I've been on the mailing list for Amy Warden's
Soap Challenge Club since practically the beginning, but this is the first time that I have actually participated in the challenge. I'm not sure why it took me so long to sign up, but I'm glad that I finally took the plunge.
This time around, the challenge was to produce a soap using the hanger swirl technique, in which a clothes hanger is dragged up and down and side to side to create beautiful swirls and designs. Prior to the challenge, I had used this technique a few times, but hadn't ventured beyond layering colours one on top of the other and dragging the hanger up and down through those layers. Though I love this look, for the challenge, I wanted to attempt something a bit different.
I chose an earthy blend of fragrance oils for my soap, including patchouli, cedarwood, bayberry and vanilla oak, and a natural palette of clays and botanicals to match. I also used more liquid oils than normal in order to keep the soap workable.
I wasn't really sure what the design should be, so I poured the different colours in a random order and then used the hanger to swirl circles and moved the hanger up, down, side to side and every which way.
I love slicing into a log of soap when you don't know what you're going to get, and this soap was definitely a surprise. I was afraid that I got a bit carried away and created a muddy mess, but thankfully the swirls were distinct. And I enjoyed making the challenge soap so much that I decided to try again a few days later, this time using a light and fruity fragrance of orange and guava. This time I layered the different colours, went up and down with the hanger, and then side to side. I don't like this one as much, but it was fun to try.
Thanks for organizing this event Amy!
