR: Add the following amounts of dispersed colorants to each container and use a whisk to completely combine.
- Container A – pink (600 mL): 1 tsp. Magenta Mica + 1 tsp. titanium dioxide
- Container B – orange (600 mL): 1/2 tsp. Sunset Orange Mica
- Container C – green (150 mL): 1/2 tsp. Aqua Pearl Mica
- Container D – blue (150 mL): 1/2 tsp. Mermaid Mica
At this point, the soap batter began to thicken and take on a grainy texture. We found stick blending each container for a few seconds got rid of the graininess and thinned the trace. This graininess is probably caused by the ingredients in the LaCroix. However, because the ingredients are rather mysterious, it’s hard to say what exactly caused the grainy texture. We also soaped with lime flavored LaCroix and didn’t experience the graininess, so how LaCroix behaves in soap may vary flavor to flavor.
FIVE: Pour some of the pink and orange soap into the mold, and use a spoon to smooth it out. Tap the mold on the counter to help settle it into the mold.
SIX: Hold the mold at an angle, and pour the most of the blue soap into one corner of the mold. Tap the mold firmly on the counter to settle the soap.
SEVEN: Pour more of the orange soap into the mold, then pour all of the green soap into the mold, concentrating it in one corner. Pour any leftover blue soap into the other side of the mold. Tap the mold on the counter to get rid of bubbles.
EIGHT: Begin layering the remainder of the pink and orange soap into the mold. Don’t worry what the layers look like, you’re going for an imperfect look. Continue layering until all the soap is in the mold.
NINE: Tap the mold firmly on the counter to help get rid of bubbles. Use a spoon to smooth out the top of the soap. Spritz the top with 99% isopropyl alcohol to prevent soda ash. Cover the mold with the lid and allow to sit in the mold for about 2-3 days. Remove from the mold and cut into bars. Allow to cure for 4-6 weeks and enjoy.
NOTE: Our original plan was to drizzle various colorants mixed with oil on top to create a messy splatter look. It looked okay at first, but then the mica paint began to run together and the overall look wasn’t what we planned. Once we cut the soap into bars, we decided to just cut off the top. Not every design idea turns out perfect, but cutting the top of the soap was an easy way to fix the problem.
- Tall Narrow Wood Loaf Mold
- 40 oz. Swirl Quick Mix
- 13.2 oz. Flat Grapefruit LaCroix
- 5.5 oz. Sodium Hydroxide Lye
- 2.9 oz. Grapefruit Bellini Fragrance Oil
- Titanium Dioxide
- Magenta Mica
- Sunset Orange Mica
- Aqua Pearl Mica
- Mermaid Blue Mica
- Slowly and carefully add the lye to the LaCroix and gently stir until the lye has fully dissolved and the liquid is clear. Set aside to cool. If you’d like a harder bar of soap that releases faster from the mold, you can add sodium lactate to the cooled lye water. Use 1 teaspoon of sodium lactate per pound of oils in the recipe. For this recipe, you’d add 2.5 teaspoons of sodium lactate.
- Fully melt the entire bag of Swirl Quick Mix until it’s completely clear with no cloudiness. Shake the bag to mix up all the oils. Measure 40 ounces into your soaping bowl. Once the lye solution and the oils have cooled to 130 degrees F or below (and are ideally within 10 degrees of each other), add the lye solution to the oils and stick blend until thin trace.
- Once you reach a thin trace, add all the Grapefruit Bellini Fragrance Oil and use a whisk to mix in thoroughly. Split the soap batter into four containers. Two containers should contain 600 mL and the other two containers should contain 150 mL.
- Add the following amounts of dispersed colorants to each container and use a whisk to completely combine.
Container A – pink (600 mL): 1 tsp. Magenta Mica + 1 tsp. titanium dioxide
Container B – orange (600 mL): ½ tsp. Sunset Orange Mica
Container C – green (150 mL): ½ tsp. Aqua Pearl Mica
Container D – blue (150 mL): ½ tsp. Mermaid Mica - At this point, the soap batter began to thicken and take on a grainy texture. We found stick blending each container for a few seconds got rid of the graininess and thinned the trace. This graininess is probably caused by the ingredients in the LaCroix. However, because the ingredients are rather mysterious, it’s hard to say what exactly caused the grainy texture. We also soaped with lime flavored LaCroix and didn’t experience the graininess, so how LaCroix behaves in soap may vary flavor to flavor.
- Pour some of the pink and orange soap into the mold, and use a spoon to smooth it out. Tap the mold on the counter to help settle it into the mold.
- Hold the mold at an angle, and pour the most of the blue soap into one corner of the mold. Tap the mold firmly on the counter to settle the soap.
- Pour more of the orange soap into the mold, then pour all of the green soap into the mold, concentrating it in one corner. Pour any leftover blue soap into the other side of the mold. Tap the mold on the counter to get rid of bubbles.
- Begin layering the remainder of the pink and orange soap into the mold. Don’t worry what the layers look like, you’re going for an imperfect look. Continue layering until all the soap is in the mold.
- Tap the mold firmly on the counter to help get rid of bubbles. Use a spoon to smooth out the top of the soap. Spritz the top with 99% isopropyl alcohol to prevent soda ash. Cover the mold with the lid and allow to sit in the mold for about 2-3 days. Remove from the mold and cut into bars. Allow to cure for 4-6 weeks and enjoy.
In this recipe I used distilled water in place of the LaCroix water, the batch thickened very quick and did get grainy even without the LaCroix. Stirring didn’t seem to help smooth the batch out . I spooned and spread the batter in the mold, then a good hit on the counter to get rid of bubbles. I’m hoping the texture works out.
Violet
The Swirl Quick Mix is made for designs that take more time and Grapefruit Bellini doesn’t accelerate, so I’m wondering if it’s temperature related. What temperature were your oils and lye? How long did you stick blend? I can help you troubleshoot.
We made soap today because this looks so awesome! Out of curiosity, What would be the difference in this recipe if I were to use Distilled water versus La Croix?
We found bars made with LaCroix feel very similar to those made with distilled water. We mostly added it because we’re big fans and wanted to experiment. It’s also great as a marketing technique.
Thank You. I have learned so much from this website. Keep up the good work.
You’re welcome, thanks for your sweet comment Connie.
What a lovely design. I would love to make an attempt to create this soap design. If I learn how to make this design for the soaps that I sell, using my own recipe, would it be copyright infringement? Are soap designs copyrighted?
Feel free to use any of our designs to sell or enjoy yourself, that’s what our blog is for. If you want to use another soapmaker’s design, you may want to ask first just to be sure that’s OK.
Okay my coconut La Croix is sitting and I can’t wait to try this! I am loving the color on the coconut can. I don’t think a coconut fragrance will work so I will do a lime eo. I can only hope this looks as cool as yours!!
That sounds like a great idea. Let us know how it turns out. 🙂
That’s such a cool idea! Does the soap end up retaining any fragrance from the LaCroix after curing or does it fade?
There may be a bit of scent but it’s pretty subtle. We recommend adding a fragrance like Grapefruit Bellini for a nice strong scent.
Grapefruit La Croix is my favorite, will definitely try this, but with my own oils, not a mix. It is so beautiful! Great idea! ❤️
Have fun Michelle. 🙂
This is off subject but can you pre-mix micas, oxides in glycerin before hand? because the powder is so messy and I would prefer liquid. if so what the ratio? and how long can you keep it?
You can premix colors, but for cold process soap we recommend mixing them with a lightweight oil like sweet almond. Glycerin can cause color beading or glycerin rivers in cold process soap so we don’t recommend it.
You can mix the pigments and oil at a 1:3 ratio (1 teaspoon color to 1 tablespoon oil). Store them in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. Make sure to mix before use to break up any clumps.
The colors will last as long as the oil shelf lives, find a list of those here: http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/tips-and-tricks/free-beginners-guide-to-soapmaking-common-soapmaking-oils/
Instead of the fragrance oil, can you grapefruit essential oil, and if so, how much would you use?
Yes, you can use grapefruit essential oil. Find out how much to add with our Fragrance Calculator: https://www.brambleberry.com/Pages/Fragrance-Calculator.aspx
Citrus essential oils can fade in cold process soap. To prevent that, you can anchor it with a deeper scent like lemongrass or patchouli.
Learn more about anchoring in this post: https://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/tips-and-tricks/how-to-prevent-scent-fading-in-soap/
Omg, look at that gorgeous color!! Can I try sparkling water with natural colorants like clays? Thank you for sharing Soap queen.
I think that will work just fine. You can make a small test batch to be sure though.
Learn more about working with clay here: https://www.soapqueen.com/bramble-berry-news/sunday-night-spotlight-brazilian-clay/
Clays: https://www.brambleberry.com/Clays-C48.aspx
Are we not allowed to pin these posts to Pinterest, or re-pin them from your Pinterest? I keep getting emails from Pinterest stating they’ve removed my pins (repinned from your Pinterest page) because Soap Queen submitted a DMCA complaint. What gives?
We submitted a complaint against a website that was using our photos but the pins were going to another website. It looks like Pinterest removed all photos that looked like that one, even ours. Sorry about that Sherry, we’re working on fixing that now. Feel free to pin as much as you like from our website.
They removed 6 or seven more, and sent me several threatening infringement emails. I’m going to have to delete an entire board of several years worth of saved pins for health and beauty diys. Otherwise they’ll ban me and remove my account.
Sorry Sherry, we’re talking with people from Pinterest to try and find out how to fix it.
How did you get those beautifully beveled corners!?
We used our Soap Beveller: https://www.brambleberry.com/Soap-Beveller-P4141.aspx
It gives soap those nice crisp corners.
Dear
Is it allowed ro import soap making and bathbomb supplies to Saudi Arabia, any restrictions items from your experience with the clients?
Because there are isopropyl Alcohol and some other chemicals compounds. Kindly advise.
We are able to ship to Saudi Arabia, but there may be restrictions on which products we can ship. I would recommend checking with your local customs agent to learn more.
This page has more information as well: https://www.brambleberry.com/International-Shipping-Policies.aspx
hi, I was wondering how to thin out a batch of lotion that just got too thick? I use vegetable based oils such as sunflower and olive oil
thanks!
You can heat your lotion up again (keep it around 140F so the preservative doesn’t degrade) and add more distilled water. Then, stick blend for a few minutes to get everything emulsified. Before doing that, I would recommend looking at your emulsifier and preservative amounts – you want to make sure you have enough of both of those to cover that extra water. If not, you can add more emulsifier and preservative when you add the water.
Learn more about emulsifier and preservative amounts here: https://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/lotion/how-to-create-homemade-lotion-recipes/
I can’t wait to read through this. Just wanted to tell you this soap is beautiful!
Thank you Hilary!
Very interesting experiment, thanks for sharing! I don’t drink out of cans so I’ve never heard of it, it might be interesting to experiment with other non-sugar liquids.
Absolutely, it’s fun trying out different ingredients in soap.