Hand-made soaps make wonderful gifts. They’re ideal stocking stuffers, and they can be tucked quickly into a gift basket or a box destined for family members in faraway locations.
Most arts-and-crafts stores offer kits for making melt-and-pour (MP) soap. For someone who isn’t sold on the idea of manufacturing soap on a stovetop, this is a good way to get started. Soapmaking is addictive, however, and many people graduate to getting their supplies in bulk from specialty outlets.
The Basics of Melt and Pour Soapmaking
Ingredients
- Double boiler
- MP base (available as a clear or white base; purchased from craft stores or bulk suppliers)
- Scale for weighing MP base
- Soap molds (available in craft or specialty stores, but a muffin pan, several single-serving gelatin molds, or 4-ounce Tupperware containers will do)
- Squirt bottle with 70% rubbing alcohol
- Colorant, if desired (food-grade pigments are recommended)
- Fragrance oil or essential oil of choice (at least 2 to 3 tablespoons fragrance oil, or ½ to 1½ tbsp. essential oil per 2 pound batch)
- Cellophane bags or other packaging for finished soaps
Method
- Place soap molds in a location where they will be out of the way, but where the melted soap can be easily poured into the molds.
- With a large, stiff knife, cut enough MP base to fill available molds (weigh out 4 to 6 ounces extra, as some will be wasted).
- Gradually melt MP base, stirring occasionally, in top compartment of double boiler over medium heat. If soap starts to bubble, reduce heat. (Some people use a microwave to melt the base. This is faster, but MP may boil over suddenly. Watch closely).
- When all soap base has melted, add pigment (if desired) a few drops at a time. Stir. Add more until desired hue is reached.
- Remove double boiler from heat.
- Add fragrance oil or essential oil to melted MP base and stir.
- Moving quickly, pour (or ladle) melted soap into molds. If soap in boiler begins to congeal, return to heat. Don’t reheat to boiling, as fragrance oils and essential oils evaporate quickly.
- Once soap has been poured into molds, spray the surface with a mist of 70% rubbing alcohol to remove bubbles (a little goes a long way).
- Allow soap to cool for two to three hours before moving.
- Unmold soaps by inverting molds onto clean, dry countertop or wax paper. If soaps are stubborn, place molds in freezer for a couple of hours and retry. Occasionally, it may be necessary to dip bottoms of molds in warm water after freezing so soaps will release.
- Package in bags. Add labels, if desired.
- Cleanup is easy (and it smells good!). Simply soak utensils and molds in a sinkful of hot water for a few minutes; then rub clean.
Making soap may seem daunting at first, but once a pattern is established the task becomes second-nature. Indeed, devotees of melt-and-pour are always looking for new challenges: layered soaps, glitters and sparkles, complex molds, embedded items—even “flavored” soaps.
The real danger in making melt-and-pour soap is that it can become a full-time diversion…or maybe even the basis for a new business.
Suppliers:
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