Soap Making at Home

Soap making at home can be simple. Use these free guides to find out about making and selling handmade soap from home.

Starting a Home Based Soap Business

About Making Homemade Soap

Making Soap using the Melt and Pour Method

How to Make Homemade Soap from Scratch

Soap Making Ideas

Pricing Homemade Soap

Marketing and Selling Homemade Soap

Purchasing soap base for making soap using the melt and pour method.

If you use the melt and pour method of soap making at home it is essential to source a good quality, cost-effective soap base. Clear soap base, also called glycerin base, can be purchased in large blocks from craft stores and online soap supplies site. Options include clear melt and pour base to be used when you want to create your own colors, goats milk melt and pour base is a creamy opaque soap base that is rich in moisturizing properties, organic melt and pour base which is made using 100% organic products, oatmeal soap base has excellent skin care properties Try to find a soap base that is as natural as possible as these are the best bases for mild and gentle handmade soap.

Oils and Fats for making soap from scratch using the cold process method.

Different fats and oils give different qualities to the soap. Most soap makers add extra beneficial oils and fats to their handmade soap recipe to create a unique skin care product.

• Olive oil. Olive oil has good moisturizing properties. You can use any kind of olive oil but the color of the soap will vary. Extra virgin olive oil is usually a yellow-greenish color and the handmade soap will take on this color. Extra light olive oil is lighter in color and the soap will be whiter.
• Coconut oil. Coconut oil gives the soap a good lather effect. Coconut oil can be purchased in health food stores or Walmart in the vitamins and supplements section. It is usually sold in solid form.
• Castor oil. Castor oil is used for its pure properties. It gives the soap a rich fluffy lather and is soothing to the skin. It can be found in drug stores, Walmart and online stores for soap making supplies.
• Other plant-based oils. A large variety of plant-based oils can be used in soap making at home. Palm oil adds to the hardness of the soap bar and contains Vitamin E. Almond oil is very rich in moisturizing properties and avocado oil has excellent penetrating qualities. Hemp seed oil is a good choice for dry and damaged skin, macadamia nut oil is an effective antioxidant. Walnut oil is deep penetrating and nourishing and has good regenerative properties and soybean oil is easily absorbed and leaves a smooth sensation on the skin.
• Butters. Cocoa butter provides a light pleasant chocolate scent. It reduces skin dryness and improves elasticity. Shea nut butter is high in vitamin and mineral content that benefits dry skin.

Sourcing lye.

Lye or sodium hydroxide can be found at local grocery or hardware stores. Whichever brand you purchase make very sure it is 100 percent pure sodium hydroxide without any added chemicals etc. You can buy lye in bulk from a local chemical supplier. Most bigger cities have a chemical company that will sell large bags of sodium hydroxide. It is important that you have the facilities to safely store the lye in an airtight container away from children, pets and unknowing people. Finding a vendor that specifically supplies lye to the soapmaking trade is often the safest and most cost-effective way of sourcing lye. Search online for reputable sites selling lye.

Different fragrances.

Fragrance oils contain blended aromatic and non-aromatic ingredients and synthetic and natural essential oils. You can purchase totally synthetic fragrance oils, a mixture of natural and synthetic fragrance oils and 100 percent natural frangrance oils to use in soap making at home. Essential oils are naturally occurring oils derived from plants. Essential oil is stronger than fragrance oil and should be used in lower concentration when making soap at home. Fragrance and essential oils are available in a huge variety of scents and all have different aromatherapy and skin care properties. For example Lavender oil is said to have calming effects and is very gentle on the skin. Chamomile oil releves stres and insomnia. Citrus oils provide a stimulating scent and have a refreshing quality.

Different colorants

Food, Drug and Cosmetic colorants are approved to be used in these items. They are manufactured but are generally easy and cost-effective to use and give a wide range of colors. Pigments are also manufactured colorants. The advantage is that they are stable can be mixed into oil for cold process soap making. Mica creates a pearly, translucent effect and works best with clear soaps. Certain herbs and botanicals can be used to give color. Natural soap colorants can impart lovely colors to your handmade soap. These include charcoal powder for a deep black, annatto seeds provide a yellow to orange shade, comfrey leaf gives the soap a natural green color, beet root for a pink-red color, paprika for a range of orange colors. Natural colorants can be sold as powders, whole seeds or the botanical is chopped into very small pieces. Consumers generally believe natural is better so using natural colorants give your handmade soaps a good marketing advantage. However they are more difficult to use when soap making at home if you want to achieve a smooth color.

Exfoliants

Add texture to your homemade soap with natural exfoliants such as cranberry seeds, crushed grape seeds, dill seeds, sunflower seeds, lavender buds, citrus peel, sliced loofah, oatmeal and poppy seeds.

Soap molds

There is an almost overwhelming selection of soap molds. You can buy pre made individual soap molds. Although this is not cost-effective for large batches of soap they can be used for customized novelty soaps. Wooden soap molds creates a long rectangle of soap that can be cut into individual bars. You can purchase wooden soap molds from craft stores and online soap stores or if you are good at carpentry or know someone who is make your own! You can also use your imagination and create your own special soap molds using anything from different tupperware containers to wooden window boxes.

Soap making at home is a fun and creative way of earning extra income. Producing beautiful handmade soaps is not too difficult if you have the right soap making recipe and have sourced quality, cost-effective ingredients. Practice does make perfect when making homemade soap. use a basic soap making recipe and experiment with different ingredients to create the perfect handmade soap!

Starting a Home Based Soap Business

About Making Homemade Soap

Making Soap using the Melt and Pour Method

How to Make Homemade Soap from Scratch

Soap Making Ideas

Pricing Homemade Soap

Marketing and Selling Homemade Soap

Work at Home Crafts

Turn a fun and creative hobby making soap at home into a successful home based business.