Beginner Soapmaking Series - Lye Safety and Handling

Are you interested in making soap by the cold process method and you are scared or intimated by lye?  Or  you just starting to make soap by the cold process method and you want to learn more about lye?  Well, I found and wanted to share this posting from The Soap Blog called Beginner Soapmaking Series - Lye Safety and Handling.  This posting gives you the low down on lye in very simple terms and will help dispel the fear of using lye.  Do not be scared using lye if you use it properly and with respect!

5 Tips to Create Professional Looking Soap

Now that you have been making soap for awhile, you have decided to take the plunge to start selling it.  Well, before you start selling your creations you may want  to consider these tips from The Soap Queen in her recent post titled 5 Tips to Create Professional Looking Soap.  Even if you are not ready to sell your soap but you want to give them out as gifts you should read this to make sure that your soap looks the best it can be,

Tutorial - Cold Process Swirl Soap

I am always looking for new recipes to share. I found this cold process soap tutorial that appears on Totally Tutorials called Cold Process Swirl Soap.  The posting originally comes from Arctida's Creations and uses the spoon swirling method. Spoon swirling is a simple technique that makes a big impact. Just thought I would let you know that this recipe yields about four pounds of soap.

Puppy Love Melt and Pour

Do you know a lot of people who have dogs and you do not know what to give them for a gift?  Why not creates these cute melt and pour soaps?  This beginner melt and pour soap project called Puppy Love Melt and Pour is available from The Soap Queen website.  It takes only about an hour to make this project and you should get three 4 1/4 ounce bars of soap.  These would be perfect gifts for the dog lover's in your life.

Aloe & Chamomile Baby Powder

Did you know that conventional baby powders contain talc?  Talc is an ingredient that can cause some pretty alarming heath problems. Here is a great recipe from The Natural Beauty Workshop called Aloe & Chamomile Baby Powder recipe which starts out with a base of gentle, absorbent Kaolin Clay.  To add a silky texture, arrowroot powder and cornstarch.  Then aloe soothes the skin and conditions the skin.  If your baby's skin is prone to yeast infections or you suspect a yeast issue is brewing, then it is a good idea to omit the cornstarch from the recipe.  If you need to subsitute the cornstarch with additional portion of arrowroot.

Creamy Eyeshadow

Way back in 2008, I took a Mineral Make-up class from Lori Nova through DeAnza and Foothill College Community Education.  We made a powered foundation, blush and eye shadow. It was an interesting class and Lori is still offering through her studio (The Nova Studio)in Point Richmond.  Often I look for recipes to share and I found this Creamy Eyeshadow recipe from Wholesale Supplies Plus. This recipe is for those who like a cream based recipe rather than a power eyeshadow.  Even though these colors are for the fall, if you decide to change the color of the mica to suit your needs, then go ahead and do so.

Gels - Making a Spot Treatment

According to Susan Barkley of Point of Interest, spot treatments can be an effective way to deliver active ingredients to your skin.  She says that you do not want to put a lot of ingredients in it....just the ones you really want to use to help a specific problem on your skin. Of course when you make your spot treatment gel, you do not want to make any claims that the gel can lighten the look of age spots, etc.  If you are interested in Susan's recipes, check out her recent entry called Gels - Making a Spot Treatment.

Christmas Tree Swirl Cold Process

I have seen a lot of swirl cold process soap recipes but I never seen anything like this - Christmas Tree Swirl.  This advanced cold process soap project appears on the Soap Queen's site and what this recipe features is a reverse feather swirl which was made popular by Handmade in Florida. Since cold process takes four to six weeks to cure this would be the best time to start making this recipe so it is ready for the holidays.

Apple Crisp CP Soap

Lately, I have been posting recipes for the Halloween season.  But here is something that celebrates Fall which happens to be just around the corner.  It is a cold process soap recipe called Apple Crisp.  This soap recipe from Wholesale Supplies Plus has a delightful fall blend of crisp apple, cinnamon and clove that will leave your skin moisturized with its creamy lather.  This project will take you one hour to make and you will get (8) one ounce bars.

Creepy Eyeball Soaps

Are you looking for something that would make great party favors or a fun addition to your Halloween product line?   Here is moderate melt and pour soap product from Wholesale Supplies Plus called Creepy Eyeball soaps. This project should take you two hours to make (24) two ounce soaps.  These are creepy enough to give out as party favors at your kid's party.

Pumpkin Glitter Hair Chalk

Does your child's Halloween costume involve having funky color hair as part of their costume?  Here is a temporary idea that you may want to try - Pumpkin Glitter Hair Chalk. This recipe from Wholesales Supplies Plus is an easy recipe to create temporary vibrant colors for your hair.

Monster Slime Bubble Bath

Here is the next in the Halloween series of bath and body products series from Wholesale Supplies Plus.  This is a recipe called Monster Slime Bubble Bath.  This is an easy recipe to make and the kids will love to take a bath using this gooey monster bubble slime. What is great about this slime is that it will create a ton of bubbles and and a monster duck will pop out of the jar when the product is poured into the water.

Zombie Dust Bath Fizzie Powder

The year has gone by fast. Would you believe that Halloween will be in about six weeks.  I found some really cute and creative bath and body products on the Wholesale Supplies Plus website and I am going to post them early enough so you can start thinking of party favors to give out to your friends or tricker treaters.  Here is the first one called Zombie Dust Bath Fizzie Powder. This "dust" is a dry bath fizzy fizzie crumble that is sure to get any child excited about bath time.

Herbal Foot Care: The Perfect Natural Pedicure

Whether you know it or not...we all take are feet for granted.  To help with dry cracked feet we all could use a herbal self-care regime for our feet.  Luckily, The Mountain Rose Herb Blog recently posted a blog entry on Herbal Foot Care:  The Perfect Natural Pedicure  which includes several recipes for foot soaks, foot salve, and foot powders.  These recipes are suitable for everyday or as a special occasional pampering.

Caramel Apple Lip Balm Recipe

I love caramel apples.  I even like the caramel apple lollipops. I really got excited when I saw this recipe on the Wholesale Supplies Plus website called Caramel Apple Lip Balm.  Even though this recipe calls for a pre-made base, I am sure that this could be adapted to your favorite lip balm recipe.  Just make sure to adjust it for lip balm tubes.

Making Lip Balm on Soap Queen TV

For a Throwback Thrusday, The Soap Queen posted or reposted a entry about a video of making lip balm on Soap Queen TV. It was originally taped way back in 2009....just take a look at the background.  The recipe is still a favorite and the label templates remain cute and function.  The template will remain free for a short time, otherwise it will be 99 cents.

Gels - making eye gels

Recently I posted Point of Interest's information on Date Palm Extract and another gel recipe.  But here is a recipe for Eye Gel which takes very low effort on your part.  It is a very simple process, weigh the gel (see the previous recipe), add the extract, mix and package.  How easy can that be.  The first part is to make the gel.  Here is the recipe for making the gel.  The second step is choosing your extracts.

Grapefruit Eucalyptus Soap Bars

According to The Natural Beauty Workshop, Melt & Pour soap can be a lot of fun. As far as soap making methods go, this one probably offers the widest range of complexity. You can keep things easy by making a solid colored soap, or spice things up with layers, additives, and embedding. It all just depends on how much you feel like taking on. 

This Grapefruit Eucalyptus Soap Bar recipe is about a medium as far as difficulty goes. It involves coloring and scenting two batches of base and layering them into their molds. The result is a pretty two-toned bar with a pleasant layered scent. 

Gels - Making an Aloe Vera Gel

I recently checked a book from the library titled Soap, Bubbles and Scrubs by Nicole Seabrook.  It has some interesting recipes but I have to confess that some of the recipes called for a pre-made base and the book does not contain any recipes for the reader to make.  If the reader is supposed to purchase these items, the resources are all for the United Kingdom.  So I guess for those who live in the United States will have to try to find similar items from sources such as Brambleberry or others.  But one of the recipes called for a gel base.  Luckily I found this recipe from a posting from Point of Interest called Gels-Making an Aloe Vera Gel.  So if you have a recipe that calls for a gel, then you may want to try using this one.

Date Palm Extract

Have you ever heard of Date Palm Extract?  There have been a few references that it is an anti-wrinkle ingredient.  Susan of Point of Interest recently got a sample from Formulator Sample Shop and she describes in her recent post Date Palm Extract all about it.

Pumpkin Bars Recipe

Lately I have been having pumpkin on the brain.  I guess the fall season will be arriving soon so that maybe why I have been feeling this way.  To celebrate the upcoming fall season, here is a cold process soap recipe by Susan of N. Syracuse New York called Pumpkin Bar Recipe.  One of the ingredients for this soap recipe is canned pumpkin from the grocery store. So if you are planning to make any pumpkin pies then grab some extra cans.

Pumpkin Spice Latte Sugar Scrub

The Soap Queen has been running a series on pumpkin spice series and it continues with this recipe for Pumpkin Spice Latte Sugar Scrub.  This recipe is for the beginner since it starts with a pre-made foaming bath whip with the addition of coffee butter, sugar, walnut shells and fragrance.  This recipe makes (1) eight ounce ball jar.

Coconut oil and Pisum Sativum Rinse Off Conditioner Recipe

If you are a big fan of coconut oil and would like to use it on your hair as a conditioner, I found this recipe from Point of Interest called Coconut oil and Pisum Sativum Rinse Off Conditioner .  Coconut oil has some really great qualities such as moisturization and a reduction in frizz.  A lot times cold process soap makers will use coconut oil in their soap recipes.

Blades of Grass Gridiron MP Soap Recipe

If you have not heard....California has been suffering in the worst drought in history!  Most homeowner's lawns do not look at good as this melt and pour soap called Blades of Grass/Gridiron from Wholesale Supplies Plus..

Pumpkin Spice Latte Cold Process

Now that is it after Labor Day and the kids are back at school, that means that the Fall is just around the corner. This Pumpkin Spice Latte Soap recipe from The Soap Queen celebrates the arrival of fall.  For those who frequently go to Starbucks, this will remind you of that favorite latte beverage.  This advanced cold process soap project combines several soap techniques including melt and pour embeds and soap frosting.

Lavender Macaron Lip Balm

This lip balm recipe called Lavender Macaron from The Natural Beauty Workshop is the result of that craving, combining the floral beauty of their Plant-Based Lavender Fragrance Oil with the tart, creamy aroma of our Frosted Lemon Cake Plant-Based Fragrance Oil. This lip balm made it a little on the soft side, making it perfect for their Mini Lip Balm Pots.

Whipped Candle Frosting

Have you admired the candles that look like ice cream sundaes with whip cream on top?  Do you wonder how they make the whip topping look so real?  I found a recent posting from The Soap Queen on how to make Whipped Candle Frosting.  This would make a great gift to give any time of the year.  Just to let you know that this is an intermediate level project that takes one to two days to complete.  So do not wait to the last minute to make these adorable candles.

Slowing Trace Plus 5 Slow Moving Soap Recipes

Are you new to making your soap by the cold process method?  Does the word trace scare you?  Would you believe that there is a way to control trace?  You betcha!  The Soap Blog by Bath Alchemy tells you how in a recent post called Slow Trace Plus 5 Slow Moving Soap Recipes.  There are some really cool tips plus the recipes seem simple.  And if you are wanting a palm free recipe there is one for you!

Handy Guide to Soapmaking Methods

Have you just discovered soap making?  And you just discovered that there are several different processes in making soap, right?  Cold Process, Hot Process, Melt and Pour and Rebatched are the process in which you can make soap.  And you are wondering which one is the right one for you?  The Soap Blog has recently posted a Handy Guide to Soapmaking Methods which goes into detail about each one.  From pro and cons in this article can help you decide which process is the best one for you.