DIY: Herbal Soap Making From Scratch

Did you know that industrial soap companies remove the glycerin from soap in order to produce bars that are firmer and longer lasting?  It is true.  According to The Mountain Rose Blog, glycerin occurs naturally during the soap making process,providing a moisturizing quality to soap.  If you make your own soap, the glycerin is retained which makes the soap more gentler and more moisturizing to the skin than the store bought soap.  A good tip is that handcrafted soap should be placed on a well-draining surface and not left standing water where it will quickly dissolve.  The Mountain Rose Herb Blog recently posted a recipe in their posted titled DIY: Herbal Soap Making From Scratch.

African Black Soap Salt Bar

Do you love making your own cold process soap?  Is coconut oil your favorite ingredient?  Here is a really simple recipe that combines the two.  It is called African Black Soap Salt Bar and it is brought to you by Lovin' Soap on their blog called Learn How to Make Soap.  Instead of using a large soap mold that you will have to cut into individual bars, Lovin' Soap uses individual cavity bars for this recipe because they want to have them harden a lot faster than the coventional mold.  The salt bar mold is used because it is the author's favorite. Give it a try and see you like it.

Merlot Wine Soap

I have heard of making cold process soap with goat's milk or beer, but this is the first time I have heard of using wine.  In this post from I'd Lather be Soaping called Merlot Wine Soap Jenny tells her experience making soap with Merlot wine and has a video that shows you how she did it.

Amethyst Garden Soap Tutorial

Amethyst is the birthstone for anyone who was born in the month of February. If you want to create a cold process soap that commemorates those in your life that were born in the month then check out this Amethyst Garden Soap Tutorial  from The Soap Queen.  This project is an advanced that takes 45 minutes to make 12 pounds of soap.

Cold Process Planets in a Melt and Pour Galaxy

Are you wondering if cold process soap and melt and pour can be combined into one soap?  Well, guess what?  It can!  This really cool Cool Process Planets in a Melt and Pour Galaxy by Guest Blogger Alesia appears on the Soap Queen Blog. This tutorial is similar to the Intergalactic Planetary Melt and Pour project that had previously made an appearance on the blog, but it definitely has a twist - the planets are made from leftover shreds of cold process soap.

Dandelion Zebra Swirl

When I saw this cold process tutorial called Dandelion Zebra Swirl from The Soap Queen I had to share it.  The colors are reminiscent of warm days, green grass and freshly sprouted tulips. The key to this technique is having a recipe that moves slowly and stays at a thin trace to get a beautiful layered swirl in the middle.

Cherry Blossom Glitter Cold Process

January will soon becoming to a close and February will be here.  I know a lot of you are waiting for Spring to arrive.  But I found this cold process recipe called Cherry Blossom Glitter from the Soap Queen. When I saw the title of this cold process recipe it made me think of when the Cherry Blossom trees bloom in Washington, DC.  Thought it would be nice to share this recipe.  If you get started now, the soap will be cured by Spring.

Butterfly Swirl Soap Tutorial

There are a lot of swirling techniques online for cold process soap.  If you are an advanced cold process soap maker here is another one that you might want to try.  It is the Butterfly Swirl Soap.  This tutorial is from the Soap Queen who always has great tutorials on her site. So give it a try and I will keep on posting

Peacock Swirl CP Soap Tutorial

Most of the peacock soaps I have seen have had the swirl all the way through.  But this one has the swirl  only on the top.  I like the contrast of the colors of the peacock swirl on the top and the creamy white bar of soap below it.  If you would like to learn how to make this beautiful soap, then check out the Peacock Swirl Soap Tutorial that appears on the Soap Queen's site.  This is an advanced project that should take one hour to make (plus curing time0 and results in seven pounds of soap.

French Curl Swirl Soap

Brambleberry recently came out with some new swirl tools.  On the Soap Queen site they posted a Frog Foot and Butterfly tutorials using these new tools.  You thought those were great recipes, here is another great advanced recipe called the French Curl Swirl. To me it looks like a peacock swirl with a twist. But it is also looks like the fancy paper marbling technique demonstrated by Martha Stewart I saw on her show many years ago.   So check this recipe out and if you like it then check out the Frog Foot and Butterfly.

Defying the Rules of Soapmaking: 100% Coconut Oil Soap with Aloe Vera and a Mantra Swirl

Did you know that there are some rules of soap making that get spread around like wildfire and most of them are true!  But unfortunately there are some that are not. For example, when making 100% coconut oils soap defies three of the soapmaking rules and one of them is the fact that  single oil soaps do not perform as well as syngerstic formulas with multiple oils.  In a recent post  on the Soap Queen's site called Defying the Rules of Soapmaking:  100% Coconut Oil Soap with Aloe Vera by Kenna of Amathia Soapworks talks about some of the rules and gives a recipe that defies the rules.  So check out this wonderful recipe.  It is a great one because it does not contain any palm oil if you are concerned about that issue.

4 Color In~The~Pot Swirl Soap Tutorial

Have you tried to make swirl cold process soap before?  About giving your soap that extra wow factor?  Did you know that by pouring three contrasting-colored batches of soap into one larger batch without overmixing them, an intricate-looking swirl emerges that has the feel of hours worth of painstaking work when really it’s super quick to get the hang of?  Anne Marie has provide this tutorial on how to make 4 Color In~The~Pot Swirl Soap Tutorial on her website The Soap Queen.

Sunset Ombre Soap Tutorial

Here is a beautiful technique in cold process soap making called ombre. Basically, ombre is a layering technique that results in a beautiful layered look. This Sunset Ombre Soap Tutorial  from the Soap Queen is an intermediate project that takes an hour (plus curing time) to make 12 bars of soap.

Goats Milk Swirl Soap

Have you ever made goat's milk soap before?  If you have and would like to learn how to make it in the pot swirl technique you just might want to check out this tutorial from the Soap Queen called Goats Milk In The Pot Swirl.  In this tutorial Anne Marie provides the recipe plus a video that you can watch her making this soap.

Tiger Stripe “Hanger” Swirl Tutorial

Awhile back I was at my local Michael's s store and I saw a similiar project in a book for melt and pour soap. The Soap Queen has posted this tutorial on how to make this Tiger Stripe “Hanger” Swirl Soap. It is an intermediate project that takes 60 to 90 minutes to complete.  Once you are done you should get eight bars of soap.

I have tried to make the melt and pour version but it did not come out like the picture.  I guess it will take a little more practice since the consistencies are different.

Fresh Snow Gradient Layer Soap

I really like the layered look in cold process soap.  If you like the look as much as I do, then check out this tutorial Fresh Snow Gradient Layer Soap  from I'd Lathering Be Soaping.  Somehow, purple does not seem like a color that I would associate with fresh snow.  I may use blue instead.  What do you think?

Cranberry Chutney Fall Sweater Stripes

When I saw this cold process soap recipe, it reminded me of those Brach candies that had the layer of coconut, strawberry and chocolate.  I thought my eyes were deceiving me, but no it is a soap and it is called Cranberry Chutney Fall Sweater Stripes .  The Soap Queen recently shared the recipe for this colorful soap recipe on her site.  It is an intermediate level recipe that should take you an hour to make (without curing time) and give you 15 bars of soap.

Sunset Over the Water by Lovin’ Soap

Even though summer is over, it is still nice to celebrate a nice sunset. Or if you want to remember a sunset from a recent vacation, why not create this cold process soap recipe by Amanda Griffin of Lovin' Soap called Sunset Over the Water.  As a guest blogger for the Soap Queen website, Amanda shared this tutorial by using Brambleberry's neon colorants.

Hot Cocoa Swirl Soap

Jenny from I'd Lather Be Soaping posted her blog on how she made this beautiful Hot Cocoa Swirl Soap in an instructional video. Now she does not give her complete recipe but she does demonstrate this beautiful technique.  So if you love hot chocolate, you may want to adapt your recipe this techinque and give your bars of soap for gifts during the holidays.

How to Make African Jelly Jelly Soap

Have you ever heard of African Jelly Soap?  According to ehow contributor, Kelly Sundstrom African jelly jelly soap, which is also referred to as African Black soap, is traditionally created with black potash lye, instead of refined lye. This causes the soap to turn black in color, and to have a softer texture that can be more gentle on dry skin. Although it can be difficult to locate African jelly jelly soap in stores, you can make your own at home using basic soap-making ingredients. If you are a cold process soap maker and would like to make this type of soap, then read Kelly's article titled, How to Make African Jelly Jelly Soap.  If you have made this type of soap before, please share your experience.