Mysterious and beautiful, mermaids are universally appealing. Mermaids appear in various folklore stories from a wide range of cultures, and became extremely popular by Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale, “The Little Mermaid.” This cold process soap was inspired by scales of a mermaid’s tail. The base features a simple blue and white in-the-pot swirl to mimic waves of the ocean. Iridescent glitter gives this soap plenty of sparkle and shine, while Crisp Cotton Fragrance Oil adds a fresh, clean scent.
To create the scale effect, this project uses the petal technique introduced by Erica Pence in the Artisan Soapmaker Ezine and made popular by Kenna of Modern Soap Making. The petal technique takes a steady hand and a bit of practice. First, small dots of soap are squeezed in a row. A spoon is pressed into the dot to spread the soap and create a petal/scale shape. Before attempting a large batch, you may want to practice the technique on parchment paper to get a feel for the movement. Once you get the hang of it, it’s surprisingly simple.
