#soap making tutorial

Looking for a weekend project to get excited about? Then put this DIY for agate slice soaps on your to do list! 

These beautiful melt & pour soaps were inspired by agate slice coasters all the way down to the gold rim! They are a lot easier to craft than you might think and they are a whole lot of fun! 

Learn how to make your own DIY agate slice soaps now to add some style to your sink. Or craft these homemade soaps for hostess or housewarming gifts! They’re great for Christmas too as well as the rest of the holiday season if you’re planning ahead.

Feel like you need to take some time to chill? How about some soap therapy! This DIY Typography Soap is a project anyone can get their hands into! Learn how to create this fun melt and pour soaps over at A Kailo Chic Life blog here. Or repin this DIY soapmaking project here for later.

For more fantastic DIY soapmaking projects to fill your weekend, be sure to check out my DIY Bath and Body board and my Simply Soapmaking board on Pinterest.

This homemade green tea and turmeric soap recipe is made with green tea and turmeric root powder. Green tea is known to have antioxidant properties while turmeric has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and skin lightening properties - think age spots! I also used shea, mango and cocoa butters in this recipe for a truly luxurious homemade soap with extra skin conditioning properties. (I mean everyone needs that in the winter, right?) Get the recipe here. Or repin it here for later.

How to make soap at home using all natural ingredients

I’VE MADE MY OWN SOAP MANY TIMES IN THE PAST. HE’S DOING IT ALRIGHT. MOST, IF NOT ALL SOAPS (YES, EVEN SO CALLED “CLEANSING BARS” USE LYE OR SOMETHING OF IT’S ILK.

BRITS AND EUROPEANS MAY KNOW LYE BETTER BY  THE NAME OF CAUSTIC SODA WHICH IS EASILY AVAILABLE. YOU CAN MAKE A BASIC SOAP AND ADD ESSENTIAL OILS OF YOUR CHOICE, WHICH WILL MAKE IT SMELL NICER. BUT FOR GETTING CLEAN, BASIC SOAP DOES THE JOB. MAKING SOAP BATCHES IS ALSO HANDY FOR LAUNDRY LIQUID SHORTAGES. YOU CAN SIMPLY GRATE IT, ADD A LITTLE WASHING SODA (NOT CAUSTIC SODA!) AND USE IT LIKE SOAP POWDER.

YOU CAN ALSO WASH DISHES WITH SOAP..AGAIN, GRATE IT, SWIRL THE WATER FOR BUBBLES (THOUGH IT MAKES NO DIFFERENCE TO CLEANING POWER IF IT BUBBLES UP OR NOT) AND RINSE WELL IN HOT WATER.

*AND* YOU CAN USE SOAP TO WASH YOUR HAIR, WHICH WAS USED IN THE PAST. JUST RINSE WELL. IT ALL WORKS.

Research, research, research is the best first step to getting started in soapmaking. But that research doesn’t have to expensive. In addition to online soapmaking tutorials, books can go a long way to providing more in depth information on the chemistry of soapmaking that will assist you moving forward to both more complex recipes as well as getting started creating your own custom homemade soap recipes. 

One helpful book to get you started in modern soapmaking that won’t break your budget is Smart Soapmaking by Anne L. Watson. The kindle version of this soapmaking book is just $.99! Not only does it contain a plethora of useful information on making cold process soap, it also contains both customary and metric measurements and a list of suppliers in FIVE countries, making it suitable for international soapmakers. In addition, after reading this book, Anne will personally answer questions you may have on soapmaking on her website.

Other great soapmaking resources include the 2016 release Pure Soapmaking: How to Create Nourishing, Natural Skin Care Soaps by Anne-Marie Faiola, The Everything Soapmaking Book by Alicia Grosso - You can read this book free if you sign up for an Amazon Kindle Unlimited Free 30-day trial - Soap Maker's Workshop: The Art and Craft of Natural Homemade Soap by Robert S. McDaniel and Katherine J. McDaniel - this book comes with an instructional DVD, and the more traditional book, Milk Soapmaking also by Anne L. Watson, Ultimate Guide To Soap Making by Amanda McCarthy, The Soapmaker's Companion: A Comprehensive Guide with Recipes, Techniques & Know-How by Susan Miller Cavitch that includes a great troubleshooting section and a chart that lists the properties of the most commonly used oils.

Other books you may find of interest include The Modern-Day Pioneer: Simple Living in the 21st Century by Charlotte Denholtz - or read free with Amazon Kindle Unlimited -The Natural Beauty Solution: Break Free from Commercial Beauty Products Using Simple Recipes and Natural Ingredients by Mary Helen Leonard, Soap Queen Business Handbook by Anne-Marie Faiola for those interested in selling homemade soaps, Soap Queen Cold Process Soap and Soap Queen Lotions, Scrubs, Salts and More Projects by Anne-Marie Faiola - both also free to read with Amazon Kindle Unlimited - Beeswax Alchemy: How to Make Your Own Soap, Candles, Balms, Creams, and Salves from the Hive by Petra Ahnert and Honey Crafting: From Delicious Honey Butter to Healing Salves, Projects for Your Home Straight from the Hive by Leeann Coleman and Jayne Barnes.

As with most books, the kindle versions of these books, if available, are significantly cheaper in most cases than the paper version. If you don’t have a kindle you can read kindle eBooks using the free Kindle Reading App on most devices.

You may also want to read my online soapmaking tutorial on how to make cold process soap from scratch here which includes links to other helpful resources, tools and charts as well as my article on how to create your own custom cold process soap recipe using a lye calculator here. Or discover a plethora of homemade soap recipes on my Simply Soapmaking Pinterest board.