Making your own soap these days isn't as complex as it used to be, with the invention of new products to help the home soap maker to produce quality soap easily without the inconvenience. The Melt and Pour range of soap making blocks is a wonderful place to start, since they have thought of everything and every taste. Ranging from Goats Milk soaps and those containing Aloe Vera, Olive Oil, Honey, and natural Hemp, these blocks are superb for making tailored soap gifts for those people with delicate skins, as well as being a first rate base for your own soaps.
*Making the soap.
*Different additions.
*Choice of clear or opaque finishes.
*Molds.
*Presentation.
Making the soap is very easy. All you need is a pan in which to put the Melt and Pour base block. These can also be melted in a microwave although I prefer to keep soap products away from food preparation items, and have a special pan just for soap making and craft products. At the melting stage, when the soap is a nice consistency, this is the fun time when you can add your own personalization.
Different additions.
Here, you can add oils which give a great aroma. You can also add your own personal ingredients such as lanolin, colorings, etc., and one of the nicest additions I have found is that of oils such as apple blossom, and all the different scents which come in oil form and can be ordered online. Many of these resemble well known perfumes and can be mixed and matched with the perfumes you know friends adore.
Sweetcakes.com have a wonderful range of oils which really are great for experimentation and that add that personal touch to your soaps which make them a cut above the rest. Flower petals can always be added to soap as well to give a great look, though these would be added to the transparent soaps so that the full glory of the petal can be seen and enjoyed. Here, take petals from the garden and make your soaps a specialty of the things around you, which will be appreciated by friends.
Clear and opaque finishes.
The choice of Melt and Pour is sufficient to help you choose the kind of soap you want to prepare. The solidity of opaque finishes is suited to shaving soaps which make great presents for men, and can also be used to produce solid colored soap. The transparent soap blocks are used with colors and also with different additions and the joy of these is that they make such good fruit wedges which can be colored and perfumed lightly with freshness.
Molds.
Experimenting over several years, the molds which can be used for soap-making are diverse. Try experimenting with children's molds as you can make some great soaps for kids from these. You can also use food molds, though do keep these separate from use with food. The ideal kinds for guest soaps are those which are relatively small and many of the molds made for Christmas chocolate delights are suited to soap making. Be sure that you clean molds thoroughly between uses, and you can coat them with petroleum jelly to ensure that your soaps do not adhere and break upon being taken out of the molds.
Presentation.
Often baskets are the best presentation for soaps. Arrange them into the basket with other colorful items such as flannels or bathroom extras. These are great wrapped in clear cellophane which is cut into a large circle and then brought up the sides of the basket and ties at the top with gift ribbon and a card.
Another presentation which is rather nice is to have your own soap labels. These are very easy to make on a computer, and you can have your own style. Made into strips, most graphic programs will allow you to print many at a time, and these can be wrapped around your individual bars of soap and then stuck with paper glue, giving your soap a professional presentation.
Soap doesn't have to be dull and standard any more. Making your own allows you the luxury of presenting presents which are specially designed for each of your friends, using perfumes they love or small soaps which can be used for guest bedrooms. They are pretty and personalized and once you get into soap making, you will find yourself experimenting with different kinds of soap additions so that you can truly make the craft fit your likes and dislikes easily, without having soap filled with standard factory additions.
Soaps made with Melt and Pour are very gentle on the skin as the makers have already discerned the ingredients which make that soap user friendly, such as glycerin, palm oil, coconut oil, Aloe Vera and honey. All that is left to you is the final preparation and personal touches which make your soap unique. Easy and creative, soap-making is for everyone, and allows the individual to succeed from the very start of their soap-making experience.