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I've heard other soapers talk about "color bleeding" in soap making . What does this mean?
Anyone new to soap making has likely heard the term "color bleeding". Contrary to what you might think, the term "bleeding" does not mean that a color will come off onto your skin during bathing or showering.
The type of colorant used in a soap base determines whether a color will eventually bleed. An example of bleeding: You embed a royal blue heart in a white soap base. After several days, you notice that the blue heart has started to bleed (migrate) into the surrounding white soap. The white area around the heart has now taken on a pale blue color. Over time, the blue color eventually penetrates and bleeds (migrates) into all of the white soap making the edges of the embedded heart fuzzy and indistinct.
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This scripted letter "A" was painted with sapphire blue liquid gel color. It is a "bleeding" color. As you can see, after several days the blue color has started to migrate into the cream color soap. |
The color pigments we use for our vertical shaped embedments are non-bleeding. They do not fade or bleed. The only type of bleeding you may encounter is pouring at too high of a temperature. This may cause the embedment to melt slightly and bleed. This is not the color bleeding, it is the soap (embedment) that is bleeding due to excessive pouring temperatures.
If you want non-bleeding soap colors, you will need to use our Liquid Gel Colorants ( neon , ultramarines and mineral/oxides , metallics , and certain jewel tones ). Most, though not all, are non-bleeding. All are non-fading and color intensity is exceptional.
* Denise Marks is the president of Nouveau Designs LLC which offers one of the most extensive selection of quality soap supplies and on the Net. She is an experienced soap maker and owner of one of the largest soap mold manufacturing companies worldwide. Visit GoPlanetEarth.com for a complete listing of soap making supplies.
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