melt and pour Archives - Page 3 of 9

Pure Charcoal Melt & Pour Soap DIY

February 21, 2017 Filed Under: Bath & Body Tutorials, Melt & Pour Soap

A few weeks ago I shared a recipe for Charcoal & Tea Tree Facial Bars made with cold process soap. I got quite a few requests to create something similar with melt and pour, so these Pure Charcoal Melt & Pour Bars were created! They are made in the brand new Pure Soap Silicone Tray Mold, which was specially designed by the Bramble Berry team. The details in each cavity are deep enough to make filling in each space as easy as possible. This new mold is suitable for cold process and melt and pour as well as lotion bars.

This soap is created with Aloe Vera Melt and Pour Base which contains 5% aloe vera gel. It has a slight green tint, but the activated charcoal covers that right up. Tea tree essential oil gives the bars a refreshing and earthy scent. The soap contains two full teaspoons of charcoal so they’re great for oily skin. The charcoal does create a gray lather but it’s very faint. If you prefer, you can reduce the amount of charcoal to prevent any color in the lather. Learn more about charcoal here.

Want to see this recipe in action? Scroll down to the bottom of this post to watch Anne-Marie make these bars!

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How to Make Ombre Mermaid Soap

December 22, 2016 Filed Under: Melt & Pour Soap

With ombre aqua blue layers and plenty of sparkle, this soap is fit for a mermaid. It’s made with ingredients in the Mermaid Ombre Soap Kit, which includes everything you need to make this project. This recipe is for one batch but the kit comes with enough to make two batches. It has printed instructions and labels to give the bars a finishing touch. The kit also ships free to the lower 48 United States!

The ombre layers are created by melting down all the soap, pouring a small amount into the mold, then adding shavings of the Hydrated Chrome Green Color Block to the remaining soap. As you continue to pour each layer and add more color, the color becomes increasingly saturated. By the time you pour the last layer, the soap is a deep aqua blue.

You can create as many layers as you’d like. The more layers, the more gradual the ombre effect will be. If you want the layers to be perfectly even, I recommend placing the mold on a scale and weighing each layer. This project is suitable for beginners, but keep in mind layers take a little patience. It can be handy to have a thermometer for this project to make sure the soap is not too hot when poured. If the melt and pour is too hot, it can melt the layer below. Read more tips for layering melt and pour soap here. [Read more…]

Blueberry Tart Melt & Pour Soap DIY

December 20, 2016 Filed Under: Bath & Body Tutorials, Melt & Pour Soap

During winter, everyone get a craving for fresh berries. But fresh berries are expensive off season. Don’t feel like paying an arm and a leg for a pint of blueberries? Make one of these Blueberry Tart Melt & Pour Soaps instead! Made with Blueberry Jam Fragrance Oil, they smell sweet and juicy.

First, a small layer of brown soap is poured into the Round (Cupcake) Silicone Mold to create the look of a crust. White soap is layered on top, and is finished with blueberry soap embeds and a soap drizzle. The “blueberries” on top are created with the Small 9 Ball Silicone Mold. For this project I used two Small 9 Ball Silicone Molds to create three blueberry embeds for each soap. If you only have one mold, create the embeds in two batches.

Because this soap does involve a few layers, I recommend having a spray bottle of 99% isopropyl alcohol nearby. Spraying alcohol between the layers helps the soap stick together. It’s also great for getting rid of bubbles right after pouring. A thermometer is also handy for melt and pour layers. If the soap is too hot, it can melt the layer below. I recommend pouring the top layers around 120-130 degrees F to avoid melting.

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Midnight Plum Melt & Pour Soap DIY

December 13, 2016 Filed Under: Bath & Body Tutorials, Melt & Pour Soap

Projects with lots of layers, swirls, embeds and more are awesome. But sometimes you just want to make something easy and straightforward, you know what I mean? This no-fuss melt and pour project is just that. But, that doesn’t make it boring! The soap base is colored with a blend of Queen’s Purple Color Block and Black Oxide Color Block for a rich, dark violet hue. Then, lots of glitter and sparkle is added. It reminds me of deep space.

The soap is scented with Bramble Berry’s Alien Type Fragrance Oil, which was inspired by the Thierry Mugler perfume of the same name. It smells absolutely amazing with notes of jasmine, amber, ylang ylang and a touch of patchouli. It’s the perfect scent for the mysterious purple color of this soap. Don’t forget to add the Vanilla Color Stabilizer, because the fragrance does discolor. I used the Stephenson Ultra Clear Soap Base for this project so the sparkle really pops, but any clear melt and pour soap base would work as well.

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Christmas Star Melt & Pour Soap Tutorial

December 1, 2016 Filed Under: Bath & Body Tutorials, Melt & Pour Soap

Christmas is just a few weeks away. Hard to believe, I know! If you’re making handmade gifts, melt and pour soap is a great option at this stage in the game. It only takes a few hours to harden, and is ready to use as soon as it’s fully cooled. These Christmas Star Melt and Pour Soaps are the perfect way to spread the Christmas cheer. They are also a great project for beginners.

First, the soap is colored with Shimmer Gold Color Block for a sparkly gold hue. It’s scented with Sleigh Ride Fragrance Oil, one of my all-time favorite holiday scents. It does discolor brown, so don’t forget the Vanilla Color Stabilizer! Once the soap is unmolded, a mixture of mica and alcohol is painted on the star details to really make them pop. To help seal the mica, spray the soap lightly with non-scented aerosol hairspray. This creates a seal that makes the mica a little more resistant to rubbing off when handled. That being said, the mica will wash off after one to two uses. I still think it’s worth it though. =)

This project is perfect to make with family visiting for the holidays. The hardest part is “painting” the soap once unmolded, and even that is pretty fool-proof. Young kids would have fun adding the colorant, fragrance and stirring the soap! It would be a great project to create a new holiday tradition.

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Cosmic Cotton Candy Soap Tutorial

November 17, 2016 Filed Under: Bath & Body Tutorials, Melt & Pour Soap

When I think of cotton candy, memories of eating the sticky treat at the fair instantly come to mind. I also think about the dreamy pink and blue pastel shades (Pantone 2016 colors of the year anybody?). The Cotton Candy Fragrance Oil smells just like the real thing. So much so that I had to create soap with cotton candy inspired pink and blue pastel colors.

The pink and blue shades are created by mixing Neon Blue Raspberry Color Block and Electric Bubble Gum Color Block with White Melt and Pour Soap Base. For contrast, I also added the Color Blocks to Clear Melt and Pour Soap Base, along with plenty of glitter. The soap is swirled together while layering for an eye-catching effect. It looks a little space-like, don’t you think? Like a cotton candy galaxy! =)

This melt and pour project isn’t difficult necessarily, but it does require an understanding of how melt and pour soap behaves at different temperatures. If you’ve never swirled melt and pour soap before, see my tips here. I definitely recommend having a thermometer for this project to check temperatures. A spray bottle of 99% isopropyl alcohol is also a must. Without spraying alcohol before each layer, they may not stick together. This project is great for making with a friend! It can be nice to have somebody keeping an eye on melt and pour temperatures, and to help spray the alcohol after each step.

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Red Berry Melt & Pour Soap Tart Tutorial

November 8, 2016 Filed Under: Bath & Body Tutorials, Melt & Pour Soap

Rhubarb is such a distinct scent. As soon as you read the word, you likely remembered the smell right away. For me, the scent makes me think of rhubarb pie. I love it so much I decided to make a Berry Rhubarb Crumble Cold Process Soap with Red Berry Rhubarb Fragrance Oil. That got me thinking – what about a melt and pour version? Thus these Red Berry Melt and Pour Soap Tarts were born!

These tarts are all about the layers. Soap colored with Shimmer Merlot Sparkle Color Block and Shimmer Magenta Color Block is layered into the Silicone Scalloped Round Mold. Then, the soap is topped with a cute magenta embed. It smells delicious from the sweet and tart notes in the Red Berry Rhubarb Fragrance Oil.

Layers do take time and patience (and plenty of 99% Isopropyl Alcohol), so I recommend making these soaps when you have a little time on your hands. Invite a friend or two over to make soap, and enjoy each other’s company while you wait to pour the next layer. I recently made melt and pour soap with a few girlfriends who had never soaped before. It’s a great afternoon project, and it’s so fun to share your craft with those close to you.

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Shimmering Snowflake Melt & Pour Tutorial

October 25, 2016 Filed Under: Bath & Body Tutorials, Melt & Pour Soap

Here on the western side of Washington state, we don’t get a lot of snow. Luckily, the mountains are nearby when we want to enjoy skiing, snowboarding, sledding, or just building a snowman. Personally, I have my fingers crossed for a little snow below the mountains this year; our yard has a little hill that would be perfect for sledding!

The thought of fresh snow led me to create these super sparkly snowflake melt and pour soaps. They would make a great holiday gift. It’s also a fun project to do with family and friends who are staying during the holidays. If it doesn’t snow, I’ll probably whip up another batch with my mom to make our own white Christmas! =)

These soaps are scented with Fresh Snow Fragrance Oil, which is a clean, ozone-y fragrance. It reminds me a bit of clean laundry. A small amount of soap is colored with Slushy Blue Mica and placed in the snowflake details with an Injector Tool. This does take require a steady hand and a little patience. Having a spray bottle full of rubbing alcohol helps the soap “spread” into the details more easily, and a Clean Up Tool is great for fixing any mistakes.

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Honey Bee Melt & Pour Soap on Soap Queen TV

October 13, 2016 Filed Under: Bath & Body Tutorials, Melt & Pour Soap

A few months ago, I created these cute Honeycomb Melt and Pour Soaps. I loved them so much, that I decided to make them into a Soap Queen TV tutorial! I changed the colors slightly, but stuck with Pure Honey Fragrance Oil. It smells absolutely amazing and is such a huge crowd pleaser. These honey bee soaps are made in the 6 Cavity Honeycomb Silicone Mold, which makes unmolding easy. It’s also easy to clean and works well for a variety of projects including cold process soap and lotion bars. There are also free downloadable labels for this project to package and give as gifts!

This honey bee project is suitable for both beginner and advanced crafters. It does require some detail work, which can take a little patience. To help with filling in the bee details, I recommend using an Injector Tool and having a Clean Up Tool nearby to fix any mistakes. As with any melt and pour project, 99% isopropyl alcohol in a spray bottle and an infrared thermometer are key!

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Purées & Fresh Ingredients in Melt and Pour Soap

September 28, 2016 Filed Under: Tips & Tricks

I love how a block of melt and pour soap base can be transformed into so many things. If you take a peek at the melt and pour section of this blog, you can see just how many possibilities there are. From color and fragrance to exfoliants and embeds, there are so many design options. It’s easy to understand why crafters of all skill levels enjoy it!

Despite the vast possibilities for melt and pour, there are a few additives that don’t work well. Fresh ingredients like purees and milk are at the top of the list. To understand why these ingredients don’t work, it’s important to understand what melt and pour soap is. Melt and pour soap is ready-made soap that has gone through the saponification process. That means sodium hydroxide lye, oils, glycerin (and sometimes other ingredients) were combined together to make the base – just like making cold process soap! If you’re unfamiliar with saponification, this video explains the process further.

The fact that saponification has already occurred in melt and pour soap is what makes melt and pour soap “easy.” You don’t have to worry about working with lye. Melt and pour soap is ready to use once fully cooled and hardened, so it’s fast too. No cure time is needed for melt and pour. But, because saponification has already occurred, it means that you don’t have as much control over the ingredients in the soap. Ingredients that require saponification to become part of the soap (lye, oils, butters, purees, milk, eggs, etc) don’t work well when added to melt and pour.

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Honeycomb Melt & Pour Soap Tutorial

August 9, 2016 Filed Under: Bath & Body Tutorials, Melt & Pour Soap

Over the past few years, I have spent more and more time in my garden. As my garden has grown, so has my appreciation for honey bees. Honey bees pollinate a wide variety of agricultural crops, making them a critical part of our ecosystem. The decline of the honey bee population, known as Colony Collapse Disorder, poses a serious threat to our environment and economy.

These Honeycomb Melt & Pour Soaps were inspired by the hard-working insects. They’re made with Honey Melt and Pour Soap Base, which contains real honey. Pure Honey Fragrance Oil gives these bars a sweet and delectable scent. To mimic the color of honeycomb, I used a combination of King’s Gold Mica and just a touch of Cappuccino Mica. The result is a vibrant and rich gold color.

I highly recommend having a spray bottle of 99% isopropyl alcohol nearby for this project. Spritzing the soap with alcohol gets rid of air bubbles and will prevent the bee details from coming apart from the honeycomb. Filling in the bee details takes a steady hand and a little patience. I recommend using a dropper or Injector Tool to fill in the black stripes. Without these tools, it’s tricky to fill in such small details. A Clean Up Tool is perfect for fixing any mistakes; I definitely used it a few times! =)

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Fish-in-a-Bag Melt and Pour Soap DIY

July 26, 2016 Filed Under: Bath & Body Tutorials, Melt & Pour Soap

Some soapy projects put a smile on your face. This Fish-in-a-Bag Melt and Pour Soap is definitely one of them! The idea is quite classic and has been recreated many times. Now that Bramble Berry carries cute toy fish, I had to revisit this project. For a twist, I added Brilliant Blue LabColor and Fine Iridescent Glitter. You can’t go wrong with color and sparkle! Apple Macintosh Candle & Soap Fragrance Oil adds a fruity scent and leaves the soap crystal clear. Not all fragrances keep soap crystal clear so keep that in mind when making this project. If you have cloudy soap, it might be the fault of the fragrance oil. Kids love this soap, and it is perfect for party favors.

Some tutorials hang the plastic bags and pour the soap into the bag. I found that the fish went straight to the bottom, which made them look dead; definitely not what we are going for! Another option is to pour the soap into the bag halfway, allow the soap to cool, then place the fish in and fill up the bag. This is an option, but I wanted to make this project as quick and easy as possible.

To keep it simple, I poured all the soap into the bag, and dropped the fish in. Then I clipped the bag with binder clips to seal it and laid it on my counter. The fish fall to the side of the bag. I let the soap cool for about 10 minutes, then flipped the bag over to the other side. The fish stay put, while the other side cools and hardens completely flat. This allows the front to have a natural rounded shape. Once you’re ready to use, peel away the bag and enjoy!

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Buttercup Melt & Pour Soap DIY

June 21, 2016 Filed Under: Bath & Body Tutorials, Melt & Pour Soap

Yesterday was the first official day of summer. Thanks to the sun, my garden and flowers have been growing like crazy. The fresh blooms inspired me to create this Buttercup Melt & Pour Soap. The Mini Daisy Silicone Column Molds create flowers within the bars, and a thin strip of green soap creates a stem. The top is decorated with more yellow flowers and a touch of glitter.

This project is scented with a combination of Sunflower Fragrance Oil and Flower Child Fragrance Oil. The scent combination is a sophisticated floral blend, with notes of jasmine, bergamot and musk. Both fragrances discolor slightly to an ivory/tan. Over time, I found the blue color changed to a slightly more teal hue.

This is an advanced melt and pour project. It involves several layers that require an understanding of melt and pour temperatures. A spray bottle of 99% isopropyl alcohol is crucial for this project. Click here to get more tips for layering melt and pour soap. If you haven’t made melt and pour soap before, I would recommend getting a few simpler projects under your belt first.

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Shark Attack Melt & Pour Soap DIY

June 14, 2016 Filed Under: Bath & Body Tutorials, Melt & Pour Soap

Shark Week on the Discovery channel starts June 26th. If you’re a fan, this Shark Soap project is for you! To create the appearance of crashing waves, white and blue soap are swirled together. Then, shark toys are placed into the soap to look like they are jumping out of the water. I scented it with Coconut Mango Fragrance Oil. It’s smells like a tropical vacation. =)

To achieve the colors in this soap, I used Caribbean Blue Mica and Brilliant Blue LabColor. The mica is first mixed with 99% isopropyl alcohol to get rid of clumps before it’s added to clear soap to create a rich blue color. For the very top layer I used Brilliant Blue LabColor. It gives clear soap a tint of color, but still allows the white soap to be seen. LabColors do need to be diluted before use. If you’re unfamiliar with LabColors, click here to learn more. Then check out this post to learn how to dilute them.

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