Basic Instructions

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Equipment Needed:

• Double Boiler with a glass lid
  Or, a microwave and glass or plastic bowl

• Spoon

• Knife

• Thermometer

• Melt and Pour Soap Base, clear or white

• Liquid Dye

• Fragrance oil/Scent

• Soap Molds

• Melting the Soap Base

  • Double Boiler Method (Recommended Method)

    • Cut soap into chunks.

    • Place the thermometer inside pot that soap will be melted in

    • Melt the soap in a double boiler.

    • Keep a glass lid on to prevent loss of moisture, while still being able to watch temperature of on thermometer

  • Microwave Method (Great for small batch)

    • Cut your soap into chunks.

    • Place in a bowl and microwave at half power in 30 second intervals until completely melted.

Note:  Soap melts at approximately 140°F.  Do Not heat above 170°F - it may begin to burn, or give off a bad odor and/or lose it’s transparency.

• Adding Liquid Dye

  • When soap has melted - add skin safe liquid dye one drop at a time, a little goes a long way. 

  • Gently stir in your dye to incorporate. Avoid over mixing as this tends to cause bubbles in your soap.

Note:  If you find that it is hard to control the amount of dye and that you are using too much color, you can dye up a piece of soap and let it cool. From there you can cut off chunks of the colored soap to dye soap base in the future.

• Adding Fragrance Oil/Scent

  • Fragrance oils/scents work well to fragrance your soap.  Just be sure to use a skin safe scent*.

  • Start by using ¼ teaspoon of scent per pound of soap

  • Stir gently to mix in.

Note:  Keep in mind that some fragrances are naturally softer than others and you can adjust the amount of fragrance to your personal preference by adding either more scent or more soap until you are satisfied with the finished product.

*Never put Fragrance directly on the skin.  Skin safe scents are safe for skin when combined with melt & pour soap or bath & body products such as body lotion, body mist, or body wash.  Direct contact may cause skin irritation.

• Other ingredients that can be added to soap

  • You can add other ingredients to your soap such as small amounts of jojoba oil, sweet almond oil or other essential oils not to exceed 2 tablespoons of oil per 16 oz of melted soap.

  • Other liquids that can be used include herbal teas, coffee, milk, cream or honey not to exceed a ¼ cup of any water based liquid to 16 oz. of melted soap.  See our Fun with additives page.

  • To make an exfoliating soap add cornmeal or poppy seeds

  • To add oatmeal, be sure to run it through a blender so that it is finely ground.  Do not use instant oatmeal it will turn to mush.

• Pour Into Molds

  • When ready you can just pour your melted soap into soap molds.

  • As air bubbles tend to occur, they rise to the top.

  • Either

    • Over pour soap, let it set up and shave off the area affected by the bubbles.

    • Or, lightly spray the top of soap with a small amount of rubbing alcohol immediately after the soap is poured to eliminate bubbles.

Note:  Soap can be used as soon as it hardens.

• Storing/Wrapping Your Soap

  • Because glycerin soap has a high moisture content, it should be kept wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, or a sealed plastic bag with as much air as possible removed to keep the moisture in.

Note:  Tri-State Candlemaking Supplies, Inc. shall not be held responsible for products created by you from our supplies.  You alone are responsible for product.

We strongly recommend thorough recipe testing!