Experimenting with different sizes in my tall skinny molds - Sugar Plum Fairy & Sleigh Ride

Last year, I made the switch from traditional shaped soap bars to the "tall skinny" bars.  I'd seen quite a few soapers with these bars but the it wasn't as popular as it is now and I was having a difficult time finding molds that 1. produced the right size bars  and 2. could allow me to make the quantity of bars that I need for each batch.  Finally, I just decided to have another mold custom made.

 

SUGAR PLUM

Sweet Sugared Plums with a heart of Citrus Zest on a base of warm Vanilla Musk

 

Making soap this way has its pros and cons for me.  One of the major cons, is that I have been having a difficult time creating my swirls in the narrow compartments.   So, my challenge has been coming up with other creative elements that aren't just about "the swirl".  

 

SLEIGH RIDE 

 

 Top notes of Orange Zest with a center of tart Granny Smith Apples on a warm and spicy base of Clove and fresh Mint.

 

I tried to create my own true red by blending merlot mica, hot pink and even a bit of purple.  Meh, I'm not overly impressed.  Not sure it was worth the extra effort.  Good news though, I saw that Nurture Soap Supplies is working on a new an improved "true red" mica for CPers.  Can't wait to try it out.

 

Anywho,  I decided to make them shorter and thicker.  I really like this size as it fits less awkwardly in my hand and they wear down more evenly in the shower.  Now I'm trying to experiment more with colored layers, embeds, etc.  It's still a work in progress ♥

Mayan Gold - ITP Swirling in Layers

I received a bar of soap made with BrambleBerry's Mayan Gold fragrance last year (or was it earlier this year?) in their soap swap.  My mom absolutely LOVED the scent and insisted that I include it in my Winter Release.

 

 

We designed and made this batch together.  I really enjoy soaping with my mom!  So, the design was suppose to be 3 layers of ITP swirls:  Black bottom with gold swirls (gold mica line) followed by a bronze type color with a black swirl (gold mica line) topped with a gold layer with a bronze swirl (dusting of gold mica).  It didn't quite work out like that!!

 

Everything was going fine until the dam in my mold slid out of place causing the layers to be disrupted.  This happened several times as we tried to find things to help reinforce the mold.  In the chaos,  I forgot half of the center layer still in the bowl and poured the top layer.  We spotted the bowl too late and made the decision to just go ahead and add it to the top.  Not quite what we were going for, but we were both quite happy with the outcome.

 

The scent is amazing: A warm spicy blend with notes of Sweet Orange, Sandalwood, Vetiver, Vanilla Bean and decadent Chocolate

It's a tad bit on the masculine side, but I totally think a chic could rock this scent as well ♥

Peppermint Bark Snowfake Wax Melts

One of my guilty indulgences during the holiday season is Ghirardelli Peppermint Bark Chocolate Squares.  I've been thinking about making some from scratch this year with my boys.  While browsing the net for recipes, I came across pictures of peppermint bark but instead of the usual broken pieces, they were shaped like snowflakes!  Now, of course, that got my soapy wheels turning.  However, instead of making soap, I though these would be extra cute as wax tarts.

 

 

How delicious!  I'll have to remind myself that these are for smelling NOT for eating ;0)

 

Instead of blending the peppermint and chocolate fragrance oils together, I thought it would be cool to allow the chocolate to start filling the room, then have the mint slowly tip-toe in.

 

So, the base is a super yummy hot chocolate scent, with a white layer of peppermint topped with real crushed candy canes and glitter.  Now, all I have to do is tackle the edible version!

Sultana's Dream - learning to create silver in cold process soap

I looooove the color purple (any shade) and I love taking advantage of any opportunity to use it in my soap.  This scent is a duplication of Lush's Sultana fragrance.  I've never smelled the original so I can't say how close this is to it, but it's a really lovely scent that behaved beautifully in this batch of soap.

 

 

A blend of Bergamot and Blackberry leading to soft floral notes of Egyptian Jasmine and Rose on a warm base of Indian Frankincense, Ginger and Musk

 

For the pour, I decided to do what I believe is called a "tiger stripe".  The colors here are purple, silver, lavender and white.  You can't really tell from the pictures but that really is silver between the purple and lavender layers.  Frustrating, yes, I know.  I really wish the camera could have picked up that color and shimmer.  It's so pretty in person.

 

 

To create the silver portion, I used activated charcoal (I'm sure black oxide would work just as well), titanium dioxide and diamond dust mica.  Lot's of diamond dust mica.  It added a very pretty shimmer to what would have been simply light gray.  I'm looking forward to playing with this color blend some more in the future.  I think it's possible to make it pop even more.  I'd really be interested in hearing if anyone else has tried something similar and what your results were.  Till next time...♥