I don’t know about you, but I go daft for reading Soapy blogs. I use bloglovin,ย which I love because even though I don’t always get to read posts as soon, and as often, as I would like, it keeps me up to date with all my fellow soapy bloggers and I never miss a thing. In fact, it was fellow soaper’s blog that reminded me last week that Iย had actually missed something – I’d forgotten to post about my most recent Lavender soap.
Ruth Esteves over at The Sirona Springs Blog posted a great tutorial on creating Mica Oil Swirls on the top of soaps, and invited readers to link their own attempts in the comments section. So I though I would. Only I didn’t have anything to link to, ‘cos I’ve not blogged about it. <Ahem…>
So here it is –ย a reincarnation of Luscious Lavender, but with a mica oil swirl.ย The soap itself is coloured with violet ultramarine, but the closest mica I had was ‘Patagonian Purple’, and it’s not really a good match colour-wise (at all, lol). Never mind – I love the effect anyway (and I’ve just placed an order for ‘Grape’ mica which I’m hoping will be closer to the ultramarine colour and more ‘lavender-like’ for future soaps ๐
I didn’t take any photos of the process, but all I did was mix about half a teaspoon of mica in a small container with about a teaspoonful of olive oil, and then used a disposable pipette to drop the mixture all over the soap once it was in the mould. I then used a wooden skewer to create the swirls. Easy peasy ๐
If you have a soapy blog please feel free to share it in the comments below. If I don’t already follow you – I will!
Nicely done, Vicki! This technique makes such an impact with very little effort. I like the copper look of the mica you used.
Thanks Ruth, it really is an easy way to make the top look a bit special!
Very pretty! I have to try this technique- it’s a great way to jazz up a simple soap block.
Thanks! It’s a great technique, give it a go – you won’t be disappointed ๐
Beautiful delicate swirls! โค๏ธ
Thanks Tanya – I do think it’s really pretty but to be honest the soap was a little thicker than I would have liked. Always our own worst critic right? Next time I’ll aim for less of a trace and a more ‘wispy’ type of swirl.
I love your blog! Thanks for reading mine as well. It is so nice t connect with other members of the soaping community!
Ah thanks Shelly! You’re so right about connecting with other soapers – and it’s such a friendly community! I do like how you incorporate a bit of personal stuff in with your (gorgeous!) soapy updates. It’s something I’m going to try to do a bit more of in future as I think it’s nice to get to ‘know’ a bit about the person behind the blog (if you know what I mean)
Love that topping Vicki, it’s a beautiful colour and looks fabulous over that purple swirl. Way to go!
Thanks Monica – it is a beautiful colour but I’m not sure it’s ‘purple’, despite being called ‘Patagonian Purple’ lol. Ah well, live and learn ๐
Beautiful, Vicki! Love the purple in contrast with the swirl top!
Thanks Natalia! ๐
Very beautiful, Vicki! Glad you digged it up, love your tops and I actually think the top colour doesn’t have to match the inside one for the effective look. This soap looks great!
Thanks Maja – was glad to be reminded of it! I’ll definitely be doing lots more of these swirls.
Beautiful, Vicki! I love the way mica oil swirls look. The shimmer of micas is often lost in CP soap, but the oil swirl is a great way to preserve their sparkliness!
Thanks Jenny, I absolutely agree about the shimmer – when I first started using them I was a little disappointed that the shimmer didn’t seem to carry through when mixed with the soap itself. This way it does – woop!
Beautiful mica swirl, Vicki! I think the thickened soap batter adds a nice wavy texture.
I also use Bloglovin to follow blogs. Like you, I really enjoy and learn a lot from other people’s blogs. It’s a great little community of wonderful people. ๐
Thanks Silvia! Oh soapy blogs are just great aren’t they? I love the people and the community too (though the more I read, the more inspiration I get and then the more I have to add to my mental ‘must try’ list lol!!)
So pretty Vicki, I really like the contrast of color between the soap and those pretty mica swirls, thanks for sharing! ๐
Thanks Cee ๐
Really pretty swirls!
Have you tried The Conservatorie for micas? I’ve used them for about 6 months, and I LOVE their selection of colors! Most of their micas show wether or not they are soap stable, but feel free to email me if you have a question on any of their colors since I have at least 30 of their micas. So far they have the best variety of soap stable micas I’ve come across.
Ooh thanks for the tip! I’ve just checked out their website and emailed them to enquire about shipping costs to the UK. Might give them at try if it works out fairly economical.
What a great post about swirls.. I love the tops of the Lavender!!
Thanks Alyson! I’m developing a real obsession for mica swirls ๐
Ahh, it’s a beautiful soap! Mica swirls are such an elegant touch.
(I go daft for soap blogs, too!)
Thanks Amy, and welcome. Lovely to ‘meet’ another soap blog enthusiast! ๐
Stalno pratim vaลก rad! Sapuni su vam divni!
Hvala vam!
Thanks for visiting and for your kind comments ๐