Iron Oxide Pigment

Iron oxide pigment is a naturally occuring colorant used is soap making and cosmetics because of it's brightness, high refractive index and it is much safer and less expensive to use than other manufactured colorants.

Iron oxide pigment will not work in water formulations such as body sprays or low viscosity formulations such as body oils and we don't recommend using oxides in lotions because it may give them an unpleasant odor.

All our pigments are sold by weight, not volume. So you're getting the most for your money!

Instructions for Using Iron Oxide Pigment in Soap Making:

Cold Process Soap Making (CP):

Add 1/2 teaspoon (2.5cc) of iron oxide pigment to 1 oz of carrier oil and mix well. Make sure all the clumps are evenly stirred into the solution before using. You can even chose to add the oxide and oil to a small baggie and squish the baggie with your fingers to get an even mix. Use a dropper to add the colored oil to your warm oils (CP soaper), a few drops at a time, making sure you don't color beyond what you wanted to and stir after each addition.

Melt and Pour Soap Making (MP):

There are three different methods to use it.

1. Add iron oxide pigment directly to melt and pour soap base and stir, stir, stir. This may cause speckling in your soap.
2. Add iron oxide pigment to small baggie and mix thoroughly with oil or glycerin. This way, you can make sure to squish out any speckles. Then, pour the mixture into the melted soap base, reseal your baggie, and save the rest for the next time.
3. Make a giant color chip: Mix a small bit of iron oxide pigment, glycerin or oil (1/2 tsp to 1 tbsp) works fine in a small plastic cup or ice cube tray. Make sure it's mixed well - until all the pigment is totally dispersed in the oil. Then add the clear melt and pour soap base to the cup and stir up well. Let sit for a few hours to harden and there you have a color chip. The larger container you're filling up the more iron oxide pigment you should add initially to be sure your color chip has the most color possible. To use the color chip, just chop off pieces and melt into your soap. However, by using the color chip method you won't be able to have an accurate usage of color for a recipe notebook.