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How to Work with Vanilla Discoloration

Filed Under: Tips & Tricks

Vanilla Discoloration in Cold Process Soap

One of the questions we get most is, “Why did my soap turn brown?” If you’ve made a few batches of soap, you’ve likely encountered discoloration. This post talks about what causes the color change and how to work with it in soap.

What causes discoloration
It’s often caused by vanilla, which is a flavor derived from orchids. Vanilla pods start out very green and then darken to brown as they age and ripen. The darkening is caused by various reactions in some of the components. One of those is vanillin, which is the organic compound that gives vanilla its flavor.

Vanillin discoloration is a 100% natural process. Depending on the percentage in the fragrance, the soap can discolor anywhere from off-white to dark brown. It usually takes a few days to appear, although certain scents may not discolor for a few weeks. It shows up first on the part of soap that’s exposed to air. That means the sides discolor, but once you cut into the bars the middle is still white. Eventually, the whole bar will darken.

VanillaDiscoloration3_700px

The soap above is scented with Vanilla Sandalwood Fragrance Oil, which discolors dark brown. It’s 1 day old and the discoloration hasn’t fully developed. The tan color will continue to darken over time. You can also see that the soap went through partial gel phase in the center, and the discoloration developed faster there.

VanillaDiscoloration4_700px

Above is the same batch after 3 days. The brown bars are from the first photo – they have been fully exposed to air and the vanilla discoloration has made its way through the bar. The soap in the center is freshly cut, which is why the center is still a creamy color. After a few hours, the discoloration will develop in the center as well.

Other aroma chemicals may cause discoloration as well. We include performance notes and finished photos of the fragrances in soap, so make sure to read those before use.

How to prevent or work with discoloration
If you’re making melt and pour soap, you can use Vanilla Color Stabilizer to prevent discoloration. We recommend a 1:1 ratio with the fragrance.

We don’t recommend vanilla color stabilizer for cold process soap because the results are inconsistent. It may not prevent the discoloration at all, or it may only work for a few months.

If the fragrance has a low vanilla content, you can use titanium dioxide. It lightens tan or light brown discoloration. Start by mixing 2 teaspoons of titanium dioxide into 2 tablespoons of a lightweight oil. At trace, add 1 dispersed teaspoon at a time. It’s tricky to know exactly how much to use because the soap hasn’t discolored yet. Just keep adding color until the soap is pretty light. We used titanium dioxide in this Creamy Goat Milk Soap, which is made with Oatmeal Milk and Honey Fragrance Oil.

With a lot of titanium dioxide, you can get glycerin rivers. We recommend a 5-10% water discount to prevent those. It also helps to keep the temperatures around 115-120°F and store the soap in a cool place.

If the fragrance has a higher vanilla content, the titanium dioxide can only lighten it so much. In that case, we recommend embracing the discoloration and working it into your design. You can scent some of the soap so only one part discolors, like we did in the Cinnamon Cocoa Soap. You can also scent the whole batch.

These tutorials show you how to work with discoloring fragrances.

Vanilla content chart
The following chart includes all the Bramble Berry fragrances that discolor. If a scent has 0% vanilla, it won’t be on this list.

Vanilla Content Fragrances
0 – 5%
5.1 – 10%
10.1 – 15%
15.1% – 20%

This post was updated in October 2018.

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85 Comments

  1. If I am making whipped soap using a pre-made base, do I have to use a vanilla stabilizer when using a vanilla fragrance?

  2. Could this article be updated to include information on using a Vanilla Color Stabilizer in CP Soap since that is also an option (to a point) when using scents with vanilla content?

    • The vanilla color stabilizer we offer only works permanently in melt and pour. You can use it in CP, but it will only stave off discoloration temporarily.

  3. I love vanilla and my workaround is that I will make my vanilla CP soap two or three different colors, with one being brown/tan, and only add the vanilla to the brown portion (and sometimes add titanium oxide to lighten it).
    It works very well for me.

  4. If you use Fragrance Oils without Vanillin say 0% does that mean my product is safe without VCS?

  5. Hi!
    An update on my red soaps: They are now a dark chocolate brown
    -Cadence

    • Glad to hear those soaps are a rich brown color! Thanks for the update. 🙂

      -Kelsey with Bramble Berry

  6. I still don’t understand if the discoloration only happens when using FO. What about pure Essential Oils (not the ones diluted in a carrier oil)?

    (seems like I’m stubborn about forgetting the idea of using Vanilla in my rose clay soap).

    In general, do EO cause discoloration?

  8. Hi!
    I made some black soaps with black colorant, and used a vanilla fragrance oil. I thought that they wouldn’t discolour from the vanilla, because they were already black. And to my surprise, they turned bright red? They still look fine, just not the look I was going for. I know next time to use vanilla colour stabiliser 🙂

    • Hi Cadence!

      Hmm, that’s strange! We’ve made black soap and added a discoloring fragrance. In our tests and recipes, we noticed the soap stayed black for awhile then turned a brownish black color. It does depend a lot on the fragrance and color though! Vanilla Color Stabilizer will help prevent that in melt and pour. 🙂

      -Kelsey with Bramble Berry

      Vanilla Color Stabilizer: https://www.brambleberry.com/Vanilla-Color-Stabilizer-P4156.aspx

  9. Hi, I would like to ask if all the fragrance contains vanilla or this article is related to Bramble Berry fragrances?

    Thank for answer, Monika

    • Hi Monika!

      Some of our fragrances contain vanilla, while others do not. An easy way to find out is the description on brambleberry.com. It will say what vanilla content the fragrance has. 🙂

      As for other fragrances, you may want to check with the manufacturer to be sure!

      -Kelsey with Bramble Berry

      Bramble Berry fragrances: https://www.brambleberry.com/Fragrance-Oils-C161.aspx

  10. I purchase Butter Cream and Snickerdoodle back in January of this year.

    Currently the website says

    Vanilla Content: 18.5%
    Pleas Note: Our current lot of this fragrance oil has a deeper, orange tint to it. However it smells, behaves and eventually discolors to the same deep brown.

    Is my product from the lot mentioned above- because I do not recall the above warning present when I made my purchase.

    Also does the Vanilla Content Chart come in a PDF?

    • Hi DJ!

      I’m not exactly sure what lot your fragrance came from. However, The Butter Cream and Snickerdoodle Fragrance Oil smells and behaves the same as it always has. Now it’s just a little more orange. 🙂

      Also, we don’t have that chart available in PDF form, but thank you for that suggestion!

      -Kelsey with Bramble Berry

  11. I purchase Butter Cream and Snickerdoodle back in January of this year.

    Currently the website says

    Vanilla Content: 18.5%
    Pleas Note: Our current lot of this fragrance oil has a deeper, orange tint to it. However it smells, behaves and eventually discolors to the same deep brown.

    Is my product from the lot mentioned above- because I do not recall the above warning present when I made my purchase.

  12. I made a whipped body butter, a lotion, bath salts and a soy candle with Relaxing FO. They smell amazing. Will these products turn brown too or is it just soap that turns brown? If yes, can I use your Vanilla Stabilizer in these products?

  13. Hiya!
    Can I use colorants to change the brown color of my CP soap when I use FO’s with vanilla? All of my FO’s have <5% vanilla. I understand that eventually they will turn brown, but can I postpone it by adding more colorant? And how long, on average, do I have before they start turning brown?
    Thanks for any help you can give!
    -Amanda

    • Or maybe I’m just doomed as a CP soap maker to never be able to use the yummy vanilla-infused FO’s … 🙁

      • Hi Amanda!

        I know, I wish that vanilla fragrances didn’t discolor as well. Unfortunately, adding more pigment will not postpone the eventual brown color. How quickly the soap will discolor depends on how much vanilla content the fragrance has. If it has quite a bit (15% or so) it will start to discolor within a couple days. That being said, sometimes discoloration can work to your advantage when you want a dark rich brown…sometimes you don’t even need to use pigment 🙂

        -Amanda with Bramble Berry

  14. I just made a whipped body butter, a lotion, bath salts and a soy candle with Relaxing FO. They smell amazing. Will these products turn brown too? If yes, can I use your Vanilla Stabilizer in these products?

  15. I was wondering if this was still necessary to use when you’re using a colored clay in a CP recipe.
    I am using the Lots of Lather Quick Mix (54oz) and Rose Clay for color and want to use the Black Amber and Lavender FO which has a high vanilla content (11.5%). I would like the finished product to be a nice rose color- should I use the stabilizer to help achieve this? Also, could you recommend how much Rose Clay to add to this 5lb recipe so that I get a very true rose color (similar to how it looks as a powder)?
    Thanks!

    • Hi Paige!

      Unfortunately because you’re using a fragrance with a high vanilla content, your soap will eventually turn brown no matter what colorant you are using. The vanilla stabilizer does not work very well in cold process. We have found that it will still turn brown eventually.

      With the rose clay, it’s a “what you see is what you get” type of colorant. I would recommend using 1 to 2 teaspoons of rose clay per pound of soap 🙂

      I hope this helps!

      -Amanda with Bramble Berry

  16. I just wonder why recently my CP soaps turn to glycerin!!!
    i put my soap in my new mold (plastic food container)
    Then after 2 hours from middle of my soap start turning to glycerin!!!
    What shall i do? Please someone advise me…

  17. Great post! Very informative too. For a while I have been avoiding F/O with a vanilla content for CP soaping. Now I’d like to embrace vanilla discoloration in my new project. If I’m going to separate the batter, can you still use the full alloted amount of F/O in the portion that is going to discolor and none in the other, or do I have to recalculate accordingly?

    • Hi Heidi!

      I’m so glad you found this post informative and helpful :). I’m also happy to hear you’re embracing vanilla discoloration, it can really lead to some beautiful designs! And hey, if you can’t beat them, join them right? 🙂

      If you are going to half the batter, I would recommend halving the fragrance as well. Keep in mind, that even though you are only adding fragrance to one half, the unfragranced portion will still experience some discoloration, because the fragrance discoloration bleeds.

      I hope this helps!

      -Amanda with Bramble Berry

  18. I am so happy to find this information…..I’m printing it now! Im new to cold process and coloring. I was wondering if the soap would still turn brown, even if you used colorants?

    • Hi Sandy!

      Good question 🙂 If your fragrance contains vanilla, it will discolor. If pigments are used, they will simply mix with the discoloration, creating a new color, but the discoloration will still occur. Basically, you will be mixing your colorant with brown, tan, yellow, or whatever that particular fragrance discolors to 🙂

      In this post you can see how oils can also effect the discoloration, because pure olive oil was used (that is green) the discoloration turned green! Kinda cool huh?

      Facebook Photo of the Week (Discoloration Example):
      http://www.soapqueen.com/bramble-berry-news/facebook-photo-week-february-1st-february-7th/

      I hope this helps Sandy 🙂

      -Amanda with Bramble Berry

  19. Hi,
    Why does the brown (discoloration) start at the border and work it’s way in over time? Does it have to do with not gelling or the temperature it reached?
    Thanks!
    Jodi

    • Hi Jodi!

      The reason the picture above has the discoloration around the edges has to do with the vanilla coming into contact with light! Eventually the whole soap will begin to discolor, but because the outer parts of the soap have been exposed to light, that’s where it will start. Kinda cool, right? 🙂

      I hope this helps!

      -Amanda with Bramble Berry

      • Thank you, Amanda, for your quick reply. Wow… light being the factor – I would have never guessed that. I thought it was more about temperature or time. Soap making is just so complicated – it’s awesome!

  20. I’m new to soaping and producing bath and body products, but I was curious as to whether you had to use fragrance oil for vanilla or will extract do the trick? And if so, will I need to use a VCS? Also, if I were to make a bath bomb or body butter utilizing vanilla, would vanilla FO discolor that as well?

    Thanks!

    • Hi Melissa,
      Welcome to the wonderful world of soap making! We’re happy to have you 🙂

      We typically do not recommend using vanilla extract as a fragrance in bath and body products, and particularly when you’re cold process soaping. This is because the extract isn’t formulated to withstand the high pH environment of cold process soap, and the scent will dissipate. Fragrance oils, on the other hand, are specifically formulated to retain their scent in bath and body products.

      As for your next question, we usually only see vanilla discoloration in soaping products. Lotions, butters and bath bombs should be okay! 🙂

      I hope that helps!

      -Kirsten

  21. Was wondering if the darkening effect of the vanillin in these EOs can be tamed artificially with Titanium Dioxide. I ordered the Vanilla Select and the Island Coconut to make a two color tropical soap. I’m no so concerned with the darkening for the vanilla side but Island Coconut has 2% and I definitely want my coconut bleach white. I’m using certain oils for that.

  22. Great post! I was hoping you could explain How the vanilla stabilizer will react when using the rebatch process?

    • Hi Roryann!

      If you use vanilla color stabilizer (VCS) in your cold process soap and decide to rebatch it, it isn’t going to morph or change your soap, but the heat might render it useless. If you were to rebatch a soap with VCS in it, I would make a small batch first to see how you like it when it hardens.

      -Becky with Bramble Berry

  23. 1) Blueberry is listed as 10% Vanilla. No Way!! I’ve used BB Blueberry FO and it goes light tan…you even list that on the description.

    2) Also, after Sandalwood Vanilla (4.5%) listing, there is a listing of .7% but no name with that.

    3) And: I’m curious as to why Vanilla Color Stabilizer is listed as having 2% Vanilla. When I use it, it prevents my soap from any discoloration. At 2% I think there would be some discolor.

    Thank you for your help!

    • Hi Sly!

      We actually contacted our vendor for the Blueberry Fragrance Oil and they let us know that it did actually have 10% vanilla content in it and we have listed on our website that it does dark tan in cold process soap after testing it again in the last few months.

      Blueberry Fragrance Oil: https://www.brambleberry.com/Blueberry-Fragrance-Oil-P5575.aspx

      Thanks for the eagle eye on the .7%, we’ve taken care of it! Interestingly enough, the INCI for the Vanilla Color Stabilizer is fragrance, because it is actually a fragrance oil! But, because of the other components of it, it is going to help prevent your melt & pour soaps from discoloring if you are using a fragrance with vanilla in it.

      Vanilla Color Stabilizer: https://www.brambleberry.com/Vanilla-Color-Stabilizer-P4156.aspx

      I hope this helps! =)

      -Becky with Bramble Berry

  24. I just noticed that Black Amber and Lavender is at 11.5% but it’s listed in the 5-10% range on the list!

    • Oh and I forgot I had another question! I only do melt and pour soap, so will the discoloration be the same color for me?

      • Good morning, Leanna!

        If you are making melt & pour soap, you actually have a way to use these fragrances without your soaps going brown. Vanilla Color Stabilizer is an ingredient that you can add to your recipes if you are using a fragrance oil that discolors because of the vanilla content. It helps to keep the colors bright and the hue that you intended. You can find it on Bramble Berry’s website here:

        https://www.brambleberry.com/Vanilla-Color-Stabilizer-P4156.aspx

        I hope that this helps! =)
        -Becky with Bramble Berry

  25. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this post and refer to it frequently – Thank you so much for putting this together.

    It is also SO helpful to see a photo of the final soap when I am on the BB website looking for purchases.

    As I was reviewing this post while planning to use Amber FO, I noticed that it was listed in 2 places: at 3.2% and 20%. Looking on the BB site, the photo looks like it would be 3.2%, so I am wondering what was supposed to be listed as 20%? Spiced Amber Ale? Or something else?

    Thank you for your help.

    • Good morning, Sly!

      We are so happy that this post has helped you so much. It has been one of our most popular ones lately and it is a great reference. Thanks for the eagle eye on the Amber FO. It is at the 3.2% and I will make sure that the chart gets readjusted for that! =)

      -Becky with Bramble Berry

  26. My surprise using vanilla based FO was not the discoloration of the soap but rather the lather.

    I knew over coloring your soap would cause the lather to be colored but did not know that using only a discoloring FO would discolor your lather.

    I’m not a fan of brown lather and the brown mess it makes in the soap dish. I will not sell soaps that will lather brown and therefore avoid vanilla FO in cold process soap.

    I am surprised this part of the discoloration was not covered in this post.

    • Hi Tracy!

      Sometimes, with the darker vanilla fragrances, your lather can turn a bit brown (which is a surprise for some!), and one way to avoid that is to not use heavy vanilla fragrances in cold process. That is why we’ve given a list with percentages, so you can choose which fragrances work the best for you! =) Thank you so much for your feedback, we really appreciate it!

      -Becky with Bramble Berry

      • Thank you Becky!

        I wish it was only “sometimes”, a “bit” and only the “higher vanilla content fragrance oils”! The higher content vanilla FO’s always lathers brown. The only time it was a “bit”, was when I used BB oatmeal, milk, and honey, and that lathered tan rather than brown.

  28. Great post. I have been wondering how to make the dark chocolate borders around soap.( the first photo ) Is it possible to make a nice border or just discoloration? Thanks.

    • Hi Jade!

      Unfortunately, the chocolate color in the first photo is eventually going to take over the entire soap and we have not found a consistent way to create just the border. If we do, you’ll be the first to know! =)

      Happy Soaping!
      -Becky with Bramble Berry

  29. What an informative post! The local soap supply company provides the percentages of vanilla content in their product descriptions, but the visual is so much better! As always, Brambleberry does a great job of offering quality products and information.

  30. Great post! It reminded me of a question I’ve had for awhile. I haven’t used any vanilla-based FOs in bath products, specifically scrubs, but can I expect the same kind of discoloration?

    • Hi Amy!

      If you used vanilla-based fragrances in bath products, you may see a slight discoloration, but not as drastic as you would see in cold process or melt & pour soap. We suggest testing a small test batch first and seeing how it turns out for you. =)

      -Becky with Bramble Berry

  31. Very helpful info! I once made a lemon-scented buttermilk soap in which I infused the olive oil with lemon zest. It was initially bright yellow, then exterior quickly (within 3 days) turned dark brown, so that eventually it was like chocolate. When I used the soap, the interior was an intense yellow (I used individual bar mold shaped like sunflower), so that every time I took a shower with it, the yellow was revealed, giving a sharp contrast against the dark brown, it was beautiful. The exposed parts would turn dark brown too, but the surface that sits on the soap holder keeps its yellow color. There seems to be something in the air that interacts with the vanilla content of the lemon scent I used. BTW, just FYI, I purchased your book from B&N and I love it! Have yet to find the time to make soaps again, after the busy-ness of gardening/canning.

  32. I couldn’t understand why my oatmeal milk and honey cp soap started getting darker. I thought I did something wrong and ruined my soap. Thanks for yet again the great info.

    • Good morning, Kayla!

      I remember the first time I added a vanilla-based fragrance to my soap — I thought I broke my soap. =) If you ever have any questions on our products, don’t hesitate to ask. =)

      Happy Soaping!
      -Becky with Bramble Berry

  33. Thank you for this great post! I have tried to stay away from anything with any vanilla due to having chocolate brown soap more then once, but showing the percent ranges and what that might look like has helped so much!! I no longer need to fear all vanilla! Thanks!

    • Hi Rochelle!

      Vanilla discoloration can be a little scary if you haven’t worked with it before, but if you use a fragrance that has very little discoloration, you can often use it to your advantage! Let us know how your future soaps turn out. =)

      -Becky with Bramble Berry

  34. This is a super-great informative piece! I like these kinds of articles because I am the type of person who wants know all about what I am doing. I will be pinning this one. Thank you!

  35. We’re conditioned (via marketing) to think of vanilla as being a creamy color…like vanilla ice cream. It took me awhile to make the ‘brown’ vanilla connection.
    It makes much more sense, really. The vanilla pod and beans are dark brown. Drop one into a jar of vodka and within days, the vodka turns brown and continues getting darker and darker over time. Exactly what happens to vanilla based soap.
    I relate this to my customers and they’ve actually commented, “Oh, wow…your vanilla soap is actually much more natural!” 🙂

    • Good morning, Kellianne!

      I always find it so interesting what we can learn from the scientific properties of soap. Thank you so much for stopping by and we are glad that you enjoyed the post. =)

      -Becky with Bramble Berry

  36. Looking for someone that makes soap to mentor my daughter for a class project in South Louisiana. If anyone is interested please contact me by posting a reply to my post. Thanks. We need someone as soon as possible.

    • Hi Denise!

      If you contact customer service, we can pass on your information and see what we are able to find out. You can contact them at info(at)brambleberry(dot)com. Hope to hear from you soon! =)

      -Becky with Bramble Berry

  37. Thanks so much for this post. I am with Evie and also never knew that vanilla flavor is derived from orchids, very interesting.
    I have learned (sometimes the hard way) which of my vanilla content scents discolor, but to see the range displayed like you have here is such a wonderful visual reference.
    Thank you for the list of vanilla scents and their percentage, fabulous resource!!

    • Hi Stacie!

      We have received so many requests for answers on vanilla discoloration that we finally decided to put it together in a blog post. Thank you so much for stopping by!

      Happy Soaping!
      -Becky with Bramble Berry

  38. Sandalwood Vanilla is on there twice. Once at 0.7% and then again at 5.2%. I’ve used BB Sandalwood Vanilla, and I’m guessing from the discoloration, mine was 5.2%

  39. Hi! Thank you for this article – so helpful. I had no idea that vanilla flavor is derived from orchids.

    This is a bit off topic but what causes the white spots in the first photo?

    ~Evie

  40. Wow, I was just wondering how dark some of my FO were going to turn out, then I see this posted! Very good stuff to know. Thank you! One question. Does the color effect how dark it will be depending on how heavily I scent my CP soap?

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