It’s a little crazy that Halloween is only two months away. I can’t wait to start decorating my house with spider webs, ghosts and witches. Halloween is a sweet holiday (haha, punny!), and now that the kiddos are old enough to love trick-or-treating (hellllllo candy), it’s only getting better! Last year I dressed up a witch, while Jamisen dressed up as Clifford and Lily was a pink poodle.
This year, I used the Stephenson Jelly Soap Base to create these Spooky Spider Soap Jellies. LabColors give the soap bright, translucent shades of green and purple. The soap is scented with Spellbound Woods and Applejack Peel Fragrance Oils. The little spiders are actually small plastic toys that are available for a limited time. They are great for many projects, including solid melt and pour and liquid soap. The legs on the spiders are a little poky, so wash with care. To use jelly soap, tear off a very small amount of the jelly and create a lather using a loofah or washcloth.
UPDATE: The spider toys have been discontinued. You can usually find spider toys at your local craft store during Halloween! They are also available on Amazon.
What You’ll Need:
12 Bar Square Silicone Mold
32 oz. Stephenson Jelly Melt and Pour Base
.3 oz. Applejack Peel Fragrance Oil
.3 oz. Spellbound Woods Cybilla Fragrance Oil
.3 oz. Vanilla Color Stabilizer
2 mL Green Apple High pH LabColor
2 mL Easter Purple High pH LabColor
10- 20 Spider Toys (These have been discontinued. You can find spider toys at your local craft store during Halloween, or on Amazon)
Click here to add everything you need for this project to your Bramble Berry shopping cart!
DILUTING LABCOLOR: You’ll need to dilute your LabColors in order to use them in this project. We like diluting the small bottle of LabColor in 4 oz. of distilled water. For more on diluting LabColors, check out this blog post.
ONE: Cut the Stephenson Jelly Melt and Pour into small pieces. Place in a large heat safe container and melt using 1 minute bursts. This melt and pour base takes a little longer to melt than regular melt and pour soap, so longer bursts are needed. Keep stirring between each burst but only a few times; jelly soap has a tendency to create bubbles. Because the soap base is so thick, the bubbles do not rise to the top like regular melt and pour bases. Once melted, remove from the microwave. The base will be thick. Split the soap into two even containers.
TWO: To one container, add the Spellbound Woods Cybilla Fragrance Oil and Vanilla Color Stabilizer. This prevents the Spellbound Woods Cybilla Fragrance Oil from discoloring the soap brown. Read more about fragrance discoloration here. To the other container, add the Applejack Peel Fragrance Oil. Stir gently to incorporate while avoiding creating bubbles.
THREE: To the container with Applejack Peel Fragrance Oil, add the diluted Green Apple LabColor and gently stir to incorporate. If the base begins to harden and cool, place back into the microwave using 30 second bursts to melt.
FOUR: To the container with Spellbound Woods Fragrance Oil, add the diluted Easter Purple LabColor and gently stir to incorporate. If the base begins to harden and cool, place back into the microwave using 30 second bursts to melt. 
FIVE: Place two to three spider toys face down in the mold. Spritz with rubbing alcohol to help the spiders stay in the soap and slowly pour the green and purple soap into the molds. We found this recipe comfortably creates 3-4 soap jellies in each color. Because the soap is so thick, spraying the top with 99% isopropyl alcohol is not needed. The alcohol does not work very well to disperse bubbles. Allow the soap to fully cool and harden for several hours. Gently remove from the mold.
During our tests, this base was fairly resistant to glycerin dew. Our soap was left in the open for a week and did not form glycerin dew. But to be on the safe side, wrap the soap in plastic wrap to keep them in tip-top shape. Learn more about storing your soap here. To use, tear off a small piece of the soap and work it into a lather with a loofah, washcloth or sponge. Some like to freeze soap jellies to harden the product. In our tests, freezing the Stephenson Jelly Soap Base did not produce a completely hard soap; it was still quite wiggly and soft.
How are you celebrating Halloween this year? I’d love to see any ghoulish bath and body products you create! Tag me on Twitter or Facebook or Instagram when you post them; I’m @brambleberry in all three of those places =)
- 12 Bar Square Silicone Mold
- 32 oz. Stephenson Jelly Melt and Pour Base
- .3 oz. Applejack Peel Fragrance Oil
- .3 oz. Spellbound Woods Cybilla Fragrance Oil
- .3 oz. Vanilla Color Stabilizer
- 2 mL Green Apple High pH LabColor
- 2 mL Easter Purple High pH LabColor
- 10- 20 Spider Toys
- Cut the Stephenson Jelly Melt and Pour into small pieces. Place in a large heat safe container and melt using 1 minute bursts. This melt and pour base takes a little longer to melt than regular melt and pour soap, so longer bursts are needed. Keep stirring between each burst but only a few times; jelly soap has a tendency to create bubbles. Because the soap base is so thick, the bubbles do not rise to the top like regular melt and pour bases. Once melted, remove from the microwave. The base will be thick. Split the soap into two even containers.
- To one container, add the Spellbound Woods Cybilla Fragrance Oil and Vanilla Color Stabilizer. This prevents the Spellbound Woods Cybilla Fragrance Oil from discoloring the soap brown. To the other container, add the Applejack Peel Fragrance Oil. Stir gently to incorporate while avoiding creating bubbles.
- To the container with Applejack Peel Fragrance Oil, add the diluted Green Apple LabColor and gently stir to incorporate. If the base begins to harden and cool, place back into the microwave using 30 second bursts to melt.
- To the container with Spellbound Woods Fragrance Oil, add the diluted Easter Purple LabColor and gently stir to incorporate. If the base begins to harden and cool, place back into the microwave using 30 second bursts to melt.
- Place two to three spider toys face down in the mold. Spritz with rubbing alcohol to help the spiders stay in the soap and slowly pour the green and purple soap into the molds. We found this recipe comfortably creates 3-4 soap jellies in each color. Because the soap is so thick, spraying the top with 99% isopropyl alcohol is not needed. The alcohol does not work very well to disperse bubbles. Allow the soap to fully cool and harden for several hours. Gently remove from the mold.
Will this need any added preservative because of the added water used to disperse the colors?
You don’t need an additional preservative! The LabColors are diluted with water and a preservative to protect against mold and bacteria, so you don’t need extra in the soap. 🙂
Read more on diluting LabColors here: http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/tips-and-tricks/diluting-bramble-berry-labcolors/
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I’m reposting my comment since I never heard back and I’d like to try and make these soaps soon.
Hi, I’m looking to make this soap this weekend and I’d like to confirm how I should store it. In following Instagram it sounds like the soap should be wrapped in plastic until time to use. My question is, once the soap is sitting in the soap dish is it okay to sit out until it’s gone (which could be weeks)? I thought I read on Instagram it could sit out a week but would then begin to turn into a liquid. I’d like to confirm because that will determine if I decide to share my final product with friends or end up using it up at home. Thanks!
Hi Kimberly!
So sorry that I missed your comment. In general, we recommend wrapping melt and pour soap in plastic wrap or another airtight packaging option to help avoid sweating, aka glycerin dew. We experimented with leaving this soap base unwrapped once made, and did not experience any glycerin dew. If you live in an extremely humid climate, you may want to wrap it to be extra safe. O
nce used, I would recommend storing this soap in an area where it will not sit in water. A soap dish with holes on the bottom should do the trick. Like any soap, if it’s left to sit in moisture it will begin to soften, and you could certainly end up with a very soft, gooey mess rather than fun jelly soap! If you give to family and friends, you may want to instruct them to invest in a good soap dish, or just tear off small amounts of the soap before use and leave the remaining soap in a jar or other container.
I hope this helps! 🙂
-Amanda with Bramble Berry
Thanks for your response. I think I can pick up some soap dishes (with holes in the bottom) at the Dollar Store and can give that to friends along with the soap. Hopefully that will ensure it doesn’t turn into a jelly puddle. Can’t wait to actually make the soap!
You’re welcome! The dollar store is a great idea. I’m sure your friends will love them! They are so fun to touch and use 🙂
-Amanda with Bramble Berry
I just got 10 lbs of the Jelly soap base in!! Can’t wait to start having fun!! hindsight tho…. why’d I buy 10 pounds??? LOL I musta really wanted to have fun with a new ingredient!!! LOL
I do have a question tho… Does this base have the same fragrance load as melt & pour?
Hi Carrie!
Good question! It does. You can use the same amount of fragrance oil in the Jelly Soap as you would in regular melt and pour base. When using the Fragrance Calculator, select “melt and pour.” I hope this helps!
Fragrance Calculator: https://www.brambleberry.com/Pages/Fragrance-Calculator.aspx
-Amanda with Bramble Berry
Hi, I’m looking to make this soap this weekend and I’d like to confirm how I should store it. In following Instagram it sounds like the soap should be wrapped in plastic until time to use. My question is, once the soap is sitting in the soap dish is it okay to sit out until it’s gone (which could be weeks)? I thought I read on Instagram it could sit out a week but would then begin to turn into a liquid. I’d like to confirm because that will determine if I decide to share my final product with friends or end up using it up at home. Thanks!
These would be great fun for kids who aren’t afraid of spiders. And that being said, my kids would hate them, LOL. Still a cute project though 🙂
Thanks so much! When I first saw the soap from far away I did jump a little. 😉
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
The spiders are out of stock!! Do you know when you’ll get more in? Can any little plastic spider work?
Hi Rebecca!
We are expecting those toy spiders back around Sept. 15th. Sorry about that wait! Once they’re back in stock, our website will be updated. 🙂
Toy spiders: https://www.brambleberry.com/Toy-Spiders-Set-of-10-P6332.aspx
If you need to make those soaps now, you can use any plastic toy spider! Just make sure it’s nice and clean before it’s added to the soap. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I don’t have Facebook for uploading photos, but I’ve made a few soap projects with glow in the dark pigment – its a riot.
Oh that sounds fun! It’d be perfect for a dark Halloween party. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
OMG What a fun project. Thanks for sharing this
You’re welcome Odette! Hope you get a chance to try it out. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
This looks so fun! And the jigglyness makes it more perfect for Halloween 🙂 Would be a fun project with the kids!
This would be so much fun to make with kids! I have to admit, we had a blast jiggling the soap as well. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry