I decided to join the Great Cakes Challenge this month for the wood grain challenge. I love wood and all the variety in it and in fact, have boards of curly cherry and curly maple scattered around my house as they are as good as any art for their beauty.
For technique, I used my Ribbon Pour once again as it is very good for creating fine lines as well as wider and I felt like it would give more natural variation. (See posts from 12/30/15, 5/11-27, 7/15-29, September 9-18. Video showing the technique: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xVa7xxQIQk and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dc-4TnFO2S8, and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QCl7yOyPYw) I must have downloaded 50 pictures of various woods that attracted my eye and in the end, went for the lovely lustrous reddish orange and golden colors found in the pictures shown after the soap. I found some amazing pictures of cocobola wood which has much stronger color variation as well and made a soap after that but in the end, I decided on using the soap with softer tones for my entry as I thought it looked most natural.
I used Nurture's Sparkle Gold, Shimmer Gold, Sahara Gold, Maya Gold, and Copper Penny. Scented with BrambleBerry Cedarwood EO with a touch of Vetyver.
Here is a video of the making of that soap. For slab soaps, I really like making double sided soaps, so both the front and the back have a face up presentation of a soap instead of one side having the blurry back. I also love making 4 layer soaps so the patterns and colors change throughout the use of the bar. In the video, you can see that I am pouring on top of soap already in the mold and that is why- that is a 4 layer soap.
https://www.facebook.com/helka.finn/videos/vb.100002631771219/1061937440570638/?type=3&theater
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Other attempts- NOT entries
I found these of cocobola wood which is incredible! I tried to make something like it but the wood wins, for sure. On the flip side of the soap, I tried to replicate Koa but well, the wood wins big onthat one as well.
Beautiful soaps! I really lovely wood grain and colors on all of them! It must have been difficult to choose just one.
ReplyDeleteThank you! It's hard to stop when you start making them, actually, thinking you might be able to do one that's better. I have a lot of wood soap now.
ReplyDeleteOh wow - I almost love the bottom more than the top!! Such amazing inspiration too - real wood is just really difficult to copy, but I'd say you did a great job!
ReplyDeleteI was pretty torn on which to enter but I felt like the middle of the higher contrast one was a bit too messy so I opted for the other. Thanks for the challenge!!
DeleteMy goodness - this really could be mistaken for wood! What a beautiful work of art. I'm looking forward to checking out your videos on the Ribbon pour.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Marisa! I hope the videos are explanatory enough for you to give it a try. It's super-variable and gives some great effects.
DeleteGreat job! I will have to check out the ribbon pour and see how it's done.
ReplyDeleteVery realistic looking! Your colour choices are perfect! Great job!
ReplyDeleteThese turned out so well, Helka! Really well done :) and congrats on a great soap challenge entry!
ReplyDeleteThese are fabulous, Helka! Thank you so much for sharing your process, too - it was incredibly helpful. You did an amazing job capturing the grain of the wood. Truly awesome!
ReplyDeleteSo Pretty! The grain is so realistic :)
ReplyDeleteBeautiful batches, all of them! I had to go watch your ribbon pour video as well, and now I have another method I'd like to try. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your nice comments! It's wonderful to soap with such a warm group of people.
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