Hi Crystal,

Have a question about inserts bleeding.... On my 'Oceans Bar', I pop a small colored soap into a large clear pour and finding days later the insert color is bleeding into the clear (ultra clear with ultra white insert).

Am I using too much color on the inserts (need to be bold)?

Should I add more oils to the inserts to harden them or could it be too much scented oils causing the bleeds?

Should the inserts 'cure' longer before use?

Lots of hands making these last batches and didn't get to supervise closely enough, hoping you'll know what caused this?

The photo attached is a red beach ball that is loosing its color (see white spot on top) and bleeding the color into the clear. This happens after the soap is hardened and out of the mold.

Appreciate any thoughts you'd have on this!

Thanks,
Kathy

hey girl...sorry it took a few to get back to you on this...this is an awesome ?...i wasn't real sure what to do about the bleedin'...i had to some searchin'...by the way i wanted to tell you i think your web site is awesome...if you didn't mind i would love to talk about you on my blog and show some of your pix...if you'd like you could tell me about yourself, how you got started, about sellin' your soaps, etc...just let me know :0)...ok back to the color bleed...Color bleed occurs in melt and pour soap when the color you've added doesn't stay where it's supposed to - when the color in an embed or section of of the soap "bleeds" or "migrates" into the section or part next to it after it is made - usually after couple of weeks. The blue in the blue layer starts to "leak" into the white layer...or the red in the hearts starts to bleed into the clear soap base. This happens primarily with liquid dye-based colors - but can happen with any colorant that is water soluble. Red is often the most problematic. Non-water-soluble colorants like oxides, pigments and micas will not bleed, but they do not provide bright, vibrant colors, and aren't as transparent. The red of an oxide is more of a brick red; the yellow, a mustard yellow. Several companies sell what are called "non-bleeding" colors. I have had mixed results with them. Again, the key factor is whether or not the dye is water soluble. If it is...it will mix in well, be clear, and likely more vibrant. But, it can bleed...Using a pigment, mica or oxide won't bleed, but the colors won't be as vibrant. The new "non-bleed" colors are complex combinations of dyes, pigments and polymers. Very interesting things...i'm going to be addin' your ? to the blog...if you have anymore ?'s ask and i'll do my very best to help...crystal...always remember to smile and have fun no matter what