Four Layer Ribbon Pour

I separated my batch into four portions and poured each layer so that one layer would not affect the one below, so no drop through or pushing around of the layer before. I used about the same proportions of each color- natural, white, copper penny and black- and put them into the pot fairly similarly but it can never be exact. The first and fourth pour were done fairly quickly, with a larger stream of soap poured more quickly and not much movement by my hand although I did sometimes allow it to pour into the same place just a touch. I like those layers best. The second layer was poured with a thinner stream and more slowly, and at times I shook my hand a bit to get the ribbony effect. I like layer 2 the least. The third layer is okay but my natural batter was thinner than the others and I got a bit more blending of the colors.

I will let it set and see how it looks. I may take a couple bars and use a heat gun to get them to gel in bar form, which can be a bit tricky. The gel has to be hot but not so hot that the bar collapses on itself and forms a puddle. It works nicely to prevent the stearic streak look but is time consuming and of course, it runs the risk of getting too hot and then you've got a bulging bar. We'll see if I want the gelled or ungelled look in the end. Gel will make the natural soap a touch more translucent and will give the bar more depth. One bar will be sacrificed to the knife to see how it looks throughout and I hope to get 5-6 slices from one to get a good feel for how it looks as someone would use it.