Swirling is a soapers term for stirring color through lightly traced soap. Since swirling is really stirring, the less you stir, the better the color definition will be.

To create a beautiful loop swirl the raw soap needs to be very liquid. Be sure that you choose a fragrance oil that will not accelerate trace. Gather all of your supplies so that they are at your fingertips and always line your mold before you mix the oils and lye. If you have to stop to line your mold or get supplies from another room, the soap maybe too solid to swirl. The mold used in this recipe is a Baltic Birchwood Mold.
 
 
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Gather materials 

Mix colorants
 

Add lye to oils 

Blend oils and lye
 

Mix colored soap
 

Pour into mold
 

Pouring the color
 

Swirling colors
 

Fully swirled
 

Cut into bars
 
 
 
 
 
 
Hardware you will need:  
Stainless Steel Pot
Bowl for measuring Oils
Bowl for measuring Lye
Ladle 
Qty 2 - 4 Cup Measuring Cups
1/4 - Teaspoon Measuring Spoon
1-Tablespoon Measuring Spoon
Pitcher for Lye Mixing
Stick Blender
Swirling Tool
 
Soap Ingredients:  
34 oz Lard
20 oz Palm oil
20 oz Olive oil
17 oz Palm Kernel oil
5 oz Castor Oil 
31 oz Distilled Water
13.10 oz. Lye
2 oz Distilled Water (for mixing with colorants)
3 oz  Lavender FO 
(3oz = 6 tablespoons)
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. of Ultramarine Violet
1/8 tsp. of Ultramarine Blue
Swirling Tool ? anything goes: chop sticks, end of a plastic spoon, end of your thermometer (my favorite) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Mix your lye so that it can start cooling. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Measure your oils and melt them in the stainless steel pot. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Using your measuring cup, mix the ultra marine violet, ultramarine blue and the 2 oz of distilled water. Set aside. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
After the lye and oils have cooled to between 110 and 115 degrees, slowly pour the lye into the oils. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Using your stick blender, blend the oils and lye to a light trace. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Add your Fragrance Oil. Mix lightly with your stick blender.

 
 
 
 
 
 
Ladle 4 cups of the raw scented soap into the measuring cup with the colorants and water. Mix with your stick blender. Pour half of the colored soap into the 2nd measuring cup. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Pour the remaining uncolored raw soap into the mold. Then, starting with the first cup, quickly pour the colored soap lengthwise in a back and forth pattern (about 3 lines) then do the same across the width of the mold. The colored soap should pour through the raw soap. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
With the 2nd cup, wait about 2 minutes, then quickly but gently pour the remaining soap in the same patterns across the length and width of the mold. Gently pour the soap so that the color sits on top of the soap in the mold.

 
 
 
 
 
 
Time to swirl! Make sure that the end of your swirling stick is touching the bottom of the mold at all times. Starting at the top right corner, going across the width of the mold, start making the loop pattern. Try not to overlap the loops. I do 3 loops per row and usually 4 rows per mold. It’s just like scribbling. When you reach the bottom left corner, you are done.

 
 
 
 
 
 
Cover your mold and insulate for 24 hours. After 24 hours cut the slab into bars. Let the soap cure for at least 3 weeks.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The finished product:
beautiful, looped swirl soaps