Rob Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 umm..lol, okay, how do you guys get these little buggers to dissolve fully? I'm having an issue with them... I stir stir stir stir.. maybe I just need to stir more? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TexasBrat Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 I have not been able to get them to disovle either but once I add the lye they seem to disappear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deb Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 Rob, I have the same problem....at times. I don't know why they disolve without a problem some of the time and not others. I'm anxious to see the answers to this one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amish Ragdoll Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 This is just a thought & I have NOT tried it, but.... lye water will dissolve the fibers, so maybe after the silk dissovles you could add citric acid to neutralize it. I am assuming that you want liquid silk for lotions and such, not CP soap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scent Cellar Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 I add my silk fibers to my distilled water and let them set for awhile until they are totally saturated with water. Then I add my lye all at once to the water mixture and stir for a few seconds. The heat from the lye will totally dissolve the fiber and just leave the water a bit cloudy. I stir again before putting the water into my oils. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CareBear Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 In soap? I toss my fibers into container, add my water in on top and then my lye directly in on top as well. Stir till the solution pretty much clears (lye dissolves) and set it aside. There are still some kinda gloppy fibers left when the solution cools but I use the solution anyway and never came across any evidence of it in the soap. I think the stirring to trace and then the full saponification takes care of it all.It's time more than stirring that takes care of the buggers. And adding them AFTER the lye doesn't seem to work as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meridith Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 I've noticed that it dissolves better when I put it in the lye solution when its really hot. The cooler my lye solution, the less my silk dissolved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amish Ragdoll Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 I've noticed that it dissolves better when I put it in the lye solution when its really hot. The cooler my lye solution, the less my silk dissolved.Yes, I agree. The lye water should be hot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 I put the lye in the water, stir, then add the silk. I stir the lye mixture occasionally until it's at the right temp. Any undisolved lye gets taken care of with the SB. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TexasBrat Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 So I'm doing it backwards. I'll try adding it after the lye is added to my water. Thanks for the tip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantnaturals Posted July 17, 2007 Share Posted July 17, 2007 Rob, if you are using them in your lotions, etc. rather than soap, might I suggest adding them to the melt or heat/hold phase of your recipe? It seems that the heat from the lye in soapmaking will melt them so I'm guessing that the same theory will hold true when creating lotions.I personally use the liquid silk from Brambleberry so I don't have problems with the dissolving issue. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Posted July 18, 2007 Author Share Posted July 18, 2007 Rob, if you are using them in your lotions, etc. rather than soap, might I suggest adding them to the melt or heat/hold phase of your recipe? It seems that the heat from the lye in soapmaking will melt them so I'm guessing that the same theory will hold true when creating lotions.I personally use the liquid silk from Brambleberry so I don't have problems with the dissolving issue. HTHDoh! I didn't know they had liquid silk... time to spend some $$$$ at Brambleberry. I love that company Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scented Posted July 18, 2007 Share Posted July 18, 2007 I add it before the lye, pour the lye in and most of the time 9 out of 10 times, the silk is gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meridith Posted July 18, 2007 Share Posted July 18, 2007 Doh! I didn't know they had liquid silk... time to spend some $$$$ at Brambleberry. I love that company Thank you!You can also get liquid silk at MMS. I wasn't even thinking about you putting the silk in lotion nor did I think of the liquid silk. Duh!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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