Soap Queen

Tutorials on soapmaking, bath fizzies, lotions and more

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Crisp Anjou Pear Embed Tutorial

Filed Under: Cold Process Soap

Summer is in full swing, and I’m loving anything bright and refreshing right now! Bramble Berry’s brand spankin’ new Crisp Anjou Pear Fragrance Oil really awakens the senses and the colors of this soap are perfect for that summery vibe. Done in two parts, I’m hopeful this project brings a smile to your face! PSST: I know something that will bring a smile to your face – our NEW silicone 5 pound log liner specially designed for the 5 pound Soap Queen log mold. It has saved us hours of lining molds in just the last month.

Buy everything you need for both parts of this project at the click of a button!

Part One/Day One:  [Read more…]

Modern Cherry Blossom

Filed Under: Cold Process Soap

Spring has officially sprung here in Bellingham! Birds are chirping, the sun is shining (for whole hours at a time!) and the plants around the office are perking up. What better way to celebrate the start of spring with this uniquely abstract floral soap? Scented with our super popular Cherry Blossom fragrance oil (on sale this month!), they are made using the faux funnel technique, but with a twist: a vertical mold!

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Vertical Sandalwood Vanilla Soap, With a Twist!

Filed Under: Cold Process Soap

You might already know this, but vanilla content in some fragrance oils can really cause discoloration. Have you ever used that fact to your advantage in the design of your soap? I wanted to demonstrate how to incorporate the discoloration and wind up with a really neat bar of soap! And I used a super fun technique that I’m excited to share with you.

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Rubber Ducky Soap Tutorial

Filed Under: Melt & Pour Soap

I had a dream about this soap project and I actually got up to write notes down in my phone. Does anyone else ever have soaping dreams? It’s a blessing and a curse. I didn’t get much restful sleep that night (I dare you try to sleep with giant ducks roiling in foamy soap!) but I did come away with a super cute Rubber Ducky Soap project! I hope you like it.

I used the swirling cube technique from a couple weeks ago. Don’t you just love how easy it is to swirl by controlling your temperatures? I want to see you make this project or a variation of it on the Bramble Berry Facebook page. Flaunt your Easter soaps!

This Rubber Ducky Soaps are made by placing rubber ducky toys on each bar. They are perfect for bath time fun! [Read more…]

Neapolitan CP for Valentine’s Day

Filed Under: Cold Process Soap

We know it’s winter but we’re screaming, we’re screaming for ice cream – Neapolitan ice cream that is! Remember the yummy taste of vanilla, berry and chocolate melting together in your mouth? Yeah, we can too so we decided to get our icy on by designing a special Valentine’s Day Soap to whet your appetite for summer days gone by. For the top of our bars, we were inspired by Kristy Rose from Kristy’s Lovely Lathers. Check out Kristy’s guest appearance on Soap Queen TV to see her demonstrate the swirly heart technique live.

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Soap Queen TV: Making Vintage Inspired Soap

Filed Under: Melt & Pour Soap

Inspired by some cool antique keys and escutcheons (key hole covers) I found, I made soap molds so I could have vintage themed soap. Learn how easy it is in this episode of Soap Queen TV!

Get everything you need to make this project with the click of a button!

What You’ll Need:

Flexy Fast Molding Putty (available in single or multiple serving sizes)

8 oz Clear Melt & Pour

8 oz White Melt & Pour

Liquid Black Colorant

Liquid Brown Colorant

Vanilla Bean Fragrance

Heavy Metal Gold Mica

Cappuccino Mica

 Want to see this soap in real life? Well you can! Get your very own bar in our Etsy shop, includes full-color printed instructions.

Cool Yule Peppermint Loaf

Filed Under: Melt & Pour Soap

Bramble Berry was recently mentioned in the 2011 Martha Stewart Holiday Handbook. Yippy! (And yes, we all did the Happy Soaping dance in the office when we saw our name in print in the Divine Ms. M’s magazine). If you don’t have that issue already, you should definitely get it. There are lots of yummy cookie recipes included. Martha did a wonderful red and white striped soap project using melt and pour soap. Even though  Bramble Berry was just noted as a supplier (and not the author of the recipe), we received a ton of calls in customer service asking how to make the “Martha Soap”  which we were so happy to help with (and so proud to be associated with! Thanks Martha and team!). The calls  inspired me to create my own “Martha Inspired” peppermint layer loaf. This is obviously an iteration of the soap by the Martha but it also takes inspiration from last year’s  uber popular Peppermint Bark soap.

See the snowflake ornaments in the background? These beautifully crocheted ornaments for the tree were a gift from a customer. Thanks Eleanor, that was so sweet of you! [Read more…]

Holiday Soap Cubes

Filed Under: Cold Process Soap

I am still so in love with our new cube mold! For this project, I wanted to create a seasonal feel using non-traditional colors and an unexpected yet comforting scent blend. What a great way to welcome the colder months.

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Curiously Gnome-like Santa Claus

Filed Under: Melt & Pour Soap

Have you seen these Santa soaps strategically placed around the Bramble Berry website? I hope you remember where they are because they could help you with a prize from Bramble Berry! Check out the contest details HERE and find out how to WIN! Then come back to the tutorial and make your own Gnomey Claus Soaps. Can you guess which soap mold we used?

The Clean Up Tool and Injector will be your best friends for this project. Of course, nothing is impossible but without these tools, this project would be close to it. [Read more…]

Almonds, Chocolate and Lavender (CP Soap Tutorial)

Filed Under: Cold Process Soap

Remember when Amber did a guest post on the homemade Almond Milk (which also inspired a Blueberry Almond Smoothie and Strawberry Almond Thumprint Cookies)? She inspired us to make Almond Meal Soap with the leftover almond meal from her almond milk making. The almond milk byproduct of almond meal is a gentle exfoliant and a lovely way to get a little more cleaning power from your bar. The fragrance oil blend of chocolate and lavender is a gourmet candy like combination (think sophisticated foodie chocolate). Enjoy this luxurious recipe!

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Cold Process Spider Webs

Filed Under: Cold Process Soap

Team Bramble Berry and I were brainstorming Halloween soap ideas and this was the project that we got most excited about. It’s a very simple technique that adds that extra special (spooky)  touch for Halloween. Give these away as a hostess gift or put them in  your guest bathroom to impress your friends.

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Crazy for Cubes

Filed Under: Cold Process Soap

I know I always say this (um, like a lot), but I think I just found my new favorite mold! There are a whopping 25 cavities in this bad boy. It has a glossy finish, which I love, and the cube shape fits perfectly into the palm of my hands. Plus, they are the ideal size for stamping with our new acrylic stamp line. They’re perfect! Ok…enough gushing about the molds. Check out my specially formulated recipe  below. Why specially formulated? The cube mold works best with super hard recipes. Since no air flow gets into the mold, it can take forever and a day to get the soap to release. The Sodium Lactate, low (4%) superfat plus water discount all contribute to being able to get this soap out of the mold with no sticking. Because of this, the recipe will move fast. Experienced soapers will still be able to swirl but if you’re a newbie? Stick to one color.

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Gardening Cold Process Soap

Filed Under: Cold Process Soap

If you have never made cold process soap before, I strongly suggest getting a couple of  basic recipes under your belt before diving in. Check out Soap Queen TV on Cold Process if you want to get started with cold process. It’s a 4 part series that will take you through the basics (and be sure to watch the episode on Lye Safety). If you’re a book worm, Bramble Berry also has some helpful reading on the cold process technique.

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