Natural Potpourri Squares Tutorial

Making your own potpourri is a very easy project to do.  Placing sachets in your clothing drawers make your clothes smell fresh and clean.  Plus making your own potpourri means that you can customize your own blend with your favorite fragrance or essential oil.  This beginning tutorial from The Soap Queen is called Natural Potpourri Squares takes about 30 minutes and yields about 6-10.  This is the perfect activity for a bridal or baby shower or any other event that you may be having.

How to start a blog – advice from a full-time blogger!

Well, congratulations!  You finally decided to take the plunge and decide to finally do a blog.  Are you abit scared?  Well, you do not have to be.  You do not have to have a lot of technical skills to create one.  So if you want to learn more, I found this posting from the Mod Podge Rocks! blog called How to Start a Blog - Advice from a Full-Time Blogger. There are a lot of web hosts but the most common ones are Blogger (which I use) and Wordpress.  So read this post and see what information you can use. Good Luck and welcome to the world of blogging!

Natural Laundry Soap + Natural Dryer Sheet Recipe

Did you know that you can use any of your lye heavy cold process soap that you may have on hand use for homemade laundry soap?  Yes, you can.  Lye-heavy is too hard for your skin but it works great on dirty clothes that need extra cleaning.  Would you like to find out how to make homemade laundry soap?  I found this posting from The Soap Queen called Natural Laundry Soap + Natural Dryer Sheet Recipe that tells you how to do it.

Rose Clay and Madder Root Powder Cold Process Soap

When The Nova Studio was having their studio sale, I wound up purchasing some clays and powders to color my cold process soaps.  I have been using ultramaries, etc. to color my soaps and I wanted to try clays and powders in my soap. I was really not sure how much to use so I was looking for any recipes that included clays or powders that use these ingredients.  I have not try using them yet, but I did find a cold process soap recipe from Lovin' Soap that uses rose clay and madder root.  The posting is called Rose Clay and Madder Root Powder Cold Process that looks really interesting.

How to Make a Handmade Business Cards

Are you just starting off your new business?  Do not have alot of extra money to get business cards?  How about creating your own?  I found this project that was posted on Totally Tutorials called How to Make a Handmade Business Card which originally comes from the blog Creative Khadija.  I think these business cards are really cute and really easy to make.  You should give it a try.

Candy Heart Bath Fizzies

Valentine's Day is just around the corner.  Are you having a hard time thinking of something to give your sweetheart?  I found this project from The Natural Beauty Workshop called Candy Heart Bath Fizzies that would make a great gift. So check out the recipe and order your supplies.

Make a Natural Homemade Facial Scrub

Love using facial scrubs?  Have you ever thought of making your own?  I found this recipe on Totally Tutorials called Honey Lemon Facial Scrub that looks very easy to use.

Natural Cleaners for the Kitchen + Free Label Template

It has been 4 years since I took the Eco-Friendly Housecleaning course at The Nova Studio.  But I found some extra recipes from a posting from The Soap Queen called Natural Cleaners for the Kitchen + Free Label Template.  I particularly like the garbage disposal freshner recipe.  So I am planning to make that really soon.

Top DIY Cleaning Ingredients

It has been awhile since I took the Eco-Friendly Housecleaning Products at The Nova Studio.  And I have not had the chance to make any of the products but I would love to.  But while checking on some of the blogs I follow I found this posting from The Soap Queen called Top DIY Cleaning Ingredients. This posting gives you the very top cleaning ingredients you can use to making your own cleaning products. So if you are interested in starting to make your own cleaning products, this posting is a good place to start.

Pantone 2016 Spin Swirl Cold Process Soap (Two Ways!)

I guess most of you have hear of Pantone?  Well, most graphic arts, fashion designers etc. are familiar with the matching system that is a properitary color space used in a variety of industries primarily in printing but it has been used in the manufactured of color paint, fabric and plastics.  Each year, Pantone will predict trends and forecasts what colors will be hot for any given year.  And for 2016 the colors are Rose Quartz and Serenity (which happens to be a shade of blue.  It is not quite a periwinkle, but it is a nice color).  Since these colors have been selected as Pantone's colors of the year, The Soap Queen was inspired by these colors to create this cold process soap recipe called Pantone 2016 Spin Swirl Cold Process Soap (Two Ways!).  This is an advanced level project that will take you about 1-2 hours to make and will result in about four pounds of soap.

Two Peas in a Pod (M&P Soap)

I happen to follow Lovin' Soap and they had an article about making soap without lye.  We all know that all soap is made with lye, but melt and pour is a way to make soap without have to deal without working with lye directly.  Anyway, Lovin' Soap had this really cute melt and pour project called Two Peas in a Pod that I thought was so adorable that I had to share this.  This would be perfect party favor for a baby shower.

All About Butters in Bath & Beauty Products

Do you love making your bath and body products but you do not know much about putting butters in your products?  Well, I found a posting from The Soap Queen called All About Butters in Bath & Beauty Products that goes into everything you need to know.

Striped Mantra Marbles Swirl in CP Soap

I found this really cool video on You Tube called Striped Mantra Marble Swirl in CP Soap.  This 15 minute video by Soap Lily Soaps made a bar of soap which is half solid color and the other half a swirl technique.  In this video, two people were doing  it together and it maybe a good idea for the first few times you may want to have someone help you. If you are really experienced and feel that you can do it by yourself then go ahead.  Down the road when I try this technique I will recruit a second pair of hands to help me out.

Mini Melt & Pour Football Soap Tutorial

Would you believe the Superbowl is less than a month away?  Since the Superbowl will be celebrating the big 5-0, why not create these football soaps for all of your guests of your party.  This Mini Melt & Pour Football Soap Tutorial from The Soap Queen will be the perfect party favor.  This intermediate level project take about 45 mins and yields 4 bars of soap. So get your team spirit on!

Pouring Essential Oils (and Other Liquids) Without Spilling a Drop!

It seems like when I am trying to measure out my essential oils when I am making a batch of cold process soap I seem to dribble some of my precious oils.  With luck I found this posting from Modern Soapmaking called Pouring Essential Oils (and Other Liquids) Without Spilling a Drop! that has some tips that I am going to try.  If you are having this problem, you should read this posting too!

Rainbow Heart Swirl Cold Process Tutorial

Valentine's Day is a month away.  When I saw this Rainbow Heart Swirl Cold Process Tutorial from The Soap Queen I just had to share it.  I always the love the shape of hearts and I definately want to make it sometime in the future. This  is an intermediate level project that takes 1-2 hours to complete the project and results

Currant & Cranberry Cold Process Tutorial

Are you looking for a really interesting cold process soap recipe to try? Have you ever heard of color contrasting?  Color contrasting can make your soap really stand out.  The colors that you use really pop and it creates a dramatic effect. In all of the arts and wines festivals that I have been too I have not seen a booth have bars of soap that look like this.  You can learn how to do this technique in a recent post from The Soap Queen called Currant and Cranberry Cold Process Tutorial.  This is an intermediate soap project that takes about 1 to 2 hours to make and yields about 4 pounds of soap.
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A Brief History of Soapmaking

New to soap making?  How would you like to learn the history of it?  Well, good news, I found a recent posting from Lovin' Soap Studio called A Brief History of Soapmaking that spells it out for you.  It is an interesting story...so read all about it.

Rose Gold & Charcoal Heart Melt and Pour Soap Tutorial

A week ago we chimed in the new year. Our next holiday is Valentine's Day.  If you are looking for something to give or better yet make and give, you should check out this soap tutorial from The Soap Queen called Rose Gold and Charcoal Heart Melt and Pour Soap.  This is a layers project which requires a little bit of patience, but the results are well worth it.  If you are someone who understands how melt and pour soap base behaves at certain temps then I recommend you try this project. The Soap Queen recommends if you are a beginner, you might want to do a few melt and pour projects under your belt before your attempt this one.

Black Castor & Argan Overnight Scalp Serum

Do you use a scalp serum?  Here is a easy recipe from The Natural Beauty Workshop called Black Castor and Argan Overnight Scalp Serum.  It contains one of the latest and greatest natural hair care ingredients that is gaining popularity and it is called Jamaican Black Castor Oil.  It goes through a process that yields an unique variation of castor oil which has a higher ash content and reputation for restoring moisture to dry and brittle hair.  What is great about this ingredients is that it is a perfect companion to Argan Oil which is another powerhouse for natural hair care.

Soap Packaging Ideas – Soap Cigar Band Labels

I would say that out of all of the packaging ideas for soap that the cigar band label is the simplest and most common of all the packaging ideas.  When I saw this post from Lovin' Soap Studio called Soap Packaging Ideas - Soap Cigar Band Labels  shows you how to do it.  I think the difficult part of it is how you are going to design your labels

Adding Honey to Cold Process Soap: Tips, Tricks & Recipe

Did you know that honey is a popular additive for cold process soap?    I did not until I read the post from The Soap Queen called Adding Honey to Cold Process Soap:  Tips, Tricks and Recipe. According to the post, honey has various properties that makes it appealing for skincare.  It is a natural humectant which means that is absorbs moisture from the air and in turn it is great for the skin to help retain moisture.  Honey also contains antioxidents and natural sugars which can increase the lather in a bar of cold process soap.  But it can be tricky to work with.  If you had it to cold process soap, it is adding extra sugar to the batter and sugar causes the batch to heat up.  I did know that....learned something new today.  So this can happen if you add anything that contain natural sugars ie milk, fruit juices etc.  If you are interested in learning more, then read this interesting post.

Body Oil Perfume Spray Tutorial

Do you love to use perfume?  Have you ever tried a body oil perfume spray? You do not know what a body oil perfume is?  It is great way to lightly scent the skin while applying moisturizing oils?  This Body Oil Perfume Spray from The Soap Queen is really easy to create.  I am not going to reveal how easy it is so you will have to read the post to find out.

Mermaid Orchid Tiger Stripe Soap

Loved the layered look in your cold process soaps?  This is a really cool technique from Lovin' Soap Studios called Mermaid Orchid Tiger Strip.  I like the colors but if you don't you can change the colors if you like.

LoveSpell Solid Bubble Bath DIY

Do you love to take a warm bath after a long hard day?  Want to make even more special?  Why not add these LoveSpell Solid Bubble Bath bars to your bath?  This is a very special recipe from The Soap Queen.  They are a very special recipe which is a combination of glycerin, castor oil and an array of dry ingredients.  When all of the ingredients are combined they create a dough like texture that you can roll and cut. After about a week they will be harden enough to use.  All you do is crumble them in your your bath tub.

Herbal Chest Rub Recipes

As a child I remember using Vicks Vapor Rub.  I have not used it since but if I had to use something I would steer clear of the petroleum based products.  I saw this recipe from Mountain Rose Herb called Herbal Chest Rub that looks really easy to make and would used if I ever need to.

Why No One is Too Small to Follow the Labeling Rules & Cosmetics Regulations

So you are thinking of taking your hobby of making soap and other bath and body products and selling them?  Well, I do not want to scare you but you may want to read this posting ModeronSoapmaking called Why No One is Too Small to Follow the Labeling Rules & Cosmetic Regulations.  It is important to know why you need to be complainant to the regulations before you start selling your products.