Violet Confetti Cold Process Soap Tutorial

“Confetti soap” refers to bars that contain shreds of previously made batches. The soap shreds look like pieces of confetti or sprinkles in the final bar. I love the playful look it creates. The technique is a great way to use up extra soap or a batch that didn’t turn out quite right. I have used both fully cured soap shreds and fresh soap shreds with good results.

For this Violet Confetti Tutorial, soap colored with Queen’s Purple Mica and Titanium Dioxide are layered to create contrast. Shreds of soap made with Queen’s Purple Mica and Orchid Mica are added to the white layer for interest. If you don’t have leftover purple soap, other colors would look great as well. In particular, shreds of green, yellow or pink soap would look beautiful. Violet Fragrance Oil mimics the purple colors. This fragrance accelerates slightly, which aids in creating a textured top. Lavender Mica is sprinkled on top for sparkle.

I can’t believe this is the last tutorial for the #SoaptheRainbow series! Six weeks went by so quickly. If you haven’t participated in the series yet, there is still time. Share your purple projects on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook with the tag #SoaptheRainbow for a chance to win a $10 Bramble Berry gift certificate. There is also still time to enter to win the GRAND PRIZE of over $250 worth of colorants, fragrances, molds and more.

What You’ll Need:
10″ Silicone Loaf Mold
Approx. 5-6 oz. Shredded Cold Process Soap
33 oz. Lots of Lather Quick Mix
4.7 oz. Sodium Hydroxide Lye
10.8 oz. Distilled Water
2 oz. Violet Fragrance Oil
Titanium Dioxide
Queen’s Purple Mica
Lavender Mica

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Find the supplies you need for this project below

10" Silicone Loaf MoldLots of Lather Quick MixSodium Hydroxide LyeViolet Fragrance OilQueen's Purple MicaLavender MicaTitanium Dioxide

If you’ve never made Cold Process soap before, stop here! I highly recommend checking out our FREE four part SoapQueen.tv series on Cold Process Soapmaking, especially the episode on lye safety. And if you’d rather do some reading, Bramble Berry carries a wide range of books on the topic, including my newest book, Pure Soapmaking. You can also checkout the digital downloads for that instant gratification factor.

SAFETY FIRST: Suit up for safe handling practices! That means goggles, gloves and long sleeves. Make sure kids, pets, and 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.

COLOR PREP: To ensure that the Titanium Dioxide blends smoothly into the soap batter, we recommend micronizing it before dispersing it in oil. Please note this is an optional tip but it does help with the titanium dioxide clumping in the soap. =) To micronize colorant, simply use a coffee grinder to blend the colorant to break up any clumps of color and prevent 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. Then, disperse 1/2 teaspoon of the colorant into 1/2 tablespoon of sunflower or sweet almond oil (or any other liquid oil). Then in a separate container, disperse 2 teaspoons of the Queen’s Purple Mica into 2 tablespoons lightweight liquid oil. Use a mini mixer to help get rid of clumps. Have the Lavender Mica nearby to sprinkle on the very top of the soap.

FRAGRANCE PREP: Measure 2 ounces of Violet Fragrance Oil into a small glass, fragrance oil safe container and set aside.

SHREDDED SOAP PREP: Shred leftover or scrap cold process bars with a cheese grater. You can experiment with different grates, but we found the larger holes on the grater worked best and were most visible in the finished soap. For this project, we used about 5-6 ounces of shredded soap but ultimately how much you shred is up to you. For this project, we shredded purple soap made with Queen’s Purple Mica and Orchid Mica. Set the shredded soap aside.

ONE: Slowly and carefully add the lye to the water and gently stir until the lye has fully dissolved and the liquid is clear. Set aside to cool.

TWO: Fully melt the bag of Lots of Lather Quick Mix until there is no cloudiness. Shake to mix and measure out 33 ounces. Once the lye water and the oils have both cooled to 130 degrees or below (and are ideally within 10 degrees of each other), add the lye water to the oils and stick blend until you reach a light trace. 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 about 2 teaspoons sodium lactate.

TWO: Split the mixture into two containers. One container should contain about 2 cups, while the other should contain about 4 cups. To the larger container, add all the dispersed Queen’s Purple Mica. Use a whisk to fully mix in the colorant. Split the purple batch in half; each container should contain about 2 cups.

THREE: To the remaining soap, add 1 teaspoon dispersed Titanium Dioxide. Use a whisk to fully mix in the colorant.

FOUR: To one of the purple containers, add about 1/3 of the Violet Fragrance Oil. It’s okay to eyeball it. Use a whisk to fully mix in. If the soap is still quite thin, pulse with the stick blender for a few seconds until it’s a medium to thick trace.

FIVE: Pour the soap into the mold, and tap firmly on the counter to help release bubbles. Use a spoon or spatula to make divots and peaks in the soap. Because we aren’t going for perfectly straight layers, this helps give them a slight “wave.”

SIX: Add about 1/3 of the Violet Fragrance Oil into the white soap and use a whisk to mix in. If the soap is still thin, use a stick blender to pulse the mixture to thicken. Add the shaved purple soap into the white soap, and use a whisk to mix in.
NOTE: If you add the shavings while the soap is still quite thin, do not stick blend to thicken. The stick blender will blend the “confetti” into small chunks, which isn’t the look we are going for. Instead, wait for the white soap to thicken by slowly whisking or stick blending the soap. Keep the other container of purple soap moving during this time as well to avoid it from becoming too thick.

SEVEN: Pour the white soap into the mold. If your soap is quite thick, use a spoon to plop the soap into the mold evenly. If possible, use a spoon to create peaks and divots in the white layer.

EIGHT: Add the rest of the Violet Fragrance Oil into the remaining purple soap and whisk in. If necessary, pulse the soap with the stick blender to thicken.

NINE: Plop the purple soap on top of the white layer. Use the spoon to even out the purple soap and create texture. There is no right or wrong way to do this, just continue moving the soap with your spoon until you’re happy with the look.

TEN: Sprinkle Lavender Mica on top of the soap. You can use your fingers or a powder duster for a more even look. Then, close your eyes and gently blow on the top of the soap. This will disperse the mica, but be careful…it can get a little messy! =)

Spritz the top of the soap with 99% isopropyl alcohol to prevent soda ash and leave the soap in the mold for 2-3 days. Once unmolded, cut into bars and allow them to cure for 4-6 weeks. Enjoy!

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5.0 from 2 reviews

Violet Confetti Cold Process Soap Tutorial

 

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Cook time

2 hours

Total time

2 hours

 

This cold process soap uses shredded soap from previous batches to create a "confetti" layer in the center!

Author: Soap Queen

Recipe type: Cold Process Soap

Serves: About 3 pounds of soap

Ingredients

• 10" Silicone Loaf Mold
• Approx. 5-6 oz. Shredded Cold Process Soap
• 33 oz. Lots of Lather Quick Mix
• 4.7 oz. Sodium Hydroxide Lye
• 10.8 oz. Distilled Water
• 2 oz. Violet Fragrance Oil
• Titanium Dioxide
• Queen's Purple Mica
• Lavender Mica

Instructions

SAFETY FIRST: Suit up for safe handling practices! That means goggles, gloves and long sleeves. Make sure kids, pets, and 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.

COLOR PREP: To ensure that the Titanium Dioxide blends smoothly into the soap batter, we recommend micronizing it before dispersing it in oil. Please note this is an optional tip but it does help with the titanium dioxide clumping in the soap. =) To micronize colorant, simply use a coffee grinder to blend the colorant to break up any clumps of color and prevent 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. Then, disperse ½ teaspoon of the colorant into ½ tablespoon of sunflower or sweet almond oil (or any other liquid oil). Then in a separate container, disperse 2 teaspoons of the Queen's Purple Mica into 2 tablespoons lightweight liquid oil. Use a mini mixer to help get rid of clumps. Have the Lavender Mica nearby to sprinkle on the very top of the soap.

FRAGRANCE PREP: Measure 2 ounces of Violet Fragrance Oil into a small glass container and set aside.

SHREDDED SOAP PREP: Shred a few leftover or scrap cold process bars with a cheese grater. You can experiment with different grates, but we found the larger holes on the grater worked best and were most visible in the finished soap. For this project, we used about 5-6 ounces of shredded soap but ultimately how much you shred is up to you. For this project, we shredded purple soap made with Queen’s Purple Mica and Orchid Mica. Set the shredded soap aside.

1. Slowly and carefully add the lye to the water and gently stir until the lye has fully dissolved and the liquid is clear. Set aside to cool.
2. Fully melt the bag of Lots of Lather Quick Mix until there is no cloudiness. Shake to mix and measure out 33 ounces. Once the lye water and the oils have both cooled to 130 degrees or below (and are ideally within 10 degrees of each other), add the lye water to the oils and stick blend until you reach a light trace. 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 about 2 teaspoons sodium lactate.
3. Split the mixture into two containers. One container should contain about 2 cups, while the other should contain about 4 cups. To the larger container, add all the dispersed Queen’s Purple Mica. Use a whisk to fully mix in the colorant. Split the purple batch in half; each container should contain about 2 cups.
4. To the remaining uncolored soap, add 1 teaspoon dispersed Titanium Dioxide. Use a whisk to fully mix in the colorant.
5. To one of the purple containers, add about ⅓ of the Violet Fragrance Oil. It's okay to eyeball it. Use a whisk to fully mix in. If the soap is still quite thin, pulse with the stick blender for a few seconds until it's a medium to thick trace.
6. Pour the soap into the mold, and tap firmly on the counter to help release bubbles. Use a spoon or spatula to make divots and peaks in the soap. Because we aren't going for perfectly straight layers, this helps give them a slight "wave."
7. Add about ⅓ of the Violet Fragrance Oil into the white soap, and use a whisk to mix in. If the soap is still thin, use a stick blender to pulse the mixture to thicken. Add the shaved purple soap into the white soap, and use a whisk to mix in.
8. Pour the white soap into the mold. If your soap is quite thick, use a spoon to plop the soap into the mold evenly. If possible, use a spoon to create peaks and divots in the white layer.
9. Add the rest of the Violet Fragrance Oil into the remaining purple soap and whisk in. If necessary, pulse the soap with the stick blender to thicken.
10. Plop the purple soap on top of the white layer. Use the spoon to even out the purple soap, and create texture. There is no right or wrong way to do this, just continue moving the soap with your spoon until you’re happy with the look.
11. Sprinkle Lavender Mica on top of the soap. You can use your fingers, or a powder duster for a more even look. Then, close your eyes and gently blow on the top of the soap. This will disperse the mica, but be careful…it can get a little messy! Spritz the top of the soap with 99% isopropyl alcohol to prevent soda ash and leave the soap in the mold for 2-3 days. Once unmolded, cut into bars and allow them to cure for 4-6 weeks. Enjoy!

3.3.3077