Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Whipped Cream Soap for Bath Parfaits

Have you ever heard of whipped soap? Well, I found this fun idea from Rustic Escentuals Crafting Library called Whipped Cream Soap for Bath Parfaits.   This would be a great idea for all ages and for either sex...just be creative and create a scent that will appeal to whomever you are giving it too.  Just fair warning this is made from a pre-made base.

Tuesday, December 30, 2014

Using Rebatch Soap Base to Make Swirled Soap


I am sure many of you cold processed soap makers have heard of the swirled soap technique have done it yourself.  But guess what?  I found a tutorial from Rustic Escentuals Crafting Library on how to do the swirling technique with rebatched soap.  In this tutorial called Using Rebatch Soap Base to Make Swirled Soapshows you step by step and pictures on how to do this technique with rebatched soap.  Give it a try and let us know how it turned out.  Take some pictures and show us how your batched turned out.

Monday, December 29, 2014

Snowball Candle Tutorial

It has been awhile since I posted a tutorial on making candles.  And it has been a week since we celebrated the winter solstice, I found this tutorial on to make a Snowball Candle on a site I found by accident called Rustic Escentuals Crafting Library. Rustic Escentuals Crafting Library is a pretty cool site with a lot of great bath and body tutorials that you should check out.  In the future I will be posting some of the ones I find to be most interesting.

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Witch Hazel

Some time ago, one of my student's in my class asked me about Witch Hazel.  I did not know much about it.  The only thing I did know about it was it was an astringent.   I found this post about Witch Hazel from The Soap Queen that goes into detail about the subject.  So if you want to learn about more about Witch Hazel like I do, then read this post.  It is very interesting.

Saturday, December 27, 2014

Walnut Shell Scrub


Over the years I have taken classes in bath and body products, I have learned to make salt scrubs and sugars.  And I never heard of making scrubs with anything else until I saw this recipe from Point of Interest called Walnut Shell Scrub.  Just wondering out there if you have heard of any other scrub recipes made with ingredients other than salt or sugar?

Friday, December 26, 2014

Creamy Marsala Lip Tints

Have you ever been interested in learning how to make your own lip tints but you were afraid?  There are recipes that are from scratch but this Creamy Marsala Lip Tint from The Soap Queen has a pre-made lip base to start with.  The color of 2015 from Pantone is Marsala.  It is a earthy wine color.  When I took the lip balm and lip tint class in November at The Nova Studio, my lip tint color that I created was very similiar to this. 

Thursday, December 25, 2014

Simple Citrus Furniture Polish

Primarily I usually post interesting bath and body recipes, but I found something that is used for your furniture - furniture polish.  This Citrus Furniture Polish recipe is from The Soap Queen and it is very simple.  I have to say I have to make this recipe some time soon! How about you?

Tuesday, December 23, 2014

Warming Ginger Carrot Body Balm

 Do you like to use body balms?  Here is a recipe called Warming Ginger Carrot from The Natural Beauty Workshop that is rich and conditioning balm that is great for soothing dry patches of skin.  You can add a coat of intense moisture to your arms and legs with this balm.  I think it is a cool idea is packing body balms in a stick tube or a deodorant container which makes applying a body balm quickly and easy.  Plus it makes it easy to travel with.

Friday, December 19, 2014

Shimmering Sea Glass Cold Process

I love the look of sea glass.  What about you? The Soap Queen says that the ocean is a constant source of inspiration....from the icy blue colors to the fresh ozone scents.  It was so inspiring that this recipe for Shimmering Sea Glass Cold Process Soap uses clear melt and pour pieces to mimic the look of translucent glass found on the beach.  The melt and pour pieces are embedded with the cold process soap and are placed on top for a crystal like effect.  The cold process portion of the soap is made by a simple In-the-Pot Swirl technique that creates a fluid swirl of teal, purple and white.







Thursday, December 18, 2014

Oil based scrubs

If you are looking for a last minute craft item to make at the last minute, here is one from Susan of Point of Interest called Oil Based Scrubs.  The recipe provided is called In The Tub Scrub is a very simple one to make and can be whipped out in no time.  So you can cross off as many names as you need.  Yes, Christmas is just a week a way.

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

What do you want to know? Which products are worth making at home?

Since 2003, I have taken a lot of classes on how to make bath and body products at home.  I must admit some of the supplies, ingredients and equipment has taken over my living space.   There are some products that are easier to make in the home than others due to space constraints, but my favorite is probably lotions, bath salts, and bath bombs.  I would love to do cold process soap but I just do not have the room to allow them to cure.  But this question Which Products are worth making at home? was asked to Susan Barklay Nichols of Point of Interest. If you read the blog post, Susan gives you insight on this subject.

Friday, December 12, 2014

Where to Sell Products: Online, Markets and Retail

Now that you have perfected your soap, bath or body products, you decided that you want to sell them?  Right?  Deciding where to sell your products can be overwhelming and a tricky process.  Your options range from selling at community markets to online to retail shops.  Selecting the channel you where you sell your product depends on your personality, skills, budge and your time.  With so many options, where do you start.  In a recent posting called Where to Sell Products:  Online, Market and Retail, the Soap Queen breaks down this subject in simple terms so you can decide which avenue to take.



Thursday, December 11, 2014

Melt & Pour Bath Crayons

Do your kids love to play in the tub?  Well, if they don't then maybe you should created these Melt and Pour Bath Crayons.  I found this idea on the Soap Queen's site and I just had to share it. I thought it was a neat idea for the kids to have fun in the tub.  This tutorial created three sets of six colors:  red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple.  According to the Soap Queen, each tube uses undiluted Lab Color to give the crayons their intense color.  It is a simple and quick project that easily wash away in the tub.  Be on the safe side and test the soap crayons in a discrete area on your tub before unleashing your child's creativity.

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Holiday Spice Bath Truffles

Here is a delicious recipe for the bath from The Natural Beauty Workshop called Holiday Spice Bath Truffles.  These truffles are deliciously scented dollops of Cocoa Butter and Babassu and are packed with Whole Milk which adds an extra layer of soothing. conditioning moisture to the tub.

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

Tupelo Honey & Almond Lip Balm

Love making your own lip balm?   I found this recipe for Tupelo Honey and Almond Lip Balm on the Wholesale Supplies Plus website.  You are probably thinking, yeah right another lip balm recipe.  This is an interesting recipe because it uses both beeswax and candelilla wax.  Also this recipe has almond butter as an ingredient which along with the sweet almond oil will help keep your lips moisturized and hydrated.  This is a moderate level project and  should take one hour and resulting in 24 lip balm tubes.

Monday, December 8, 2014

How to Make Fresh Rain Sugar Scrub – Short Video

Recently in California we had some good rain to start us off.  It helps but we have had three years of drought.  Midweek it is forecasted that there is a huge storm coming in...the biggest we have seen in years.  But I digress, here is a sugar scrub from the Soap Queen called Fresh Rain. In this Soap Queen video short shows you how to make this simple to make and a really nice alternative to the traditional oil and sugar scrub that can be greasy and slippery in the shower.

Saturday, December 6, 2014

Queen of Hearts Cold Process

This cold processed soap project was inspired from the character from Alice in Wonderland.  The Soap Queen recently shared this Queen of Hearts Cold Process Soap which is created with melt and pour embeds, cold process base and soap frosting.  This project does required a little extra prep so if you want to give it to your Queen of Hearts for Valentine's Day, you will need to get started really soon.

Friday, December 5, 2014

BERRY BLUE CHRISTMAS SOAP RECIPE

Here is a festive holiday soap for Christmas - Berry Blue Christmas Soap from the blog of Lisa Maliga.  This a very simple melt and pour soap project that you can do in a jiffy and have them ready to give out as gifts.  So you better not cry, you better not shout because I am telling you to get started....Now!


All About the Trace

So, you just started to learn to make soap by the cold process method....That is great!  But as a newbie your are confused how to recognize trace.  You probably wondering when trace actually happens?  What is trace?  Trace happens when the oils and lye water have emulisfied in the soap making process.  Once the soap has reached thin trance, it will continue to thicken over time. What to learn more?  Check out the recent post from The Soap Queen called  All About Trace.


Thursday, December 4, 2014

Winter Gardenia Room Diffuser

Now that the rain has started here in California and now the house is all closed up until Spring.  I thought what can I do to make the house smell nice?  I found the instructions from the Soap Queen on how to make this Winter Gardenia Room Diffuser.  This is a very easy project to do. It only takes 20 minutes to get the results of one diffuser.

Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Vitamin E Oil

I started to learn how to make my own bath and body products way back in 2002.  In some of the classes, I learned how to use Vitamin E in some of the products.  I knew some information about this ingredient, but when I saw the entry from The Soap Queen called Sunday Night Spotlight:  Vitamin E, I learned even more.  Give a moment and read this to see if you learn something new.

Tuesday, December 2, 2014

MP Soap: Santa's Tree Farm

Now Thanksgiving is now over and December is now here, it is time to ramp up the holiday ideas.  From Wholesale Supplies Plus is this melt and pour soap project called Santa's Tree Farm .  This is an intermediate level project that should take an hour to get six bars of soap weighing about five ounces each.  These would be cute gift ideas for the holidays.

Monday, December 1, 2014

Neon Embed Cold Process Soap Video

For all of those experienced cold processed soap makers, here is a really cool project from The Soap Queen you should try.  It is called Neon Embed Cold Process Soap.  This blog entry includes the recipe for this project but as a great video so you can watch and follow along.