Fall officially started last week, which means it’s time for Halloween projects! Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. It’s an excuse to embrace dark colors, moody fragrances and spooky themes. For this Crescent Moon Cold Process Soap, I wanted to create a bar of soap that would be appropriate for Halloween and beyond.
These bars are a sophisticated take on Halloween with a striking yet simple design. Black Oxide gives the bars a dark gray hue. If you want a darker color, feel free to add more colorant. Just keep in mind the more you add, the darker the lather will be. The crescent moon shape is created with melt and pour soap and the Mini Moon Silicone Column Mold. Gold Sparkle Mica on top really pops against the dark gray. The bars are scented with Tobacco & Bay Leaf Fragrance Oil, which is a wonderfully smoky and complex fragrance. It’s great for both men and women.
This project is appropriate for both beginning and intermediate soapers. It requires a medium to thick trace, so you don’t need to worry about over blending with the stick blender. But, keep temperatures in mind. Melt and pour soap begins to melt around 120-130 ° F. If this soap gets too hot, the moon embed could melt. I recommend soaping around 100-110 ° F and not insulating the soap to keep temperatures cool.
What You’ll Need:
Embed:
Mini Moon Silicone Column Mold
LCP White Melt and Pour Base
Shimmer Sparkle Gold Color Block
Shimmer Yellow Color Block
Base:
10″ Silicone Loaf Mold
10.8 oz. Coconut Oil (30%)
10.8 oz. Palm Oil (30%)
10.8 oz. Olive Oil (30%)
2.5 oz. Mango Butter (7%)
1.1 oz. Castor Oil (3%)
5.2 oz. Sodium Hydroxide Lye
11 oz. Distilled Water
2 oz. Tobacco & Bay Leaf Fragrance Oil
Black Oxide
Gold Sparkle Mica
Click here to add everything you need for this project to your Bramble Berry shopping cart!
Make the Moon Embeds:
ONE: Chop and melt 4 ounces of LCP White Melt and Pour Base using 10 second bursts. Add shavings of the Shimmer Yellow Color Block and Gold Sparkle Mica Color Block until you achieve a soft yellow color. Place the Mini Moon Silicone Column Mold into a container to position the mold upright.
TWO: Carefully pour the soap into the Mini Moon Silicone Column Mold. Click here to learn more about how to use the Silicone Column Molds. Allow the soap to fully cool and harden for several hours. Remove from the mold, and trim if necessary. Cut the moon embed to fit in the 10″ Silicone Loaf Mold lengthwise.
Make the Base
If you’ve never made cold process soap before, stop here! I highly recommend checking out our FREE four part SoapQueen.tv series on Cold Process Soapmaking, especially the episode on lye safety. And if you’d rather do some reading, Bramble Berry carries a wide range of books on the topic, including my newest book, Pure Soapmaking. You can also checkout the digital downloads for that instant gratification factor.
SAFETY FIRST: Suit up for safe handling practices! That means goggles, gloves and long sleeves. Make sure kids, pets, and other distractions and tripping hazards are out of the house or don’t have access to your soaping space. Always soap in a well-ventilated area.
COLOR PREP: Disperse 1/2 teaspoon of the Black Oxide colorant into 1/2 tablespoon of sunflower or sweet almond oil (or any other liquid oil). Use a mini mixer to help get rid of any clumps. Have the Gold Sparkle Mica nearby to sprinkle on top at the very end.
FRAGRANCE OIL PREP: In a glass fragrance oil safe container, measure 2 ounces of Tobacco & Bay Leaf Fragrance Oil. Set aside.
ONE: Slowly and carefully add the lye to the water and gently stir until the lye has fully dissolved and the liquid is clear. Set aside to cool.
TWO: Fully melt and combine the coconut oil, olive oil, palm oil, castor oil and mango butter (remember to fully melt then mix your entire container of palm oil before portioning). Once the lye water and the oils have cooled to 130 degrees or below (and are ideally within 10 degrees of each other), add the lye water to the oils and stick blend until thin trace. If you’d like a harder bar of soap that releases faster from the mold, you can add sodium lactate to the cooled lye water. Use 1 teaspoon of sodium lactate per pound of oils in the recipe. For this recipe, you’d add about 2 teaspoons sodium lactate.
THREE: Once you’ve reached a thin trace, add 1/2 teaspoon of dispersed Black Oxide. Use a whisk to fully mix in the colorant.
FOUR: Add the Tobacco and Bay Leaf Fragrance Oil. If the soap is still quite thin, use the stick blender to fully mix in the fragrance oil until the soap is a medium trace.
FIVE: Pour a small amount of the black soap into the mold, and tap it firmly on the counter.
SIX: Place the moon embed into one the black soap, toward a corner. Feel free to place it in any direction you’d like.
SEVEN: Gently pour the remaining black soap into the mold, and tap firmly on the counter to help eliminate bubbles.
EIGHT: Use a spoon to build the soap towards the center of the mold, and create peaks and divots. There is no right or wrong way to create texture on top of soap, so just have fun with it. =)
NINE: Once you’re happy with the top, sprinkle Gold Sparkle Mica on top of the soap, concentrating it toward the center.
TEN: Spritz the soap with 99% isopropyl alcohol to help avoid soda ash. Allow the soap to stay in the mold for 2-3 days. Unmold and cut into bars. Allow the bars to cure for 4-6 weeks. Enjoy!
Crescent Moon Cold Process Soap Tutorial
Ingredients
Embed:
- Mini Moon Silicone Column Mold
- LCP White Melt and Pour Base
- Shimmer Sparkle Gold Color Block
- Shimmer Yellow Color Block
Base:
- 10 ″ Silicone Loaf Mold
- 10.8 oz. Coconut Oil 30%
- 10.8 oz. Palm Oil 30%
- 10.8 oz. Olive Oil 30%
- 2.5 oz. Mango Butter 7%
- 1.1 oz. Castor Oil 3%
- 5.2 oz. Sodium Hydroxide Lye
- 11 oz. Distilled Water
- 2 oz. Tobacco & Bay Leaf Fragrance Oil
- Black Oxide
- Gold Sparkle Mica
Instructions
Make the Moon Embeds:
- Chop and melt 4 ounces of LCP White Melt and Pour Base using 10 second bursts. Add shavings of the Shimmer Yellow Color Block and Gold Sparkle Mica Color Block until you achieve a soft yellow color. Place the Mini Moon Silicone Column Mold into a container to position the mold upright.
- Carefully pour the soap into the Mini Moon Silicone Column Mold. Click here to learn more about how to use the Silicone Column Molds. Allow the soap to fully cool and harden for several hours. Remove from the mold, and trim if necessary. Cut the moon embed to fit in the 10″ Silicone Loaf Mold lengthwise.
SAFETY FIRST: Suit up for safe handling practices! That means goggles, gloves and long sleeves. Make sure kids, pets, and other distractions and tripping hazards are out of the house or don’t have access to your soaping space. Always soap in a well-ventilated area.
COLOR PREP: Disperse 1/2 teaspoon of the Black Oxide colorant into 1/2 tablespoon of sunflower or sweet almond oil (or any other liquid oil). Use a mini mixer to help get rid of any clumps. Have the Gold Sparkle Mica nearby to sprinkle on top at the very end.
FRAGRANCE OIL PREP: In a glass, fragrance oil safe container, measure 2 ounces of Tobacco & Bay Leaf Fragrance Oil. Set aside.
- Slowly and carefully add the lye to the water and gently stir until the lye has fully dissolved and the liquid is clear. Set aside to cool.
- Fully melt and combine the coconut oil, olive oil, palm oil, castor oil and mango butter (remember to fully melt then mix your entire container of palm oil before portioning). Once the lye water and the oils have cooled to 130 degrees or below (and are ideally within 10 degrees of each other), add the lye water to the oils and stick blend until thin trace. If you’d like a harder bar of soap that releases faster from the mold, you can add sodium lactate to the cooled lye water. Use 1 teaspoon of sodium lactate per pound of oils in the recipe. For this recipe, you’d add about 2 teaspoons sodium lactate.
- Once you’ve reached a thin trace, add 1/2 teaspoon of dispersed Black Oxide. Use a whisk to fully mix in the colorant.
- Add the Tobacco and Bay Leaf Fragrance Oil. If the soap is still quite thin, use the stick blender to fully mix in the fragrance oil until the soap is a medium trace.
- Pour a small amount of the black soap into the mold, and tap it firmly on the counter.
- Place the moon embed into one the black soap, toward a corner. Feel free to place it in any direction you’d like.
- Gently pour the remaining black soap into the mold, and tap firmly on the counter to help eliminate bubbles.
- Use a spoon to build the soap towards the center of the mold, and create peaks and divots. There is no right or wrong way to create texture on top of soap, so just have fun with it.
- Once you’re happy with the top, sprinkle Gold Sparkle Mica on top of the soap, concentrating it toward the center.
- Spritz the soap with 99% isopropyl alcohol to help avoid soda ash. Allow the soap to stay in the mold for 2-3 days. Unmold and cut into bars. Allow the bars to cure for 4-6 weeks. Enjoy!
